Suiting up for Great Barrier Reef

 Stinger Suits are required for snorkel on the Great Barrier Reef. The stinger and box jellies don't normally come out this far (30 miles off shore)  but, better to be safe than dead, I always say.

Donning Stinger Suits for our day at GBR-Gail Betts Photo
Linda Goldman, Julie Zabilski, Ann Nielsen, Linda Ballou

The busy harbor in Cairns is where tourists board vessels for a day of snorkeling and diving on the reef. It was raining the February morning we left for the 30-mile cruise to our first snorkel stop, Simpsons Reef, but it cleared by the time we reached our destination. Stinger jellies are not this far from the shore, but we suited up in lycra stinger suits just in case some did not get the memo. Half of the 180 passengers on board were celebrating Chinese New Year. Amazingly, we were all fitted with masks and snorkels, and entered the 80-degree water with military precision. Those who didn’t snorkel took a submarine cruise with viewing windows.

Linda in the center of  Simpson Reef snorkel spot

Great Barrier Reef from Below

The reef’s coral heads look like giant pudgy brains in colors ranging from murky brown to emerald green and electric blue in an unending variety of shapes and sizes. Fishes of many colors flit in and out of the crannies and cubbyholes that afford protection from predators. The giant clam that can reach 400 pounds and the giant green turtles are a thrill to spot. I almost walked on water when I spied two 5-foot moray eels slithering through the reef near the ocean floor. The reef which is over 125 miles in length and has over 3,000 individual reefs and 900 islands, is endangered. The temperature of the water has been getting warmer each year for the last four years. Climate change is causing acidification, and bleaching of the corals which means death to the reef jeopardizing all the marine creatures that depend upon it to survive.

Great Barrier Reef from Above

Linda Ballou is an adventure travel writer with a host of travel articles on her site www.LostAngelAdventures.com. You will also find information about her travel memoir, Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales from Alaska to New Zealand, and Lost Angel in Paradise where she shares her  favorite  hikes and day trips on the coast of California.

Subscribe to her blog www.LindaBallouTalkingtoYou.com to receive updates on her books, travel destinations and events.

Online Romance Gets Real!

The internet works in strange and mysterious ways. Meet Sharon Pohl, a dynamic woman, energetic woman presently living on a tropical isle in the American Virgin Islands.

She found me on the National Association of Baby Boomer Women site where I am the adventure travel expert. She ordered my book Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales and requested a meeting with me. We rendezvoused in Santa Barbara and enjoyed on of my favorite outdoor days. As we hiked the bluff overlooking Hendry’s beach and strolled the sands back to the Boat House where we enjoyed a scrumptious repast at the Boat House we shared ideas.

She explained that she is busy re-inventing herself after an unexpected parting of the ways with her long-time husband. Her goal now is to help other women find ways to find peace with change and create new lives.

She invited me to be a guest speaker at a health and wellness week she will be hosting in March 2015 at her home in St. Croix.  My job will be sharing lessons I learned from the People of Old Hawaii in my research for my novel Wai-nani, A Voice from OldHawaii.

 How writing a book, I never dreamed I would write, has brought me to an opportunity to share spiritual insights with others is some kind of wonderful. To cap it off the healing week shoulders the St. Croix carnival, an extravagant display of Island color. Big fun on the way!

Wild West Wander - Part II

The head-spinning stretch of the San Juan Skyway between Telluride and Ouray is flanked by thousand-foot sandstone formations carved by a river lined by willows. I pulled over at the Dallas Divide unable to pass by the breathtaking sweep of rusty sedges at the base of Dallas Mountain. Its flank was clad in velvet green pine splotched with aspens spinning gold and its ghostly peak pierced tender blue skies. I took a moment to breathe deeply of our fast vanishing American Heritage.

The promise of the mineral hot springs held sacred by the mountain Utes for their healing powers pulled me forward. The Ute Indians, unlike the sedentary Pueblo peoples, were nomadic hunters and gatherers that dominated this lofty realm from1500AD until 1873 when they were overrun by gold-thirsty miners. Each spring when the Utes arrived in the Uncompahgre River valley they performed the Bear Dance celebrating rebirth-a coming out party for all of Mother Nature’s rich gifts. They also enjoyed the healing vapors in the cave that is now overseen by the owners of the Weisbeden Lodge in Ouray. You can pay to visit if you are not staying at their inn. The town is named after the great Chief Ouray who wisely led his people out of the valley when he realized they were out matched by the lure of the rich mineral deposits in the mountains held sacred by his people. There is a museum in nearby Montrose that honors him and is worth a visit.

Read more here;

Great Outdoor Day in L.A. #7 – Sunset Sampler

Temescal Gateway Park tucked in a canyon off of Sunset Canyon in Pacific Palisades is a gem that can be enjoyed year round. An “Alice in Wonderland” tree-tunnel beckons the hiker to enter the well-worn trail that meanders beside a creek. While the rest of the trails are dust-laden and dry in summer this footpath remains a soothing oasis. A marine breeze wafts up the canyon, refreshing the hiker.
When you reach a seasonal waterfall, the trail makes a steep ascent to the ridge line. The good news is that the bun-burning portion of this track is in the shade.

