Jim and Deb Inflating our rafts at Lee’s Ferry

An extended stay in the bottom of the Grand Canyon, Part 1

Tom McCorkle June 17, 2019

On the night of August 1st, Jim, Nate and I met up with the rest of our group for this epic journey. Plans were hatched for the following days activities, which included being shuttled to the put in, and rigging the rafts that would be carrying all of our collective gear for the next 15 days. We chose Canyon REO as our outfitter, and I would highly recommend them - they were very professional and supplied us with everything, I mean everything, that we would need for the amazing adventure ahead of us.

For my sake, and yours, I am breaking this trip up into three parts. Get ready for a lot of photos of brown water, rafts, sunsets, beer and some of the dirtiest, yet best people you can imagine. Directly below is a gallery of the first 5 days on the water, for those of you who don’t want to read about it, and just get to the good stuff. Those of you who do want to read, I’d suggest skipping the gallery, as all or most of the photos will be below.

Sunrise, day 2. Cruising west across i-80.

An epic adventure begins with an epic road trip.

Tom McCorkle January 1, 2019

You haven’t heard from me for a while, but don’t worry, I’ve still been out there having fun and documenting it - I’ve just been real shitty at sharing it. This summer I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to spend 15 days on the wild and wonderful river that carved one of the seven wonders of the natural world. I’m talking about the Colorado River and the Grand Canyon. But first I had to get there, and that in itself was quite the journey.

Fire and ice in the dolly sods.

Tom McCorkle January 4, 2018

I decided I wanted to be in the woods for my birthday this year, as usual. So I recruited my buddy Frank to plan a return trip to the Dolly Sods Wilderness Area for the beginning of November.

OuterBanks, how I have missed you.

Tom McCorkle December 7, 2017

I haven't been to the OuterBanks since I was in college, over 10 years ago. My family, like many from western PA, spent a lot of our summer vacations in this beautifully wild, yet over developed area. We always headed for the area around Cape Hatteras, where there was a lot less development and people, and more wide open beaches. This year my parents, with the help of my brother and sister-in-law, planned a late September vacation with my father's side of the family, who would usually join us on these summer trips.

A Campfire Feast Prepared in the Pine Barrens.

Tom McCorkle November 23, 2017

My buddy Matteo and I have been talking about getting together in the woods and cooking some serious food for quite a while now. Last month, on an oddly warm late October weekend, we finally made it happen.

5D4_6686 copy.jpg — Buda And Pest, Two Sides Of The Danube.

Sloane and I just got back from another fantastic trip overseas to Europe. Sloane had mentioned Prague when we were planning our trip last year, so we decided to try it out this time. My family has roots in Hungary, (see our delicious family tradition here), so I was excited that Budapest was so close to Prague and easily accessible. We researched a bunch of different options: flying in and out of both Prague and Budapest, renting cars, riding trains and flights from city to city. Our plans began to take shape when we finally purchased plane tickets in late July. We found it was cheaper to fly into Budapest and out of Prague, so that gave us a starting and end point. We planned the rest afterwards as we talked to folks who had already travelled to these areas.

European Vacation Part 1

Tom McCorkle October 3, 2017

Sloane and I just got back from another fantastic trip overseas to Europe. Sloane had mentioned Prague when we were planning our trip last year, so we decided to try it out this time.

Sloane on the giant chairs at the Chincoteague water front park.

The Eastern Shore

Tom McCorkle October 3, 2016

These images are from an amazing vacation we took in late June, to the Eastern Shore of Virginia, about as far down as you can go. I am not going to give much narrative, but please enjoy the images and the small amount of words that go along with them. We started our trip off with a fast visit to Chincoteage and Assateague, since we were driving right by on the way to our final destination.

Leaving Point Judith on the Ferry to Block Island

Memorial Day in Rhody

Tom McCorkle August 19, 2016

This is another adventure that has been stuck in the pipes, I was finally able to get it out for you all to see. At the end of May Sloane and I took a trip up to her home state of Rhode Island to visit with our family - and enjoy the first days of summer - New England style.

Stuck in the mud, CheatFest and Spring Crick 2016

Tom McCorkle August 6, 2016

Once again, I am really late posting images, but better late than never.

First up - a return to spring crick in early April, for the annual gathering on the first day of trout fishing season in Pennsyltucky. I did not spend a lot of time with my camera this trip - I was too busy hiking, eating and drinking most of the time - but here are a few choice shots from the weekend. We had amazing weather yet again, so good, I am positive it will snow next year. It was sunny, warm and dry in the Allegheny National Forest the entire weekend. I think some people even caught fish - once again I didn't bother to bring my fishing gear.