After the last burst of caves and tunnels, I pretty much ran out of ideas and energy for any more of these mini-trips. It’s not that there aren’t any places of interest to visit in the area (well, maybe there aren’t….this is the Sacramento Valley), I’m just kind of burned out on long drives by myself. It was nice having friends along on two of the trips but most of the remaining places on my list require an overnight or two.
And there is one other problem – August 17th is fast approaching and that would have been our 50th anniversary. Last year I was still in shock, and I do not recall what I did on what would have been our 49th anniversary. Jan so wanted to make it to our 50th, and we had planned a trip starting in Portugal, traveling to Spain, and then across to Morocco – this anniversary is hitting me harder than I was expecting. My solution will be the same as what I did for the one year anniversary of her passing – head to the coast, and do some of the fun things we did together. Definitely a whale tour, and possibly kayaking in the Elkhorn Slough with the sea otters. That will keep me from going down the rabbit hole of grief. A martini or two on that evening will help.
What I have been doing the past few weeks is scheduling trips for 2026, and considering some adventures for 2027. My experience with having a potential diagnosis of a life threatening cancer, which fortunately was a lab mistake, made me reconsider my priorities for the next few years. Once you hit your 70’s, you have to start considering that mortality thing. And also realize that your physical condition can change very fast. I’m doing OK for an old fart, still have all my original body parts and a mostly functional brain. But all that can change in a flash. So I’m planning to schedule the more adventurous trips on my bucket list in the next 2 or 3 years – that would include an African safari, and anything that requires more serious hiking, kayaking and snorkeling. If I remain healthy as I get further along in years, that’s great. If not, I can switch to more cruise oriented trips, and have lots of good memories without the could-woulda-shoudas about the trips I never was able to do.
My itinerary, so far, through 2026 is:
- Alaska Inner Passages (September 25)
- Colorado – Manitou Incline (September/October 25)
- Antarctica (November 25)
- Glamping with Gray Whales in Baja (February 26)
- National Geographic Iceland “Expedition” (July 26)
- Photographing Grizzly Bears/Kodiak Island (August 26)
- National Geographic Patagonia “Expedition” (November 26)
I’m also considering an adventurous photography trip to Costa Rica for 2026/2027 – plenty of room on the calendar to fit that in.
I’ll be filling the in-between months with more domestic trips such as another attempt at “The Wave” and other hikes in Utah/Arizona, snorkeling/kayaking trips to Florida – I’ve got my stack of catalogs and a long bucket list of domestic things to see, that will keep me busy traveling, expanding my photo libraries, and writing new blog posts for a while.
I’m just not ready for those Viking river cruises yet.
The Traveling Widower 