Today I've had one of these sorta days ❤️
Notes – 2025 (275)
Today we set out on a hike close to town to acclimatise to the wind & cold after our Spanish summer. Followed the banks of the Rio de las Vueltas, the scenery was nothing short of stunning. @khusky was busy capturing some great shots of the local birdlife, I tried to do justice to the vast, breathtaking landscapes with my camera. Not a long walk but enough for first full day here.
So stunningly beautiful here.
This car has seen better days and I bet a whole heap of interesting stories to tell
This guy came out of the bush towards us in El Chalten today. Friendly little fella.
I felt so enthused by my journey yesterday afternoon I decided to write about it.
The Finest Journey of All (Or, How We Stopped Being Grumpy Gits)
If you’ve been following this TravelLog, you’d be forgiven for thinking we’re two joy-sucking vampires who hate fun, sunlight, and functional transportation. The journey had been a masterclass in frustration, requiring the patience of a saint and the resilience of a Nokia 3310.
After a tough, frustrating 45 hours of difficult travelling, the final 3 hours were unmitigated bliss! The gods were smiling down on us as we approached El Chalten and the magnificent Mt Fitzroy welcomed us. Not the best image as shot from a mini bus travelling at 95kph, constantly hit by crosswinds and a dirty windscreen.
Will write more about this magical 3 hour journey tomorrow but beer and pizza await.
I'm sorry but I've just discovered that my website micro blog system I intended to use for recording my trip to Patagonia won't embed video correctly.
Changed to https://scribbles.page/patagonia-diaries which also has RSS feed
Interesting read. Quite fancy a play with one of these Mudita phones, even though most of my exploratory efforts on the mobile side of tech lean towards a Linux phone.
https://guiltygamer.com/i-degoogled-in-a-snap-with-the-mudita-kompakt/
Very soon we head south to Patagonia. Been looking for software to record our TravelLog. I use 11ty for my sites but it's not for posting from mobiles. WordPress overly complex. Mastodon ... don't want to fill timeline with every post. Looked at micro.blog but settled on scribbles.page which is distraction free, intuitive & simple.
https://scribbles.page/patagonia-diaries
Also posting to Just Penguins which is more visual https://tinyurl.com/2uy23k9h
Mi pueblo
Spent a few hours today thinking about a tent for Patagonia. Don't need expedition tent as only out for 3 days max at a time. Given ferocity of weather in Patagonia it needs to be very strong to withstand the winds. It's a weight x comfort x performance equation. Eventually settled for the single skin Crux Raid X1. A little small for two but very strong, stable, tough & relatively easy to put up in blizzards. Plus, only 1.5kg (3.3lbs) to carry around.
Unusual view looking down on the village of Capileira in the Alpujarras from high up on the slopes of Las Alegas (2700m) in the Sierra Nevada.The morning sun has reached all parts of the village but the Barranco de Poqueira remains in shadow,
After a bit of a grey and dismal long weekend in the UK, today it was nice to head up above home on 4WD tracks and get the clearest view of the African continent we've had this year. Morocco did indeed seem very close, although in reality is some 220km away in a direct line across the Mediterranean.
View from the summit of las Alegas, 2700m looking south over Salobreña to Al Hoceima in Morocco
There are some amazing online & Management apps out there. I've tried most of them. As I get older & focus more on reducing pack weight, I realized that none of the existing solutions quite fit what I am looking for. So, 6 months ago I decided to create something for myself. Been using ever since.
It's for all. No a/c registration required as all data stored locally. It may work for you, it may not. It works for me.
Just starting to excited about heading back to Patagonia. Only 3 weeks to go until we head out and get back to scenes such as this from 2014 on the western side of the Cerro Torre massif. Better start making a packing list pronto.
Sometimes the ways of the world get me down. Why oh why can't we just be nice to each other?
But all that negativity disperses when I do the morning dog walk. Life isn't so bad after all is it?
Have a great weekend everybody!
Fantastic half-day hike up the isolated peak of Gilillo in the stunning Parque Natural de la Sierra de Cazorla.
Begins with gentle ascent through beautiful forests before breaking out onto the open hillside. Trail leads up to the Puerto Gilillo pass and onto a summit that is far more dramatic than we expected.
The summit itself is sharp and rocky, and because the peak stands so alone, the 360-degree views of the endless sierras are absolutely breathtaking.
Hard photographing birds in flight isn't it? Especially for a landscape photographer who's subject is pretty much static. Thing is with birds, the little blighters just won't stay still, will they?
Here's 4 images of the Griffon Vulture from a photo shoot I did a few days ago at the amazing El Chorro cliffs in the Sierra de Cazorla a few days ago. Keep rate was probably 1/50 🤣
Not a menu for @khusky my vegetarian wife. Maybe she could try the Vegetarian Croissant tapa though which only includes a bit of tuna? Don't you just love rural Spain 🤣
What a superb Grand Final this is at it's finest