Year: 2019

PNW and the Olympic Peninsula

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Family, Photography, Travel

Several weeks ago Laura and her sister Amy drove across country to the house they inherited on Samish Island, Washington. They spent some sister time together and were able to do some final steps to close out their parents’ estate. Earlier this week Amy and I traded places. I flew out on Monday and will drive back across with Laura in a couple of weeks. In the meantime we’ll be getting back together with friends and visiting places we came to love during our year out here.

Edisto River from Bobcat Landing to Brabham Landing

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Paddling

The Bamberg Chamber of Commerce has been sponsoring trips on the Edisto River the first Saturday of each month.  I joined them back in April for a section from Zig-Zag Landing down to Whetstone Landing.  This month they were paddling from Bobcat Landing on the South Edisto down to Brabham Landing.  It was a new … Read More “Edisto River from Bobcat Landing to Brabham Landing” »

Blog Procrastination

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Miscellaneous, Paddling, Photography, Rambling

It’s strange how procrastination operates, especially when blogging. I like to keep things as current as possible, but sometimes I get behind. That’s when a vicious cycle kicks in. I feel like I can’t write about new things until I’ve covered some of the events I’ve missed, then I get to a point where the backlog seems insurmountable. At that point procrastination becomes stagnation.

Big Red on Jocassee

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Paddling

When I bought Big Red last December I did so with one specific venue in mind – Lake Jocassee. Jocassee is remote and some of the coolest locations are a distant paddle. I was thinking that a nearly 18′ boat with a rudder might make those spots more accessible. It’s been almost half a year since I bought the thing, but I decided that it was time to take Big Red out for its first run on the lake.

Cypress Adventures – Part 2, Ebenezer Creek

Posted on By Tom 2 Comments on Cypress Adventures – Part 2, Ebenezer Creek
Geocaching and Maps, History and Genealogy, Paddling, Photography

Thursday was Sparkleberry Swamp with the Tri-County Blueway Paddlers. Since this was a Second Saturday, it also meant that it was time for a trek with Lowcountry Unfiltered. We would be doing a trip through yet another cypress swamp, this time along Ebenezer Creek in Georgia. I drove down Friday night so that I wouldn’t … Read More “Cypress Adventures – Part 2, Ebenezer Creek” »

Remembering the Walke

Posted on By Tom 6 Comments on Remembering the Walke
Family, History and Genealogy

Both my late father and Laura’s father served in the US Navy in WWII. Dad talked a little about doing MP patrols in Paris and being stationed in Guam, but really didn’t talk about the war. Mr. Wright was also reticent to talk about the way. I guess some experiences are just too hard to discuss. Now they are both gone, and those stories with them. However, there is one story from Mr. Wright that was told to Laura, not about WWII, but his later service in the Korean War. It was the story about how his ship, the USS Walke, was torpedoed in the Sea of Japan.