Lazarow World-Hike-About

Perhaps a ray from heaven Early morning fire Jenni waits for the sun to surface Gentle on our minds...and souls You might ask what would make a person wake at 4:30am to take a hike up a mountain, part way in the dark. We would say that’s a fair question. Then you might ask, why would that person repeat the exercise two days later. That would be a better question although enough with the questions already. Just last week, we noticed people were asking questions…more than usual. Even at the table on a couple of nights, the youngest child asked questions. Not one or two but four. What’s with all the inquisitiveness going on at this time of the year? Clouds come rolling in like the tides Feeling on top of the world as sun 'warms' the back Blazing sun starts the day in struggle with clouds Back to our reasons for doing what we did. Firstly, as our friend Sean often says: He believes the early morning is Hashem’s time. Who are we to disagree. ...

Since returning from Hike-about 11, we have undertaken a number of local hikes. However, until today, nothing stood out or made a deep impression. Obviously, because of our desire to share this blog, we saw some great sights in San Diego County, once again dispelling the notion that one has to travel to far-away places to see spectacles. We think some of the visuals at an old favorite, Iron Mountain, might be interesting. Smoke and mirrors at 6:15am Sun about to make an appearance Meantime, towards Mexico, a thin cloud catches the first light A favorite: Wild clouds dominate We arrived at the trailhead at 5:30am, which we believe is early, actually, bloody early. In fact, the sun had not thought of rising yet. We have noticed that over the last few weeks, the sun does not make an appearance until after 10am on a good day and later, at other times. Off we trudged, heading east, of course, to try and understand the problem. Is it global-cooling, sun boycott or not w...

We knew this would be a special day—it began with an early wake-up to watch the sun greet this part of the world—the valley, covered in cloud with wisps of mist rising in the lower front area The prominent Sentinel stands above the clouds, tinted by the sun Jenni's favorite view, well earned, too We read about the Tugela Falls but found very little information regarding it, particularly about getting to see the spectacle. The fact that outside Venezuela, it is the highest falls in the world, certainly aroused our interest. Why, we thought, do so few people talk of it? After all, 2,800 feet of water barreling over a cliff is a big deal. Howick Falls, a recent visit (see blog or two ago), has a height of 330 feet and wasn’t ‘half-bad’. The problem turns out to be access. It is in a very inconvenient position. We were so positively focused on the hike that our concern was possible disappointment because of the curse of high expectations. The day began with a gloriou...

Above the ladders, a view of Tugela Falls, the second highest in the world (2,800 feet), although a slow flow Jenni begins the climb Absorbing magnificent sights Reaching the top of the first section of the chain ladder ('loved' the bend in the chain) Part 2—the previous blog should be read first ...We decided on the former strategy, that is, rest a minute and get going. Let’s commence immediately, focusing on the climb and less on the consequences should things not go according to plan. The idea being to climb the chain ladders to the summit without over analyzing the situation. One of the thoughts we had while halfway up the first ladder was on affirmative action. We thought it a good time to pose the question: While balancing precariously on a metal rung on a cliff face, would you feel comforted to know the engineer qualified because of sympathy toward his/her race as opposed to merit and competence? On a personal note, we’re pleased about our hip...