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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 20h

Infrastructure and monuments on the Kumano Kodō.

A road tunnel that we crossed. It has fish decorations on either side and says that it is 913m long.

Our midday mark, a lunch shelter in the snow. This is another road (paved) but right afterwards we go into the woods.

Another shelter with some sawn off stumps inside. Will keep you out of the rain.

A stone celestial dog monument in focus. The blurred background shows a lot of white and trees.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 20h

I mentioned the Kumano Kodo and Tokyo. Here are pictures from the Kumano Kodō, a pilgrimage route on the Kii Peninsula. We were there in February 2025.

A windy dirt road with a dusting of snow. The railings on the side also have snow accumulation, as do the trees.

Benches with snow on them, and a little paved area, and behind them, mountains in the early morning. There's also a tree and some building to the right.

Green and red decorations for a shrine on the Kumano Kodo.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23h

We also climbed the highpoint Mytikas and then descended back to the car.

The Kakalos refuge on the Muses Plateau at dawn, surrounded by tents of various colours. There is a mountain behind it.

An unroped climber looks on as three roped climbers descend the rocky gully.

Two people on the rocky summit of Mytikas, with a concrete marker behind, and a mountain behind that.

A mule, carrying stuff up to the Apostolidis Refuge, yawns. The yawning mule is in line behind another mule, though the other mule is actually further from the camera than the yawning mule.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23h

Not sure how I missed this picture in my first set. Kind of the backside of Olympus Stefani.

A dramatic picture of two rocky peaks partially enveloped in white clouds on a blue sky background.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23h

Pictures of our party (Nikos and Mario)...

Nikos, illuminated by a sunbeam, rummages around in his pack for something.

Mario and Patrick on a hike, with a cloud-obscured sun setting behind.

Mario takes a break sitting on a conveniently-placed rock while Nikos adjusts his hiking poles. There are mountains in the background, though not quite a cirque, and scree below.

A person descending a small slope with a larger slope up ahead, in a valley, decides where to go next.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 19/10/2026

We were back up on Olympus this August, but this time up via Xerolakki on the north side, which is somewhat more wild. We actually bailed on the Naoum Ridge because of cloud. Here are some landscapes and animal shots.

Three chamois looking more or less at the camera on a scree slope.

A window of blue sky in the clouds with mountains in the back under clouds. Light and dark green plants in front.

Near sunset, the sun is behind a long white cloud, with sun rays visible. Some ridges in front.

Um, a landscape I guess. There is a horizontal cloud with sun rays below it.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 16/10/2026

Two more pictures: a beached boat and an egret taking off. #Birds

A wooden rowboat on land. Not sure how seaworthy it is.

Flying is kind of magical. The white egret here has just taken off, with its legs still extended and wings half open. There is a pier behind the egret that I wouldn't walk on.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 16/10/2026

One can get some decent pictures with a very ordinary lens (55-210). The hit rate is definitely lower, though. Here are some birds that were new to me. Again from the Axios Delta. #Birds

This common greenshank doesn't look that common to me. We have a sharp image of a white bird with brown wings standing in shallow water. There is also some brown plumage on its head but around its eye is a white swath.

On the right we have a dalmatian pelican, which has a super long bill and is grooming itself. (Doesn't it get in the way?) On the left there is a cormorant. They are both on posts in the water.

A tern with black feathers on top of its head and otherwise white is flying around and looking for something to eat, presumably.

This is a stilt. It's an African-Eurasian black-winged stilt. So it's mostly white except for a long and thin black bill, and of course black wings. It's standing in shallow water, and there are some plants on the shore behind it. Maybe samphires?

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 16/10/2026

Back to Europe. More birds, this time from the Axios Delta in Thessaloniki. There were a decent number of birds, mostly cormorants and egrets. I heard that there are even more during migratory season. In this post we have little egrets, pygmy cormorants, and a […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

An elegant white bird is wading in water that is knee deep for it. Maybe it doesn't look so elegant if you are a fish being eaten by it, but there are no fish visible here.

There are three pygmy cormorants that are clearly perching on posts, and two more that may be on posts, though it's impossible to tell. They are all black silhouettes although the one in the middle has a bit of sunlight reflecting it.

This is a single pygmy cormorant on a post. It is mostly black (head is kind of brown) but not actually in silhouette; you can see its feathers.

