Na fietsen op de Oma-fiets uit Nederland, zonder versnellingen, past hij nu ook op mama's mountainbike. Fijn, want Perth is in tegenstelling tot Den Haag, helemaal niet vlak...
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Luka's fiets avontuur
Na fietsen op de Oma-fiets uit Nederland, zonder versnellingen, past hij nu ook op mama's mountainbike. Fijn, want Perth is in tegenstelling tot Den Haag, helemaal niet vlak...
Saturday, December 03, 2011
Sinterklaas is aangekomen in Perth! / Sinterklaas has arrived in Perth!
Today Sinterklaas arrived in Perth with many Zwarte Pieten. He came by boat and landed at Claremont jetty this morning.
Wednesday, October 05, 2011
Rotto
Het is winter in Perth, maar we besloten het erop te wagen. Om Jurriaan’s verjaardag te vieren besloten we een lang weekend naar “Rotto” (of te wel Rottnest Island, vlak voor de kust van Perth) te gaan. We hadden geluk en het was een weekend met mooi winter weer wat betekent dat het vergelijkbaar is met menige zomerdag in Nederland.
We gingen erheen met de snelle veerboot, wat voor Luka al dikke pret was. Overal boten, opspattend water en vogels. Geen walvis of dolfijn maar dat mocht de pret niet drukken.
We hebben er heerlijk uitgewaaid, en veel op en bij het strand gespeeld met schelpjes en zand en gewandeld met Luka. Er waren ook mooie speeltuinen voor Luka en ondanks de winter kon pootje baden in zee ook al.
Schelpjes verzamelen
Turen naar het water
Racen met Luka's wagentje
Heerlijk spelen in de speeltuin
Wandelen over het eiland
Ontmoeting met een "quokka"
Zwaaien en "hi"
Schommelpret
Spelen in de branding aan het eind van de dag
Slapen in mama's armen op de boot terug...
Kortom een heerlijk weekend en iets wat vaker willen gaan doen!
Sunday, April 03, 2011
Luka at the Zoo
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Luka is 1
Sunday, August 01, 2010
Yellowstone
We rented a small (on the US scale, i.e. pretty big) camper van for our trek.
We started in Jackson Hole and drove via Grand Teton National Park to Flagg Range campsite. On our way we saw our first bear crossing the road. We were not really prepared as our cameras was still packed deeply in our luggage. It turned out that this was the only bear we saw this holiday: so, unlike us, always have your camera ready!
From our first camp we drove north to the southern entrance of Yellowstone.
We started to explore the Upper, Lower and Midway Geyser basins from our first "base camp" at the Grand village campsite. We made many day trips with our mobile home, and Luka felt at home quickly.
Lower Geyser Basin
Apart from geysers we saw beautiful blue-coloured hot springs such as Silex Spring.
At the fountain paint pots in the Lower Geyser Basin you can see hot mud bubbling up.
This vat of bubbling mud contains the perfect mix of ingredients to create mud pots: heat, gases, water, volcanic rock, minerals, acid, and even living organisms! Heat loving thermopiles consume some of the gases and help convert them into sulfuric acid. The acid breaks down rock to form clay; clay that mixes with water in mud pots.
Midway Geyser Basin
One of the more spectacular sights in the Midway Geyser basin was Excelsior Geyser.
In the 1880s Excelsior Geyser erupted in bursts 15-100 meters high. The thermal violence formed the jagged crater and apparently ruptured the geyser’s underground system, causing eruptions to cease after 1880.
Though eruptions have been erratic the geyser’s outflow is nearly constant, pumping more than 15,000 litres of boiling water per minute over the carter rim into the Firehole River.
But the most impressive sight of the Midway Geyser basin was Grand Prismatic Spring.
Deep beneath us, magma from an active volcano heats water that rises to the surface through fissures in the rock. The result is a hot spring that pours almost 2,000 litres of hot water each minute into the Firehole River. Minerals dissolved in the hot water are deposited and gradually build the gracefully terraced shoulders of this feature.
The yellow, orange, and brown colors encircling the hot spring and lining the runoff channels are caused by thermophiles – heat-loving microorganisms. These microbes contain colorful pigments that allow them to make energy from sunlight and thrive in the harsh conditions of hot springs.
Upper Geyser Basin
Across the Firehole River is Riverside Geyser, one of he most predictable and consistent geysers in Yellowstone with eruptions taking place every 5.5 to 7.5 hours. Beginning an hour or two before an eruption, water pour over the cone’s edge, and splashing and bubbling become more visible. Then, water and steam arch over the river to heights of 225 meters. The eruption will last about 22 minutes.
Further north in the Hayden valley we saw a spectacular herd of bison creating traffic jams when crossing the road, giving us plenty of time for photos!
Canyon
Near our campsite at Canyon Village, the Yellowstone River cuts a deep canyon into the ryolite rock. The canyon starts with the spectacular Upper and Lower Falls. The Lower Falls with the colourful surrounding rock make beautiful scenery.
Via a steep footpath you can climb down to the brink of the lower falls and see the water roar down into the canyon.
Mammoth Hot Springs
From our "base camp" at Canyon Village we explored Mammoth Hot Spring in the North. We first walked up to the main terrace, where Canary Spring resides.
Hot Spring waters of Canary Spring cascade down from the terrace forming colourfull terraces of travertine.
Shimmering at Pallete Spring is a living palette of colour. Billions of heat-loving microorganisms called thermophiles carpet the spring.
As you look at the spring’s patchwork of colors, you are looking at a world of thermophiles. Many species flourish here, each in a unique niche created by subtle differences in the spring. Temperatures vary – spots too hot or too cool for some are perfect for other thermophiles. Gases, most potent at the vent, are nutritious for some, but deadly for others. Swirling water or calm pools create different living conditions. The formations’ miniature hills and valleys capture light and cast shadows – habitats, for sun or shade loving thermophiles.
On our day trip there we could not resist to drive to the northern boundary of Yellowstone crossing the 45th parallel and the Wyoming to Montana state boundary.
Norris Geyser Basin
The last day trip before heading south back to the airport at Jackson Hole, was west to the Norris Geyser Basin consisting of the Back Basin and the Porcelain Basin.
In this raw, acidic land full of iron and arsenic, thermophiles and extremophiles (microorganisms that live in heat and other extremes) inhabit geysers and hot springs.
Many pools are opalescent or cloudy. Murky waters are caused by silica in the water. Colloidal Pool is a perfect example.
Our trek ended where it started, back at Jackson Hole. We had a great time!