[1] A new blog series :: The Big Trip Redux

[Originally published: September 5, 2012] Exactly five years ago today, on September 4, 2007, I boarded a plane in Charleston, SC and ensued a 32 hour journey with the ultimate destination of Whittlesea, South Africa.  What laid in South Africa was a friend and his family, who lived on a farm and took me in as one of their own.  The Harrison Farm served as a home-base for my South African travels, and was the first stop on my southern hemisphere tour, which also included Australia and Chile, South America. 

A trip that was at first a superfluous trip just to visit the other side of the world, turned into one of the most amazing experiences of my life.  To this day, five years later, I am still realizing some of the experiences from my travels that forever changed me as a person. 

During my trip, which lasted from Sept 4th thru November 13th, 2007, I kept a blog for all my family and friends back home.  I did my best to update it often with info and photos of all I was experiencing so far away.  My hope was to extend my adventures to everyone through my words and through my images.  As you can only imagine, what I wrote and what I photographed paled in comparison to what I actually experienced.  

Now, five years later, it seemed only fitting that I do a five year anniversary revisit and re-edit of this momentous event, a sort of 'redux.' I've come a long way in my photography, and although I cannot change the composition of the photos I took five years ago, I can edit them as I would now.  I also hope that by going through thousands of old photos, I will be able to see them in some new light, and at the very least, remember the moments that I have forgotten.

I plan to do my best to match the dates that I posted blog posts back in 2007 and post new photos or re-edits from the same portions of my trip.  And of course, I hope that maybe you'll take the time to read my words from so long (or not so long) ago.

Unfortunately, my first blog entry wasn't so exciting, as I was still traveling out of the country.  But, a plan is a plan, right?  

Here's to the kick off of a new blog series: 'The Big Trip Redux.' 

Tuesday, September 4, 2007 - Adios Chucktown

So exactly five years ago today, I was sitting in the Atlanta airport [ironic…] nervously/excitedly awaiting to board my transatlantic flight to South Africa.  18 hours (plus an hour-long pit stop to refuel in Dakar, Senegal) sounds painful on a flight, right?? Wrong.  I somehow acquired a first class ticket for that flight.  Yeah, that's really the only way to do it.  Oh, but then there was another 2 hour flight from Jo'burg to East London, South Africa, and then a two hour car-ride to get us to Whittlesea, South Africa, my final destination for the moment.  Whew… I do remember that being a long day.  

So, my re-edit comes from my farewell photo to Chucktown (Charleston,) the (at the time) less than a year old Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge.  Oh, it was so pretty…  (And yes, the sky really was red that night.)

[2] Yes, I [was] in Africa!

[Originally published September 8, 2012] My first stop in Africa was to visit my friend Luke and his family on their farm.  Harrison Farm is located near the tiny South African town of Whittlesea in the Eastern Cape region of South Africa.  

Not sure what The Big Trip Redux is all about?  Read the first blog post in the series here.

Although I think the region is technically considered 'grassland' it borders the Karoo Desert, so it is definitely a very dry place.  It is also in a very mountainous region of the country with elevation averaging 1,000-2,000m (or 3,500-6,500ft.)

The Harrison Farm has around 1,000 acres of rolling hills, rocky outcroppings, woods, and fields. During its zenith in the 1920's, it was a sheep farm and there are remnants all over the plot of fencing, troughs, and other old-farming paraphernalia.  Today, it is a fully functioning agricultural farm and that year, the main crop was lucerne (a type of alfalfa) which is mainly used to feed livestock. 

Indigenous plant life was super interesting to me and included lots of cactus varieties, aloe plants, and thorn trees (which make the best charcoal for cooking fires!) Also on the farm were various types of planted trees such as gums and spruce.

Although worlds apart, my first reaction to this landscape was that it reminded me of the rolling hills at the edge of The Rockies in Montana. It was beautiful.

View out the original post on September 8, 2007:  Yes, I'm in Africa!

Remnant fencing from the sheep days.

Aloe succotrina, South African Aloe plant

I believe this is an old old grave site on the farm.

A view from the highest point on the grounds, The Beacon. Harrison Farm is in the foreground, Whittlesea is in the center, and another village called Ekuphumleni in the very background.

The Beacon, the highest point on the Harrison Farm grounds.

An old gum tree near the stream.

Harrison Farm and the lucerne fields.

The way in.

[3] Rhinoceros, rhinoceri, or rhinoceroses...

[Originally published September 20, 2012] It's hard to believe that five years ago today I had just wrapped up my first African safari, visited one of the most famous wave breaks in the southern hemisphere, plummeted off the tallest bungee jumping the world (as of 2007) and straddled two oceans at the southern most tip of Africa.  Wow.  Bucket list, check!

Want to learn how The Big Trip Redux got started?  Go here.