A kind of goofy looking heron with stripey plumage. The base colour is white and there are some brown stripes all across its body. There is a bit of a green tinge to the photo.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 15/10/2026

The community-run ski lodges are a pretty awesome bit of infrastructure, and quite communal. Here is the Pinnacles Lodge as well as a NZAC hut. They are not quite ski-in ski-out, but close. #mountains

A two-storey building with a sign "PINNACLE" on it, among grey/brown volcanic terrain.

The Ruapehu Hut, owned by the New Zealand Alpine Club. It's brown with a red door. Three mountaineers are standing in front of the hut.

Pointy mountains in the distance, with a snowfield in the foreground.

A person practicing self-arrest on a modestly steep snow slope.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 15/10/2026

I would have liked to have more Aotearoa content, but I do have these pictures from a day out at Whakapapa in September. #mountaineering

A person on a snowy slope wearing crampons and using an ice axe. Some rocks in the background.

The top bit of Ngauruhoe, a conical volcano which has appeared in movies as Mount Doom. There are some clouds around it and below it; almost, but not quite, an undercast.

Two people about to go out on a walk in the snow, carrying various technical gear.

Two people walking across a shiny white snowfield.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 14/10/2026

Lots of Europe this month. Some more pictures from the Tour du Mont Blanc. I just finished one more day (you'll see it next month), leaving 2 more days to process. #hiking #Alps

A bumble bee on a purple thistle, with other small white flowers to the side.

Rifugio Bonatti is a short one-hour walk from the bus stop and super accessible, so there are heaps of people around it here.

A mule going for a walk and carrying lots of stuff for people, in dry bags.

Same mule, but this time a small presence on the path, surrounded by the people whose stuff it is carrying.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 14/10/2026

Throwback: some pictures from a visit to Rome in 2005; I was seeing whether I had any pictures of Naples at all. I don't think I did. Now I do!

Sunrise over the rails, perhaps at Rome Termini? I can't remember.

One of the statues at Quattro Fontane in Rome. The subject of the statue---the Arno river god---is holding a cornucopia and a jug.

Another statue at the Quattro Fontane. Same idea, but this time it is the Tiber river god.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 14/10/2026

One more batch of photos from Korab, and then we'll move on. I was surprised to learn that things that look like blueberries aren't all the same species, though I think that if they look enough like blueberries then they are edible. Bilberries/myrtilles look […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A sign indicating a choice between Korab Peak, Strezimir (N Macedonia) and Radomir (Albania). Choose wisely.

A building (sheepfold?) in a little dip, surrounded by grassy hilly terrain.

A sign indicating the summer trail, which is subject to avalanche danger in winter. When looking at the *winter* trail, one sees more elevation gain but also less danger from above.

Looks a lot like blueberries, but isn't.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

More traditional landscapes from Korab, and a view to Radomir, Albania. #hiking #mountains

A rocky peak is highlighted in the sun, while the landscape around it is darker.

Kind of a valley/plain in the middle, surrounded by not-that-high rocky peaks.

A bunch of rocky peaks in the back, with mountainous terrain between here and there.

A small village in the distance, with the twin minarets of the Xhamia e Radomirës most prominent.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

We saw grasshoppers and katydids, some of which were quite big! At one point we crossed a field which was just hopping.

A large green bug looking straight at the camera.

A less-vividly coloured grasshopper (dark green/brownish) on the dirt.

Somewhat similar to the first katydid, though I don't really know my critters. Looks like it has a green exoskeleton.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

My modest collection of country highpoints now includes Mount Korab, which is the joint highpoint of North Macedonia and Albania. We went for a quick jaunt up Korab in August. patricklam.ca/post/20261003-korab Fewer birds in this post than I'd thought […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

Dawn silhouette of a ridgeline with a tree on our way to Korab.

A small dark bird (black redstart) on a big flat rock.

A butterfly with a blue body and grey wings (polyommatus).

A small brown butterfly (dusky meadow brown) is not that obvious against the brown ground, but its fake eye and orangey wing is more obvious than its brown wing.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

These are Japanese #Birds, some from Tokyo in September 2024, and some from the Kumano Kodo in February 2025. One more birds/mountains picture to come...

One might think this is a mallard, but the yellow spot on the bill indicates that it is a yellow spot-billed duck, the Internet tells me. It is waddling on some concrete next to a body of water, with grass just out of frame below.

A small not-brown bird is, indeed, black and white, and perched in a tree.

This is another small brown bird. Brown kind of stands out compared to the patchy shallow white snow on the edge of the road.

Yet another small brown bird is on the pavement. Brown wings with a white spot, and lighter brown underparts.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

Back to the #Birds. Well, three chough pictures and one butterfly.

