Dodgy Place
“You’re a mess, Harry. Skulking around Knockturn Alley? Dodgy place.”
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
Camel Trophy Expedition Skills
In honor of Overland Expo West, happening this weekend in Flagstaff, Arizona, here's a throwback to last year's Overland Expo East on the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina.
The Camel Trophy Expedition Skills Area is always a highlight of the Expo for me. It's where you learn to build bridges across dry river gulches and lift an engine out of a Land Rover with nothing more than a box of toothpicks and some bubble gum.
The Camel Trophy guys are the MacGyvers of the Outback and you get smarter just watching them. And then they put you to work and you realize how little you actually know!
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
The Great Savannah of Sun City Center
When most people think of Sun City Center, they probably think of swimming pools and golf courses. Just beyond the tree line that marks the property boundary, the land turns into a vast, flat, undeveloped land that looks as if it is an oasis in a great African savannah. While you won't find Gazelles and Zebras running across the fields, you could very likely catch a wild boar doing what it does best: destroying everything it can get it's snout on.
This photograph was captured with a DJI Mavic Pro drone.
Old Postcard from Hogwarts
We finally got to go into Hogwarts and ride "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey!" After getting through the disastrous locker room, complete with Universal employees screaming at customers to get out if they were done, things got much better. The walk through the line was like walking through a Harry Potter set and it made the wait go quickly. It even snowed on us in one room, which was really unexpected!
Speaking of unexpected, the ride wasn't what I had envisioned at all. I was expecting a traditional indoor roller coaster but this was a much more immersive experience. It also seemed to last longer than traditional roller coaster rides.
Needless to say, after getting through the only place in the entire park where we experienced a negative customer service experience, we had a great time!
Fire Rings of the Lion King
The Festival of the Lion King at Disney's Animal Kingdom is a great show. We always make a point to get a Fast Pass for it. We missed the Fast Pass window, though, on our last visit because a rogue giraffe stranded our truck out on Kilimanjaro Safaris for about a half an hour.
We ran to the Lion King show as soon as our safari tour was over but missed our window so we had to enter in the "regular" line about two minutes before the show started. They took us into the theater and sat us down right on the floor in front of the show!
Despite the fact that they pulled me up onto the stage and made me grunt like a warthog in front of the entire show, it was a great bit of luck! Stay tuned for many front-row photographs from the Festival of the Lion King in the coming months!
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
Watercolor Sky
The sunrises on Beech Mountain never stop surprising me. As the sun peaks over the back ridge of the mountain, it colors the light haze every color you could imagine. It usually starts a warm pink and then turns bright orange before giving way to the blue skies of the day.
This is the view from the back deck of our mountain chalet, Slopeside. Book a weekend at Slopeside and experience it for yourself.
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
The Fastest Hunk of Junk in the Galaxy #MayTheFourthBeWithYou #StarWarsDay
It's that magical day of the year when everybody geeks out over Star Wars.
May the Fourth be With You!
The Millennium Falcon and Star Destroyer pictured here are a replicas of the props used on set during the filming of Star Wars. They are on display at Star Wars Launch Bay at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
Launch Bay is located on the other side of the park from the rest of the Star Wars attractions at Hollywood Studios and it's definitely worth checking out. I think it's a sign of the massive scope the Star Wars remodel of Hollywood Studios that a company so committed to theming didn't have a problem mixing the message. The real message is this: Star Wars is taking over Hollywood Studios!
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
Zebras, Rhinos and Ostriches, Oh My!
Kilimanjaro Safaris at Disney's Animal Kingdom can sometimes be hit or miss. The last time we went, there must have been some sort of backstage animal party because the savannah was empty. This time, every animal you can imagine came out to greet us. We even spent 10 minutes sitting still in our truck because a giraffe was blocking the road.
In this single photo, you can see a zebra, ostrich, two rhinos and a couple of Bontebok (shout out to u/M_Hammer for the Bontebok identification!).
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
Seoul Food
As soon as the signs went up at Seoul Food, I knew I was going to love it. I have no idea how it took me a year to finally make the pilgrimage but it was worth the wait!
Not only is the food great but the giant patio is perfect on a sunny day. Along with soccer pool tables (or football snooker tables, depending on your disposition), they have three distinct Karaoke rooms that you can rent out for private parties, each with it's own theme. I need to head back some night and photograph the rooms in action. If you've got a crazy night planned there soon, let me know!
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.
Kite Festival
The Mile High Kite Festival is held every Labor Day weekend on Beech Mountain. It's a fun time for kids of all ages. Several professional kite fliers bring in some pretty amazing car-sized kites but the stars of the show are these little airfoil kites that are given out to everybody. This isn't a festival to watch... it's one to participate in!
This photograph was captured with a Sony a6300.