Egypt Dive II – More Macro

More macrophotography on the house reef of Safaga – Ducks Diving. This is really easy, you literally only have to jump into the water and get underneath the old jetty, and it is all there! Various kinds of colorful nudibranches, mangrove jellyfish and many other actually quite rare things.

Mangrovenqualle (Cassiopea), Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Mangrovenqualle (Cassiopea), Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Chromodoris magnifica, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Chromodoris magnifica, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Pink candy nudibranch, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Pink candy nudibranch, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Egypt Dive I

Took my Macro lens mounted to the UWR camera diving into Soma Bay near Safaga, and there were quite a few fellows crossing my path. Thanks to Tine for choosing the dive spots so wisely to accommodate the wide range of customers on board the dive boat, and for everybody diving with me.

Open mouth lion fish, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Open mouth lion fish, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Tiny shrimp dance on a carpet anemone, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Tiny shrimp dance on a carpet anemone, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Fryeria rueppellii Nudibranch, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Fryeria rueppellii, Nudibranch, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Blue spotted ray, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Blue spotted ray, Safaga, Red Sea, Egypt

Danube reappearing, moonrise and sunset

The three facets of the Danube:
– Moonrise in a narrow valley of the Danube near Beuron Monastery and Thiergarten, exposing the white limestone cliffs of the “White Jurassic”, Oberes Donautal Naturpark
– Reappearance of the “sunken” Danube at Aachquelle spring source (for the Danube sinking, see earlier post)
– Sunset at Lake Constance, Radolfzeller See with Markelfinger Peninsula and Radolfzell church steeple

Danube Valley near Beuron, Baden Wurttemberg, Germany

Danube Valley near Beuron, Baden Wurttemberg, Germany

Beuron monastery, Badem Wurttemberg, Germany

Beuron monastery, Badem Wurttemberg, Germany

Aachquelle, Aach, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany

Aachquelle, Aach, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany

Sunset at Lake Constance, Baden Wurttemberg, Gernany

Sunset at Lake Constance, Baden Wurttemberg, Gernany

Donauversinkung

Who would have known that most of the Danube actually ends up in the Rhine and then in the North Sea…?! This is a sink hole where most of the Upper Danube river percolates through limestone and ends up a layer below which then resurfaces in the Ach source, which drains into Lake Constance and hence… the Danube ends up in the Rhine river!

Sign indicating the Danube sinkhole, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Sign indicating the Danube sinkhole, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Danube sinkhole in early spring, Nature Park of Upper Danube, Möhringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Danube sinkhole in early spring, Nature Park of Upper Danube, Möhringen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany

Flood mark of the Danube, Möhringen, Nature Park Upper Danube, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany

Flood mark of the Danube, Möhringen, Nature Park Upper Danube, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany

Nevado de Toluca, Mexico

One of the Zurich Mexico employees with whom I have been working for a long time on the program has suggested we do the “easy hike” to the two lakes of the crater bottom of Nevado de Toluca, one of the highest mountains of Mexico. Which is where the problem lies – the hike is indeed very easy, only a couple 100 m hike up from the car park to the saddle necessary to see (and walk) down into the Laguna de la Luna and Laguna del Sol – but it is the absolute altitude itself that I felt more than really I should have, given I had already spent 4 days in Mexico City at already >2000 m ASL. So much for acclimatization!

Nevado de Toluca with view from the saddle into the crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Nevado de Toluca with view from the saddle into the crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Nevado de Toluca with crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Nevado de Toluca with crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Nevado de Toluca with crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Nevado de Toluca with crater lagoon, Toluca, Mexico

Davos winter sports 3/3

And yet another discipline. Fat tires are fairly cool as long as the snow is … well, snow and not slush! Come afternoon and a lot of sun, it even becomes difficult with the bigger bikes.

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Fat bike Davos Pischa, Graubünden, Schweiz

Davos winter sports 2/3

Was really surprised to understand how different modern cross country skate skies are to downhill skiing or anything that I remember about cross country

Davos cross-country, Graubünden, Switzerland

Davos cross-country, Graubünden, Switzerland

Cross country into Dischma valley, Davos, Graubünden, Switzerland

Cross country into Dischma valley, Davos, Graubünden, Switzerland

Cross country into Dischma valley, Davos, Graubünden, Switzerland

Cross country into Dischma valley, Davos, Graubünden, Switzerland

Zinal glacier tongue

Visit of the glacial tongue and the corresponding cave at the end of Val d’Anniviers: Wonderful Zinal glacier

Zinal glacier and Moming mountain flank, Zinal, Valais, Switzerland

Zinal glacier and Moming mountain flank, Zinal, Valais, Switzerland

Glacial river and ice sculpture, Zinal glacier, Val d'Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Glacial river and ice sculpture, Zinal glacier, Val d’Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Inside Zinal glacier, Val d'Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Inside Zinal glacier, Val d’Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Inside Zinal glacier, Val d'Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Inside Zinal glacier, Val d’Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland