Year in Review-Travel

 Las Aventuras took a break this year from international travel.  Why?  I discovered Southern Arizona with new eyes.

 So while I stayed home, we had such an amazing time here in Arizona.  However, we did get a chance to meet some amazing people, visit Wisconsin and bird in nearby Mexico along the Pacific Ocean.

 One our favorite spots was in Wisconsin Dells over the summer.  Wonderful weather along with beautiful forests made for a very special day.

 And in my hometown along the shores of Lake Michigan, we were able to hang out with the family.

 We even found time to visit Madison, the Capital of Wisconsin during the Scott Walker vote!

 My brother and SIL took us to the Green Bay botanical gardens which was a real thrill.

 Sometimes.  Just sometimes.  I wish I could grow some of these amazing green and colorful plants.

We did get out to Mexico though and had an amazing birding trip along the Sea of Cortez to go to the Bird Islands!

 This next year, several epic outings have been planned.  Some are in the works right now and I'll keep you updated.  I am plotting our courses for next year as are my travel buddies.

 Life is full of good people and experiences.  I believe in kharma.  Throwing bad cause out into the world is not good. But when you send out the positive vibes.......

 .......they come roaring back to you loudly full of incredible energy.  And I'm loving life.  Each day is a new adventure whether it be close to home or elsewhere.  All we have to do is step out that door:)

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The Wisconsin Dells

Timeless.  Beautiful.  And full of surprises. Today we take a river trip on the Upper Dells.   Not only is this place gorgeous, it's full of memories from my childhood.   There are still "Yogi Bear" and "Woodsy Owl" places in America and this is one of them.  The format hasn't changed much over the years.  The Dells are the same as they were when my Grandparents and family brought me here over 30 years ago and they still delight people from around the world.

Barn Swallow

As a birder, the barn/cliff swallows were everywhere!  It was a tight trip with a firm schedule.  It was tricky because I wanted to capture all the swallows shooting in and out of the holes in the sandstone rock!  It was very cool, but I didn't have control over the time and could take only what was present at the moment.  The pic below is the best I could get on this tour.

Cliff Swallow

People always tease me and say vacation with me isn't vacation at all:)  That's not true at all.  I just believe that if you spend all this money to go somewhere and prep for several weeks to be out of your house, you should utilize your time wisely and not waste any of it.  I watch a lot of people in my circles sit and watch TV inside a building on their vacation.  I can do this in Tucson!  My parents joke with my other siblings...."Oh I'm sure your brother will keep you busy." And I do:)  Sitting around is fine but not for most of the day (unless you are sick).  So my other half lets me do the planning for certain vacation periods.   

It was a hot and humid day around the Dells but once on the boat, we had the nice cool breezes and shade from the forest and river.  Wisconsin Dells is expensive so plan ahead.  It's a great family environment as they have a lot of Water Parks for the kids.  Plus the shops are made for those who like to buy things.  And I think they sell fudge at every other store.  Not my scene but a lot of tourists seemed to like it.

There are miles and miles of cliffs like this one.  I searched high and low for bear or deer, but mostly it gave me time to unwind and have a nice conversation with Pat.   If you go this time of year, remember to bring sunscreen, a hat, and of course....water.  You'll get thirsty.

And of course people who LOVE geology will love all the rock formations along the way.  They have a lot of nicknames for several of the areas with strange rock sculptures like the "Pancake".   I didn't place that pic on here because I didn't want to ruin the surprise.  It's really neat to witness live.

Along the way, we stopped in shady glens.  We got off the boat and did some walking around the wall to wall cliff path.  They were a nice relief from the humidity.  Cool, breezy....and full of ferns!

I wish we had more time to spend in these areas.  Lovely spots to imagine a world of fairies and unicorns.... or contemplate our past, present and future goings.

A dog jumped across from one cliff to another and everyone ooo'd and ahhhh'd at this German Shephard.

My eyes spotted more than swallows.  I actually got some great Great Blue Heron shots on this vacation!  People laughed at me because they are such a common bird back in Wisconsin.  But when I said I was from the desert, they understood:)  However, they do live in Tucson:)  Just trickier to capture because they are so far away sometimes.

Great Blue Heron

There are two tours.  The Lower Dells and the Upper Dells.  Both are quite lovely.  They happen all day long.  This particular tour was 2 and half hours so give yourself some time in the morning or afternoon to check this gorgeous river out. Before I leave, I just wanted to apologize for the malware notice that popped up yesterday if you tried to view the cranes post.  It was unfortuneatly on another person's blog that showed up on my blogroll.  Unfortuneatly, I had to prevent the blog from reappearing on the side bar.  If you ever get a notice, please email me.  This is the 2nd blog that was attacked this month in the blogosphere(that I know of).  It's not the blogger's fault, but it happens within the links attached to their posts. I am working on several special posts scheduled for the end of this month and into August.  More tomorrow.....