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With more than 4,000 digital images to review and decide WHICH ones to manipulate, this trip is going to take some time.

After much reflection, we decided to celebrate our first 25 years together by planning and completing a trip around the world, which had been one of Rich's childhood dreams.  This extended page  commemorates the 84 days, many countries and 30,000 miles we visited.

We departed The Sea Ranch, drove to San Francisco and flew to Fairbanks, Alaska.  There we joined 6 other adventurers under the leadership of Hugh Rose and Patrick Endres for a trip above the Arctic Circle to see Polar Bears and the Aurora Borealis.

We traveled northward via the Dalton Highway, also known as the 'haul road', a 414-mile mainly gravel road reaching from Fairbanks to Deadhorse at Prudhoe Bay, which was hastily built in 1974 for the construction of the parallel Trans-Alaska Pipeline. 

The pipeline is buried for less than half its length, where the ground is well-drained gravel or solid rock, and thawing is no problem. Wherever the warm oil would cause thawing of the icy soil (which would cause sinking or heaving) the pipeline, which cost about $8 billion to build, sits on top of 78,000 above-ground supports spaced 60 feet apart. The sections above ground are insulated and covered. The pipe is raised high off the ground in places to span rivers or to allow wildlife to cross under the pipe. There were originally twelve pump stations and many valves controlling the flow of oil. Currently, two pump stations are not operating, and two are on idle status, leaving pumps 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 11, and 12 operating. The entire system is operated from the Operations Control Center located in Valdez, but can also be operated independently at each pump station. The 48 inch diameter pipe is made of specially coated material covered with zinc anodes to ward off corrosion. More than 800 crossings of rivers and streams are made between Prudhoe Bay and Valdez.

Above-ground sections of the pipeline are built in a zig-zag configuration to allow for expansion or contraction of the pipe because of temperature changes. The design also allows for pipeline movement caused by an earthquake.

Arctic Grayling are one of Alaska's most delicate and beautiful sport fish: easy to ID due to their vibrant colors and incredibly large dorsal fin.  At one time, their abundance stretched as far south as Michigan.  Their almost complete disappearance from the lower 48 states was caused by over- fishing, competition from non-native species, and loss of habitat.  Thankfully, this colorful fish still graces nearly all of Alaska's wild freshwaters.

A Willow Ptarmigan begins the transition to its 'winter-white' colorization which will allow it to 'disappear' in the snow.

Berni and Uta Hicker's "Artic Getaway" Igloo #8 in Wiseman provided us with a comfortable place to rest and consume some good food, too. 

The Wiseman area also provided us with several opportunities to photograph the Aurora Borealis, which are natural light displays in the sky, usually observed at night, particularly in the polar zone.  They typically occur in the ionosphere.  They are named after the Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora, and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas, by Pierre Gassendi in 1621.  The Aurora Borealis is also called the northern polar lights, as it is only visible in the sky from the Northern Hemisphere, the chance of visibility increasing with proximity to the northern magnetic pole, which is currently in the arctic islands of northern Canada.  Aurorae seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from further away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the sun was rising from an unusual direction. The aurora borealis most often occurs from September to October and from March to April. The Cree call this phenomenon the Dance of the Spirits. 

Aurorae are produced by the collision of charged particles from the Earth's magnetosphere, mostly electrons but also protons and heavier particles, with atoms and molecules of Earth's upper atmosphere, altitudes about 50 miles.  The particles have energies of 1 to 100 keV.  They originate from the Sun and arrive at the vicinity of Earth in the relatively low-energy solar wind.  When the trapped magnetic field of the solar wind is favorably oriented (principally southwards) it reconnects with Earth's magnetic field and solar particles enter the magnetosphere and are swept to the magnetotail. Further magnetic reconnection accelerates the particles towards Earth. The collisions in the atmosphere electronically excite atoms and molecules in the upper atmosphere. The excitation energy can be lost by light emission or collisions. Most aurora are green and red emissions from atomic oxygen.  Molecular nitrogen and nitrogen ions produce some low level red and very high blue/violet aurora. The light blue colors are produced by ionic nitrogen and the neutral nitrogen gives off the red and purple color with the rippled edges. Different gases interacting with the upper atmosphere will produce different colors, caused by the different compounds of oxygen and nitrogen. The level of solar wind activity from the Sun can also influence the color of the aurora.

Expert photographers themselves, Hugh and Patrick shared their knowledge of how to film these images which required long exposure times and a tripod.

Continuing northward, we made several stops to photograph the berries and fall foliage.

Caribou, which are a member of the Deer family, were seen constantly on the move as it was also hunting season.  These animals eat lichen and grasses.  Note: both males and females possess antlers.

Changing colors in the trees along the Koyukuk River near Wiseman.

After arriving in Deadhorse, we flew to Kaktovik, which is located just north of the ANWR Coastal Plain on Barter Island and the only village within the Refuge. Barter Island was an important stop for commercial whalers during the 1890s and early 1900s, but it was not until 1923 that there was a permanent settlement there. In that year, Tom Gordon established a fur trading post for the H.B. Liebes Company of San Francisco. The trading post served as an exchange point for furs and was the beginning of Kaktovik as a permanent settlement. During the years that followed, residents of the region were semi-nomadic, moving from place to place depending on the availability of fish, fur, game, and marine mammals. Today, Kaktovik has approximately 210 residents, most of whom are Inupiat Eskimos whose families have lived in the region for centuries. Archeological investigations reveal that man has occupied the region for at least 11,000 years. Evidence of man's early presence in the area is sparse, limited to a few archeological sites near the coast. These sites contain artifacts that reflect a hunter-gatherer subsistence economy. 


