Susan Solo – Photographer | Traveler | Adventurer

Blog

Visiting Family in Fort Collins

Hello again, East Coast! I just returned from a long weekend in Colorado to visit my family in Fort Collins (sadly, Chris had to stay home and work). I enjoyed plenty of quality time with my parents and siblings, and also had the opportunity to see two really good friends – one who recently moved to Denver, and one who was visiting all the way from Taiwan! In addition to family time, I ate way too much food, caught up on some sleep, and watched a couple of good movies. It was a relaxing trip, which is just what I needed. I brought my camera with the intention of taking lots of fun photos, but the weather was fairly uncooperative most of the time. It was rainy and overcast, which is super odd for Colorado this time of year.

I did take few photos in my parents’ yard one morning when I spotted a cute pair of humming birds. I brought the wrong lens for the job, but here are a couple of photos I managed to grab. Hummingbirds are quite the challenge to photograph!

We drove up to Estes Park one afternoon and had planned to visit Rocky Mountain National Park, but the weather decided to be rainy and blah. I’ve been to the park a few times, but never with my good camera and a proper wide-angle lens, so I was hoping to practice some landscape photography. Instead, I was able to take some nature photos when we happened upon a few elk wandering around Estes Park! We just spotted them grazing roadside. I didn’t get out of the car for the photos due to the rain, but I didn’t have to – they let us pull up close enough to reach out and touch them. (Just to clarify, I did not touch them.)

When it finally stopped raining on the way back, we pulled over so I could take a quick photo of the Big Thompson River. The scenery driving to and from the park is beautiful, so if you have the opportunity to go it’s definitely worth the drive, even on a hazy day.

Chris and I will head back to Colorado in the winter as per usual, so hopefully the weather will cooperate for some ski adventures!

July 30, 2014
Fear Factor

I have no idea how it began. I don’t have a specific story to explain the root of my unofficial/undiagnosed arachnophobia. I have plenty of dramatic spider memories in general, but not one where I can pinpoint the source of my fears.

There was the time I was getting ready for school in 5th grade where, standing in front of the bathroom mirror, I looked at my reflection and noticed something black moving against my white pleated skirt. A terrified glance down my side confirmed that it was an eight-legged beast (maybe the size of a quarter). As I flailed around, waving my arms in attempt to dislodge it from my clothes, it just clung to the fabric probably hanging on for dear life. Not being able to get it off of me sent me into sheer panic mode. My dad came running down the hall at the sound of my shrieks, the decibel of which probably indicated something exponentially more terrible was happening to me. (Sorry for the scare, Dad.)

I also recall a moment when I was sixteen – I was lying on my stomach on my bed reading a book when something other than the current page suddenly came into my line of sight. My eyes switched focus away from the text and onto a creepy brown spider at eye-level, dangling on a thin thread from above. For just a split-second I stared at it, trying to make sense of the scene. But then I screamed so loud that the vibrations from my yelp startled the spider and it immediately doubled-back up the strand of silk, scrambling quickly toward the ceiling. Now that I think of it, perhaps he was just trying to start a polite conversation like, “Hey, whatcha reading? Oh, that looks like a good story – I’ll put it on my list.”

The memories continue. Once when I was in the car with Chris, a small spider sent me into a hyperventilating fit and I catapulted myself into the back seat. There was also the wedding we photographed one summer where the outdoor venue was covered in spiders from every angle – one even landed in my hair. I’m not sure how I made it through that day. And just the other night, I was at the gym stretching in the cushy mat corner of the room post-workout when a very large spider crawled within inches of me. I screamed (see a pattern here?), leapt up from the mat, and the desk manager heroically remedied the situation with a towel and her foot.

Sigh. I can’t say I’m actively taking steps to get over this fear. My dad recently mentioned to me how funny it is that I’ll try just about any kind of adrenaline-filled adventure, but I’m terrified of a little spider. It’s true! I’m trying not to let my spider fears get in the way of any of those adventures though. While researching Belize for an upcoming trip, I did come across several photos of tarantulas in some of the jungle areas we plan to explore when we’re there next year. And I shudder at the thought of the morning we were in Tortola when I awoke to the sight of a giant arachnid across the bedroom, hanging on the drapes. This thing was huge – the kind too big to squish. Chris had to collect it in a cup and fling it outside.

Sadly, I’m sure I’ll cross paths with many more spiders in the future, but I’m pressing on and hoping our travels are mostly spider-free. And really, there are more debilitating things I could fear – flying, being out in public, or even alliumphobia, the fear of garlic. That’s a real phobia!

I don’t have any photos of spiders to accompany this post because I don’t photograph spiders, so here is a basket of kittens instead (taken during a pet photography class many years ago). Super cute, and not scary at all.

July 28, 2014
Photo Friday – Jupiter

From my extensive collection of un-blogged photos (I hope to get caught up sometime soon!), here’s a July 2007 image of Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse as seen from the boat when Chris and I went deep-sea fishing in Florida. I totally caught a fish, too. (And then returned him back to the sea.) The photos of me fishing are incredibly unflattering – I had no idea I’d have to sport a weird giant belt to support the fishing rod. But I promise to post them eventually. I have to prove how big the fish was, right?

July 25, 2014
Preliminary Planning: Peru

I’m in the very early planning stages of a potential trip to Peru, and I thought it might help me to hash it out on ~~paper~~ screen. Plus if anyone has any experience with hiking one of the trails to Machu Picchu, I’d love your input!

