Eagle Egg on Santa Cruz Island

by Erik Olsen on

Some folks here might remember the post I did last summer
about the Channel Islands. I was out there with a bunch of buddies doing some kayaking and camping, and we had a
glorious time. The islands really are one of the great hidden gems of California outdoors life, and I’d advise anyone
making plans to California to give a trip out there some thought.

The islands are rather dry and quiet, but
you can hike all over the place and some of the vistas from the high cliffs are amazing. The sea kayaking is also
supurb, especially on Santa Cruz island, where you paddle through a series of amazing sea caves.

So
speaking of Santa Cruz Island, I came across this
bit of interesting news. I just have to call this one out because I’m such a big fan of the islands. Turns out that
for the first time in more than 50 years, an eagle laid an egg in a nest on the island. Is ths earth-shattering news?
No, but the naturalist in me thought it was pretty cool.

St. Helens Trail to Crater Opening?

by Erik Olsen on

Some
good to great news for hikers who fancy a little bit of sulphur during their walks. Not to mention great views. Looks
like the epic trail to the crater of Mt. St. Helens in Washington State might reopen. it has been
a long long time since they cut off access to it…around 2004, since the lava dome started building and scaring
geologists that another big eruption was on the way. But the trail, so I’m told, I’ve never done it, is supposedly
gorgeous, offering  sweet views inside the crater itself. They say the trail may reopen as early as this year, so
strap on your hiking boots, put on your gas mask, and get yourself a virgin.

Red Corner: Hiking in Georgia

by Neil Woodburn on

The former Soviet Republic of Georgia is the type of place that is so mesmerizing and so enrapturing that it is actually difficult to communicate its true essence to those who have never been-especially to those who can’t seem to get past the fact that there is actually a country named Georgia, not just a state.

A recent article in The Observer does a great job of capturing all that this country has to offer. Journalist Joanne O’Connor joined a nine-day guided tour through the wilds of Georgia that focused upon the great outdoors. Although I’m not a big fan of guided tours, I personally found travel through Georgia a little bit of a challenge when visiting last summer. A guided tour will help ease these challenges and, as was the case with O’Connor, get you to places that would be difficult to find on your own.

O’Connor did the obligatory stop in Tbilisi (where she discovered the joys of Georgian food) before heading out of town to hike the beautiful Caucasus. Her descriptions are evocative and inspiring. Even though I had done some of the same hikes, the others she mentions leave me with that painful sense of disappointment that hits when one leaves a wonderful place only to discover there was so much more it had to offer.

Blogging From Antarctica

by Erik Olsen on

Boing Boing has a post on some of
the folks who are blogging from stations in Antarctica, and they note that some 60 scientists and technicians and
regular guys are doing it. They feign some surprise that such a large number of folks would actively blog from such a
forbidden place. But especially because it is winter, it makes sense. I mean, tell me what else these folks have to do
with their lives?

The one blog among a few that I checked out that I quite liked was the one by Phil Jacobsen. I went to college with a guy named Phil Jacobsen, but I searched
through the pictures here and it doesn’t seem to be the same fella. Anyway, you have to fancy what this says
about the state of the world today…or rather the “smallness” of it due to the Internet.

Science Books – 2006 Aventis Prize

by Erik Olsen on

Not only am I a big fan of travel
books, I also read as many science books as I can get my eyes on. And this year was a particularly bountiful one for
science books. The 13 books list of popular science books
vying for the prestigious 2006 Aventis Prize has been announced, and it would behoove anyone who wants to know more
about the natural world, and perhaps the future of mankind, to give them a read.

I’m of the opinion that
travelers are very curious people, and that science can substantially inform travelers as they embark on trips around
the globe. You gain insights through books into cultures and anthropology as well as human nature.

One
great book this year for travelers was Collapse, by Jared
Diamond. What a better book to take with you as you head out to Mexico and the former kingdom of the Maya,
described in great detail in the book. Or to Easter Island, that distant speck of land where a great culture once
reigned, and then nearly vanished, leaving behind a silent army of massive stone heads.

For your reading
and curious pleasure, I post the list of nominees here:

Electric Universe – How
Electricity Switched on the Modern World, by David Bodanis (Little Brown)

Collapse – How Societies Choose to Fail or Survive, by Jared Diamond (Penguin Allen
Lane)

The Elements of Murder – A History of Poison, John Emsley
(Oxford University Press)

The Gecko’s Foot – Bio-inspiration –
Engineering New Materials from Nature, by Peter Forbes (Fourth Estate)

The Silicon Eye – How a Silicon Valley Company Aims to Make All Current Computers, Cameras, and Cell
Phones Obsolete, by George Gilder (WW Norton)

Parallel Worlds
– The Science of Alternative Universes and our Future in the Cosmos, by Michio Kaku (Penguin)

Power, Sex, Suicide – Mitochondria and the Meaning of Life, by Nick
Lane (Oxford University Press)

Venomous Earth – How Arsenic Caused the
World’s Worst Mass Poisoning, by Andrew Meharg (Macmillan)

Empire of the Stars – Friendship, Obsession and Betrayal in the Quest for Black Holes, by
Arthur I. Miller (Little Brown)

Seven Deadly Colours – The Genius of
Nature’s Palette and how it Eluded Darwin, by Andrew Parker (Simon & Schuster)

The Truth About Hormones – What’s Going on when we’re Tetchy, Spotty, Fearful, Tearful or Just
Plain Awful, by Vivienne Parry (Atlantic Books)

Stalking the
Riemann Hypothesis – The Quest to Find the Hidden Law of Prime Numbers, by Dan Rockmore (Jonathan
Cape)

The Fruits of War – How War and Conflict have Driven Science, by
Michael White (Simon & Schuster)