Favorite Travel Quotes

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts."
-- Mark Twain
Innocents Abroad

"Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and celebrate the journey." -- Fitzhugh Mullan

"A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving." -- Lao Tzu

Archive for September, 2015

Blood Moon

posted: September 28th, 2015 | by:Bert

©Bert Gildart: Last night the sun, the Earth and the moon lined up in a row creating a celestial performance that is for most a once in a lifetime event.

It was the first such display since the year 1982, and we’re told it won’t occur again until 2033. It’s unique for most because you must have appropriate conditions to experience – and to enjoy – the event, and last night in Bigfork, Montana, we had those conditions. There was no lingering smoke from fires, and the skies were completely cloudless. Moreover, it seemed as though there was little human activity, suggesting that many were absorbed by the cosmos. It was also cool, and the combination of conditions added to the clarity of the major players.

BloodMoon-2 BloodMoon-4 BloodMoon-3


Images from Bigfork, Montana of last night’s celestial phenomena:  the Blood Moon.


From the vantage of our porch, the moon appeared huge and there was a reason, for the moon was closer to the earth than in any other time in its orbit. We also knew from reading that as the eclipse intensified the moon would assume a rusty-red-orange generating the name “blood moon.” The colors existed because the shadow wasn’t perfect and because “faint sunbeams sneak around Earth’s edges on all sides [assuming] the color of a sunset.”

But those are explanations you can pull from the internet as well as all the predictions associated with this grand celestial occurrence, such as a decline in the stock market, thoughts that we’ll all go crazy, and end of the world prognostications.

But Janie and I are still here and this morning are marveling that we were able to witness this rare phenomena — created by three spheres separated by millions of miles.



———


THIS TIME LAST YEAR:

Organ Act of the NPS


4th ed. Autographed by the Authors

Hiking Shenandoah National Park

Hiking Shenandoah National Park is the 4th edition of a favorite guide book, created by Bert & Janie, a professional husband-wife journalism team. Lots of updates including more waterfall trails, updated descriptions of confusing trail junctions, and new color photographs. New text describes more of the park’s compelling natural history. Often the descriptions are personal as the Gildarts have hiked virtually every single park trail, sometimes repeatedly.

$18.95 + Autographed Copy


Big Sky Country is beautiful

Montana Icons: 50 Classic Symbols of the Treasure State

Montana Icons is a book for lovers of the western vista. Features photographs of fifty famous landmarks from what many call the “Last Best Place.” The book will make you feel homesick for Montana even if you already live here. Bert Gildart’s varied careers in Montana (Bus driver on an Indian reservation, a teacher, backcountry ranger, as well as a newspaper reporter, and photographer) have given him a special view of Montana, which he shares in this book. Share the view; click here.

$16.95 + Autographed Copy


What makes Glacier, Glacier?

Glacier Icons: 50 Classic Views of the Crown of the Continent

Glacier Icons: What makes Glacier Park so special? In this book you can discover the story behind fifty of this park’s most amazing features. With this entertaining collection of photos, anecdotes and little known facts, Bert Gildart will be your backcountry guide. A former Glacier backcountry ranger turned writer/photographer, his hundreds of stories and images have appeared in literally dozens of periodicals including Time/Life, Smithsonian, and Field & Stream. Take a look at Glacier Icons

$16.95 + Autographed Copy






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Rocky Mountain Airstream Rally

posted: September 13th, 2015 | by:Bert

©Bert Gildart:  Several people have asked why no blog postings this past month, and the reason is twofold.  We have been extraordinarily busy, but I also assumed that  many who follow me on Facebook may also following me on my blog.  Apparently that’s not the case, so I’m going to try and make up for my neglect.

So what have we been doing?  We’ve been doing lots.  We’ve been tarring the driveway, and that took almost a week.  We’ve been completing work on updates for our Shenandoah reprint. We’ve been getting caught up with annual doctor appointments, seeing dentists for the much dreaded annual cleaning of our teeth — and we’ve coping with smoke from forest fires, writing stories for several magazines,  and putting together a slide show that proved challenging.

