Capturing the Moment

  Beautiful view looking downslope at the lodge at Stowe Mountain Resort We have gotten a bit of snow over the past few days here in Stowe, Vermont. Our little town becomes a winter wonderland when that happens and I always say to myself that I should go out and take some photos. Well, today was the day I finally did it. I started in downtown, with the famous Stowe Church. Main street was still all decorated for the holidays. Then I took a few photos on my way up mountain road on my way to the Stowe Mountain Resort. Finally I strapped on my snowboard and headed up the Four Runner Quad to get some photos from way up high. The scenes were just beautiful, but feel free to take a look for yourself. I had to stop here and take a photo of the sun backlighting all of these snow covered trees. I thought, 'what could be more Northeast than this?' My son getting in on the snowy action. Way up on Mount Mansfield, looking down over snowy Vermont View from the top of the quad today at Stowe...

  So far it has been a pretty stellar snow season here in Stowe, Vermont. We got a good six inches one day, and I have been snowboarding ever since. The beautiful thing about an early winter snow, is that the crowds are not yet at the mountain. So it can be just you and a lot of fresh powder. I've been trying to document some of these days. These selfies look pretty similar, until you really look at the backdrop. I tried to capture all different areas over the course of a couple of weeks. The rest of the month doesn't look too good in terms of snowfall, but I'm hoping that it'll be a good February when I am back from Hawaii. View from on top of the quad at Stowe Mountain Resort. The view on my way our of the neighborhood. Spending some time on the mountain with my oldest. Everyone was just pumped to be on the mountain, scoring some fresh powder this day. Susie and I had runs all to ourselves. Sunshine after the snowfall. Where are the crowds? This sign says, 'Warnin...

  I did not see this adventure coming. The cruise ships (at least the little US flagged ones) are starting to run again up in Alaska, just in time for the summer season. I flew up in late May to meet the Safari Quest, a 22 passenger expedition ship that I have worked on since 2018 as an expedition leader. Due to some last minute schedule changes the vessel was dockside for the first week of my arrival. Not only did this mean that I could dust some of the rust off after missing the entire last season due to the pandemic closures, but I could catch up with my buddy Ben who has been living in Juneau full time.   This winter happened to be an epic snow event, dropping feet upon feet here in Juneau. The towering mountains that surround the town are still snow capped now in late May. But I was pretty surprised when Ben suggested we try some split boarding with skins up to some backcountry ski destinations. I told him I was working on various boat projects until around 5pm and he sai...

  2021 started off pretty busy for us in our newly eganged household. We were in Stowe, VT with Catalina (about to turn 3) and Fisher (about to turn 1 1/2). Heidi had just gone through hip surgery so she was in serious rehab, using crutches to get around. Fisher still crawled in bed to nurse with her and Catalina would crawl in bed to read. Otherwise the kids were with me. The snow was very fun for them at first but soon became too deep for them to move. Their little patagonia snow suits kept them warm for strolls, but even the stroller had to be switched out for a sled.       With all of this going on I figured I wouldn't get to use my Bash Badge pass for snowboarding at Smugglers Notch, but as Heidi got her mobility back and lost the crutches, and with the help of her parents watching the kids, I was actually able to get 8 days in on the slopes. A few days were almost emtpy and I experienced all kinds of conditions, from fresh powder to nicely groomed. I think...

  A lot has happened this Fall. Mostly it has been taken up with the antics of our two wonderful kids. There is nothing to quite prepare you for having two under two. It used to be that when I was carrying Catalina, then Heidi would be having a little break...now I look over and we each have one in our arms. That just means I need to take both of them, one of the back and one on the front. In between family time in Vermont I have squeezed in a few short UnCruise rotations in Alaska, Pacific Northwest, and finally Hawaii.    Now it is November and changes are afoot. The golden orange and red leaves have long since fallen, and have been replaced by snow and ice. The Vermont view is beautiful in both of these seasons. We had an exceptionally majestic morning after an evening of light snow that I managed to capture these psuedo time lapse pictures of. This is looking right down the driveway to the tallest mountain peak in Vermont, Mt. Mansfield.    And wi...

 Waking up to fresh snow on the ground is a wonderful part of spending time in Vermont during the winter. This morning was one of those mornings. And while a roaring fire, steaming coffee, and holding a newborn are powerful lures to stay inside, the winter wonderland on the other side of the glass was calling. Plus Neka the puppy just loves going outside to race around in the snow.  So Heidi and I bundled up young Catalina and headed out on a snowy adventure. Neka and I did a little photo shoot to help capture the playful mood the snow brings out.