A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to join the chap in Orlando, Florida for a couple of days. Now I must admit that this wouldn’t be my first choice of destination but we had his work to thank for a conference he was attending there. In any case, determined to get into the spirit of things, we went to one of the parks there – Discovery Cove . I have to admit that despite myself I really enjoyed it (no we didn’t meet Mickey). A particular highlight was swimming with dolphins – of course it was a carefully stage-managed interaction but none the less moving for all that. I’ve seen dolphins quite close several times while diving but I just loved the opportunity to stroke and swim with them. I loved that they are so curious and independent minded (the dolphin we were interacting with swam off for a bit to go and investigate some other people before coming back to us). They have big brains so really are amazingly intelligent – well, they lark around and play all day so they are definitely more intelligent than we are…

The real surprise is how they feel to the touch. They feel exactly like aubergines – smooth but firm to the touch.

We’re having work done on the house! It is going to be fabulous but right now it is really rather disruptive  – we realised that staying put was not an option so we’re watching the progress from a flat up the road.

We’re going to end up with some good sized rooms and two bathrooms that you could swing a cat in (sooo exciting). I’ve been asked a few times for info, so I’ve just added a page above with pictures – under House Renovation. What do you think?

The house is currently in pieces and the whole project is looking quite daunting. I don’t like seeing the place in such disarray. It seems like there’s a long way to go before it is a home again. That said, the builders are working fast in between snow storms so we’ll hopefully be back in before we know it.

Last weekend we made it back to California to visit the bikes which have been languishing in storage in Oakland since we rescued them from Denver some time before Christmas. Actually we were thrilled to find that they were still there as Oakland isn’t the most salubrious place…

Arriving Friday evening we had time for a very tasty dinner before falling into bed back at the hotel – which was a very pleasant if wildly over decorated affair – with more marble clad elements in the lobby than is normally seen outside the Las Vegas strip.

After near Olympic levels of Saturday morning kerfuffling we picked up the bikes and headed North towards Napa – actually an easy enough trip of about an hour. California is one of the few states that allow motorbikes to filter in between traffic and we made good time while many cars and trucks were held up by the aftermath of an inevitable prang or two. Actually most of the drivers couldn’t have been more helpful , moving out of the way as we picked our way through the traffic.

I’ll admit that taking a motorbike to a wine region doesn’t sound like the most sensible option. You’ll be pleased to hear that we chose scenery over tasting as bikes really are the most wonderful way to experience a place using all your senses. We did wash down a rather good deli picnic lunch with a glass of cheeky red however.

Enjoying a cheeky red

Napa in January is stunning in a different way to the warmer months. The vines are dormant – with row after row of stumpy twisted trunks visible as opposed to the usual abundance of vines and grapes (they look like those mandrake root creatures in Harry Potter in fact) but the rolling scenery is breathtaking and the soft colours are no less beautiful than the usual verdant green. I particularly enjoyed our early Sunday morning ride up the Silverado Trail past mile after mile of vineyards where the morning mist was still just hugging the ground. I could have lingered for hours and would love to have stopped for pictures but time constraints and the fact that it was bloody freezing pushed us on.

Before actually experiencing the dog sledding first hand I have to admit I did wonder how the musher steered his dog team without reins. The answer is completely obvious – he tells the lead dog where to go by shouting out left, right, straight on etc (or actually haw, gee etc). I’m ashamed that I didn’t immediately work this out. These dogs are above average clever – of course they will follow commands.

That led me to think more about the bears with their enormous heads, most likely crammed with huge brains. What are they thinking when they amble around the tundra? Are they simply wondering if there’s some seal to be had over the next hill, or are they contemplating the meaning of beary life?

One bear in particular intrigued me; he’d loped along to stand about 5m from the bus. Then he just stood there stock still for ages, not quite looking up at us, in fact he almost looked shy. Half of me couldn’t help thinking that he was pretending to look all cute and cuddly in the hope that one of us would jump off the bus. The other half thought that maybe we were parked right next to his favorite sleeping spot. Or just maybe he loves to be the centre of attention  – between us we took thousands of pictures while he posed. Who knows what was on his beary mind?

Here he is just looking at us looking at him.

After approx 15 minutes he just lay down and put a paw over his eyes.

On the third and final day of our artic adventure we were fortunate enough to visit a Dog sled racing kennel in Churchill – Wapusk Adventures run by champion musher Dave Daley. The visit was a tour of the kennels and a brief insight into what it takes to run a dog sled team. What came out of it very clearly was that Dave cares very much about his dogs. He considers them to be athletes, so makes sure that they have the best food and the best care available. They have high quality paw ointment, muscle rubs and high protein, high calorie food and lots of it. When they are training they consume many, many thousands of calories a day which costs an absolute fortune. Which explains the tours. The care and attention shows in the dogs – they all look glossy, happy and extremely healthy.

