Cinque Terre, Italy

Monterosso viewed from the 508

gathering grapes

This is a hike I did while staying in Vernazza in the Cinque Terre in Italy. These five villages nestled on hills by the coast and connected by a rail line, have narrow cobbled streets and old world charm. The people were warm and pleasant.

This was an interesting way of remembering the dead.

We found a trail and followed it uphill, past elderly Italians gathering grapes and a memorial honoring the dead.  It turned out to be the 508. Eventually, the trail led to a sanctuary with a chapel and a bench overlooking the ocean. Under the hot sun, we hiked midway across the mountain with stunning views of the coast. Butterflies flitted on tiny flowers in yellow, purple and pink. Finally we reached Sanctuary Savoie, which had a soft pink hue. We took the 509 down.  It was one long, straight descent, a huge drop in elevation in a short amount of time.

What an anniversary celebration!

Narrow streets in the villages

When we arrived in Monterosso, we were hot, tired and starving, so we found a place to eat. In an absolutely amazing bit of timing, our friends from Connecticut pulled into town minutes earlier and they too were hungry. The folks at their hotel suggested the very same outdoor restaurant where we were seated. It was a glorious and memorable day running into them in a foreign country when neither of us knew each other's itinerary.

On the writing scene, it looks like I may have FINALLY finished edits to "Light in the Cellar of the Sea," an article that is slated for the October/November issue of ChemMatters. Yesterday, I submitted a blog post that will hopefully be published this summer. I'm also working on numerous other projects, including a highly creative collaborative project. 

I believe I took this on the popular blue trail from Vernazza to Corniglia.

Lemon tree very pretty and the lemon flower is sweet...

I saw this little guy on the blue trail.

olives

             

Rifugio Locatelli, the Dolomites, Italy

Llamas grazed near Rifugio Lavaredo.

I'm taking a step back in time and posting about another great, but challenging international hike.  I wish I'd brought hiking poles for this one. We started our hike at Rifugio Auronzo, which is accessible by bus.  It didn't take long to reach Rifugio Lavaredo, but our stop there was brief. As we trudged down a steep incline, I knew we'd eventually be going back uphill, and what an uphill it was.  By the time we reached Rifugio Pian di Cengia, we were starving. I ordered a colorful dumpling platter with spinach-green, cheddar-yellow, and beet-red dumplings. They were fabulous.

Rifugio Pian di Cengi is a Tyrolean hut that serves Austrian food.

A sign outside Rifugio Pian di Cengi shows mountain flowers.

It was freezing cold when we left, but I was still in shorts.  As we made our way to the next hut, snow flurries fell from the dark and cloudy sky.  It was an easy hike to Rifugio Locatelli, which is nestled at the foothills of the Tre Cime rock formation, three immense boulders. By the time we got there, the flurries had become fat flakes, clinging to shoulders and boulders.

The Tre Cime towers over Rifugio Locatelli.

We spent the night in the dorm room, which was the only available lodging.  At that point, it was too dark to keep hiking.  I knew the pill vials on the chair next to my bunk were not a good sign.  Sure enough, I got a bed next to Mr Virus-and-Bacteria.  All night I heard his hacking.  You'd think with a raspy, crackling cough that you might need extra sleep.  Oh no, not this go-getter.  He set his alarm clock unreasonably early.  The following morning we hiked out and passed some really interesting World War I bunkers.

Miniature horses were grazing on the mountainside.

The beauty of this place is that you can access these mountains by hiking them or by taking  numerous lifts to the top.  Here in Connecticut, we hike to a view.  In the Dolomites, there is a new vista around every curve and atop every hill.  While I was there, I carried a Cicerone hiking guidebook (multi-day) in my pack.  They are great books with short walks and long walks in many different locations.   

World War I bunker

In other news, I've updated the "Writing" and "Awards and reviews" sections of this website with some reprinted clips and some recent happy news.



   

Rifugio Lagazui, Passo Falzarego in the Dolomites, Italy

What a delight to receive all these enthusiastic thank you notes! 

When a friend asked me to speak to her three eighth grade classes, I put a lot of thought into how best to present the material.  My goal was to create a presentation with information that would sink in and stand the test of time.  On December 8th, I spoke to all three classes at Timothy Edwards Middle School in South Windsor.  The enthusiasm and the feedback I received were so positive that I really want to get this valuable program on writing, revision and research into more schools.  I plan to put a flyer together after the holidays.

We hiked to that little building on top. 

Look at that, you don't need to sweat or strain, the chairlift (left) is next to the hut. 

In the morning, we lingered, not wanting to leave.

On September 11th, we hiked to Rifugio Lagazui (a hut) in Passo Falzarego in the Dolomites.  Limestone chips and chunks slid beneath our feet as we hiked this steep, rocky, strenuous trail.  As we got higher a cold, metal railing aided our steps on precipitous ledges.  I was slow and careful hiking this baby, but it was

WWI tunnel 

oh, so exciting.
There were remnants of WWI scattered in the towering spires.  After trekking uphill for some time, we came to one--a tunnel!  Limestone slurry trickled down steep steps as we gripped the icy railing and made are way up the mountain in darkness, aided only by headlamps.  At a nearly 45 degree angle, the steps were exhausting.  Every now and then we'd pass a window.  We hiked in darkness for close to 45 minutes.

Near the top, we peered in a rocky room with bunk beds and leftover warfare.  The tunnel was narrower, so we had to watch our heads (this might be a helmet recommended hike).  The rifugio was perched on a cliff, so it had a magnificent view.  At dinner we sat next to Ed and Sarah from San Francisco and Steve and Terry from Maine.  It was great to be at a table of Americans for a change.

