Travel Galleries

From North Carolina to Chicago: May 9 - June10, 2006 :

From North Carolina to Chicago: May 9 - June10, 2006

Updated: Jul 09, 2006 10:34pm PST

The Southeast: April 2006 : Missing from this gallery are pictures of our stops in Atlanta and Athens, Georgia. We took none in Atlanta (where we toured CNN and visited the Ebenezer Baptist Church), but photos of our Athens visit can be seen at http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/1390938. From Georgia, we headed for Beaufort and Charleston, Carolina Beach, SC Wilmington, NC Outer Banks, Chincoteague, Asseteague National Park, MD, Lewes, DL and St. Michaels, MD

The Southeast: April 2006

Missing from this gallery are pictures of our stops in Atlanta and Ath ...

Updated: Jul 09, 2006 8:42pm PST

From Wisconsin to Arroyo Grande: June 11 - July 7, 2006 :

From Wisconsin to Arroyo Grande: June 11 - July 7, 2006

Updated: Jul 09, 2006 8:31pm PST

In Katrina’s Wake: The Gulf Coast in Shambles – April 2006 : Although Katrina struck eight months ago, her destructive force left a wasteland that may never fully recover. After leaving Slidell, we drove through the worst of the “stawm’s” path: Chalmette and the 9th Ward (where the levees broke), and along Route 90 on the Gulf Coast, through Bay St. Louis, Gulf Port and Biloxi. We are still in shock over what we saw and heard from the folks still there. [To enlarge each photo, simply click on it.]

In Katrina’s Wake: The Gulf Coast in Shambles – April 2006

Although Katrina struck eight months ago, her destructive force left a ...

Updated: Apr 26, 2006 8:20pm PST

Jane’s House in Athens (Georgia, that is!) – April 2006 : Jane Taub was our welcoming committee, tour director and gracious host in Athens, Georgia. She’s also close to friends of ours back home in San Luis Obispo, where Marcia had met her earlier this year. And, she is quite an artiste, especially when it comes to redesigning, rebuilding and otherwise redoing houses. Her own is a case in point: a church that she’s made into her home and spiritual place. Have a look. [To enlarge a photo, simply click on it.]

Jane’s House in Athens (Georgia, that is!) – April 2006

Jane Taub was our welcoming committee, tour director and gracious host ...

Updated: Apr 22, 2006 2:54pm PST

Habitat for Humanity in Slidell: April 1-8, 2006 : Two years ago, on our very first road trip in the RV, we spent a memorable couple of days in Slidell, Louisiana, celebrating Mardi Gras and getting to know a quaint little area of Slidell called Old Town. Slidell sits on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain, where it got battered by Hurricane Katrina. One of our first thoughts during Katrina was of Old Town, its much-loved Soda Shop, and the Shop’s owner, Frank. When we learned of the devastation in Slidell and that the Soda Shop was to be no more, we were saddened. And when we also learned that Habitat for Humanity was working in the area, we decided to sign up for a one-week stint on the job. Hundreds of people from around the country have done the same since last August, and hundreds more will be needed to meet Habitat’s goal of restoring 100 homes for those whose homes were destroyed in what’s referred to in Louisiana as “the stawm.” [To enlarge a photo, simply click on it.]

Habitat for Humanity in Slidell: April 1-8, 2006

Two years ago, on our very first road trip in the RV, we spent a memor ...

Updated: Apr 19, 2006 7:27pm PST

From California to Louisiana: March 18 – April 1, 2006 : This will be our fourth road trip in two years, and, like those behind us, this one will be jam-packed with all we can see and do in four months. The main event will be the wedding of Nick’s son, Prentiss, on May 6th in Port Royal, Pennsylvania. Between now and then, there’ll be stops along the way to see friends, explore green-building developments, spend a week doing Habitat for Humanity work in Slidell (Louisiana), witness Katrina’s path of destruction in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, pick up the Civil Rights trail in Atlanta, sample southern hospitality and (hopefully) some bluegrass music in the Carolinas, visit Gullah country in the Sea Islands of South Carolina, and who knows what else. After the wedding, the plan will be to visit family in Ohio, go to a Bar Mitzvah and visit old friends in Ann Arbor, explore Wisconsin and Minnesota, and, with many likely detours along the way, make our way back to the Pacific Northwest to re-visit people and places we saw on our last trip, before heading home with a few more stops to see Nick’s daughter and still more friends. Wherever we go, we will be keeping our eyes and ears open for signs of green building and sustainable development, a central theme in our lives at this time. So…off we go!

