beauty

" beauty is not caused. it is." -- emily dickinson

farther sail!

O my brave soul! O farther, farther, sail! -- Walt Whitman, " Passage to India"

returning from europe leaves time to drift back to idyllic times on peaceful shores, thinking about all the places i haven't been..... and where i'd still like to go if possible. unfortuately, with a trip too short to rent a kayak, i had to just imagine gliding quietly along silent waters taking in the unimaginably beautiful surroundings. this church sitting on an island in lake bled, slovenia as seen from grad bled castle has to be one of the most serene communes with a higher power that created all the amazing sites we saw on our journey.

coming out of the dolomite mountains from cortina, italy we first caught site of lake garda, above riva del garda, and it absolutely took my breath away. like some norwegian fjord, tucked in between steep mountains diving into the water, the lake takes one back to the days of summer villas carved out of the cliffsides and accessible only by watercraft. i'm ready to retire to this stunningly beautiful place.

beginnings

"i had myself a desire to return to the place of the very beginning whence i had, as i have said, renewed my age." -- joshua slocum

leaving tomorrow for switzerland and on to klagenfurt, austria is a trip back to 1967. oh for the carefree days of swimming in crystal clear lakes, climbing mountains and exploring.. but that requires remaking of mistakes and lessons since learned. guess i'll just enjoy the memories. every morning while there i would run up this mountain past the stations of the cross and through the park about 4 miles. then after breakfast i'd ride my bike to the strandbad to play waterpolo and swim all day. it was tough to be an exchange student.

scream

"one's own self is well hidden from one's own self, of all mines of treasure, one's own is the last to be dug up." -- friedrich wilhelm nietzsche

with only a few days left before leaving for switzerland i had to give my "rogue wave" to stripbuilder for repainting and repair. a season of rough use and hundreds of miles has taken it's toll. repainting the graphite bottom and weathered top, and fixing the cowling crack, reminds me it is time to also continue getting back in shape physically and mentally and set a new course for the upcoming year. but occasionally it is just time to "scream" and let go of old emotional dings and cracks.

rudderless

with changing weather we once again don warmer clothing and keep paddling. back in my own boat an aerobic 3 hour trip feels rejuvenating even with the promise of fewer days on the water. hopefully i'll find a boat when we get to switzerland next month. lago maggiore is beautiful beyond description and possibly bled, slovenia will offer the same if we get there.

"fortunate indeed, is the man who takes exactly the right measure of himself, and holds a just balance between what he can acquire and what he can use." -- anonymous

dreams

"hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die life is a broken-winged bird, that cannot fly." -- langston hughes

mr140

what should have been the mr340 was shortened for us by orthopaedic complications - mine. not every goal we set is achievable, not every dream we have comes true, not every problem has to be insurmountable, not everything is understandable. my son, TA, had a t-shirt while swimming that read, "failure - when your best just isn't good enough." i guess i did my best for 18 hours and 140 miles but that was well short of the requisite 340 miles. we finished at 0230 at glasgow, mo. stripbuilder gave us every advantage with a beautiful tandem boat, experience and energy but intense training just wasn't enough for my half of our combined 125 years age. fog, headwinds and rain made for an interesting trip and seeing the many different types of craft and paddlers was exciting. a SUP paddler actually made the distance and was only a few hours behind us into our last checkpoint. although the disappointment was evident, getting into the best shape possible was a definite success. now back to more dreams...

even someone's partner, wilson, made it farther than me...