The trek appeals to me for a few reasons. I’ve never really done an adventure like this where the journey is just as much a part of the experience as the destination. I have some hiking experience, but only on short trails 4-5 miles at most and not for several days in a row. So this would be something new, and I love trying new things. A hike of this length (32 miles) at a high altitude with a hefty vertical climb would be a bit of challenge for me, and I do like to push myself. I’ve been hiking in the Rocky Mountains and the Swiss Alps and we’ve been snowboarding and skiing in the Rockies the past several years, so I’m aware of the potential for altitude sickness. I don’t usually have a problem with altitude changes, but I do notice a slight difference in how it feels to breathe when I’m really exerting myself. I’m willing to give it a try though. (The hiking, not the sickness.) Plus, Chris and I have never been to Peru or South America, and we’re always excited to see new places! The thought of seeing an area so rich with ancient history gives me goosebumps.

hiking in Virginia, El Yunque Rainforest (PR), and Alaska

I have no very little doubt in my ability to meet the physical demands of this hike with some training before we go. Truth be told, I’d like to do this trip while I still have the most spring in my step (although I’ve read accounts of people who have done the trek in their 70s). What I do doubt though, is my ability to do the hike after attempting to sleep outdoors on the ground. I am a super light sleeper and have zero camping experience. To add to that, I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep knowing my camera, passport, and other belongings are unsecured. Ideally I’d like to be able to appreciate the journey and my surroundings, and generally for me to enjoy anything I require sleep and time to reset. In that regard, I guess I’m a little high-maintenance, but I don’t think it’s my fault! I would love to be a heavy sleeper, trust me. So there’s that, and I’m also a little concerned about dealing with my dietary restrictions and sensitive stomach, but I think I have found a solution that will address both of these concerns.

Mountain Lodges of Peru (MLP) offers a guided Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. Compared to the Inca Trail, the Salkantay option is apparently the more challenging option in that it is a few miles longer at a higher altitude over rougher terrain, but the trek offered through MLP includes lodging along the route in accommodations with real beds, hot tubs (!), and showers. That sounds more like my speed! I’d have a better chance at getting some much needed rest, and I think my dining options would open up a little by staying at a lodge each night. I’ve read about the, ahem, “facilities” situation along the trail, so combine that with the difficulty of the 32-mile hike itself and that will probably be enough roughing it for me. The Eleanor Roosevelt quote is, “You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” So, that’s one singular thing. It’s not, “Do several things all at once that you think you cannot do.” I promise to try camping another time – it’s on my list.

photos courtesy of mountainlodgesofperu.com

From what I’ve researched, the Salkantay Trek offers incredibly beautiful scenery and perhaps a more peaceful experience due to fewer people choosing this route. I keep reading that the Inca Trail can feel slightly crowded at times. I also like the idea of only seeing one ruins site at the end of the trek – I’ve read reports from Inca Trail hikers that there are several ruins along the way potentially making Machu Picchu feel slightly anticlimactic, though I’m sure that’s not the experience for everyone. I’d probably be weirdly over-thrilled at seeing every single thing as I so often am.

I think I’d love to hike either trail, but the lodging option very (very very) strongly appeals to me, so Salkantay with MLP might be our best bet. I’m slightly bummed at the thought of not doing the classic Inca Trail, but from my research so far it doesn’t look like there’s an option for lodging along the way. Chris is completely resilient and would do great with camping each night, but he always votes for whatever will make me happy. (Isn’t he awesome? And smart – I’m sure he doesn’t want to do a strenuous hike all day with me after I’ve had no sleep the night before.) I realize I’d lose a bit of travel cred for not doing the camping thing, but I don’t travel for bragging rights. I simply want the experience of the hike, the scenery along the way, and of seeing the ruins. And yes, obviously it’s pricier to stay in lodges instead of tents, but this would be our big trip for that year and we’d save up our pennies accordingly.

So what do you think? Am I on the right track with my planning? Does anyone have any experience with either trail, or especially with MLP? Please feel free to comment or send me an email with your advice!

July 21, 2014
Photo Friday – Schultz

While searching my film archives for a set of photos (the missing USS Arizona Memorial images from a Hawaii trip – found them!), I came across my black-and-white darkroom portfolios from photography school in 2003. Oh gosh, I had a good laugh flipping through my books! Some of the work is pretty awful, but I had such a great time in that class and it was fun to reminisce. The darkroom was one of the few places I could get so absorbed in my work that I’d completely forget to eat lunch. I would enter the darkroom in the morning and emerge late in the afternoon smelling of stop bath and fixer, realizing that 5-6 hours went by without a break. Chris and I have talked about setting up a darkroom at home someday. I’d love to get back into it.

There are a few prints in my darkroom portfolio that I actually do like, and I especially love this one of Schultz, the miniature dachshund my family had when I was in high school and college. I don’t necessarily love the image for the print quality (the scan is even worse – please ignore the blocked-out shadows), but this image brings back the memory of how loving and loyal he was. As he got older he was difficult to photograph because he absolutely hated the camera (it made him anxious), so I took this picture while he was napping. Of course, he woke up when he heard the camera click, but I love the sweet sleepy look on his face before he had a chance to get nervous.

July 18, 2014