WALLY BYNUM RALLY

The challenge was not from content, but rather from the mechanics of using my chosen slide program.  Be that as it may, I’m glad I worked through the challenges because our audience proved to be a very attentive and enthusiastic group.  And now I understand the program.



AS-Rally-2

Airstream enthusiast gather at St. Mary, GNP, last destination of month-long tour of Rocky Mountains.

 


Our audience consisted entirely of men and women devoted to Airstream travel (us too! See: Our First 100,000 Miles), and indeed, this group proved to be an exceptionally well traveled one.  Several had towed Airstreams into South America.  Others had traveled throughout all of the Canadian provinces and throughout the Baja as well.  Independently, others had hiked the Appalachian Trail, climbed mountains and floated the Missouri.  This was an active group!

But back to the objective of this particular group.  This group was one assembled by virtue of the historic Wally Bynum Caravan Club, named after the man who conceived the notion that an aerodynamic trailer could best suit the needs of Americans seeking adventure on the road.  From the 1930s until his death in 1962, Bynum developed both a romance and an enthusiasm associated with recreational travel and adventure.  Today, his  philosophy still prevails among those who have purchased Airstreams.   Appropriately, the focus of this particular group trip was a broad swath of the Canadian Rocky Mountains, concluding, finally, in Glacier National Park.

And that’s where I came in.


GrizzlyBear KintlaLake


My Program concerned Airstream travel throughout N. America
concluding with a discussion of Bear Management in beautiful Glacier National Park.


Group leader Carlos Leech wanted a speaker familiar with the park and when someone introduced him to my book, Glacier Icons, Mr. Leech thought I qualified.  Accordingly, about a week ago I presented a digital slide show accompanied with a talk entitled: Thoughts about Glacier National Park, its Bear Management Program and our Airstream Travels.  In part, I assume, because of the program, Mr. Leech purchased a book for every Airstream couple.  And, of course, I received an honorarium.

So there it is, an encapsulation of our past month, and now,  because things are now slowing down, I can assure you I won’t go as long between blog postings.  In the meantime, I want to offer a most sincere thank you to readers for their interest in our activities — and for hanging in there.


———————

 

Airstream Travels This Time Last Year:

Has the NPS Fulfilled Its Mandate?

 

4th ed. Autographed by the Authors

Hiking Shenandoah National Park

Hiking Shenandoah National Park is the 4th edition of a favorite guide book, created by Bert & Janie, a professional husband-wife journalism team. Lots of updates including more waterfall trails, updated descriptions of confusing trail junctions, and new color photographs. New text describes more of the park’s compelling natural history. Often the descriptions are personal as the Gildarts have hiked virtually every single park trail, sometimes repeatedly.

$18.95 + Autographed Copy


Big Sky Country is beautiful

Montana Icons: 50 Classic Symbols of the Treasure State

Montana Icons is a book for lovers of the western vista. Features photographs of fifty famous landmarks from what many call the “Last Best Place.” The book will make you feel homesick for Montana even if you already live here. Bert Gildart’s varied careers in Montana (Bus driver on an Indian reservation, a teacher, backcountry ranger, as well as a newspaper reporter, and photographer) have given him a special view of Montana, which he shares in this book. Share the view; click here.

$16.95 + Autographed Copy


What makes Glacier, Glacier?

Glacier Icons: 50 Classic Views of the Crown of the Continent

Glacier Icons: What makes Glacier Park so special? In this book you can discover the story behind fifty of this park’s most amazing features. With this entertaining collection of photos, anecdotes and little known facts, Bert Gildart will be your backcountry guide. A former Glacier backcountry ranger turned writer/photographer, his hundreds of stories and images have appeared in literally dozens of periodicals including Time/Life, Smithsonian, and Field & Stream. Take a look at Glacier Icons

$16.95 + Autographed Copy




 

 

Read Comments | 1 Comment »