Looking Back...

When I walk or hike I often stop & turn around and look back.

  That’s because my Dad always told me, “Stop every once in a while to

look back and  become aware of your surroundings, 

so you'll know where you are and how to get back”.

This 12 mile round trip hike started near Soda Springs CA

and we hiked the ridge line all the way out to that "Knob". 

Along the way, I stopped and looked  back to make sure 

Margie and Peggy B were still coming.

  Made it.   Elevation 8948' on top. We stopped at the base for lunch!!!

I use to take photos with a either a multi lens Cannon SLR still camera 

or my 7  lb digital tape video camera.  

In recent years I switched to a small Panasonic high definition

 video camera which has a 46 power  zoom lens.  Yippee

I've  done lots of hiking in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, during the

summer months, with my friends the Alta Hikers ... always on Tuesday!!!

My friend Pal - don't step back.   We're on Hawks Peak which gives

you a 360 degree never ending stunning view.  

It's near Tahoe Donner (Truckee CA) 

On the way down, I looked back because I thought I heard something.

And we were in bear country at over 8500'. 

No one there, just a great view of 2 other peaks where we've 

enjoyed lunch breaks...   Castle Peak on the left, El 9202’  and Frog Lake

 overlook on right 8653’.   We finally  had to quit hiking to Frog Lake Overlook 

because it has an elevation gain of 1600’,  most of it in the last 1/2 mile.  UGH

I've seen more black bears in our yard in Colfax CA (not AZ),

than I ever did hiking in the high country for over 20 years!!!

 (iPhone up close & personal.)

Glad to be inside and able to zoom in on this guy with my

 Panasonic video camera.

This was one of our many stops in 2008 when we took 

 a 6 month/18,000 mile RV trip from CA to AZ via Nova Scotia…

When I looked back, this is what I saw - beautiful

Cloud Lake, Ontonagon,  MI.  

In Nova Scotia, we camped near Peggy's Cove and spent 

days acting like tourists... 

Another phenomenon we stopped to see was the area  of  

Hopewell rocks  to experience one of the highest average tides in the 

world at the Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick Canada. 

You can wander and view the formations from ground level

at low tide...   That's Don in case you didn't recognize him.

However, you want to watch your step, and 

when you see the tide starting to come back in, you might

want to head back up the staircase,

as the high tide can be 52 feet higher than the  low tide.  

Someone was wise enough to provide a wall so you wouldn't 

step back too far at Gooseneck State Park, Mexican Hat UT.  

 It’s 1,000 feet straight down to the  San Juan River 

where you see the results of 300 million years of erosion. 

Black Canyon of the Gunnison, (Gunnison CO),  drops 2722’  

Dec 22 2009 while we took a walk across frozen Nancy Lake AK,   to reach

son Eric's remote cabin... he kept looking at his watch.  

  Finally he said turn around and look back, you'll only see the sun

 from here for 19 seconds today.   Got it!!!

While in AK  another time, onEric’s boat, he looked

 back to tell me it was time to look forward…

I did and was rewarded as a moose went swimming by!!!

My Panasonic video camera is my camera of choice when we go 

 for a ride… because I don’t have to yell “Stop”. I can just shoot video or stills 

out the window on the fly… going 60.  Watch for more rides to come.

 If they don't materialize, I'll look back farther...