Read more at Examiner


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I walk in beauty on the good red road
Linda Ballou
www.lindaballouauthor.com

Great Outdoor Day in L.A. #6 – Point Dume Bluff Trail

Hike up the well-traveled path that sashays though a meadow spiked with lupine and California poppies in the spring. In February you will walk through mounds of brilliant yellow coreopsis, a shaggy form of rare daisy endemic to the region. Once aloft, enjoy majestic views of Windward Beach. If it looks familiar it is because it was used as the backdrop for the Bay Watch series and countless commercials.

Read more at L.A. Outdoor Travel Examiner

A Book is a Gift That Keeps on Giving

Wai-nani - A New Voice From Old Hawaii


Through Wai-nani’s eyes experience the Hawaiian society as it existed when Captain James Cook arrived at Kealakekua Bay in 1779, ride the billowing seas with Eku the wild dolphin she befriends, join her in a celebration of the people of old.






Available at all major online distribution sites, Kindle Reader and my wesbite, http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

Signed copy with free shipping and gift wrap, if purchased on Linda’s site
$17.95

Giving Thanks!

It is time to count our blessings and say thanks to those who have supported us. You know who you are and I want you to know how much I appreciate you. May you enjoy the bounty of the season! November is a special time to get outdoors in Southern California.

I will be hiking my turkey off with friends. If you are in L.A. don’t forget to look at my L.A. Outdoor Travel Examiner.com column for the Great Outdoor roadmaps I have provided for you to enjoy.

Happy Thanksgiving!

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I walk in beauty on the good red road.

Linda Ballou

http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

One Writer's Journey interviews author Linda Ballou

As the celebration of Aloha Festival Month comes to a close for another year in Hawaii and on this blog, the book Wai-nani High Chiefess of Hawaii, Her Epic Journey remains to tell the story of an ancient people and the Hawaiian woman Wai-nani the forerunner to the modern woman. You can find out more about Wai-nani in this interview I did with One Writer’s Journey.


Q: Tell me a little about your book.

A: Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawai’i- Her Epic Journey is fabled history couched in magical realism set in primal Hawaii. Precocious Wai-nani’s character is inspired by the powerful personage of Ka’ahumanu, the favorite wife of Kamehameha the Great. This was no small accomplishment as he had thirty-one wives. Kamehameha fulfilled the prophecy at the time of his birth to unite the Islands and gave Hawaii a golden age. Upon his death, he bestowed rank upon Ka’ahumanu that made her the most powerful woman in old Hawaii. She used that power put an end to the 2000-year-old Polynesian “kapu system” that called for harsh penalties for law breakers and human sacrifice to the gods.

Wai-nani’s mythological journey that is woven throughout the actual historical events that led to Kamehameha’s rise to power is the bigger story.

Q: What gave you the idea for this particular story?

A: While I was living on the north shore of Kauai a special issue in the local paper about Captain James Cook caught my attention. The fact that Captain Cook was killed by the Hawaiians in 1779 intrigued me. I wanted to know why and became curious about what was happening in the Islands when Cook arrived. Most accounts depict the Hawaiians as blood- thirsty savages who ganged up on the world’s greatest explorer. I learned this was not an accurate picture. It looked like justifiable homicide to me and that the Hawaiians had gotten a bum rap. I wanted to tell the story from the Hawaiian point of view. In my research I ran into Ka’ahumanu, a childless royal, who faced down death-dealing priests and the common beliefs of her day. She struck me as a brave figure in history that had been over-looked.

Q: Are you a full-time writer, or part-time, and how do you organize your writing time?

A: I have been writing all my adult life, but have incorporated my writing life into the full time job of selling real estate. Real estate is demanding, but it does afford me more personal freedom than a nine-to-five job. When I am working on a project, be it a novel, travel essay or article, I read the night before writing on a given subject and enlist my subconscious to provide me with ideas and answers to writing questions. I rise early and re-read what I have written before and think about what I am attempting to do and allow the night time thoughts to filter through my mind. The results are often exciting and surprising. Then I go immediately to the keyboard. I work on the given project for the first two hours of the day before the phone starts ringing. This schedule has allowed me to write two novels a screenplay, numerous travel articles and essays and a few short stories.

You can read more here at One Writer’s Journey.

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I walk in beauty on the good red road.

Linda Ballou

http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

September is Aloha Festival Month

In honor of September being The Aloha Festival Month in Hawaii and the surrounding islands, I have made September the Aloha Month here at this blog. My first novel, Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii, Her Epic Journey was the story of all that is the Hawaiian Culture. Wai-nani is a celebration of the Hawaiian people of old, especially the powerful Ka’ahumanu – forerunner to the modern woman.
Aloha Festivals is Hawai'i’s premier cultural showcase, a celebration of Hawai'i’s music, dance and history intended to preserve the unique island traditions.


