Chasing Clean Air

Drive from San Rafael, CA to Ashland, OR

To say the drive wasn't easy, is an understatement but I'm an adventurer!

I threw caution to the wind, bug spray and sunscreen lotion in the backseat of my car and waved bon voyage to my dad and Nola, as I began my journey from San Rafael to Ashland, Oregon--350 miles north.

It was my first long solo drive ever, especially when you consider I began in Los Angeles last week.

I thought I was doing okay until I hit the Redding area and drivers were crazy, as if they thought tail-gating were sport. I witnessed two horrible accidents, I mean right after the fact when ambulances and a chopper hovered in the air.

My heart started beating faster as the hills became grander, trees greener, and I realized I hadn't overdone the caffeine. I was climbing high, very high, I thought the sign said 10,000 ft. but I could be wrong. I was in Mt. Shasta country (beautiful no doubt) on those windy cliff roads I do everything to avoid but there was no avoiding two hours on these windy high roads around Mt. Shasta.

Up. Down. Big trucks blowing in the wind too close. Oh my.

For a normal person, Shasta was probably the highlight of my drive.

For an anxiety prone person, like me, driving solo in high altitudes on windy cliff roads, and high high tressles!, oh my!, I gripped the wheel, went exactly the speed limit, and called every friend who I could find at home.

Now after seven hours in the car with stops for gas and lunch, I made it to Ashland--exhausted!

On the good side, Ashland has a welcoming feeling. It's a quaint charming town that kind of feels like a European village. It's currently hosting the Shakespeare festival, which it's known for.

Time to hit the road

About to hit the road for the biggest solo car trip of my life. I'm in San Francisco visiting family, helping dad take care of his wife who fell ill, and about to venture into Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. This is the trip I'd meant to take a few years back when dad informed me I was crazy to drive alone. I now have his blessing. He's getting ready for a cruise with his now recovered wife. See you next in clean air Ashland, Oregon known for its Shakespeare festival going in full-swing.

Madagascar's Inhabitants Need Help

When I was a kid, I was fascinated by Madagascar and Lemurs indigenous to the naturally rich island located off the east coast of Africa. Today I read about how Korea industry plans to devastate half of the agricultural land on Madagascar for industrial production. You can read more and consider taking action by clicking here.

Photo taken at wildlife zoo outside of Sedona, Arizona.

The Waxman-Markey Bill

Update: Greenpeace put out a press release today--June 25, 2009 coming out against this bill in its present form. I'm attaching their press release on page two of this post so you can weigh in.

Environment 360 is a great environmental newsletter put out by Yale University.

I just wrote about Waxman's new energy bill, and Environment 360 put out an interesting opinion piece on the subject.

You can read  here.

Biking Big in Salzburg

It's been a long time since I biked through Salzburg but I recall the many tree-lined trails.

Jeff Brody was recently there and took this shot of bike trails criss-crossing the European city that prides itself on sustainable practices.

To read highlights of Jeff's clean air Salzburg trip click here.

Clean Air Salzburg Offers Beauty, Music and Charm

When Jeffrey Brody was a little boy, he dreamt of meeting Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music filmed on location in Salzburg, Austria.

In this piece, Jeff shares highlights of his recent Salzburg trip where he walked in Julie Andrew's footsteps and soaked in the land's spirit, while breathing clean mountain fresh air.

In his own words:

When I was young, I fell in love with Julie Andrews in “The Sound of Music.” Scenes with her and the seven Trapp children singing in the gardens of Salzburg and prancing by their lakefront home filled my childhood with visions of living in the Alps with a sweet nanny like Julie Andrews.

Well, the years have gone by and I’ve lost my fantasy about Julie Andrews, especially after she appeared in “Victor/Victoria,” but a visit to Salzburg rekindled my fantasy of living in clean, clear, frosty mountain air, in the foothills of a medieval city with musical enchantment.

The Austrian city remains as wonderful as it was in “The Sound of Music” with its ancient castles, stone churches, bicycle trails and chamber halls filled with the music of Mozart who was born here in 1756.

Located at the beginning of the Alps and close to the German border, Salzburg lies nestled in a mountain valley at an altitude of about 1,300 feet. It’s bisected by the fast-moving Salzach River, which takes on the color of jade in the sun. The name, Salzburg, comes from the salt that was once mined in the area.

 I took a boat trip up river and saw expansive homes and farms that dot the mountainside. Returning to the city, the captain displayed a hearty sense of humor when he turned the wheel to the extreme right, blared a waltz on the loudspeaker, and allowed the boat to spin round and round and drift with the current.

Salzburg has a feel similar to Lake Tahoe; the temperature dips below freezing in the winter and for five months of the year the mountains remain snowcapped. In June, I spotted avalanche shoots with tongues of snow.