From California to Louisiana: March 18 – April 1, 2006

This will be our fourth road trip in two years, and, like those behind ...

Updated: Apr 19, 2006 7:50am PST

Arizona, Arkansas & Louisiana: March -April 2006 :

Arizona, Arkansas & Louisiana: March -April 2006

Updated: Apr 03, 2006 7:03pm PST

364 Miles of Oregon Coast :

364 Miles of Oregon Coast

Updated: Nov 29, 2005 9:46pm PST

364 Miles of Oregon Coast

Updated: Nov 29, 2005 6:54pm PST

Hiking Mt. Rainier the Barons; plus Mt. St. Helens :

Hiking Mt. Rainier the Barons; plus Mt. St. Helens

Updated: Nov 15, 2005 9:33pm PST

Olympic Peninsula :

Olympic Peninsula

Updated: Nov 15, 2005 8:18pm PST

Banff, Jasper & Yoho National Parks - August 2005 :

Banff, Jasper & Yoho National Parks - August 2005

Updated: Nov 15, 2005 7:50pm PST

From Florence (Oregon) to Phyllis, with Love - September 21 - 23, 2005 : Dear Phyllis, We finally made it to Florence! And our thoughts are of you, of course. So we hope you enjoy these few shots of our time in YOUR town, and that they bring back warm memories. Love from us both, Nick and Marcia P.S. Double click on the photo if you want to enlarge it.

From Florence (Oregon) to Phyllis, with Love - September 21 - 23, 2005

Dear Phyllis, We finally made it to Florence! And our thoughts are ...

Updated: Sep 27, 2005 9:08pm PST

From San Juan Island to Port Townsend -- August 2005 : Our first stop after leaving British Columbia was Bellingham, Washington, where we spent two enjoyable days picking blackberries, going to the farmers' market and biking around town. Loved Bellingham, but took no pictures. From Bellingham we went to Anacortes. There we took the ferry to San Juan Island, and then to Lopez Island, before returning to Anacortes for the drive south through Deception Pass to Whidbey Island. From Whidbey, we took another ferry to Port Townsend, our gateway to the Olympic Peninsula (next gallery).

From San Juan Island to Port Townsend -- August 2005

Our first stop after leaving British Columbia was Bellingham, Washingt ...

Updated: Sep 05, 2005 6:31pm PST

BC's Fraser River and Route 99 - August 2005 :

BC's Fraser River and Route 99 - August 2005

Updated: Aug 27, 2005 9:09pm PST

Icefields Parkway - August 2005 :

Icefields Parkway - August 2005

Updated: Aug 27, 2005 7:27pm PST

Banff & Lake Louise - August 2005 : Seeing Banff and Lake Louise has been a longtime desire of Nick's, and he was not disappointed. Here is where the Canadian Rockies rise like towering castles in the sky, where the lakes and streams flow endlessly and icely from glacial heights, and where wildlife roam freely through woods and over roads. And here is where we spent the better part of a week enjoying it all. [Be sure to double-click on the photos to enlarge them.]

Banff & Lake Louise - August 2005

Seeing Banff and Lake Louise has been a longtime desire of Nick's, and ...

Updated: Aug 27, 2005 6:35pm PST

Kootenay National Park, Canada - August 2005 : Kootenay National Park was our first stop in Canada, and what a wonderful introduction it was to the Canadian Rockies. It was also welcome relief from the heat we'd experienced "south of the border" in Montana and Idaho (107 degress in Boise!). Kootenay is situated along the western range of the Rockies and extends along the Continental Divide from Banff National Park in the north to Radium Hot Springs in the south.

Kootenay National Park, Canada - August 2005

Kootenay National Park was our first stop in Canada, and what a wonder ...