The mission of Aloha Festivals is “to foster the Aloha Spirit through the perpetuation of the Hawaiian culture and the celebration of the diverse customs and traditions of Hawai'i”. Aloha Festivals was first held in 1946 as Aloha Week. It has become a celebration of our Hawaiian Culture integrated with the traditions and cultures of each of the islands through music, dance, cuisine and art. Each year, hundreds of volunteers labor to stage the events, which are enjoyed by nearly one million people.

For a look at the festival click here at Aloha Festivals.

During this month we will be featuring everything Hawaiian;

My interview – Secrets of Hawaiian Healing Revealed with Kumu Dane Silva - a transcendent figure who synthesizes Western and Hawaiian healing modalities into one holistic toolbox.

Article - Healing Hawaiian Holiday

My Book Interview at One Writer’s Journey

Ariticle - Lei of Light

Review - Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii

Article – Molokai



Enjoy!


I walk in beauty on the good red road.

Linda Ballou

http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/

A special thanks to Michael Shapiro for the following endorsement

Whether river rafting in the vast wilderness of her Alaska homeland or trekking through the emerald hills of New Zealand, Ballou's evocative writing takes you there. She reminds us that in a frenetic world connecting with nature's beauty can serve as our salvation.—Michael Shapiro, author of A Sense of Place


**
I walk in beauty on the good red road.
Linda Ballou

www.lindaballouauthor.com

The Best of the Best at the Travel Writing Conference

I was honored to have my picture taken with Don George, the master of ceremonies, of the Travel Writing Conference at the Book Passage and Tim Cahill who opened the festivities with a fun talk. Don has edited numerous travel essay anthologies for Lonely Planet and has a great website with tremendous information for travelers called Don’s Place.

His book Travel Writing published by Lonely Planet is the most comprehensive book on the subject, I have come across.

Tim Cahill has nine travel book under his belt and hundreds of articles, is nothing short of the master when it comes to adventure travel narrative. I had the pleasure of interviewing Tim in his home in Livingston, Montana among the many artifacts he has collected in three decades of adventure travel. You may read that interview in my book Lost Angel Walkabout-One Traveler’s Tales.

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I walk in Beauty on the good red road.
Linda Ballou

www.lindaballouauthor.com

Blog Talk Radio interviews Linda Ballou, author of Wai-nanai, High Chiefess of Hawaii

Fill your mind with beauty and come along with adventure travel writer, Linda Ballow as she journeys to an ancient Hawaii with the spirit and character in fabled magical realism with Wai-nani, the High Chiefess of Hawaii.

Listen to her interivew at Blog Talk Radio

as she talks about her books, Wai-nani, Lost-Angel Walkabout, and her travel adventures. Visit her website at www.lindaballouauthor.com

Lost Angel Walkabout - One Traveler's Tales Book Review by Yvonne Perry

Author: Linda Ballou
ISBN #978-1449971526
Price $14.95
Pages 200
Publisher: Winddancer 2010
www.lindaballou.com

Reviewed by Yvonne Perry for Writers in the Sky

With each story I read in Linda Ballou’s book, Lost Angel Walkabout, I thought, “This is the best story in the book.” Then, I would turn the page and find that the next adventure was even more interesting.

I love the way the author weaves accurate and little known native history into each story. This information isn’t what your typical tour guide might spout from a memorized script. This book and its information comes from roughing it in the wilderness in some very remote sites where most of us would not go with a group much less alone, which is Linda’s favorite way to travel. The aloneness is rejuvenating for her as she listens to nature and the spirits that dwell in each mesmerizing place speak to her. As for aloneness, Linda says, “Much is said of the virtues of connecting with local cultures, but in aloneness you can connect with the forces that shaped them.” I agree with her profound wisdom! Read the review at Writers in the Sky,

Lost Angel Walkabout: One Traveler's Tales - Book Review by Barbara Milbourn

Author: Linda Ballou
ISBN: 978-1449971526
Reviewed by Barbara Milbourn, an editor and writer in Nashville, Tennessee affiliated with Writers in the Sky

In roughly twenty short stories, travel writer Linda Ballou takes us with her up active volcanoes in Costa Rica, down hundred-mile rivers in the Yukon Territory, over combination jumps and oxers in Ireland, beneath the Sea of Cortez, and along unforgettable jaunts through deserts, woods, peaks, and valleys in both hemispheres. Her tales span years of traveling—sometimes alone, occasionally with her mother or life partner, and often with others in search of soft adventure. Brimming with action, intelligence, regional history, funny mishaps or tight squeezes, each story is set against a backdrop of nature’s jaw-dropping beauty.
Read more at Writers in the Sky

Authors Story "Irish Mist" included in anthology of Why We Ride!

I am proud that my short story "Irish Mist" is included in this anthology of Why We Ride with a forward by Jane Smiley. Why We Ride is available at Amazon

About the Book:

Women and their horses—a symbiotic relationship based on trust, camaraderie, friendship, and love. Why we Ride presents the stories of 27 women who ride, sharing their emotions about and accounts of the most important animals in their lives-horses!

About Linda Ballou:

Linda is travel writer and the author of Wai-nani, High Chiefess of Hawaii, Her Epic Journey and Lost Angel Walkabout. You can find Linda and order her books here