This is now my third blog post on the Big Trip Redux and I am finally beginning to realize the amount of photos that went un-viewed, un-process, un-thought-about for years.  How unfortunate to have experienced all these amazing places and yet, I never did anything more to remember it other than hitting 'click' on the camera and downloading it to a hard drive.  Pity.  And…. hence the Redux, where I can revisit all these old photos, memories, and re-introduce them into the world as fresh, new memories.  It feels sort of like a rebirth.

Lalibela - 'The place for which the bees have foretold greatness.'

The first time I heard that phrase, I thought it was magical, like a fairytale.  Lalibela is the name of the game reserve where I experienced my first slice of 'Wild Africa.'  Safari.  Elephants.  Giraffe.  Rhinos.  Hippos.  Lions.  Lions so close, you could feel their roars.  Herds of antelope shifting across the prairie.  Rhinoceros endless chewing wild grasses.  It was truly unlike any other experience I have had in my life.

Jeffery's Bay

One of the most famous surf breaks in South Africa, the town is know to any serious surfer.  Arriving at this beach in the off season allowed us to see the beauty in the landscape and the turquoise water of the Indian Ocean without the distraction of fearless surfers in the breaks and on the sand.

Bloukrans Bridge and Bungee

In 2007, the bridge was the tallest in South Africa and the bungee was the tallest in the world at 708 feet - and I jumped off it!  'It was the most amazingly terrifying sensation I have ever experienced!'

Cape Agulhas

The southern most point of Africa and also one of the most peaceful and beautiful places I have ever seen.  The Atlantic and Indian Oceans join here and combine their waters along the rocks of the shoreline.  Ancient stone fish traps line the shallows of the beach while high above, the picturesque Cape Agulhas Lighthouse guards the rocky coast.

Upon looking back at this portion of the trip, I am beginning to realize just how big this Redux project is going to be.  There is so much to remember, show much to still share.  I cannot wait to see what I remember next.

Be sure to read my 2007 blog entry from September 20th here.

Enjoy!!

[4] On the edge. Tasting Tannins. Mountains without chairs. Monkey junk. Karoo who?

[Originally published September 28, 2012] Back in 2007, the September 27th blog entry covered the second half of the South African trip my friend Luke and I took.  We covered a lot of ground in 10 days, but the second half was jam packed.  After stoping at the Southern most tip of Africa, we continued west to wine country, then further along the coast to finally arrive at Capetown. 

What is The Big Trip Redux? Go here to find out.

Tasting Tanins 

Wine.  Wine.  Wine.  Yes, and more wine.  Really, there was wine, I swear, there was wine.  This is honestly how I remember this part of the trip.  Drinking lots of wine, learning about what I was tasting and eating lots of food, especially braai (South African for grill) meat (this is long before I started eating vegetarian, but I might relapse if I ever go back!)  We spent most of our time in wine country with Luke's friends Clayton, head winemaker at the Môreson Wine Estate and Leigh, his then girlfriend, now wife.  There was also some maddeningly delicious goat cheese from the Fairview Wine Estate who houses goats to bring in the tourists, oh and it does! 

Mountains without chairs

Capetown, South Africa surrounds a rock formation known as Table Mountain (get it, no chairs?!)  A speedy cable car ride gets you to the top, some 3500 feet above the city, where I remember it being eerily quiet.  The view from the table top is indescribable - to the north, a sprawling coastal city, wrapped around the base of the mountains, kissing the sea, the south, seemingly eons of rocky mountains, all the way to the tip of Africa.  It's a show stopper.

Another South Africa custom that I grew to love was the 'sundowner.'  Sundowners are like happy hour, but better, because there is always wine and always yummy snacks, like cheeses and charcuterie.  In Capetown, the tradition is to head over to Signal Hill, which faces west towards the Atlantic Ocean, lay down a blanket, set our your wine and snacks, and enjoy the last few moments of the sun until it splashes into the ocean.  Amazing. 

Monkey Junk

South of Capetown, there are dozens of small coastal towns.  We passed through a few of them on our way to Cape Point and the Cape of Good Hope, the other southern most tip of Africa (always much to be debated.)  This peninsula is a real-life Mordor with rocky cliffs and hazy blue skies from the ocean mist.  In Simonstown, we saw Jackass Penguins and wild Baboons in the street, and a few right whales off shore.  In Fish Hoek, we stopped for traditional Fish-n-Chips to eat by the sea shore with endless shades of turquoise blue as the backdrop.  Fish Hoek was the home of the fish huts that I fell in love with which made me want to shoot our own 'Beatles Album Cover.'  For real, can't you see that gracing the cover of a vinyl?!  ;)

Lastly, the final photo below proves that I was once a Nikonian.  Yes, back in '07, I shot with a Nikon D80 + kit lens and probably mostly in Aperture priority.  Oh, those were the days!

Check out the original post from September 27, 2007 here.

Enjoy!!

