OLLI Class 4 Agenda - Your Selections

On 6/25, I will present the following 4 programs:

Europe North - Scotland, Holland, Norway and Iceland

The Galapagos - 3 visits by us and the Edelins

Hawaii - Featuring the islands of Kauai and Hawaii (the Big Island)

Cuba - Our friends just south of Key West.

We also have a special guest, Colin Campbell, who went to Cuba with us, and will be attending the program, and of course will also be happy to answer world travel questions.

And remember, I promised a few older pics from "The Honeymoon of Bill and Sally".

Plus I promised Waterfall statistics.

Shackleton's Antarctica original Photos

Photographer Frank Hurley's photos of the Shackleton voyage are really amazing, considering they are from 1914-1916. Antarctica seen in colour a century ago

Birding and Nature Tour Companies

I promised to post this list of international tour providers Sally and I have used, and we can recommend all of them. Their charges for a comparable destination will vary between companies, but charges are generally commensurate with what you get, namely degree of comfort, number of participants per guide (fewer is better), guide quality, etc.

I have listed some of the countries we visited with each tour company. The list is ordered by approximate total time we have spent traveling with each company, and the underlined name is a link to their web site.

Rockjumper Birding Tours - Madagascar, Namibia, Botswana and Zambia,  Papua New Guinea, India and Bhutan, UAE and Oman

Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT) - Madagascar (with Rockjumper), Panama, Peru

Cheeseman's Ecology Safaris - Antarctica and Argentina (Patagonia and Iguazu Falls), Dominican Republic (snorkeling with Humpback Whales)

Alvaro's Adventures - Chile and Argentina (Birds and Wine)

Wild Side Nature Tours - Colorado (prairie chickens)

Linblad-National Geographic - Baja and Gulf of Mexico

Searcher Natural History Tours -Pacific Ocean pelagic birding, Baja whale watching

We have also used many local tour companies in locations such as the Galapagos, Guatemala, Belize and Costa Rica. They are often preferred for a small group and custom tour. Many of these local tour companies can be found through the larger companies, as the larger companies often use them as the local guides to assist with their tours.

Bird List for Spring Osher Birding Class

Just wanted you to know that Sally and I are finalizing this list, and I will post here shortly.

Bill

When one gets thinking....

...things get more profound.

Birds and Nature on 7 Continents

Class 1 begins at 10 am on June 4 at the OLLI campus. Subsequent classes are at the same time one week later.

Best,

Bill....and looking forward to traveling with you!

Class 1 - Australia and Asia

Australia, Papua New Guinea, India, Bhutan

Class 2 – Antarctica and South America

Antarctica and Argentina

Class 3 – Africa

Madagascar, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, UAE and Oman

Class 4 – Your Choice of the following from Europe, plus N. and S. America

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This is a ballot. Put a 5 next to your first choice, a 3 next to your second choice, and a 1 next to your third choice.

Turn in after class 1, or bring to class 2. This page is on http://billfintel.blogspot.com/

a. Europe - Iceland, Norway, Scotland from the 70’s (short segment, so easy fit in)

b. Alaska – Denali, Kodiak Brown Bears catching salmon, Moose, all up close

c. The Galapagos and Ecuador – A Darwin favorite location, and ours as well

d. Guatemala, Costa Rica and Panama – Our 3 favorite Central American countries

e. Birds and Wine in Chile and Argentina – A very wonderful and unique trip

f. Hawaii – endemic birds, active volcanoes, and some Honeymoon shots of us

g. Cuba – A wonderful friendly country less than 100 miles from the U.S

h. Dominican Republic and Baja Mexico  - snorkeling with Humpback Whales and petting Gray Whales

Your Name (optional) _______________________

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I will do the best I can to present to you at least 2 or 3 of the class favorites.

The rest will just have to wait for a later class.

Best,

Bill