Berkeley Springs and Cacapon State Park Adventure 2024

On the Easter weekend of March 29th, Shirley and I decided to visit Berkeley Springs and Cacapon State Park for our 1st Anniversary. The drive took about three hours and upon arriving at Berkeley Springs we decided to visit the park and the natural hot springs. Located in the center of historic Berkeley Springs, Berkeley […]

Hocking HIlls State Park Camping Trip 2023

Over the weekend of Shirleys birthday we took a trip to Hocking Hill State Park in Logan, Ohio. It is an easy and scenic 2 hour trip from Wheeling, WV. The first night we stayed at Hilltop Campgrounds in a large canvas tent with a bed and small wooden porch. The campground was nice and […]

2021 Fall Badfish Music Festival @ Nelson Ledges

Over the weekend of September 24, 2021 I made the journey to Nelson Ledges in Garrettsville, Ohio for the 2021 Fall Badfish Music Festival for the first time. I seemed to always have a reason not to go but this year I was determined. I met up with my friend Chad in Washington, PA were […]

Harpers Ferry, West Virginia

Over Father Day weekend, I was invited to go to Harpers Ferry with My friend Chad his wife Michelle, and their three kids, Cayden, Mason, and Maya. I met Chad at his house in Albright, West Virginia, on Thursday, where we had a campfire that night and talked about our trip and building an Inipi […]

ISHKON Spirituality and Fire Puja

After returning from Peru, I was able to secure a seasonal position at New Vrindaban. The job entailed attendant, organizing processes, maintenance, and material management for the temple and the lodge. I was interested in the experience and spirituality from the Krishna perspective. New Vrindaban is an unincorporated area and an ISKCON intentional community located in Marshall County, West […]

Shirley’s 30th Birthday celebration in PTO

Chincheros, the Sacred Valley, and a very special day in Ollantaytambo

We woke up a little late and quickly got our packs ready to head out for a full day traveling and exploring communities in the Sacred Valley, starting with Chincheros. After Shirley spent some time organizing our transportation, we had a plan and met our driver. The cost for the entire trip 120 soles, which is […]

Trip to Cusco: Operation Alpaca Trueke

After spending about three weeks in Puerto Maldonado enjoying the city, jungle, family, and friends, it was time for Shirley and me to fly to Cusco to seek out Alpaca sources and communities to work with. I had booked an Airbnb in Cusco near Tupac Square for a week as our base. Shirley had contacted her friend Sumaq who would meet us and show us […]

Baptism Celebration and tour around PTO with Omar and Eza

Thankfully Omar and Eza, Shirley’s Uncle and Aunt from Abancay, were visiting Puerto Maldonado for a baptism we were also invited to. For the celebration, Omar’s family from Lima would be Joining in the celebration and ceremony. We started the day with a trip to the observation tower in Puerto Maldonado, which gives a good history and view of […]

Learning to cast net in the Amazon with Marcos

I had the pleasure of meeting Shirley’s friend Joaquina, her husband Marcos, and their daughter Milli. Marcos is s skilled fisherman and makes his nets by hand and is extremely good at his craft. He offered to take me fishing, we took on his motorcycle and haded about 20 minutes to a lake along the […]