Dog on Board

Shortly after my last post we adopted a dog from Seattle Purebred Dog Rescue. She's a West Highland White Terrier. This breed has great appeal to me not only because most are under 18 pounds and will fit as carry on for most international flights, but they are the happiest dogs and always ready to "Go!" That is my kind of dog.

This will mean a new outlook for me in travel planning. She won't be able to do many of the hikes we do since many involve 15 -20 miles in a day, over mountain passes in blizzards, leaping over rock chasms (her legs are at least 10 times shorter than mine) and hiking in National Parks. So there will be times when she will have to stay home.

However, I will begin to research kennels in Europe. Many of our hikes are about a week with the rest of the time either doing day hikes or traveling around Europe. Possibly, if we found a good kennel in Lyon or Geneva, we could board her during the hike. This will take some careful consideration however as the air travel itself might be too harsh on her. I suppose dogs can get jet lag just like humans.

Walking, Not Writing

A busy year since the last post. It has been a year of travel. In early January 2014, we spent time in our favorite place in the world, Le Vallee de Belleville in the Alps. Skiing, hiking, eating, visiting friends, celebrating birthdays. A future chapter on this site will be about skiing and hiking in winter in the valley. There is so much territory for all levels of experience to explore.

The summer was filled with more hiking closer to home in the Cascades. A trip to Stehekin was a highlight. The long boat trip up the lake to a remote lodge where we biked with bears and hiked up Mt. McKenzie. I will post photos and describe the hike. This is a place to return to as often as possible.

Then, in September we headed out to Amsterdam, Belgium and France. Of course, walking in the cities can be as ambitious as a mountain hike and we did a lot of that. But, the highlight was spending the week hiking the Cote du Corzon in Brittany. Spectacular coastal cliffs, small villages, standing stones and circles and lots of WW II historical sites along the way. I will post maps and photos of that soon. And to round out the year a little hiking on the Big Island was balanced by a little snorkeling and beach sleeping.

So, winter is coming on and staying a little closer to home for awhile so time to write up the adventures not only to please myself but to give some solid information should anyone find themselves exploring the places I've been.

a bientot!

Tour de France - we'll follow in their tracks.

Tour de France starts tomorrow in Corsica. Can't wait to see it. There are three stages and the first is tomorrow June 29, 2013 from Porto Vecchio to Bastia. Then Sunday goes from Bastia, to Corte and on to Ajaccio. This is the area we will be hiking.

This won't be the first time we have followed in the tracks of the Tour. In fact, many of the routes they take in the Alps are passes or roads we have passed over.

Books to travel by

As I begin to compile my bookshelf page I am taking the books off my shelf, thumbing through them and remembering how much each one has contributed to my travels. This is going to take a long time as I easily get wrapped up in one chapter, then the next. Just like food, or sounds or sights can evoke a memory or thought of a place, these books sail me back to where I've been and where the author has been.

Sometimes I read up before I go, sometimes I take the book with me and other times I read long after I've returned home. These are the books I can never let go of. They are the ones that will collect dust until years later I discover them again. They are as important to me as the photos I take, the music I've purchased or the journals I've written while traveling.

Many of these books have been hard to come by. They are out of print or only available in the United Kingdom so thanks to Amazon, I've been able to find most everything I want.

Many have also found me. I love to scour the travel sections of used book stores and have found many treasures I would never of heard of had I not bumped into them on the store's shelf.

Of course there are many titles I have borrowed from the library and though they are not on my personal shelf, I know they will always be accessible as long as libraries are around.

The stack is growing next to me so I best be back to work if I am ever going to list all of my favorites.

More hikes and pages to come

Thinking about what other hikes we've done in Europe and coming up with a list of new pages to create.

England
The Cornish Coast
The Lakes District
The Cotswolds

Ireland
The Burren in County Clare and Galway
Connemara National Park
Dublin -- another great city for walk, walk, walking

Switzerland
Lauterbrunnen Valley

France
Dordogne
Port-Cros National Park, Iles d'Hyeres
Parc Natural Regional des Alpilles

Italy
Santa Margherita

And hikes and places that are on the list but not done yet

Spain
Andalusia -- must do

France 
GR5 or haute route
Pyrenees
Any place in the Alps we haven't been and places we have -- more Vanoise, more Savoie, Ecrins, Ardeche, Vercours

Italy
Gran Paradiso
More Dolomites
Sicily

Slovenia
Austria
Norway
Scotland

Just for starters....

Corsica Bookshelf

One of the things I love about hiking and traveling, is the time leading up to it when I am learning about the place we will be walking through.

Here are a few books about Corsica besides travel guides that I have read or plan on reading:

Asterix in Corsica by Rene Goscinny
A very funny book that some say captures the Corsican spirit better than any travel guide could.

Granite Island by Dorothy Carrington
This is a fascinating story about the time the author spent in Corsica after World War II. She lived there for many years and writes about what makes Corsicans so unique. Their long history of invasions, their mythology and relationship with their dead family members, the vendetta, bandits and the importance of family and respect. It is all woven together to create a culture that is not Italian, not French but uniquely Corsican. It does help explain why there are more murders in this small island than any other country in Europe even today.

Honorable Bandit: A walk across Corsica by Brian Bouldrey
I haven't started this one yet and his travel is farther south than we will be, but looks interesting.

See the Corsica page for more details about our upcoming hike.

Paris

Gearing up for Paris once again. I have lost count how many times we've been there and how much time we have spent in Paris. Well over a dozen times, and probably several months all in all. Though we have worn out many pairs of shoes on Paris cobblestones, I have never tired of it. It is still one of the most walkable, beautiful cities in the world with a surprise around every corner.

We'll be spending a week there this summer and will be going ever deeper and farther to explore the city we love. For my favorite places and things to do, see the Paris Walks page.