The Road Less Ridden

25/11/2019

On a motorcycle trip to Vancouver Island, we stopped for lunch in Chemainus, which is about an hour north of Victoria. We were delighted to discover that the town is literally covered in murals that document the history of the local area

We were delighted to find a town filled with murals when we stopped in Chemainus, which is on Vancouver Island between Victoria and Nanaimo.

10/11/2019

On this Remembrance Day (and on all others), let us wish for the opposite of war: peace. From this, we can learn a lot from the Japanese, who have made peace a societal goal.

On our trip to Japan, we stopped at Hiroshima and visited the National Peace Memorial. In doing so, we gained a different perspective on remembrance.

04/11/2019

Sulphur Mountain in Banff, Alberta, Canada, is my favourite workout on the planet. Walk up. Enjoy the spectacular views. Ride down. And there's a treat waiting for you at the bottom. Banff-Nationalpark

Favorite Workout on the Planet

01/11/2019

As the sun sets on another work week ...

Who sez the sky is always blue?

Taken at Wood Lake, Ontario.

28/10/2019

On a trip back from western Canada, I stopped to stretch my legs and learned why Kenmare High School in North Dakota rocks!

https://www.roadlessridden.com/page/?post=kenmare-high-school-rocks

25/10/2019

As the sun sets on another work week ...

Who sez the sky is always blue?

Taken at Ashland, Wisconsin.

21/10/2019

While there are sunsets to die for, there are very few that are worth the thought of a three hundred-foot plunge.

Fortunately, this was one of them.

http://roadlessridden.com/page/?post=a-sunset-to-die-for

18/10/2019

As the sun sets on another work week ...

Who sez the sky is always blue?

Taken in 2008, overlooking the St. Lawrence River at Mon-Joli, Québec.

15/10/2019

I have often been thankful for the full fairing (windshield and side protection) on my Honda Gold Wing GL 1800 motorcycle.

When it rains, for example, I often barely notice while other motorcyclists are having a difficult time.

But, as I discovered, there is no better protection against grasshoppers than a full fairing.
https://www.roadlessridden.com/page/?post=full-fairing-blessing

Village of Cereal - Cereal, Alberta

04/10/2019

Who says the sky is always blue?

Taken at Whale Cove, Nova Scotia.

01/10/2019

On our trip around the Gaspé Peninsula, we stumbled on a beautiful display of driftwood sculptures near Cap-Chat.

25/09/2019

To honour the World Cup of Rugby being held in Japan, I thought I’d post the statue of Kumahachi Aburaya outside Beppu Station, which is in the Oita area, one of the venues of this year’s World Cup. (Oita is on the most southern main island of Kyushu.)

Kumahachi Aburaya was born on the island of Shikoku in 1863. He was a rice merchant before he went bankrupt, then travelled to the United States “in the bowels of a ship.” He toured the US, Canada and Mexico for three years before returning to Japan in 1901. Eight years later, he moved to Beppu where he ran a hotel.

He used promotion techniques he learned in North America, eventually becoming a first class hotel that attracted wealthy clientele from around the world.

He is clad in rugby gear to commemorate Japan hosting the Rugby World Cup, currently being played in Japan.

(If you're interested in more about Japan, you can find it in our iBook, All Around Japan, on iBooks at https://books.apple.com/ca/book/all-around-japan/id1478635822.)

23/09/2019

As we say goodbye to summer, I thought it would be nice to post some pictures of a uniquely summer activity: sand sculptures.

There are two sets here, one from British Columbia and one from Ontario.

We were on a motorcycle holiday along the Crowsnest Pass in southern British Columbia, on our way to Vancouver Island, when we and spent the night at the city of Castlegar, a lovely community located within the Selkirk Mountains at the confluence of the Kootenay and Columbia Rivers.

While walking to dinner, we stumbled upon some lovely sand sculptures. The three largest were the front and rear of a castle, a lizard stalking a sleeping bird, and a bear looking over his shoulder at two sleeping princesses.

As a bonus, we also came across a bronze sculpture of a cowboy riding a bucking bronco entitled “Is This Love?” and a wood carving of a young boy entitled “The Dreamer.” The concept is that if we “dare to dream, a lifetime of adventure awaits.”

The second set is from the Canadian National Exhibition in Toronto. I particularly like the one of Jabba the Hut.

I’m going to miss summer!

20/09/2019

Who says the sky is always blue?

Taken at Sir Casimir Gzowaki Park, Toronto.

16/09/2019

This short video provides some stunning pictures of various gardens and temples we visited during our five-week trip to Japan.

If you're interested in seeing more, the iBook is now available at https://books.apple.com/us/book/all-around-japan/id1478635822?ls=1

13/09/2019

Who says the sky always has to be blue?

Taken overlooking the Ottawa River.

12/09/2019

The sky is not necessarily always blue. This sunset, taken at Matane on the Gaspé Peninsula in Quebec, is one of many we experienced this summer.

The Gaspé truly is Quebec's best-kept secret.

Thanks to Booking.com for helping make our trip memorable!

09/09/2019

I love this picture for a couple of reasons.

First, it’s a great photo. The sky is a variety of shades of blue; the ocean is a variety of shades of darker blue.

They boats are pointed to the horizon, as if longing to be there. The subtle green, orange and yellow adds highlights to the picture and brings out the life-saving equipment on the boats and the pedantic existence of those items that cannot put out to sea.

The second reason I love this photo is that it proved a point. It was taken somewhere on Prince Edward Island during our first trip there in 2008.

I provided Julie with a camera and asked her to take pictures. “What will I take pictures of?” she asked.

“Anything,” I replied. “It’s a digital camera. It doesn’t cost anything to point and shoot.”

As I said, this picture was taken somewhere on Prince Edward Island. I suspect it was during our day trip to Tignish, but I’m not sure.

I actually “found” this image in a larger image that was snapped as the motorcycle went by. It occupied about one-fifth of the frame. I found it, expanded it, altered the colours a tiny bit and voila!, a 16x20 of this picture has been up on the wall of our house for more than a decade.

This picture, and that trip, ignited a photographic bug in my passenger (my partner) that has led to more than 23,000 photos from all 10 of Canada’s provinces, the west coast of the United States, the loneliest highway in America, and more than 3,000 photographs from our recent trip to Japan.

Not all of these photos are as beautiful as this one. But, as I explained to my partner, if one in a hundred is a really good picture, with 23,000 frames, you will have some excellent pictures. And, unlike the old days when photography was expensive, you can afford to shoot to your heart’s content with digital photography.

And she has. We both have.

The purpose of this page is to share that beauty. After all, what good are the photos if they only sit on our computer?

Also, please feel free to post your own photos and experiences, so we can all share.

Photography is like a chocolate bar. If you eat it alone, all you gain is calories and guilty pleasure. If you share it, you still get the sweet pleasure, but you also gain the joy of bringing happiness to others.

09/09/2019

09/09/2019

08/09/2019

All Around Japan is now available from iBooks.

Join us as we travel the length and breadth of the Land of the Rising Sun. Our objective, when asked where we had been, was to answer with one word: "Everywhere."

We achieved that objective.

With hundreds of photos and stories of what are perhaps the world's most polite and peaceful people, it's a journey not to be missed.

https://books.apple.com/ca/book/all-around-japan/id1478635822

‎Travel & Adventure · 2019