The Blizzard of 2016 (sort of)

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on The Blizzard of 2016 (sort of)
Local, Photography, Rambling

Old Car

NOTE: I’m still catching up. All of the snow is now melted and gone, and this weekend is in stark contrast to last weekend.

I actually love snow days. There is an entire ritual of activities, soup, and pursuit of warmth that combine to make our rare winter weather a treat. Even though I no longer work for the schools and snow days have long since lost the same meaning, I still get excited when I see the first sign of flakes. This past week’s blizzard (or what passes for one in these parts) did not disappoint.

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Exploring LA (aka Lower Anderson)

Posted on By Tom No Comments on Exploring LA (aka Lower Anderson)
Photography, Rambling

Ebenezer Methodist Church, Anderson County

NOTE: One again I’m trying to play catch-up on blogging. This post is about a week+ behind the times.

MLK Weekend has gotten to be one of my traditional exploration weekends. One of my partners in crime is usually available either that Saturday or the following Monday. It’s a great chance to take advantage of winter exploration conditions. With leaves off the trees hidden features often reveal themselves.

This particular MLK Weekend Alan had a list of sites he wanted to explore. Even though he and I had biked part of the Palmetto Trail through Newberry County just last Saturday, I was up for more adventure. His list included locations in LA, or, as Lower Anderson, as it is known in our part of the world.

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Biking from Peak to Pomaria with Lowcountry Unfiltered

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on Biking from Peak to Pomaria with Lowcountry Unfiltered
Photography, Rambling

LCU Peak to Pomaria-152

The first Second Saturday of the new year means a new year of adventure for Lowcountry Unfiltered. In winter months we usually do a hike of some type. Last January our group took a hike to the top of Table Rock. This year we decided on a bike ride along a portion of the Palmetto Trail.

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Passerelle Bistro

Posted on By Tom No Comments on Passerelle Bistro
Restaurants

It’s Restaurant Week in Greenville! Participating restaurants offer several courses on a limited menu, usually at a fixed priced per person. Overall it’s much less than if you had selected the same options from the regular menu. This is an excellent opportunity to get out and try new places around town, and perhaps discover a new favorite restaurant.

Laura and I browsed through the participating restaurants, trying to decide on a place for Friday evening. Finally we settled on Passerelle Bistro and made our reservations.

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A Hike along a Pleasant Ridge

Posted on By Tom 2 Comments on A Hike along a Pleasant Ridge
Photography, Rambling

Pleasant Ridge Park-41

It started with a turkey sandwich, and the need for a place to eat it. It was a weird day, in terms of exploration, but one that ultimately turned up some interesting discoveries, at least for me.

When I started out I only had two things in mind. First I wanted to get out of the house. With all of the rain and trying to put the house back together after Christmas, I wanted a bit of a break. I wanted to find an interesting place for photos. The second thing was that I was tired of eating out at lunch and wanted to save some money and calories. I’d made a lovely turkey sandwich and, despite it being rather chilly, I figured I could find an interesting place to eat it.

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What’s in Your Car?

Posted on By Tom 3 Comments on What’s in Your Car?
Gear
Overstuffed Car
Photo by Mark Bloom at Tales from the Trash

Every now and then I run across a “What’s in your bag?” post or discussion on various photography forums. I’ve seen it applied to other subjects such as fishing, or even just travel in general The question really boils down to, “What do you think are the essentials?”

It’s not an easy question to answer. You can’t really grab some checklist off of the Internet and expect it to work for you. Such a list evolves through experience, and as you add and subtract items that either gain or lose their usefulness.

My problem is that I have too many bags. I have several for photography-related gear. I’ve got two dry bags that are always packed with what I consider kayaking essentials. I also have a bag for audio recording gear. Sometimes I’ll mix and match content from these bags for a specific adventure. I have already made a list of some of what I consider to be essentials in general. Rather than look at what’s in a bag, I thought that today I’d consider what was in my car.

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First Light Paddle 2016

Posted on By Tom 1 Comment on First Light Paddle 2016
Family, Paddling, Photography, Travel

First Light Paddle-58

We have built up several New Years traditions over the years. If we’re at home, we have a fondue dinner on the Eve while watching the year roll in. The morning rings in with a breakfast casserole and mimosas. We watch the Rose Parade (per instructions from the Californian in the household) while taking down the Christmas tree, and have nachos while watching the Rose Bowl Game.

That’s a normal year. However, the past couple of years have been anything but normal. Last year I started the year by myself as Laura had to be with her mom. I took the opportunity to watch the sun rise from the highest point in South Carolina, Sassafras Mountain. This year I was in Florida for New Year for the first time ever. Since I had missed my usual Winter Solstice Sunrise paddle, I decided to do a First Light paddle.

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