These are some highlights of interesting places I’ve been over the past few years. Some photosets are still coming (like an abridged version of backpacking in Europe or a very abridged version of some MIT hijinks), but in the meantime, click on the photos to go to some Flickr photosets of these trips!

After turning in my Ph.D. thesis to my committee in early June, I flew to California and met Dave for a long weekend. We had a great day exploring San Francisco and a few pleasant and relaxing days in Monterey – an excellent way to relax after getting my thesis submitted!

In May 2010 I participated in my first triathlon, the Honolulu sprint triathlon. I finished, placed 5th in my age group, had a fantastic time, and signed up for my next race less than a week later!

Winter of 2009 was a pretty busy time, but Dave and I were both able to get down to New York City for a quick trip to visit friends and family, and out to some of the good tourist spots in Washington D.C. during the AAS meeting.

This doesn’t mark any particular trip or adventure, but I started playing violin regularly again during the Fall 2009 after being asked to play at two family weddings. I have a somewhat unusual violin – 100 years older than me and with a dark brown varnish that’s very atypical of its maker – and took these photographs as part of preparing to bring it in for an appraisal. Click the picture for more shots and the story!

Dave and I, along with our friend Denali, went to visit David, Jan, and Lulu McRoberts for a few days in July 2009, up at their cabin on Priest Lake – 25 miles from the Canadian border in Idaho. David has a Lake Amphibian plane that we used to explore the lake, and we crammed an immense amount into only three days. What a spectacular place!

I went to Australia in June 2009 for the Galaxy Metabolism meeting in Sydney. I started with a few days in Cairns, where I got to snorkel around the Great Barrier Reef, and later got a chance to explore Sydney a bit.

In a nice break from all the snow, I went back out to Hawaii for a few weeks in April 2009. A few of us went on a very pretty hike over on the windward side, and I snapped a few photos to take of the Hawaii sunshine home with me.

We got one last shot at some great spring skiing during our visit to Colorado in March 2009. We mostly left the camera in the backpacks and skied, but got a few sunny photos on our first day of some of the best parts of A-Basin.

On the 1st of February 2009, after devouring books about climbing for several years, I officially stopped being an “armchair mountaineer” and made it to the summit of New Hampshire’s Mt. Washington (home of “the worst weather in the world”), something I’d been wanting to do for over a year!

Over New Years 08-09 Dave and I got to Colorado for some skiing, and took some nice photos at A-basin.

Taking advantage of the nice Massachusetts weather while it lasted, Dave and I took a daytrip down to Cape Cod to bike the Cape Cod Rail Trail – October 08

I had two nights on Magellan in August, just after getting back from Europe, and got some nice photos of the beautiful setting around Las Campanas – August 2008

Click here to see a whole collection of Flickr photosets detailed my research/vacation travels in Europe during the summer – June/July 2008

I got back out to Colorado for a short trip at the beginning of March, and hit a couple of excellent powder days at Vail – March 2008

I went on another solo backpack and camping trip in Haleakala National Park for four excellent nights after getting back from Colorado – January 2008

I got to do some great skiing in Colorado over New Years – January 2008

I finally brought my camera to Mauna Kea – October 2007

Some of the Putzen went to Winter Park in CO over Spring Break 2007

Me, Dave, and our illustrious traveling stuffed Frog zoomed around Kauai in February 2007.

I went on a backpacking trip to Waimanu Valley with the Hawaii Trail and Mountain Club in September 2006.

In January 2006 I went on my first solo backpacking trip, to the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

One of my favorite summers to date was 2004, which involved good science and good adventures at the NAU/Lowell Observatory REU program.