A black bird with a yellow bill atop a roof. The sky is cloudless.

Nineteen birds in flight. I guess the previous place wasn't exciting enough. There is a small shrine in the background.

A single yellow-billed chough, with ridges in the background.

Chinese bushbrown, which is a small brown butterfly with fake eyes on its wings. The butterfly is sitting in a tree with lots of green leaves.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

Again mostly but not completely mountains; there is also a moat from Japan. #Alps #Ruapehu #Japan #Greece

A proper moat around a stone wall. Wouldn't want to swim across this with arrows flying at me.

At the summit of Mytikas, which is the highest peak in the Olympus complex. There is a cairn, another peak to the left, and flatlands out beyond.

Bella Coola in the Alps, I think. There is a broad peak with two glaciers descending its flanks.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/10/2026

Back to the mountains, though also with a Broad Scarlet. Three of these four pictures are from Greece in August 2026, with the other one being Japan in February 2025.

A dark brown dragonfly interacts with some plant buds.

Morning on the Kumano Kodo. There is a dusting of snow atop conifers, with a ridgeline in the distance.

The sun is setting and emits a bunch of sunbeams through low clouds. Above the clouds the sky is blue. There are more ridges in the background but these are quite dark in this shot.

Having a seat a fair way up to the Muses Plateau. It's a scrubby green field, and there is a large scree field behind.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 12/10/2026

September's photos post: patricklam.ca/post/20261007-septemb… Includes most of the Greece pictures from August (particularly Olympus); Mount Korab (North Macedonia/Albania); a day of the Kumano Kodo in Japan and a day in Tokyo; a day from the […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

Paretaitonga summit---part of the Ruapehu complex. The summit is white, the cloud behind it is darker white, and the sky is brighter white. Olive green grass below.

A narrow pointy rocky mountain in the Alps with a glacier descending from its flanks. Again there is a cloud wrapped around the top of the mountain.

A small roundish peak with two people descending Korab and heading to Albania. Other mountain ranges visible in the distance.

I was pressured to enter this in the New Zealand Alpine Club Wellington section photocomp under "Alpine Adventure". A person scrambles up a rocky slope. Rocks everywhere. The green of the Muses Plateau visible behind.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 11/10/2026

Rest in Peace, Jeremy Fortier: www.ontarioallianceofclimbers.ca/je… Jeremy was an active Board member and volunteer with the Ontario Alliance of Climbers, where I had the pleasure of working with him. I think we only got out to an actual […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A person in a yellow jacket with epic mountains and glaciers behind.

A person in a teal Ontario Alliance of Climbers shirt drawing a raffle ticket out of a chalk bag.

Me and Jeremy at an indoor climbing gym, with various climbing holds behind. Jeremy is set up to provide someone with a belay.

At the ice climbing fest in Madawaska, Ontario. It is below -20, but Jeremy and I seem to still be thrilled to be outside. I am holding two ice tools.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 05/10/2026

I've memorized Ctrl-U 101 as ā, but I have not memorized the unicode codepoints for the other vowels. In reading a master's thesis, I realized that I can use Ctrl-U 304 to add a macron afterwards. Much easier for me to write kererū now! (And there were two on the street today, though not these.)

Three kererū perching on some not-that-big branches. They have lush green heads and white chests.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

And over to Wellington for the last pictures from August's photos post. #wellington #poneke /end

Street poetry:

I saw the Maori Jesus
Walking on Wellington Harbour
He wore blue dungarees
His beard and hair were long
His breath smelt of mussels and paraoa
When he smiled it looked like the dawn.

Sailboat race in the harbour: underneath a partly cloudy sky, a bunch of sailboats rounding a mark.

A protest outside MSD with a guy in a pig suit and a wheel to spin.

At Puku Pies: "Please keep door closed (otherwise all the pigeons will come in)." with a picture of a pigeon below. This is above the sticker on the door that says "Nau mai haere mai / welcome". I guess that people are welcome but not pigeons.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 30/09/2026

One more post of TMB photos for August, this one with the streets of Courmayeur. I do have a TMB day for September lined up as well, but first I should finish pictures from September 2024...

Looks like a European village street, with a bunch of people walking down the (pavement stone) street, and three-storey buildings on either side. No cars. Looks like a lane marker down the middle, but is actually drainage.

Tourist tram which is train-shaped but doesn't run on rails. Courmayeur does have buses, gondolas, and chairlifts but no trains that I can recall.

Laundromat is useful after 4 days on the trail. I didn't quite have clothing to wear while washing my clothing.

