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Travel
I think travel is educational and worthwhile, whether I actually have fun on the trip or not. I prefer trips that have a purpose rather than just travel for travel's sake, and I prefer staying in one place for a while over brief stops. Most trips burnish over time, becoming more special as time goes by, no matter the hardship endured. Sometimes the trials help distinguish one day from another, serving as milestones in life. Some of the more memorable trips I've taken are listed below, from most recent to oldest.
| Melbourne, Victoria, Australia (September 2015) |  |
View of downtown Melbourne from the top of the Shrine of Remembrance in the Kings Domain. The World War II monument is in the foreground. |
| Durango, Colorado (August 2014) |  |
One of the highlights of this family trip to Durango, Colorado was kayaking the lower Animas River. Our eldest son showed us proper form for navigating the rapids! |
| Mount Magazine area, Arkansas (June 2014) |  |
We spent a few days on and around Mt. Magazine in northwestern Arkansas, including a creepy visit to the abandoned house near Paris where the alleged "clown family" murders occurred. |
| Rockport, Texas (March 2014) |  |
Brief family trip over spring break to Rockport, Texas, including stops at Goliad for some Texas history, Crofutt's at Bayside for cinnamon rolls, and Rockport for some beach time and a tiny bit of fishing. |
| Beavers Bend State Resort, Oklahoma (August 2013) |  |
Family trip to the Ouachita foothills in southeastern Oklahoma near Broken Bow and Idabel. |
| Las Vegas, Nevada (November 2012) |  |
Society of Exploration Geophysicists Annual Meeting. I stayed at the Luxor. |
| DisneyWorld, Florida (August 2012) |  |
Family vacation to Florida, including multiple rides on Soarin', my favorite ride at Epcot. |
| Deadhorse, Alaska (August 2012) |  |
Conduct airborne lidar survey of part of the North Slope near Prudhoe Bay, Alaska |
| Oregon and Washington (July 2012) |  |
Two week-long trips with GeoFORCE students to visit a few of the geologic wonders of the Pacific Northwest. This is a photograph of the Columbia River Gorge from Crown Point. |
| Tucson, Arizona (March 2012) |  |
Attend SAGEEP conference |
| Matagorda Peninsula, Texas |  |
Camping on the beach at Matagorda Peninsula, Texas, during spring break |
| Jonkoping, Sweden (January 2012) |  |
Midwinter trip to visit the maker of the Bureau's airborne lidar instrument |
| Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas (August 2011) |  |
Family vacation |
| Potsdam and Berlin, Germany (June 2011) |  |
Attended IEAGHG Network Monitoring conference at GFZ Potsdam |
| Charleston, South Carolina (April 2011) | Attend SAGEEP conference | |
| Playa del Carmen, Mexico (August 2010) |  |
Family vacation to the Cancun and Playa del Carmen area, Mexico. This was the kids' first trip on an airplane. The flight back to Texas left Cancun very, very early in the morning; some couldn't stay awake. |
| Wuhan, Chengdu, and Shanghai, China (June 2010) |  |
Attended 4th International Conference on Environmental and Engineering Geophysics workshop (Wuhan) and conference (Chengdu) and Shanghai World Expo (Shanghai). This picture at Chengdu was staged! |
| Keystone, Colorado (April 2010) | Attend SAGEEP conference | |
| Arkansas, Alabama (August 2009) | Family vacation | |
| Ft. Worth, Texas (March - April 2009) | Attend SAGEEP conference | |
| DisneyWorld, Orlando, Florida (August 2008) | Family vacation | |
| DisneyWorld, Orlando, Florida (July 2007) |  |
Family trip to Florida. This is a view of Cinderella's Castle from the back at the Magic Kingdom. |
| Oregon and Washington (June 2007) |  |
Taught GeoFORCE 11th Grade Academy, Pacific Northwest (students from southwest Texas). This photograph is from the Magic Mile chairlift above Timberline Lodge, Mt. Hood, Oregon. |
| London, England (June 2007) |  |
Attended European Association of Geoscientists and Engineers conference |
| Hyderabad, India (November 2006) |  |
Attended Association of Exploration Geophysicists India conference |
| Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (July 2006) |  |