Updated: Aug 13, 2005 7:20pm PST

Northern Cal, Oregon & Idaho: June - July 2005 : On the road again -- this time, with sights on the Pacific Northwest and the Canadian Rockies. And we feel readier than ever. We have solar panels on our rooftop to charge up our four golf-cart batteries so we can be energy-independent in the wilds. And, as new members of the Elks, we can stay at Elks lodges in many of the communities we visit, often right downtown. Having it both ways, we can stay in remote campsites for the best hiking, or, we can stay in downtown areas close to local goings-on and to community development departments where we can learn what they're doing to help their communities manage growth and promote a more sustainable future. The "plan" is to cover as much of the scenic beauty in the Northwest as we can in roughly four months, and to be home in late October. [Click on the photos to enlarge them.]

Northern Cal, Oregon & Idaho: June - July 2005

On the road again -- this time, with sights on the Pacific Northwest a ...

Updated: Aug 13, 2005 7:08pm PST

From Pennsylvani to Utah to Home - October 2004 :

From Pennsylvani to Utah to Home - October 2004

Updated: Feb 26, 2005 10:42pm PST

Back to Maine: October 9-11, 2004 : We decided to go back to Pemaquid Point for one last look before leaving New England. In all the years Nick and his family had spent summers at the Point, he had never seen it in the Fall.

Back to Maine: October 9-11, 2004

We decided to go back to Pemaquid Point for one last look before leavi ...

Updated: Jan 23, 2005 4:26pm PST

Fall Colors in New England & Upstate New York: Sept 22 - Oct 8, 2004 : Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and upstate New York burst into glorious fall colors during the final days of September, bringing us back for three more weeks of hiking, biking and picture-taking.

Fall Colors in New England & Upstate New York: Sept 22 - Oct 8, 2004

Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and upstate New York burst into glorious ...

Updated: Jan 22, 2005 11:29pm PST

Point Reyes Outing: Dec 19-22, 2004 : Having been on the road together for 7-1/2 of the past 11 months, Marcia and Nick gave each other an 8-day break. Nick headed north for Point Reyes and Christmas in Sacramento (see gallery of Family photos) while Marcia relaxed at home with Slim.

Point Reyes Outing: Dec 19-22, 2004

Having been on the road together for 7-1/2 of the past 11 months, Marc ...

Updated: Dec 27, 2004 5:06pm PST

Amagansett, New Yawk & Joisey City: September 10 - 15, 2004 : We island-hopped by ferry from New London to Shelter Island to Long Island, where we spent three days being totally spoiled by Burt Lewis at his Amagansett beach house. We then drove to Burt's town house in Queens, where we received more royal treatment and where we were within easy visiting distance of Jordan in Greenwich Village. We capped this segment of the trip crossing the Hudson River to see Nick's "boitplace" in "Joisey City."

Amagansett, New Yawk & Joisey City: September 10 - 15, 2004

We island-hopped by ferry from New London to Shelter Island to Long Is ...

Updated: Sep 17, 2004 2:02pm PST

New Hampshire & Rhode Island: Sept 1 - 8, 2004 : Dramatically beautiful mountains and waterfalls dazzled us in New Hampshire where we enjoyed wonderful hiking and biking, and where we made a brief but memorable stop at Bretton Woods. Then we headed south to see Nick's brother and 96-year-old mother in Rhode Island, before taking the ferry to Block Island, where Nick worked one summer at the Narragansett Inn during his sophomore year in college.

New Hampshire & Rhode Island: Sept 1 - 8, 2004

Dramatically beautiful mountains and waterfalls dazzled us in New Hamp ...

Updated: Sep 17, 2004 5:58am PST

Maine: August 13 - 28, 2004 : We made it to the "promised land" on August 13th, in time for dinner with Nick's sister Ea (ee-uh) and his brother-in-law, Peter. Rain followed us everywhere but conveniently held back when the occasion called for sunny skies. The "promised land," as it were, is the Pemaquid area of Maine's coastline (just north of Boothbay) where Nick's family had a summer cottage from 1947 until 2000, and where Nick feels most rooted. We spent a memorable week there on this trip before venturing out to places yet unexplored in the state, including a visit with friends from San Luis Obispo who also have a cottage in Maine and who took us to a memorable hot-air balloon festival in Lewiston: see http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/207297.