In a change from refuge food, I got ready-to-eat BBQ chicken and side dishes that we ate in our room: lentils, roasted peppers (capiscums in NZ), coleslaw, and croquettes.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

Oops, this wasn't the intended sequence, but I'm not going to edit the set of included pictures. More from Maison Vieille / Courmayeur. #Alps

The inside of a refuge, with lots of knickknacks on the wall, and the remains of breakfast service on the table.

The top of a chairlift, with the bullwheel in the centre of the picture, and some chairs to the left.

There is a garage, and many things are prohibited on the road to the garage: walking, biking, and driving.

Again the Alps, with a rounded hill in front, a pointy hill to the left with a large white cloud atop it, and glaciers and mountains behind the hills.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 29/09/2026

Still working through the Tour du Mont Blanc photos; 4 more days left after this one. This was leaving Rifugio Maison Vieille and getting to Courmayeur (via chairlift) for a rest day. #Alps

A flattish plain before the slope goes more steeply downhill towards Courmayeur. There are many black cows, some white cows, and some black and white cows. There's also a tree trunk in the back of the picture.

The main buildings of the Rifugio. The building in front is stone-clad, while the one in back is painted yellow. There are picnic tables and benches, and Alps in the back.

The Rifugio is flying a rainbow "Pace" flag, with Alps and clouds behind.

An Asian hiking group poses in a line, with mountains behind (not visible in frame; I'm photographing from the side).

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

More pictures from Québec; the same moon as everywhere, but also a golden hour photo leaving Le Massif and inside our B&B. #quebec

Almost the full moon photographed with a long lens.

A car drives away from Le Massif at golden hour. The sky is yellow-ish and cloudy, with some blue peeking through.

The B&B we stayed at in Bromont, La Gite à Manon, with large windows and a mighty Christmas tree.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

We were in Québec last Christmas and went skiing. Northeastern North American skiing: not very high, and there are a lot of trees. Skiing at Le Massif, you feel like you can ski right into the Fleuve St Laurent. #skiing #quebec

This gladed ski run goes through the snow-covered conifers. It kind of doesn't look that steep from here, but it's steep enough, and you don't really want to hit the trees, ideally.

A person is on a snowboard on a fairly wide slope surrounded by snow-covered conifers. The Fleuve is visible in the background to the left.

Dense conifer forest with golden sky behind.

The base of the mountain at Mont Sutton. Mostly just a wide-open snow slope, with an orange warning banner to the right (RALENTIR backwards), and a chairlift in the middle of the picture. The sky is bright with broken cloud.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

And some general atmospheric shots at the entrance to the technical part of the Naoum Ridge route. Wouldn't want to have to routefind. #hiking #grey

A lone tree on a flat rocky surface with lots of clouds behind. It's all grey.

More gray. To the left, the top of a cliff. Then just cloud, and some rock to the right.

Across the chasm is another rocky ridge, with a small tree at the top of the cliff and below a ramp.

A ridge emerges out of the cloud on both sides.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

I do manage to take pictures of people sometimes. Mario and Nikos on the Naoum Ridge attempt. #hiking

A person wearing a helmet looks at a camera. Not much to look at behind: it's just mostly white.

Another person, also wearing a helmet, ponders the situation. Some rocky features visible behind, but not good visibility.

A person carrying a rope and standing near the edge of a cliff looks at the camera. Another person is looking away from the camera, at the first person. It's all grey cloud behind.

Earlier, a person is walking among grasses and low bushes, with some rocks to his right. Based on clothing, the situation looks less hostile than it is later.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 28/09/2026

Maybe I'll finish the thread of pictures from the July photos before September ends. We were going to climb to the Muses Plateau via the Naoum Ridge on the north side of Olympus, which is much more rugged than the normal route. But it was cloudy and routefinding […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

A rocky spine with broken ground-level cloud behind. Visibility still good at this point but who knows what would happen later.

Near the beginning of the indistinct trail up to Naoum Ridge. Red trail marker painted on a tree.

A lot more clouds and dark sky behind the rocky alpine terrain of the Muses Plateau. We are above treeline here and it's all grey.

Early-morning blue sky looking away from our direction of travel. So tempting.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23/09/2026

Some more pictures for colour on my day biking around Kaikōura: "before" picture of the rented bicycle, and my pants.

A clean Trek mountain bike, cyan frame. It was much less clean later in the day.

I did not have any options for alternate pants. I felt like Pigpen from Peanuts walking around. When I touched my pants, a cloud of dirt would fly out.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 23/09/2026

Went mountain biking around Kaikōura. It was kind of wild.

