Vagabonding begins!

 

I can say that South Dakota has some of the finest asses in the states.

 

While driving through Custer State Park (yes, the same General Custer that made a career limiting decision at the Battle of Little Big Horn) they would walk right up to the car and even stick their heads inside if you weren’t fast enough to get the windows up! Probably a by-product of idiot tourists supplementing their natural diets of grass and berries with nachos and chips.

 

[read on]

I struggled to control my breathing as I walked up the trail.

I swung my Nikon out in front of me like it was an M16, scanning each shape and movement before moving my other foot forward. My ears analyzed every sound. My senses were working at 100% capacity and it sent a warm sensation of excitement through my entire body. This was an old familiar feeling, I’ve cherished it many times before either with a camera in my hands, hunting, or while in the Army. It felt like I was right where I needed to be.

The tall grasses on both sides of me were the perfect place to get ambushed by a bear, they were even the right color to hide a young grizzly’s blond coat. My imagination was running wild in hopes that I would see something, anything…..this year’s dreadful lack of adventure has taken its toll on the common sense part of my brain that is responsible for simple calculations like “bears have claws”, “you have fingernails”, “claws + fingernails = dead vagabond”.

Suddenly, there was a snap, a flash of movement, and 2 dark eyes staring at me from just meters down the trail…..

[read on]

 

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Khao San Road - backpacker ghetto of the universe

The bad news: My fingers are permanently gnarled into keyboard mode, and they twitch at night when I'm trying to sleep. ... [Continue reading this entry]