Samomatic http://samomatic.com My Life Through My Lens Sat, 04 Feb 2012 07:00:19 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 Part 2 – Grand Canyon http://samomatic.com/2012/02/04/part-2-%e2%80%93-grand-canyon/ http://samomatic.com/2012/02/04/part-2-%e2%80%93-grand-canyon/#comments Sat, 04 Feb 2012 07:00:19 +0000 Sam http://samomatic.com/?p=2738 We spent 3 days in Grand Canyon. There was plenty to do and we really enjoyed the hikes and clearly labelled routes.

Exploring on the South Rim of the Canyon.

Mules awaiting their tasks at the Historic Mule Barn. Mule rides along the rim or descent to the base are possible but need to be booked 13months in advance!

Jump!


Horace, Carmen, and I ventured out in the Bright Angle Trail.

For the first 3miles, we were staying in the shades and the trail was pretty slippery with hard packed snow/ice.

We each had our share of slips and falls, but it wasn’t too dangerous. Use of crampons are recommended.

View from Three Mile Resthouse with all the switchbacks ahead of us!

After 2000ft elevation drop and 4.9 miles (7.9km), we reach the Indian Garden, an oasis in all the sand and rocks.

We met some rangers that were maintaining the paths.

A few mule-deers foraging along the ravine in the Indian Garden .

After eating a quick lunch, we turned around and retraced our steps back to the South Rim. Every step is now uphill!

Made it back to the top and we drove West along Hermit Road.

Stopping to admire the sunset.

]]> http://samomatic.com/2012/02/04/part-2-%e2%80%93-grand-canyon/feed/ 0 Most Extraordinary Family Trip – Part 1 http://samomatic.com/2012/01/24/most-extraordinary-family-trip-part-1/ http://samomatic.com/2012/01/24/most-extraordinary-family-trip-part-1/#comments Tue, 24 Jan 2012 18:28:43 +0000 Sam http://samomatic.com/?p=2717 Armed with a stack of guidebooks, no sleep and zero knowledge of the place we were heading we began our journey.

3 days prior to the trip my parents decided to join and managed to find last minute flights out of Buffalo airport. However they would have to connect through Pittsburgh while we stop-over at Chicago.

Arriving in Vegas and greeted by a row of slot machines! It was quite a miracle that our planes arrived within 30min of each other and retrieved all our luggages.

This was our rental car, a convertible Jeep Wrangler (Photo borrowed from Net Car Show, because we never drove one).

Instead, to accommodate the larger group we rented a 27′ Mobile Home (also known as an RV) which we shall call home for the next 10 days!

Here is the floor plan for the RV, which includes a kitchen, bathroom with shower, a bedroom and 2 convertible beds at night.

After picking up the vehicle and loading up on supplies we started heading East into Arizona State.

Lake Mead, about 30miles out of Las Vegas, is the largest water reservoir in the United States.

The terrain is completely foreign to us, all around us is sand and rocks.

We started bright and early the next day, driving along Hwy 64.

We stopped for a quick visit at the Planes of Fame Air Museum near Williams, the nearest big town from the Grand Canyon.

One of the retired Blue Angles!



Finally we arrived at Grand Canyon! What a sight.
Stay tuned for next week as we go explore deeper in the canyons!

]]> http://samomatic.com/2012/01/24/most-extraordinary-family-trip-part-1/feed/ 2 Dog Sledding in Collingwood http://samomatic.com/2012/01/12/dog-sledding-in-collingwood/ http://samomatic.com/2012/01/12/dog-sledding-in-collingwood/#comments Thu, 12 Jan 2012 22:29:19 +0000 Sam http://samomatic.com/?p=2711 With Brian as our guide, Terry, Carmen and I ventured off to a day of adventures in Collingwood, about 2hrs North of Toronto.

Meeting bright and early, we made good progress in Brian’s modified Jeep Cherokee.

There was fresh snow the night before and the jeep feels extremely stable in the snow.

Off-roading in some small back roads. At one point we ran over a patch of ice and the jeep was sliding back down!


This is Doug, the owner of Rob Roy Farm.

At the farm they have dog sledding programs in the winter. The beautiful dogs sleeps outside in their own kennel.

A barn used for storage in the winter. Some really cool collection of stuff accumulated over the years.

We were very fortunate there was fresh snow and Doug happen to setup the teams for training so we stayed for some dog sledding!


Even though it is a pretty short track, it is amazing how much power the dogs can muster.

And we get to feed donkeys too!

]]> http://samomatic.com/2012/01/12/dog-sledding-in-collingwood/feed/ 2 Hello 2012! http://samomatic.com/2012/01/01/hello-2012/ http://samomatic.com/2012/01/01/hello-2012/#comments Sun, 01 Jan 2012 11:11:14 +0000 Sam http://samomatic.com/?p=2706 Just a quick post as I am away on vacation at the moment.

What are your goals for 2012?

]]> http://samomatic.com/2012/01/01/hello-2012/feed/ 2 Christmas Cookies! http://samomatic.com/2011/12/22/christmas-time/ http://samomatic.com/2011/12/22/christmas-time/#comments Thu, 22 Dec 2011 20:52:19 +0000 Sam http://samomatic.com/?p=2693 Every Christmas I look forward to the sumptuous Christmas dinners and potlucks. This year I think my favorites are the beautifully decorated treats for my sweet tooth!

Ginger bread cookies decorated for church Christmas dinner!

Cupcakes and cookies made by my friend Aly for her birthday party!

Salvaging some broken cookies into handicap ginger bread men by yours truly.

Cute snowman cupcakes, I think these rival her Alice in Wonderland Cupcakes!

Wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year for 2012!

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