Maine: August 13 - 28, 2004

We made it to the "promised land" on August 13th, in time for dinner w ...

Updated: Sep 06, 2004 6:01am PST

From Ohio to Maine: July 16 - August 12, 2004 : With the California-to-Toledo phase of the trip behind us, we excitedly headed to upstate New York and New England, with Maine as our "main" destination in August. For much of the drive through the Catskills, the Berkshires and the Green Mountains, it rained, often poured, but just as often broke into blue skies over stunningly lush green countryside. It seemed that whenever we wanted to bike or hike or do something outdoors, the weather cooperated, holding back the clouds and downpours for the days we toured galleries, shopped or did other indoor stuff. All of which we took as a positive sign of our choices for this segment of trip.

From Ohio to Maine: July 16 - August 12, 2004

With the California-to-Toledo phase of the trip behind us, we excitedl ...

Updated: Aug 15, 2004 2:37pm PST

From California to Ohio: June 25 - July 11, 2004 : Here we go again, off on another trek across the country. This time, to parts northeast. First, to see friends and family in Sacramento, Chicago, Ann Arbor, Toledo, Ithaca and western Connecticut. Then, to head into the Berkshires, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine before heading down the eastern seaboard with probable stops in Cape Cod, Rhode Island and Amagansett, perhaps as far as the Carolinas. At that point we'll begin to wend our way westward toward home. The big event early-on in the trip was our stay in Toledo for a week-long family reunion to celebrate Marcia's parents' 60th wedding anniversary (see also http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/163260). But there have also been many other highs in reconnecting with people and places we hadn't seen for a long time. Meanwhile, a wonderful new friend and retired MD, Chuck Mendelson, is staying at our home, taking care of things there, until he can move to a retirement community in Santa Barbara possibly late this year.

From California to Ohio: June 25 - July 11, 2004

Here we go again, off on another trek across the country. This time, t ...

Updated: Aug 04, 2004 7:10pm PST

Arkansas & Arizona - April 2004 : It's the middle of April, our roadtrip is in its final weeks, and we're still as jazzed as we were the first day of the trip. In fact, we're even more jazzed! These pictures explain why. First, we spent a totally unplanned weekend in a little town (called Mountain View) high up in the Ozarks at the 42nd Annual Arkansas Folk Festival -- bluegrass heaven. We learned about the festival 24 hours before going, and kicked things off at an old-timey soda shop, for an old-timey malted milkshake. After Mountain View we headed to one of the most beautiful state parks ever, in southwestern Arkansas. Arkansas, we discovered, is one of the best kept secrets in the land when it comes to the outdoors, natural beauty and great hiking. Then, to celebrate Nick's birthday, off we went to the Grand Canyon's south rim to hike down Bright Angel Trail and, later that day, to pig-out on a sumptuous gourmet dinner at the El Tovar Lodge. Of course, we had to stop enroute to the Grand Canyon for a quick visit to Flagstaff and another fabulous malted milk shake at the Galaxy Diner on Route 66. It doesn't get much better than that!

Arkansas & Arizona - April 2004

It's the middle of April, our roadtrip is in its final weeks, and we'r ...

Updated: Apr 29, 2004 3:35pm PST

Alabama, Mississippi & Tennessee - April 2004 : Our time in Americus and Plains, Georgia -- meeting with people at Habitat for Humanity's Global Village and Koinonia, and attending Sunday school with Jimmy Carter -- prepared us well for the next stage of our journey, in Alabama and Mississippi, where we became immersed in the civil rights movement, folk art and architecturally innovative housing for poor people. It was a very full and rich course in aspects of Southern culture that were, in the main, new to us. So full was the course, in fact, that five galleries of photos were felt necessary to cover this segment of our trip. In addition to this gallery, which is dedicated almost entirely to the civil rights movement, be sure to check out the following: The Folk Art of Joe Minter http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/98238; The Folk Art of Tin Man Charlie Lucas http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/98254; The Folk Art of L.V. Hull http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/98267; and (on architecture) The Rural Studio and Music Man http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/98284.

Alabama, Mississippi & Tennessee - April 2004

Our time in Americus and Plains, Georgia -- meeting with people at Hab ...

