The Long River 长江

That's what they call the YangTze 扬子江 - The Chang Jiang 长江，the Long River - which is in fact the longest river in the world.  What you see here is the river  at Wuhan 武汉, a city of 6 million about 400 miles west of Shanghai.  A coal carrier heads west, a tug pushes a barge loaded with fiber of some kind (while crew on top of the pile directs the pilot), a fisherman and mate - tossing a net by hand.

You'll also see here a couple of dredges, a fish monger selling to people on line for the ferry, two friends Liao Meizhen 廖 美珍, Teng Rui 腾锐 and fellow passengers on the ferry ride. Cruise ships leave from here down river to Shanghai - or west up through the 3 Gorges Dam locks to the Three Gorges 三峡 at the border of Sichuan and Hubei provinces. 

Viking ship Sea Stallion - Dublin to Roskilde, DK

Experimental archeology is what they call a crew of 60 sailing Sea Stallion - a 30 meter replica Viking ship - 1,150 nm from Dublin to Roskilde, Denmark - a 6 week effort from June 29 - August 9, 2008.  The idea is to learn how the Vikings did it - by using identical equipment (like binding the rudder with a fresh sapling, not line; and pumping out tons of Irish Sea water as they plowed windward in 5 meter swells ).  When they couldn't sail they rowed - 30 at a time in 30 minute shifts.

The pictures here show the good weather. For the best pix and a good retelling you'll have to go to Wooden Boat magazine # 206 (Jan/Feb 2009).  But the Viking Musem in Denmark does a pretty good job here.

Iditarod on Foot, Bike, Skis - no dogs allowed

Riders Through the Snow

New York Times

December 24, 2008

During the Iditarod Trail Invitational, racers brave hundreds of miles of frozen Alaskan wilderness on foot, ski or bicycle.  Maybe it really is a spiritual experience - 350 miles of Alsakan wilderness in the winter.  Here's the video   Wanna sign up for next year? Here's the link to Alaska Ultra Sport.