For most Inupiat, life without Native foods is unthinkable. Native people believe that without traditional ties to nature, the Inupiat social and economic patterns would have no basis. The use of wildlife for subsistence makes it necessary for the Natives to live in small villages. The area around larger villages may become overhunted, forcing residents to range farther and farther in search of wildlife and other subsistence resources.

We went there to observe the villagers' autumn subsistence hunt of bowhead whale as they migrate southward from the Beaufort Sea to the Bering Sea.  We had been prepared by our guides for the emotional impact of watching these creatures be butchered and the natives answered our many questions graciously. 

Younger members of the village learn how to flence a whale from their elders after the whale is landed by the hunting team.  The harvest is closely monitored and samples are taken by officials from the State of Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game.  This whale, which was a male, measured 8.3 meters and was estimated to weigh 40 tons. 

For health safety reasons, the blubber and meat must be removed within 24 hours of the kill. 

The smells of the harvested whale brought several Polar Bears to the village where flares and firecrackers were used to keep them away from the villagers and tourists.  In the photo above, an immature bear shares its small iceberg with 2 Glaucous Gulls.

Afterward butchering, the whale carcass is taken to the historic 'bone yard' ~ 2 miles outside of the village where bears and birds gleaned the remains.

Occasionally, a polar bear becomes curious about the photographers.  Above, an immature polar bear walked directly toward us as we scrambled back into our vehicle.

The setting sun over the icebergs was quite striking.

After flying back to Deadhorse, we began the return drive south down the 'haul road' to Fairbanks.  Fortunately, we spotted a herd of muskox on the way which allowed us to approach relatively close on foot.

We also spotted a Life Bird in the boreal forest, a Northern Hawk Owl sitting atop a spruce tree.

Flying back to the lower 48 states so that we could resume our trip with a flight to Europe (Paris), we were VERY pleased to see Mt. Denali in all its glory.

After an overnight flight to Paris, we picked up a new Renault near the airport that we leased for the European portion of our trip.  As we had visited the majority of countries in Western Europe, our plan was to wander north and east through the French countryside, across the south of Belgium, into Germany to the first of our stops.  

We arrived in Cologne (Koln) and found a quiet hotel near the Cathedral.  After a good nights sleep, we crossed the Rhine River on the Hollenzollem Bridge and took this photo.

The Cathedral (German: Kölner Dom) is the city's most famous landmark and unofficial symbol. It is a Gothic Church, started in 1248, and completed in 1880. In 1996, it was designated a World Heritage site; it houses the Shrine of the Three Holy Kings that supposedly contains the relics of the Three Magi.  It has the second-tallest church spires, only surpassed by the single spire of Ulm Cathedral, which was completed ten years later in 1890. Because of its enormous twin spires, it also presents the largest façade of any church in the world.

Having lived through the fall of the 'Wall', we went to the Brandenburg Gate.  It was a former gate to the city and is located west of the city center at the intersection of Unter den Linden and  Ebertstraße, immediately west of the Pariser Platz.  It is the only remaining gate of a series through which one formerly entered Berlin. One block to its north lies the Reichstag (below).  The gate is the monumental entry to Unter den Linden, the renowned boulevard of linden trees which formerly led directly to the city palace of the Prussian monarchs. It was commissioned by King Frederick William II of Prussia as a sign of peace and built from 1788 to 1791.  Today, it is considered one of Europe's most famous landmarks.

Sherub, on the left, was our guide.  He earned a Masters Degree in Ornithology from U of Wisconsin.  Tandin, on the right, was our driver.  Both are wearing traditional men's robes called go's.

Driving the road from Paro to Thimphu, we stopped to admire this monaster.

View of Thimphu, the capital of Bhutan, as captured from our Riverview Hotel.

Near the water treatment plant for Thimphu, we spied a pair of Ruddy Shellducks, male on the right.

Walking further, we located an Ibisbill.

Takin are the national mammals of Bhutan.  This species is most numerous higher in the mountains.

A young Takin asks for reassurance from its doting mother.

We enjoyed studying the architecture of the Royal Palce in Thimphu.

Returning to downtown, we stopped and found several Black-tailed Crakes in a wetland near the Royal Palace.

A quick stop at the General Post Office resulted in a purchase of several of the beautiful stamps of Bhutan.

We visited the National School of Handicrafts.  Here the students are being taught to weave the bright textiles.

These young men are learning traditional woodworking.  The one on the left is holding up a Thunder Dragon.  It will be painted in bright colors.

These students were learning to paint religious art.

The students above were mastering sewing and clothing design.  Note the foot-treadle sewing maching.

At the Textile Museum, volunteers were weaving fine examples of the traditional fabric.

The fabric was very colorful.

Traveling north from Thimphu, we stopped and walked across this traditional foot bridge with the bright prayer flags waving.

Driving easterly, we crossed the Dochu La where we found 108 chortens and hundreds of prayer flags waving in the breeze.

Stopping at a teahouse near the pass, we saw the first of many phallus above a door.  Its purpose is to protect the building from evil spirits.

The gift shop had even more phallic objects to ward off evil spirits.

These new businesses had phallic figures painted near the entry to protect the buildings and its occupants from roving evil spirits.

Our guides repeatedly advised us this was nothing sexual.

The phallus appeared in all sizes and types.

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