Von Hütte zu Hütte

When I was about 12 years old I fell deeply in love with the Alps of Europe. We were fortunate enough to live in the small Bavarian town of Oberammergau and my parents took us on many long walks in the area. My friend Grant and I hiked up to our first Hütte and spent the night there planning other grand adventures, most of which resembled James Bond stories. Our Boy Scout troop was very active and we hiked and camped throughout Bavaria. My folks gave me "Von Hütte zu Hütte", a book in german describing many wonderful mountain routes and their "huts" which in reality are mountain houses with hot water, warm beds and mountain inn style food, which whetted my appetite for mountains even more.

I'm grateful that Bobbie shares my love of the high country. She enjoys the physical challenge as much as the sense of serenity and peace found in high lonely places. So it is with great joy we set out upon this journey. To be able to take six guilt free weeks to indulge in what we love so much is freedom and joy of the highest order. We have no pets right now, hardly any work, and no mortgage or debt. We both have our health (as good as it gets when one is near 60) so in our minds there is only one thing to do..."Get it while you can!!!"

Some Thoughts on Travel

Why travel? Why leave a beautiful, peaceful home in God's Country, Big Sur, California and subject oneself to the unknown? Perhaps conquering that fear of the unknown is the allure...or is it the traveller's discovery that we all really are one, each with the same desires, goals, trials, victories, defeats, hopes and fears? Or is it simply the desire for a change of scenery?

I will attempt to find the answer to these questions over the coming weeks, and share what I find but for now this is an experiment in uploading a photo and message from the iPad directly to the blog.

10 Days and Counting

Sunset Above Garrapata Canyon

On this trip notes won't be scribbled into a notebook journal as in trips past. Grudgingly we move into the 21st century and are pleased to find technology has provided us with almost all a traveller could ask for in the iPad2. I have been one to caution others about not trusting say, a GPS, because batteries can fail, glass breaks, seals leak and basically what can go wrong, probably will. So the reader might understand my reluctance to load travel books, maps, contact information, reservation information, music library, and much more onto a device with about 100 sq in of glass and a battery that needs to be recharged.

I hope you enjoy travelling along with us as we take 6 weeks to explore Europe by car and camping most of the time. We would love to hear about your recommendations for favorite spots as we have no real itinerary and only the goal of simply being and experiencing other ways of living on this beautiful planet.