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Wildlife Search in France!
During our summer expediton of 2013, we had to make a journey from Italy to Spain, so crossing France was the obvious outcome of this dilemma! And in doing so we are able to actully find six species of mammals including Izards, Fat Dormice and a few other awesome critters! Great time exploring Vercors and Pyrenees National Parks.
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Italy Wildlife Safari
Who would have thought that Italy could provide a world class wildlife experience. After reading trip reports for years about Italy and its fauna, we finally made a two week trip to see for ourselves. We combined a family trip with my parents to see some of Italy's most famous cities but we also had opportunities to explore Abruzzo and Stelvio National Parks. We really lucked out nailing at least 16 species of mammals. With the aid of an outstanding guide we were able to experience outstanding views of such species as Alpine Ibex and Chamois. Great trip!
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Roadkill Safari to Greece!
I have been wanting to travel to Greece since middle school. Finally we made it in the summer of 2013. Our main mammal target was the famous Kri Kir or Cretan Wild Goat and we nailed ém but we also got good looks at loads of mammals in the form of roadkill! Sadly most of our sightings in Greece involved road-splats but we had a great time exploring Greece & Crete!
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The Amazing Wildlife of Spain!
Spain is an amazing place. I would definitely consider it to be Europe's wildlife hotspot. My first trips there were pretty much mammal-free but this time we nailed nearly 20 species! Our highlights included the amazing subspecies (yes all of them) of Spanish Ibex, as well as a mammal-watchers dream species, the Iberian Lynx. We were thrilled to watch these charasmatic species in their natural habitat in such a wonderful place with wonderful people and scenery. Love Spain!
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Fjordland Norway
Cruising Fjordland Norway was dream of mine for many years, but never seemed to come to fruition. That is until the summer of 2007! The family had a couple weeks to fill while we were between expeditions and we did it by hanging out in this region of Norway. The spectacular nature of the scenery of this section of Scandinavia makes one think of Yosemite on steroids! Simple stated, Fjordland is one of the most beautiful places on earth!
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Expdedition to Lapland of Sweden, Finland and Norway
Wilderness is a tough thing to find in Europe these days. I have tried! But there is plenty of it in the far northern regions of Norway, Sweden and Finland, also known as Lapland. We spent a fantastic couple weeks a couple years back road-tripping our way through the back roads of these three nations. Trekking in the backwoods of many of the national parks allowed good sightings of some great wildlife and scenery.
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Hangin' in Moscow
In all honesty, I never thought I would purposely go to Moscow, Russia. In 2007, we had the opportunity to spend an amazing week in the capital of Russia. While Moscow is definitely a city that can be difficult to love, we were all very happy that we spent some quality time exploring the bowels of this complex and historical town!
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Paris Baby!
If there is ever a city in Europe that I can return to over and over and over again, I hope it is Paris. Two summers ago, we made it to Paris (my fourth trip there) for a week of culture and cuisine (mostly sushi...)! From sunrise to the wee hours of the late night, we trekked and biked the great city and can say that we saw nearly every corner of Paris!
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Amazing Amsterdam
For various reasons, I have been traveling to Amsterdam every few year for nearly 15+ years now. Som and my first international trip together was through Amsterdam once again. In true Smith style, we did not rest until we saw and experienced all that the time allowed. Great stay in Amsterdam once again!
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The Nature and Ancient Culture of Jordan
Even before Indiana Jones escaped the giant ball, I was hell-bent on getting to Petra. Som, Cokie and I finally made there for a short week+ stay in Jordan. Just after 9-11, many thought we were crazy to head to the Middle East, but our short stay there introduced us to a wonderful country and culture. We all agree that getting back to this part of the world is a worthy goal. And while we were there, we actually had some fantastic wildlife sightings! Arabian wolves and Arabian Oryx were just a couple of the species we encountered in the Arabian Desert of Jordan.
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Expedition to Europe: Three Months Road Trip Through 12 Countries!
While I really wanted to go to Africa for the summer, I was arm-twisted in to spending three months road-tripping Europe. Aw...how horrible. Actually of course it was a phenomenal expedition with tons of history (some of it in excess of 30,000 years!), nature and scenery.
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