One surprise was how small the dogs are. I imagined powerfully built, seriously furry huskies, but these dogs were smaller, wiry animals. According to Dave you wouldn’t back a 200 lb marathon runner and the same is true of dogs.  They are beautiful creatures – I was quite tempted to take one home. In fact I could probably have smuggled one out under the 18 layers of fleeces I was wearing.

Building up to the sledding, Dave and his son started getting the dogs ready. All of the team in the kennel nearly went mad with excitement when the harnesses came out and then howled with disappointment when they realised they hadn’t been chosen. These dogs want to run.

When we were actually on the sleds, the true power of those dogs quickly became clear – at a gentle trot they could easily pull up to four people on the sled without apparently trying. It was a great experience – gliding through the snow, watching the world streak by. Unusually for me I didn’t remotely miss having an engine.  I can imagine how it could become addictive quite quickly, being out in the elements with your team of dogs. I can’t begin to imagine how tough though – many hours of solitude, often in total whiteouts, in the middle of nowhere, in unbelievably cold temperatures. Brrrrrr

We’ve just had the most astonishing two days on Polar bear safari – an experience that I don’t think I’ll ever forget.

Both mornings started at the Lazy Bear Lodge to the sounds of the strangely percussive water system and the sounds of the heavy-footed Heffalumps upstairs getting ready to go out. Excited about what was to come we were soon adding to the strains of Churchill plumbing before breakfast.  Before long we were on the bus heading off into the pre-sunrise gloom. Each day we were chauffeured by different vehicles –each unique to Churchill. The first was a Tundra buddy – a strange armoured, four wheel drive vehicle (imagine the automotive love-child of a hummer and an amphibious vehicle and you’d get the picture). The second was an off-road school bus. Both had monster tyres, 4-wheel drive, very unforgiving suspensions and a viewing platform bolted onto the back.

On the first day we had barely set off bouncing across the tundra in search of polar bears when first one appeared in the distance – a young male out for his morning constitutional. Soon after we caught sight of a mother and her two cubs. We watched these amazing creatures for some time, following them as they sniffed the air, and cautiously avoided the large males in the area. The noisy chatter in the buggy had given way to a stunned silence, punctuated only by the sounds of camera shutters clicking again and again. Many of our fellow travellers were part of a photographic tour and consequently brought a serious amount of kit. Before long we developed a serious case of lens envy as we saw some of the group using scopes to take dramatic close-ups of bears before we could even see them through our cameras.

Time flew by astonishingly quickly as we watched many, many bears as they went about their business. They seem to amble along without a care in the world but they actually cover a lot of ground. They gather in Churchill at this time of year waiting for the ice on Hudson Bay to form. When the Bay freezes, the polar bears can get onto the ice to hunt their favourite meal, ringed seal.

Luckily for us, many of them were in the area– we must have seen over 30 bears on the first day . The second day we managed to see several at very close quarters. In particular at a dog kennel, a number of bears and the dogs have formed some sort of friendship. The bears hang out with the dogs hoping to share in the food that is handed out, and rather than attacking the dogs, they just reclined peacefully among them (bears are great recliners). We were so close to some of these it was tempting to reach out and touch them – they looked so relaxed and harmless, but just looking at those massive paws with the huge claws was enough to remind us that wasn’t the case.

It was really encouraging to see that the bears weren’t troubled by these strange busses that bristled with telephoto lenses.  Sometimes their meandering paths took them right past the bus, sometimes not. They didn’t seem to change their behaviour at all. At this time of year they are hungry, waiting to go and hunt the seals, so to save energy they lie down a lot – some literally stopped in the road and had a cheeky nap right in front of us.

It has been such a privilege to see these animals in their natural habitat. I’ve only seen one or two in zoos and only now can I start to understand why they look so miserable – because they are. They are meant to roam for hundreds of miles across the ice and snow, swimming for miles to catch the seals they love to eat – they shouldn’t be cooped up in tiny enclosures in weather that is ridiculously warm for them.

Speaking of temperature, despite the fact that the locals all thought it was a heat wave, it was COLD. The days, while short, were mostly bright and the temperature was around -3 but it felt MUCH colder. When we were taking pictures, either on the viewing platform or on the bus through the open window it was freezing. By day three I felt like I was wearing ALL my clothes.