Sea View Hotel, revisited

Sea View Hotel, Juhu Beach Mumbai

Rising Tide at Sea View Hotel

Note: Clicking on the photo will take you to its page in my Flickr photo sharing site where you can see a full size image (and additional photos).

The photo above is my most viewed photo on Flickr. For a long while I could not figure out why this photo got so much attention. It is not in any special group or pool. I’ve finally figured it out (with help of Flickr’s statistics tools). Google is sending folks there when they enter 'Sea View Hotel Juhu' or 'Sea View Hotel Mumbai' into a Google search. So now I know.


The images above and below are cropped from a 9600 dpi scan of the 35mm negative. No reason, just playimg with my HP Scanjet 3970 scanner.

Floating the Potomac River

Floating from Paw Paw to Little Orleans way too many years ago.


This started as a first attempt to scan a 35mm color negative on my HP-3970 Scanner.

The negatives are from a 1991 canoe camping trip floating from Paw Paw down to Little Orleans. These shots are from near the put-in. Twelve miles of the Paw Paw bends lie ahead. The bends is that section of river bypassed by the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal via the Paw Paw Tunnel. After the bends there is a hiker-biker camping site where the canal rejoins the river on the downstream side of the tunnel. From the camp site it is less than two mile back the tow path and through the tunnel (very convenient if you’ve left your jacket back in the car).


This is probably the best overnight trip on the Potomac. Finish up with a cold one at Bill’s Place in Little Orleans.

That's Water over the Dam

Note: Clicking on the photo will take you to its page in my Flickr photo sharing site where you can see a full size image (and additional photos).

The rain swollen Potomac River flows over dam #4 near Sharpsburg, MD

Dam 4 was a feeder dam supplying water to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal.

River's Rising

Rising Water on the Potomac River

Dam #4 Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Park
March 5, 2008

A beautiful day after a hard rain

On to Scanno

Previously I wrote about visiting Castrovalva. This is easily done as a side trip on the way to the more popular destination of Scanno, also the subject of an M. C. Escher work.

A Street in Scanno, Abruzzo Italy

Escher’s 1930 woodcut, Street in Scanno, Abruzzi can be seen on the home page (and in the gallery) of the Official M. C. Escher Web Site. Escher’s view looks toward my camera position.

Scanno, just 100 miles and a couple of centuries away from the hustle and bustle of Rome, is a breath of fresh air and should not be missed.

The Road to Scanno

The drive south through the Valle del Sagittario on SR479 is simply spectacular, reminding me of an earlier drive up the Big Thompson Canyon from Loveland Colorado to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.

In the photo above, taken from Castrovalva, a portion of the road just south of Anversa Degli Abruzzi is seen. South to Scanno is to the left.

The Road to Scanno 2	Lago di San Domenico
looking south from near Castrovalva	& Gole del Sagittario

Villalago

Rainbow over Lago di Scanno

Lago di San Domenico

Above, Lago di San Domenico, and Gole del Sagittario. The lake is a popular swimming and picnic spot.

I last wrote of reaching SR479 by exiting the A-25/E-80 Autostrada at the exit for Casale and Anversa Degli Abruzzi. This is correct but is not my best advice.

Unless you are really in a hurry (which is not a very good way to visit Italy), exit a bit earlier at Pescina and follow SR83, the old route over the mountain to Casale. It will add only about 20 minutes of driving time (and maybe 10 more stopping to say wow at the views) as you climb over the mountain (Montagna Grande) that the Autostrada tunnels through. You won't be disappointed.

Cocullo

The town of Cocullo sits just above the eastern portal of the Autostrada tunnel. If you take the Autostrada you will pass beneath the town underground. If you follow the route from Pescina you will see the town from above before passing through it.

Because Pescina and Casale are both accessible just off the Autostrada with no major towns in between, this beautiful road sees little auto traffic though it is quite popular among the local motorcyclists. Pescina also offers nice spots to stop for a bite to eat before continuing.

I have posted more photos from Abruzzo into photosets on my Flickr Photo Site

Please check out Abruzzo – Sud (South of A-25, includes Scanno photos), Abruzzo – Nord (North of A-25) and Abruzzo – Fucino (Fucino Valley). Many of the photos there are GeoTagged for location. Comments, suggestions and corrections are welcome and appreciated.