Updated: Apr 28, 2004 9:53pm PST

Florida & Georgia (Plains) - March 2004 : From Florida's Panhandle we headed down the western coastline to Bonita Springs to visit cousins Paula and Ron; then into the Everglades for fun in the sun in Chokoloskee and biking with the gators in Shark Valley; then up to Aventura to spend five memorable days with Marcia's folks, followed by lunch in Baton Rouge with Sylvia and Jerry; followed, in turn, by two fascinating days at Kennedy Space Center before heading west through the Ocala National Forest, north through Gainseville (the University of Florida), and on to western Georgia for stops in Americus (Habitat for Humanity's Global Village) and Plains (Sunday school and a photo ops with Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter).

Florida & Georgia (Plains) - March 2004

From Florida's Panhandle we headed down the western coastline to Bonit ...

Updated: Apr 13, 2004 7:07pm PST

The Folk Art of L.V. Hull - April 2004 : Kosciusko, Mississippi is not only Oprah's hometown, it's also the hometown of the colorful L.V. Hull. And "colorful" she is in every sense of the word, for "Ms. Elvee" (as she's known) adds color to every thing and every life she touches. Folk artist extraordinaire, she was another one of those accidental discoveries on our trip. After stopping at Kosciusko's Visitors Center, we first took a little side street to drive by a folk artist’s home. It was Easter Sunday. Surely she wouldn’t be home. As we drove up to her tiny home we couldn’t believe our eyes. The front yard was filled, no packed, with color, colored and decorated “junk.” Shoes, tires, boards, containers, tubs, dolls, tools, you name it, you could see it all in her front yard. And it was a beautiful charming sight to behold. The pictures and captions tell the rest of the story ...

The Folk Art of L.V. Hull - April 2004

Kosciusko, Mississippi is not only Oprah's hometown, it's also the hom ...

Updated: Apr 13, 2004 11:48am PST

The Folk Art of Tin Man Charlie Lucas - April 2004 : "Tin Man Charlie Lucas is a self-taught artist with an international reputation. He has been called an "outsider artist," a "folk artist," a "visionary artist" and a "found object artist." He may be all of these things but if you spend enough time with Tin Man you will discover that he is a toymaker and storyteller. Toymaking was Tin Man's first creative outlet. Born in 1951 in Birmingham, Alabama, and one of 14 children, Charlie found that if he and his siblings wanted toys he had to create them." The above excerpt is from a website on Charlie Lucas' art. We found him to be an extraordinarily literate "illiterate" (he's only now learning to read) with a mind that grasps numbers, words and pictures like a computer, but with a soaring imagination and spirit. He clings to core values and epitomizes Ghandi's admonition to "be the change you wish to see in the world." His words and works are salted with wisdom, honesty, humor and compassion. If ever you're in Selma, Alabama, let your spirit be lifted by a visit with toy maker, philosopher and artist, Tin Man Charlie Lucas.

The Folk Art of Tin Man Charlie Lucas - April 2004

"Tin Man Charlie Lucas is a self-taught artist with an international r ...

Updated: Apr 13, 2004 11:14am PST

The Folk Art of Joe Minter: April 2004 : On our final day in Birmingham, Alabama, on the advice of our trusted guidebook, Lonely Planet, we visited Joe Minter and his wife. A more memorable two hours would be hard to imagine. Here's what Lonely Planet has to say about what it dubs, Joe's African Village in America. "This half-acre of yard sculpture at 912 Nassau Steet is one of the most dramatic examples of visionary self-taught art anywhere. A pilgrimmage to Alabama's Civil Rights shrines wouldn't be complete without a glimpse into this humble, private vision of peace and justice. Joe Minter, a 65-year-old carpenter, explains that he had a revelation from God in 1989. He felt led to construct a monument to African-American history rendered in found objects and house paint in his side yard. There are representations of African warriors watching their descendents' struggles on Alabama; tributes to black scientists and military leaders; re-creations of the epic Civil Rights confrontations in Birmingham, Montgomery and Selma; biblical scenes; a memorial to a little girl who was swept into a rain-swollen storm drain in 1999; and hand-lettered messages everywhere. In a piece on cultural self-criticism, Minter painted a series of street signs with names like 'Self Hate Street,' 'Gang Warfare Street,' and 'Babies Having Babies Having Babies Self-Genocide Street.' Don't worry about fear and loathing on Nassau Street, though; it's a peaceful residential area. While a number of Alabama folk artists, including the visionaries, have made money from their art, Minter refuses to sell his work as he considers it a gift from God, although samples have been surfacing in museums."

