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Almaden Lake Park, San Jose, California
This recent image from a moody and silent morning at a nearby lake is one of my Top 10 Favorites of 2023: www.stefanbaeurle.com/Blog/Top-10-Favorites-of-2023
We arrived at Ribnoto Ezero, the second of the magical Seven Rila Lakes, just as afternoon crowds were leaving. Fairly recently, a controversial chairlift and a ski-lodge style hotel was placed a bit farther down the mountain, dramatically reducing the effort it takes to reach the fragile alpine reserve and leading to a significant increase in visitors. But by four or five in the afternoon they had pretty much cleared out and the area was empty except for the hutkeepers and several guests. We explored the basin and nearby ridges, had wild mushroom and nettle omelettes with rakia, and camped above the hut, where I took this photo. Sedemte Ezera Hut and Ribnoto Ezero (2184m), Seven Rila Lakes, on the Five Mountains Trail (E4), Bulgaria.
One of the concerns on the Trans-Caucasian Trail are the shepherd dogs that protect livestock from wolves, bears and alien dogs that might threaten them in the remote mountains. In addition to a reputation for being pretty aggressive, dogs in Armenia also have a very high incidence of rabies, so the concern is legitimate. Fortunately, in our experience at least they were all bark and no bite. They roared like hell, but stayed with their flocks and did not appear to seek out trouble, which is to say, they did exactly what they were there to do. Above, probably the most intimidating pair we encountered on the Trans-Caucasian Trail, Armenia.
We're Here! @ The X Spot.
I was in the craft store when I remembered I recently saw some shots that Mr. X posted from a craft store, so I took this shot for today's copycat pic. Happy Birthday to the X's!
Luck
Sometimes a crumb falls
From the tables of joy,
Sometimes a bone
Is flung.
To some people
Love is given,
To others
Only heaven.
Langston Hughes
In 2022 murals were painted in Margate as a part of their Rise Up and Clean Up residency. More information can be found here: riseupresidency.co.uk Unfortunately we didn't find them all, being unfamiliar with some of the areas we gave up once we had walked 8 miles
This was one of two days on the trail (part of this day and the next) when we crossed sections of trail on via ferrata in heavy clouds. The downside, of course, is that this does away with many views, but as a compensation the heavy clouds mean you can't see what is (or isn't) beneath you when you're on the via ferrata, which makes the experience much less stressful. Prekorechko Lake, (@2400m) on the Five Mountains Trail (E4), Bulgaria.
The trees in this park (Quercus agrifolia) are somewhat stunted by a low nutrient environment (they grow out of ancient sand dunes). They are often many hundreds of years old, but are more gnarly than enormous. Coast live oak and lace lichen, Los Osos Oaks State Natural Reserve, California.
This is one of the most interesting sites in Plovdiv. In the lower half of the image is a small portion of the 2nd century AD Roman Stadium. This, the curved northern end of the stadium, has been fully excavated and you can walk right down into it from street level, or enter through its original northern tunnel entrance (the roof of which is bottom left of image). The excavated portion is a perfect semicircle, and when I first saw it I mistakenly visualized a small circular theater seating at most a few thousand. What you actually see is just the tip of the iceberg, however, since most is buried beneath the main market street of modern Plovdiv. The stadium sat about 30,000 spectators in its 240 meters of length and was used for races and other spectacles. It is, in fact, still complete, and there are some ambitious plans to reinforce the modern buildings that sit atop it and excavate the whole of the stadium to create a massive underground archaeological site.
The top half of the image is the Djumaya (or Friday) Mosque. In the Roman Era there was probably a pagan temple here, likely replaced by a Christian basilica in late antiquity. In the late medieval era the Sveta Petka Tarnovska Cathedral stood here, but when the Ottomans captured Plovdiv in the 1360s, they tore it down and used the materials to construct this mosque, one of the largest and oldest in the Balkans. Roman Stadium and Djumaya Mosque, Plovdiv, Bulgaria.
In 2022 murals were painted in Margate as a part of their Rise Up and Clean Up residency. More information can be found here: riseupresidency.co.uk Unfortunately we didn't find them all, being unfamiliar with some of the areas we gave up once we had walked 8 miles