Golden spires at the top

The view as we hiked up...simply breathtaking.

 

    

Alpe di Suisi, Castelrotto Italy

Searching for Monkeys, December 2014

Yesterday, I received the December issue of Highlights for Children.  My article about a scientist who trekked through the rainforest in Brazil to study beautiful golden lion tamarins, was published on page 16 and 17.  That article was submitted in 2005 and I had given up ever seeing it in print.  Needless to say, I was quite pleased.  Time has improved the piece. 

At yesterday's Appalachian Mountain Club Annual Gathering, my presentation was after one that included live birds, a tough act to follow.  There were twenty-two people in the room, which was a smaller crowd than I expected.  It was the first time I had ever stood in front of a room without my heart beating fast and furious.  I was calm, and as a friend who was in the audience said, "I interjected humor."  The only issue I had was that I was unable to connect to the internet and play two short videos.  This did not surprise me.  Thankfully, I had downloaded four sound clips to my laptop and was able to play those.  Aside from the videos, the talk went really well.

When we got off the cable car,  we strolled down wide trails through a rich green meadow.

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While we were in Italy, we spent two nights in Castelrotto (the Germans call it Kastelruth) in the Dolomites. It was not nearly enough time to explore the vast spring-green meadow high in the mountains.  There were many ski lifts that allowed easy access to peaks that would wear out the strongest hiker.  We got up to the top later than I would have liked.  By then the gray clouds had rolled in.  We walked in the gloomy rain and fog, down paths that smelled of hay, past cow bells tinkling and horses grazing on wet grass.  The clouds had cleared when we arrived at a 200° panorama at a lookout called Engelrast.  What a phenomenal view!  As the sun sank lower in the sky, shadows on the jagged limestone peaks became more pronounced.  Light on the mountains glowed on the pink coral of an ancient sea. 

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The Dolomites are a hiker's paradise.  The Alpe di Suisi is better suited for those who like walking on rolling hills versus the steeper inclines at Cortina D'Ampezzo.     

Preikestolen - Pulpit Rock, Norway

I was so busy in August, I neglected to point out my first clip in Odyssey magazine.   "Guardians of the Forest" was published in the September issue.  I was really pleased with how the editors and designers set up the first page and printed the names of the animals under their photographs.  Also, I was happy to find my article, "Flippin' Out Over School,"  republished in the September issue of Fun for Kidz, which is now in color.

On September 3rd, we hiked to Pulpit Rock and boy does this hike rock!  I LOVED this hike.  On a scale of 1 to 10, this was a 20!  To get to the hike, we took a ferry to Tau, then a bus to
Preikestolen.

This was a pleasant change after hiking up high stone steps.

They say this hike takes about two hours each way.  We were so excited we hiked fast up stone steps and along wooden paths.  We passed everyone except the swift Norwegian hikers.  According to Alltrails, we got to the top in 1 hour and 13 minutes!  The weather was perfect and the view phenomenal.  Although my compact Olympus binoculars (8x21) added extra weight to my pack, I never regretted bringing them anywhere in Europe.

  At the top, young fearless Norwegian girls dangled their legs off the edge, like they were sitting on a fence.  They set an example of bravery--or maybe it was insanity.

Although it looks like I'm about to commit suicide, I'm really on a trail.

That dude on the right with his legs dangling--that's Walt.

That was close enough for me.

Then we hiked higher, away from the crowd.  I sang "I'm on the edge, the edge of Glory" over and over again.  All day long, we savored the stunning vista, etching it into our memories.  I did not want to leave, but the bus and ferry had a schedule to keep and we didn't want to miss the last one.  I wrote in my journal, "I have hiked many mountains to reach panoramas, but none could compare to this."
 

Breathtaking!

Folgefonna National Park, Norway

At the top of a crevasse

I spent three weeks backpacking in Europe in celebration of my 30th anniversary.  It was a relief to escape sensational headlines and the frustrations of the writing world, namely waiting.  Aside from Walt's iphone, I disconnected from technology.   The experience left me feeling free, like I was living life to the fullest.  I climbed out of a crevasse in Norway, danced a medieval dance in Germany, watched the moon rise in Austria, and rode a vaporetto in Venice.

Climbing out of a crevasse

I figured time would stand still in the writing world.  I figured wrong.  In three weeks time, I received two rejects, a clip in Fun for Kidz (a reprint of an article first published in 2007), a request for photographs because an editor is interested in buying an article, and notification of a possible school visit.  I also had to  review a summary for a presentation in November.

We watched another group move, roped together for safety.

We hiked a lot in Europe, so I'm starting an International hikes segment of this blog.

We did a glacier hike in Folgefonna National Park in Norway.  What an exciting adventure!  We were roped together with a family from Britain, a Chinese man who called himself Ken, and a couple from Stratton, Vermont.  In helmets and harnesses we crunched across the ice as our guide, Knut, led the way up the glacier.  At the top, we were treated to a magnificent view of nearby lakes and the fjord far below.  We got a taste of ice climbing by scaling the ice in a shallow crevasse using ice axes and carabiners.  What fun!  Then we crouched down to explore the perfectly rounded walls of an ice cave.  Water trickled down from the top as we inched our way deeper in the dark, frigid hole.  Perhaps it was my trust in our guide or maybe it was the Norwegian spirit, but I was not afraid at all.  I learned that Norwegians are exceptional hikers and fearless too.

In the ice cave