The Folk Art of Joe Minter: April 2004

On our final day in Birmingham, Alabama, on the advice of our trusted ...

Updated: Apr 13, 2004 10:33am PST

Cajun Mardi Gras -- February 2004 : Mardi Gras in rural Southwestern Louisiana draws on traditions that are centuries old. Revelers go from house to house begging to obtain the ingredients for a communal meal. They wear costumes that conceal their identity and that also parody the roles of those in authority. They escape from ordinary life partly through the alcohol many consume in their festive quest, but even more through the roles they portray. As they act out their parts in a wild, gaudy pageant, they are escaping from routine existence, freed from the restraints that confine them every other day in the year. These traditions, folklorists say, go back at least as far as medieval times. The human impulse that underlies Mardi Gras has not diminished today, even if some of the traditions lapsed for decades and even if one factor in their revival by subsequent generations was a desire to enhance tourism. Anyone who has seen the procession of Mardi Gras riders brightly costumed in myriad colors advancing across the drab late-winter countryside is also likely to be swept up in the timeless moment: in rural Acadiana, Mardi Gras lives as much today as it did in centuries past. We experienced it firsthand in the heart of Cajun country, northwest of Lafayette. There we learned about the distinction drawn between urban Mardis Gras, as in New Orleans, and rural Mardis Gras, as in Cajun country. These pictures speak plainly to the rural tradition.

Cajun Mardi Gras -- February 2004

Mardi Gras in rural Southwestern Louisiana draws on traditions that ar ...

Updated: Apr 03, 2004 8:19pm PST

Texas & Louisiana - February 2004 : http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/71497

Texas & Louisiana - February 2004

http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/71497

Updated: Apr 03, 2004 7:22pm PST

Mardi Gras 2004: Parades in Mandeville & Slidell : http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/65707 and http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/73555 (Cajun Mardi Gras)

Mardi Gras 2004: Parades in Mandeville & Slidell

http://nick.smugmug.com/gallery/65707 and http://nick.smugmug.com/gall ...

Updated: Feb 19, 2004 8:22pm PST

California & Texas - January 2004 : January 11th begins our great adventure on the road in "HOWIE" (Home on Wheels -- Intrepid Explorer), our new 24-foot motorhome. Off we go for the next four months to meander through Texas, the Deep South and Florida with no more than a general sense of where we might go and what we might do each day, other than to "be in the moment." We begin in January with Southern California and Texas. Hasta luego!

California & Texas - January 2004

January 11th begins our great adventure on the road in "HOWIE" (Home o ...

Updated: Feb 04, 2004 9:18pm PST

Our New Home On Wheels - November 15, 2003 : Marcia's dream to travel the "blue highways" of America came closer to reality this weekend when we picked up our Forest River motorhome, a 2004 Lexington GTS. The "Lex" is the result of a search for something big enough to sustain us in reasonable comfort for months at a time but small enough to (1) go off the beaten path in national parks and other places of natural beauty and (2) park in our carport at home. For a truck, It also handles great on the road and is relatively easy to park. Three successive roadtrips are in our plans, each about three to four months in length, with breaks between trips of one to two month to catch up on things at home. "America, here we come!"

Our New Home On Wheels - November 15, 2003

Marcia's dream to travel the "blue highways" of America came closer to ...

Updated: Nov 17, 2003 9:22am PST

Arizona Roadtrip -- March 2003 : Our trial run pulling an RV trailer was a fun-filled adventure that took us to the high-desert areas near Scottsdale and the Chiricahua Mountains in southeastern Arizona

Arizona Roadtrip -- March 2003

Our trial run pulling an RV trailer was a fun-filled adventure that to ...

Updated: Oct 12, 2003 5:54am PST