On The Road, Finally

In a little under 15 hours the great adventure begins. Flight out of Austin departs at 12:10pm. Thus beginning a 28.5 hour journey to Ushuaia. 11 hours of that journey is on the ground waiting for the next leg. A full 7.5 spent in Buenos Aires. Originally we were just 4 hours but the flights got rearranged.

Don’t know how much sight-seeing we will do in Buenos Aires. Mostly I have to transfer between airports, about a 1 hour bus trip. It will be Sunday morning but I’ve seen ugly traffic in Seole, who knows.

We get to Ushuaia about 8:30 pm on a Sunday night. They eat late in Argentina, so I suspect the hotel restaurant or something local will be open.

Coming back isn’t as bad, 25 hours but only 8 on the ground. Fly into EZE so I don’t have the bus transfer in Buenos Aires. We have about 4 hours in each major airport. Plenty of time to clear customs. The US is typically a little harder, but a welcome sight after one of these trips.

Blogging will be light to non-existent. Once on ship we don’t have internet access. So, the stories and pictures will have to wait until I get back

It does appear that Ushuaia boast two local breweries. So, the opportunities for local Argentinian Beer is very good.

Back from the Midwest

Overall, the trip was a success. We found the gum boots in Wisconsin, and Turkey run had enough rain that we could try them out. Nice and snug with heavy socks and the walking wasn't too bad. I think they'll do the job.

The weekly assignment is Natural Framing. I had that in mind when we were trying out the boots. The trail followed a stream bed, plenty of mud, but deep cut channels into the rock. Got a photo to use for the Weekly Assignment

On the way back to Texas, we stopped in Paducah for an afternoon. They have a Quilt Museum. While Joanne looked at quilts, I went down to the flood wall. It is all covered with murals. I wanted to take a couple "framing" shots. Didn't use them for DPS, but one was interesting. It is the Ohio river through a door-way. Almost looks like a mural itself. That's the one I'm using for the Weekly Photo.

Got To Wisconsin

Don't know if I should consider it an opportunity to practice or a disadvantage. The weather between Austin and Milwaukee has been terrible. Heavy rain and high winds. Even had a chance to hear the Tornado Warning Sirens.

I could, I suppose, practice foul weather photography. I have opted for keeping the DSLR safe and dry. Plus I was more concerned about keeping the car on the road.

Arrived on Saturday, just in front of the storm that nailed the Milwaukee Zoo. The "planned" visit may be postponed on this trip.

Biggest problem is the quantity of rain. The storm sewers will catch up, eventually. But, you get some temporary flooding. I know where the low water crossings and low streets are in Round Rock. I'm not so sure here in Milwaukee.

On the plus side, we're going to go looking for rubber boots this afternoon. Mid-calf to knee high, all rubber, with a good tread. I'm betting that the farm stores here have more comfortable work boots for dairy farming, and at a better price, that more expensive hunting boots. I used to have some fishing boots with a steel shank, you could wear those for 12 hours comfortably no matter how much you hiked.

Thermal Underware

Had SCORE on Wednesday, and went shopping on Thursday, not much done with the digital camera. The objective Thursday was the base layer for arctic clothes. We went down to a large sporting supply store and found some pants and tops. Essentially long underwear, but made with synthetic materials not cotton. The alternative was silk.

I decided to find some of the stuff now, during our "Winter." I'm not sure all the items will be in the stores during the Summer.

I’m not expecting severe cold during our trip. But a wet or overcast windy day can seem a lot colder than the outside temperature. Used to have reasonably crummy weather in Minnesota. But after 28 years in Texas, even 40 degrees feels cold.

A lot of searching on the web for temperature tables. Nov/Dec is late Spring. Summer is usually described as Jan/Feb. I would guess we will see temperatures of -10 C to 10C (which is 14 F to 41 F).