A Traveller’s Eye, A Thinker’s Heart

I like to tell stories. I like to take photos.
And I like to share them. Enjoy.

  • WEST COAST TRAIL, BRITISH COLOMBIA, 1980

    On 22 January 1906, the 253-foot passenger vessel Valencia ran aground along the perilous west coast of British Colombiaโ€™s Vancouver Island. She lost 133 of her passengers and crew due to high seas, rugged terrain and the inhospitable, remote area with an almost impenetrable rain forest. The coastline lived up to its name of the

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  • BOLIVIA 1989

    BOLIVIA 1989

    When my folks told me that an exchange student from Bolivia would be living with them at the family home in northern Wisconsin I knew right away that a time would come when I would make it truly an โ€˜exchangeโ€™. In July of 1989, I gripped my seat on a plane landing at La Pazโ€™s

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  • A TOURIST-FREE EGYPT, 1990

    A TOURIST-FREE EGYPT, 1990

    In December of 1990, there was a global fear of a regional war in the Middle East. Saddam Hussein had invaded Kuwait and was ignoring demands for withdrawal. There were fears the war would escalate well beyond the borders of Kuwait. And that made it a perfect time to travel to Egypt. Tourism in the

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  • FITZGERALD RIVER NATIONAL PARK

    FITZGERALD RIVER NATIONAL PARK

    Fitzgerald River National Park is one of Western Australiaโ€™s largest parks but only comprises 0.13% of the Stateโ€™s total area. Yet 20% of the Stateโ€™s flora can be found in the park. Itโ€™s a ridiculously diverse region of the State where you can find 1800 species of flowering plants. About 60 of those species are

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  • VALE MARIO

    VALE MARIO

    With great sadness I learned today of the passing of my friend, mentor, former boss and co-founder of the modern Costa Rican National Park Service. Mario Boza passed away yesterday at the age of 79. He had been suffering from mouth cancer since late April. His death comes as a shock as only a few

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  • A JOURNEY TO THE SOUTHWEST

    A JOURNEY TO THE SOUTHWEST

    DAYS 1-3: SOUTHERN FORESTS AND VALLEYS Padma and I started getting itchy feet again and wanted to get some camping in before the heat and bugs of summer made it less fun. We plotted an itinerary to the Great Southern Region of Western Australia but soon discovered many of the national park campgrounds do not

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  • THE GRANDFATHER I NEVER KNEW

    THE GRANDFATHER I NEVER KNEW

    Unbeknownst to me until a few weeks ago I had a rather famous step grandfather. And it seems that the world forgot about him โ€ฆ so I feel compelled to tell his story. Frederick Ferdinand Moore jumped on a cattle ship in Boston Harbor in the 1890s when he was 15. He became an adventurer,

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  • BRAIN FOG

    BRAIN FOG

    Photo: Drosera porrecta. A species of sundew without a common name. Endemic to Western Australia. Carnivorous. Has traps consisting of sticky-glandular, flypaper-like leaves. Hard to find. Will have a white flower later in the year. Once upon a time I was a naturalist in the state and national parks of the United States. I would

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  • WEEK ONE AS A PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER

    WEEK ONE AS A PEACE CORPS VOLUNTEER

    Forty years ago today, I set foot in Costa Rica for the first time. I arrived as an altruistic, just-out-of-college, cleanly shaven youngster who was determined to save the world from an impending environmental disaster. I figured I could do that in two years as a US Peace Corps Volunteer. Those two years evolved into

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