Category Archives: Netherlands

Aurora Hunting: Chasing the Aurora Borealis

Posted on by
Reply

 

scotland-1537070_1920

Photo by Image by McBeaner

While we go back into restrictions in many countries due to Covid, this late-fall and early winter if you are lucky enough to be at a certain latitudinal line in the northern hemisphere, or the southern (Australis Lights), you can see a spectacular show of ribbons of lights in the night skies. We see our sun’s solar winds colliding with the Earth’s atmosphere, which is changing in composition, and we get amazing ribbons of spectral dancers. Places to see the this amazing show include the Shetland Islands and mainland Scotland, in the 52°-55° latitudinal lines, and Ireland is also well situated to see these amazing light displays.

The Aurora Zone

Countries within or near the 52°-55° latitude are considered the best places to observe the night time light show. However, if the geomagnetic activity is high (Kp index) the lights can extend further. There is not a season per se for the lights, however winter is usually better with longer nights. And as far away from large cities as possible.

Scottish Sites: October to March

Isle of Lewis, Harris, and Skye (North), Orkney and Caithness . The farthest Northwest part of Scotland: Applecross Peninsula, Lochniver, Ullapool. Cairngorms range, Galloway Forrest Park, Perthshire

Coast of Fife, Morray Firth , Nairn, Cairn o’ Mount

Ireland Sites: Best months September and March

County Donegal, Inishowen Penisula and surrounds. County Kerry, Kerry Dark Sky Park. County Mayo, Mullet Peninsula (Standing stones and Northern Lights), Downpatrick Head. County Sligo, Mullaghmore 

Iceland: All of it

Norway: The Lofoten Islands, Nordkapp, Kirkenes, Tromsø, and Svalbard

Canada: In some places you can see them 240 nights out of the year

Northwest Territories, Yellowknife, and Newfoundland Labrador

northern-lights-2855658_1920

Image by Martin Solhaug Standal

Share your Aurora hunting stories.

The Aurora Australius Is a Wild Night of Lights

Seven Epic Spots For Stargazing In New Zealand

Glasgow Musings, So Close and Yet so Far

Posted on by
Reply

FullSizeRenderIt’s early in the morning and I have been flying for 9 hours. I am sitting in Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, which has to be one of the quietest airports I have been in, staring at insane green tile. I have a ridiculous 3 hour layover and flew just past my destination, Glasgow. Such is the traveling life. I can’t wait, it’s been a year and I have so much planned for this trip. I will do my best to cover ground that got missed last trip and revisit some local hidden places and anything free and alternative in between.

Top Alternative Things in Glasgow

When you find a really great city that just feels like a great adventure, you can cram the few days you have there with so many activities and end up with your body flat on the couch at the service apartment, exhausted beyond belief. That’s what happened last year, and I expect it to happen again this week. I’ve been in endurance training for the last 3 years because I planned some travel, and it still may not be enough. I think it’s the traveling excitement we all get, you explore every inch you can in a short space of time, because you don’t live there. Last year I spent most of my time in the City Centre/ Clyde Side and West end. I decided this time to stay in the West End, the first 4 days to recover from jet lag and really try to know the city a bit better.

Glasgow is great for day excursions outside of the city to historical sites and a land filled with mountains. Stay tuned as I take and review a tour for you. Glasgow is the perfect travel hub, taking my flights out to Dublin and back, then off to Skye after a few days, then ending with Edinburgh Fringe. Each time coming back and spending a few days at Scotland’s biggest city. I hope this plan allows me to keep exploring places that the locals know, the hidden great people and things places that aren’t in guide books. I’ll be sharing that with you in the coming weeks.

I guess it’s also because this has been a rough year for many of us on this blue ball. I feel the need to take a three week asylum out of the US and see and meet people with some different mindsets than some of the locals where I live. I need to be out in a world that may think a bit less isolated, however we seem to have a growing trend in the world of isolationism. I hope that we can all be open and fight this trend. Stay tuned as I explore every inch of what I can in these fine cities this trip and share them with you.

Traveling Abroad This Year? Check the Countries Relationship With the US

Posted on by
Reply

What Political Relationships Can Do to Your Travel Plans

In these troubling political times, for the first time in my life, I feel afraid to try to travel back to my country. Part of it is, I sometimes want to stay in the country I am visiting, things back home just have me plain scared at times. But looking at my return flight from the 2017 trip, I am flying in from Amsterdam. Amsterdam, that place where many vices are legal, more so than our new Green States in the US.

Call it paranoia, or prudence? My bags will be checked in Scotland, which I think the US still has good relations with, although I haven’t seen Nicola Sturgeon news on meeting with President Trump yet. Since she has a Scottish Independence stance from the UK, our ally, who knows? Bags will stay in transfer with airlines, but I may come under scrutiny on the way in. Bad enough I have a very short transfer in Amsterdam and well, with the luck I have with boarding passes, I could miss my flight as is. Hmmm.

When traveling, think about the lovely country you are visiting, but also check on foreign relations with your country. There have been cases over the years where luggage has been compromised to bring drugs in. There have even been cases where your luggage may have been next to a tainted case and enough of a smell alerts a dog. It’s not just in the movies folks, things do happen. Just be aware.

Now, to figure out how to transfer smoothly in 1 hour 15 minutes when it takes 20 minutes to get off a plane do to someone having overhead baggage problems. Oh, check out map of airport, plot route and run.