• Oregon

    Sunrise, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. I made my very first appearance in the state of Oregon over the weekend. I’m impressed and hooked. Oregon is a very pretty state, and I didn’t even get to see very much of it. My Oregon experience took me to a little known section in the northeastern corner,…

  • Grandmother Mountain

    Looking West on Grandmother Mountain, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. This weekend, Erin and I set out for our first hike together in Idaho and we made our first summit together on Grandmother Mountain. The hike to Grandmother Mountain begins high up in the St. Joe National Forest 12 miles out of Clarkia. The entire…

  • Fall Foliage

    Foliage, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. With the sudden drop in temperatures, Fall has officially begun in the northwest. This is the first time I’ve spent fall in a predominantly evergreen forest. While there is color to be found in the west, I suspect that the immediate area won’t be the place to find it….

  • Hiking Deary

    View from Potato Hill, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. I’ve now been in Idaho for almost three weeks and I’m starting to get settled into my new home. Later I will post about the property and the abundant wildlife that make our place so special. But today, I write about a local hiking opportunity just…

  • The Road Trip

    Well, we are finally off and on our way to a new life in the middle of nowhere, Idaho. Of course, this trip is not without its share of stories. To begin with, we were supposed to leave Maryland as soon as Erin was done with camp. I gave her until 2:00 and we were…

  • Kittens

    I can hidez., originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. We’ve been in and out of the Altoona area to pack up belongings in preparation for the big move later this summer. We usually stay with Erin’s grandfather who lives on a farm off of Rt. 22 near Williamsburg. He has some “stray” cats that he feeds,…

  • Dolly Sods, Revisited

    Dolly Sods Meadow, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. In the fall, I visited West Virginia’s Dolly Sods with my parents. The foliage on the blueberry bushes was amazing, but the trees had not yet turned. I was planning to return a week later to backpack through the wilderness area during its peak foliage, but my…

  • Mother’s Day

    Hazeltop, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. This past weekend, my mom came to Luray to visit me. We spent Saturday in town at the annual Festival of Spring. Main Street is shut down to traffic and the stores and other vendors set up shop on the street. We spent a good deal of time at…

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    Swimming Holes

    The Lower Falls on Overall Run, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. When the weather turns hot and humid, there’s no better way to stay cool than at your local swimming hole. Swimming holes offer something that your pool does not: privacy, seclusion, crisp cold water, and no chemicals. That icy mountain stream gets the old…

  • Big Falls on Overall Run

    Big Falls on Overall Run, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer. It’s great to have my camera back. Two weeks ago, I bent a pin in the card slot which rendered the camera useless. After speaking with Canon support, I packed up the body and shipped it off to the nearest repair facility. It left FedEx…