Family vacation |
| Queen Wilhelmina State Park, Arkansas (June 2006) |  |
Short family trip to the mountains of western Arkansas while the three older kids were at camp near Tulsa |
| San Francisco, California (December 2005) | Attended American Geophysical Union Meeting | |
| Port Aransas, Texas (November 2005) |  |
Family trip to Mustang Island for Thanksgiving |
| Salt Lake City, Utah (October 2005) | Attended Geological Society of America Annual Meeting | |
| Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (August 2005) |  |
Family vacation |
| Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (July 2004) | Family vacation | |
| Montreal, Canada (May 2004) | Attended American Geophysical Union Joint Assembly | |
| Prague, Czech Republic (August - September 2003) | Attended 9th European Meeting of Environmental and Engineering Geophysics | |
| DisneyWorld, Orlando, Florida (May 2002) | Family vacation | |
| San Antonio, Texas (September 2001) | Attended Society of Exploration Geophysicists Meeting | |
| Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (June 2001) |  |
Family vacation |
| DisneyWorld, Orlando, Florida (March 2000) | Family vacation | |
| Toronto, Ontario |  |
Family vacation to Toronto, Niagara Falls, and Great Lakes region |
| Chicago, Illinois (April 1998) | Attended SAGEEP conference | |
| Austin, Texas (February 1998) | Ran the Motorola Marathon (26.2 miles) | |
| Austin, Texas (February 1997) | Ran the Motorola Marathon (26.2 miles) | |
| Wichita Falls, Texas (August 1996) | Rode in Hotter'n Hell Hundred bicycle ride (100 miles) | |
| Port Aransas, Texas (November 1995) |  |
Family trip to the beach at Port Aransas over Thanksgiving weekend, 1995. |
| Wichita Falls, Texas (August 1995) | Rode in Hotter'n Hell Hundred bicycle ride (100 miles) | |
| Wichita Falls, Texas (August 1994) | Rode in Hotter'n Hell Hundred bicycle ride (100 miles) | |
| Wichita Falls, Texas (August 1993) | Rode in Hotter'n Hell Hundred bicycle ride (100 miles) | |
| Wichita Falls, Texas (August 1992) |  |
Rode in Hotter'n Hell Hundred bicycle ride (100 miles) |
| Oakbrook, Illinois (April 1992) | Attended SAGEEP conference | |
| Austin to British Columbia, Canada (1989) |  |
Summer trip to Canada as newlyweds |
| Washington and British Columbia (August 1988) | Vacation | |
| San Antonio, Texas (October 1987) | Attended Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies convention | |
| Gulf of Mexico (May 1987) | Student cruise on R/V Longhorn from Port Aransas, Texas | |
| Laredo, Texas (October - November 1986) | Attended Texas Archeological Society meeting | |
| Austin to Arkansas and Missouri (May 1986) | Trip with my brother on motorcycles from Austin, Texas to Missouri. | |
| Orlando, Florida (October 1985) | Attended Geological Society of America convention | |
| Big Bend, Texas (August 1983) | Backpacking trip to Big Bend National Park | |
| Seattle to Austin (1982) | Moving back to Austin from Seattle to begin career as a geologist at the Bureau of Economic Geology, The University of Texas at Austin. | |
| La Push, Washington (1981) |  |
Trip to the Pacific coast of Washington, Fall 1981. |
| Seattle to Austin and back (1981) | Solo summertime motorcycle trip to visit family in Texas. | |
| Austin to Seattle (August 1980) |  |
Driving a 1973 Alfa Romeo Spider (and towing a 1979 BMW R65) from Texas to Seattle with my sister to begin graduate school at the University of Washington, late summer 1980. Stops included Yellowstone National Park. |
| British Isles (1980) |  |
An 8-week field course in the British Isles (England, Scotland, and Wales) followed by a two-week solo bicycle ride from London through southwestern England. |
| Texas to Florida (1979) |  |
Another motorcycle trip with my brother from Austin to Louisiana, Mississippi, Florida, Georgia, and Alabama from August 20-31, 1979. We were chased back home by Hurricane David, a former category 5 hurricane that struck the Atlantic coast of Florida at diminished strength. |
| West Texas (1975) |  |
Trip with my brother on motorcycles from Wichita Falls, Texas to Mason, Del Rio, Ciudad Acuna, Big Bend, and the Pecos area. |