[5] The Boma Glows at Night. The Reservoir Flows, sometimes. Lucerne and the Money Wind. Artists Without Sleep.

[Originally published October 11, 2012] Five years ago today, I had just finished up a 5 week stay in South Africa and was setting off to Australia.  My blog posts around that time were wrapping up my time in ZA (short for South Africa) and also pondering what traveling in Australia would be like.  The Oz portion of my trip was a solo portion, a time full of thought, experience, determination and discovery, all alone.  It was amazing.

New to this series?  Click here to get learn about The Big Trip Redux beginnings.

But before I head to The Land of Oz, I'll post a few more images from the last weeks on the farm.  As I wrote earlier, the Harrison Farm is a working farm, bringing in a yearly harvest of lucern, a type of alfalfa.  It was harvest time while I was visiting, and I spent one morning on the tractors with the guys in the fields.  It's definitely tough work.

My friend Luke Vehorn is an artist, internationally recognized, and one of his chosen art mediums is oil painting.   During my stay in ZA, Luke and I planned to collaborate on an art project.  We chose 4 images from our travels around the Cape and painted them, taking turns on the canvases every few hours or so, each of us adding to the image, leaving our mark on the paintings.   Now, I'm a photographer, not a painter, not by any means.  But, with a little guidance and some natural creativity, I think I helped create some pretty incredible images!  A Bob Ross Reference was created that week, one I'll never forget!!  (Happy Trees!!!)  Check out photos of the paintings below.  And read more about the art project here.

Once finished, the paintings went up for auction, all proceeds accepted as a donation to one of the Vehorns charities in ZA.  Two paintings were purchased, the Protea Flower (South Africa's national flower) by Luke's youngest sister, and the 'Surfer's Paradise' (an image from Jeffrey's Bay, SA) to my mother!  To this day, it hangs in her living room and I see it every time I am home.  To the best of my knowledge, the other two paintings may still be for sale…  Email me if there are any takers! ;)

Follow this link to read about my travels plans leading for Oz, posted on October 6th, 2007.

Today, October 11th, 2007, I was just touching down in Australia.  Next up, Adventures in Oz!

[6] Ascent to the Sails

[Originally published October 16, 2012] On Thursday, October 11, 2007, I flew into Sydney, Australia for the first time.  I spent about a week in the city, in the Potts Point area, where all the hostels and backpackers can be found.  I spent hours each day just walking, covering miles of the city, exploring, visiting, photographing and absorbing in all things Sydney.  And, I did it all solo.  Just me.  

Sydney is not much different than any major American city, which made it easy to get around.  Below are some of my favorite images from Sydney, architecture, The Opera House, The Harbor Bridge, the zoo and Bondi Beach, just west of the city.

Check out my original blog post here to see what I was up to back then.

Enjoy!!

[7] Luna Park, Byron Bay and Brisbane

[Originally published October 23, 2012] Five years ago right now, I was traveling around the eastern coast of the continent of Australia, alone.  It was amazing (except for some of my time in Brisbane.)  This post is part of The Big Trip Redux Blog series - a sort of re-visit to my travels five years ago.  I've been digging through the old photos and posting the ones that have never been seen by anyone else but me and my hard drives.  

This post has a few images from Luna Park in Sydney, a tiny little amusement park near the Sydney Harbor Bridge that is as charming as it looks.  I took a day trip from Sydney to The Blue Mountains, Australia's equivalent of The Grand Canyon, and hiked in eucalyptus forests and saw the sandstone rock formation known as 'The Three Sisters.'

After I left Sydney, I flew north to Byron Bay, a laid-back beach town full of travelers and gorgeous desolate beaches.  After a week of serious relaxation, I made my way to Brisbane.  I had a few bad experiences there, but a visit to The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and seeing koalas and kangaroos definitely cured the blues.

If you want to know more, you can always read my blog from 2007 here.

[8] A Sandy Paradise

[Originally published November 6, 2012] In November of 2007, I was traveling the eastern coast of the Australian continent.  I visited a place called Fraser Island.  It is the largest sand island in the world.  This place is magical.  My current words can do it no justice, so I will quote myself from 2007:

An island made of sand, the largest in the world, where ancient trees of staggering height tower over smaller palms and luscious jungle ferns whose roots somehow grasp onto the soft sand floor and thrive off of the rich nutrients which are returned to the sand from their fellow plants. Crystal clear fresh water streams flow from equally pristine lakes located in the center of the island whose basins were filled by thousands of years of rainfall. Miles of uninhabited beaches are bordered by the soft turquoise blue water of the southern Pacific Ocean and guarded by hundreds of sharks and jellyfish waiting just off shore. The beauty that exists on this island seems to magically float on a bed of sand. This place seems impossible.

To read more about my two-day adventure on Fraser Island, visit the 2007 blog post here.

To figure out what The Big Trip Redux really is, go here.