2017 In The Rear View

In that old tradition of looking backward instead of forward, it's time for another year in review. My timing is pretty good - as of my writing this there's about 9 hours left in 2017. Since I don't anticipate any more photo trips in the next 9 hours, I thought it was safe to go ahead and try to put something together.

Funny, looking back I did a lot more than I thought, maybe because a few of the trips were relatively local which is something I'd like to do more of. Some really exceptional experiences to look back on for me, and to once again realize how lucky I've been to see some of the things I have.

First up was the insane Super Bloom we had here in California this past spring. After years of drought, dormant flower seeds got the rain they needed to grow and put on a show. I made a quick trip a few hours north of LA to Carrizo Plain National Monument to take in the view.

 

In July/August was a marathon trip to Kenya and Egypt. An amazing safari in Kenya during the migration season. We saw more action and different life than any other safari I've been a part of. Most days we found ourselves out on game drives for 12 hrs straight as it never let up. It was exceptional. Egypt was new for me, and I didn't do it justice at all, but visited Cairo, Giza and the Sahara. Of course the pyramids were great to see, but getting out into the desert was probably the highlight for me. I hope I can get back there soon, there's so much to see and the people were terrific. I still haven't done a proper post on Egypt, but it is on the schedule.

 

I still don't know how to describe seeing the total solar eclipse. I went up to Casper Wyoming and... well... I guess you had to be there.

Solar Eclipse

Fall foliage in the Rockies? What's not to like? A few days in Telluride in peak season was beautiful.

 

And I just returned from a dive trip to Indonesia a few days ago. This is a preview of a post I'll be doing soon on the trip. Highlights were watching Mt. Agung do a bit of erupting, and as usual, the diving around Komodo was exceptional. Of course I made a stop to check in on the dragons again as well.

I have no idea what's in store for 2018, but we're looking back right now aren't we?