Intense
"Everything is a once in a lifetime opportunity."
Kobi Yamada
This week we welcome Guest Host Dan of Departing in 5 Minutes. He has challenged us to share some of the once in a lifetime opportunities we've experienced while "unbound" from everyday responsibilities. As such I've chosen to share some of the amazing moments my husband and I have experienced in our many travels.
I've opened above with an image from our visit to Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, which exceeded our incredibly high expectations and then some. There are no words for the wonders of being surrounded by the incredible creatures that roam freely there. Being a few feet from massive elephants and their families, watching a mother leopard carrying a freshly-killed impala up a tree to feed her cub, or seeing dozens of giraffe loping in a long line across the savannah - there is no end to the magic of being among Africa's creatures in their natural world.
Smooth Landing
"To move, to breathe, to fly, to float, To gain all while you give, To roam the roads of lands remote, To travel is to live."
Hans Christian Andersen
Unlike L-A team member John, I am not a big fan of flying in small planes. That said, we've had some amazing experiences that included such travel. In addition to using them on our African adventure, we spent two weeks in Alaska float fishing for salmon (which we then roasted and ate on the shores beyond), and spending a day photographing the amazing grizzlies of Brooks Falls in Katmai National Park. I'd never fished before, nor do I plan to ever do so again, but I'll admit it was a fantastic experience, especially including flight seeing over Alaska's wilderness. We've also helicoptered onto Fox Glacier and Milford Sound in New Zealand and over the amazing Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe.
Mountain Magic, Patagonia
"The mountains are calling and I must go."
John Muir
I've always loved the mountains for their majesty and beauty, That said, although I've done my share of hiking here in the U.S., hiking in South America, especially on the Laguna De Los Tres trail on El Chalten in Argentine Patagonia, is quite another thing entirely
. Making the trek with one of my best friends, encountering a severe windstorm near the top and after hiking back down, trekking another 6 miles to El Chalten is high on my list of favorite "unbound" memories. Beyond the spectacular photography, the sheer exhilaration upon completing the adventure was and is unforgettable.
Rice Fields, Longsheng, China
"If the rain spoils our picnic, but saves a farmer's crop, who are we to say it shouldn't rain?"
Tom Barrett
These days travel to China is not that unusual and visits to the Great Wall or business meetings in Beijing are not uncommon. For me, one of the highlights of our visit to China was an off-the grid visit to the little-known rice fields of Longsheng aka Dragon's Back. Very much out of the way with only minimal accommodations, it fell well within the definition of taking full advantage of being "unbound". Our many memories of our travel in China could fill a book, but for me, alongside the Great Wall, Longsheng would be one of my favorite chapters. (Note the size of the two women with umbrellas for a sense of scale.)
Among the Giants
"Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them, whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth."
Herman Hesse
I'll close today's post with one of the most spiritual experiences I've ever had. Walking among the giant redwoods of California in what feels like a forest primeval, one can sense them breathing as they tower over us reaching toward the sky. The silence is absolutely profound although one imagines their whispers - shared only among themselves. It is as close to magic as we humans will ever be.
Sincere thanks to Dan for offering us an opportunity to revisit our memories of times "unbound". Please be sure to visit and link to his amazing post here, and remember to use the Lens-Artists Tag to appear in our WP reader section. Thanks also to Dawn for last week's Fences challenge, and to you for the incredible variety of responses. Finally, we hope you'll join us next week when Janet of This, That and The Other Thing will join us as our final Guest Host of the month. Until then, as always please stay safe, be kind and enjoy the journey.
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