Hiking and Photographing the Janapar Trail in Nagorno-Karabakh
This summer, my wife and I will be hiking, mapping, photographing, and filming our journey along the Janapar trail, a trail that runs through the heart of Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a self-proclaimed semi-autonomous region located between Armenian and Azerbaijan.
You can find out more about our project and become a supporter here. We’re using a great new funding platform called Kickstarter, which is beginning to revolutionize the way independent artists support their projects. Check it out as, we’re offering great rewards for those that support us.
Here’s the full link:
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/256905182/janapar-trail-a-journey-through-nagorno-karabakh
Chess is a national pastime for the Armenian people. Here in Shushi, we witnessed a major chess tournament.
We’ll be hiking for two weeks, gathering all the film, photos and info, and we’ll be spending another week to ten days, traveling around the region by car, gathering info on hiking, food and lodging, and the history of the area.
Shushi, an old town in Nagorno-Karabakh, was almost obliterated in the war during the early 1990's. Here you can see the towers of a mosque. This land has been occupied by both ethnic Armenians of Christian faith as well as by Islamic Azeris. Most Azeris fled during the war, and this region is mostly inhabited by ethinic Armenians now.
At the end of the project we will have a guidebook, map set, photos for a number of exhibitions and a 20 minute documentary-slideshow.
The light in this mountainous region is often incredible.
If you have any experience in the area, definitely let us know. My wife Julia lived here for about a year, so we’re lucky she knows the area and can speak the language, which is a variation of eastern Armenian.
Thanks and be sure to check out our Kickstarter project!
Columbus Weekend Boys Hike in the Whites
Every year a bunch of my male friends and I make it out on a weekend hike during Columbus Day Weekend. Usually this takes place in the White Mountains, and this year was no exception. We were blessed with extraordinary foliage, cold but pleasant temps and ample amounts of whiskey. Surprisingly our group of 9 the first night, and 5 the second night was not too difficult to manage.
The first part of the Dicey's Mill Trail follows a beautiful dirt road.
I love hobblebush. Not only is it everywhere, the leaves turn such dramatic colors and vary widely, creating an understory that mirrors the canopy.
Sometimes the shadows are as interesting as the trees themselves.
The Sierra High Route
So this summer some friends and I embarked on the Sierra High Route (SHR) which is an unmarked route developed by Steve Roper. It travels from Road’s End in Kings Canyon National Park to Twin Lakes, which is north of Yosemite near Mono Village. As can be expected on a journey of this magnitude, everything did not go as expected. Nonetheless, we completed about two thirds of the route and went many days without seeing another human.
This trip travels similar terrain to the John Muir Trail, but instead of following a nicely graded path over a dozen or so passes, this route climbs over precipitous passes almost every day. Miles were limited to around 8 per day, less than half of what I’d normally do. It really was an experience, and over the next few weeks and months I will be describing the trip and showing some of my photos. I thought I’d give a little teaser right now and show you a few of my favorite photos from the trip.
Enjoy, and stay tuned for more!
