Lazarow World-Hike-About

We reach the first milestone, maybe more stones than miles, on our way to the bridge. Looking back at the town of El Tartar. We came across the Tibetan Bridge by chance as the formal entrance is on the other (far) side. The ever-mountainous Andorra.    I don’t get a lot correct these days, but I think I scored on this one. We were hiking in Els Plans, Andorra. After cresting a mountain, I headed down the other side. Without expecting too much excitement, I continued toward the valley, besides mountains and forests of trees. I walked at a leisurely pace with the intention of turning around soon thereafter. We were coming off some tough hikes, both suffering from illness and injury, respectively. Suddenly, I did a double-take. Across from me, in fact, a matter of a hundred yards was the beginning of a suspension bridge. We later ascertained that it is 2,000 yards in extent and the second longest in the world. It really is a wow. One could not help but gaze in...

Some people follow the money. Others follow the Colorado. Why? Follow the Colorado River and a person will enjoy heavenly rewards. What is perhaps paradoxical is that the river is used to supply many dams and lakes with water along its journey from Colorado through six other states before reaching Mexico. Why paradoxical? In so many places, the large bodies of water are situate in dry areas such as at Boulder city where Lake Mead lies between Nevada and Arizona, two large desert regions.    What's striking is that wherever this river flows, it creates a majestic air to whatever it touches, influences or to observers of its visual beauty. We are fortunate that we have hiked along it extensively, above it and paddled a little in it. Each time we feel we have been touched by the magic of the river including its lakes and dams.    Just when we thought Lake Mead might be the most beautiful receptacle of its flows, Lake Powell seemed to usurp the pole position in our...

Not an easy life. The completion of the Chairski hike, Bulgaria...and we meet these women. Jen returns from a peak as we head down to Balea Lake, Romania. Image has stuck in our minds since the day. (See text below). As much as we don't wish to acknowledge it, often when things are relegated to the back of the mind, one tends to forget them. While it's unlikely we'll forget experiences, usually because they required much effort, often with risk, to accomplish, on many occasions, places visited are superseded with fresh ones. Thereafter, they can easily be forgotten. From time-to-time, we'll explore a region via photographs on file and are usually amazed at seeing stunning places visited. How did we forget about that and what about this one?    I have been known to think every place visited is fantastic. While that might be a little exaggerated, it's probably close to the truth. I have no hesitation in stating that Central Europe is one such region. G...