A fur seal with half-closed eyes and prominent ears (pinnipeds) on some rocks.

Rocky flats with the ocean behind and the sky above.

The Kowhai river still quite high (a few months ago). Wouldn't want to cross that.

Made it back to the road. Some grass next to the river, and then the road (whew).

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 21/09/2026

Trying sports photography: a field hockey match near Vancouver.

A person wearing a white shirt, black shorts, and red socks is controlling the ball with his stick. An opponent with a black shirt looks on. There's another person in the background with the same white shirt.

A person in an orange shirt looks at something.

Apparently this is a penalty corner. The goalie plus four other players are in the net, and the players run out at the start of play.

The same player from before is also running with the ball. This time there is an orange shirted opponent who is looking on.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 21/09/2026

Couple of random pictures from the Catlins as well. They are pretty random!

A tractor. If I knew more about tractors I could say more about what it's doing. It is ready to lift something.

A statue of a giant moa. There is some lichen atop its head.

Another shot of the near-shore at Nugget Point, with dark blue water, waves, and a couple of rocks peeking up.

A boxy beige hoiho hide looks over a bay with a couple of waves and, if the time is right, some hoiho/yellow-eyed penguins.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 21/09/2026

Some more pictures from the Catlins, including the petrified forest at Curio Bay.

A cliff. There are plants growing on top. To the right there is rock. It looks more like a dirt cliff to the left. It's all pretty solid looking rock at the bottom. Generally a cloudy/rainy day.

A small rounded boulder. Well, small is relative. I wouldn't want to pick this up. It looks like a potato. There are smaller rocks around it.

A pretty flat beach on a rainy, cloudy day. There's a bit of green in the corner, and forest behind the beach. There are long white waves.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 19/09/2026

The Catlins were one of the last major regions of NZ that we hadn't visited. We made our way there in August 2024. Lots of waterfalls, but also Nugget Point and, if you're lucky, hoiho (yellow-eyed penguins). We didn't get that lucky on that trip.

A three-tiered waterfall in a forest. Three is the main number of tiers, but the lowest tier has a lot of small waterfalls inside it.

Detail behind a waterfall. This is a long exposure so the water looks like white streams going straight down. There is also some green cliffy rock to the right of the picture.

A different waterfall with water falling straight down and also water running over a slab of dark gray rock.

Change of pace. A white lighthouse on a hill on a peninsula. The lighthouse has a grey/copper green roof. Around the peninsula there is dark blue water with some smaller rocks sticking out.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 19/09/2026

I'll post the other bird pictures that I selected for August as well. #Birds #BirdsNZ

A round borby Kererū perches on a fence. It has a green head and wings and a white chest. Must be looking for fruit to eat.

A brown NZ scaup is swimming in Lake Elterwater, with its yellow eye standing out.

A somewhat soggy oystercatcher is in a shallow pond among rocks. It's all black except for its red eye and beak.

A red-billed gull (gulls are easy to ID in Aotearoa!) in focus, with another one behind it, both standing on flat rock.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 17/09/2026

Only a couple of #Birds this time. In this post, three from Aotearoa and one from Greece.

A soggy little shag near Nugget Point. This black and white bird is sitting on rocky ground in light rain, with out-of-focus water behind.

A kotare/sacred kingfisher sitting on a power line. It is intently looking to the right. It has some turquoise wings and a bit of turquoise on top of its head, but is otherwise dark grey, with feathers around its neck that look like a white collar.

A hoary-headed grebe at Lake Elterwater. It is swimming in the lake and is mostly grey with brown chest. Looks like it has slicked back its hair with gel.

People on iNaturalist tell me that this large feather came from a short-toed snake eagle. The feather is brown and white and on top of a rock, with short brown grasses beside the rock.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 16/09/2026

(Two days & one conference later; heading back to Rome later today and then to Canada for a week) More pictures from the highlights: Olympus; near Nugget Point in the Catlins; field hockey; Tour du Mont Blanc.

A mostly forested ridge with some rocky outcrops and the sea behind. Also a distinct round cloud shadow.

Most of the picture is of water that is a deep azure colour along the rocky shore. There are some flat rocks and a small spire in the water. At the bottom of the picture there are some yellow and green plants.

A field hockey goalie doffing his helmet before the game.

A person standing in front of a refuge in the Alps. I write "refuge" but it's a pretty sturdy and not basic building, basically a modest hotel. There is a tiny bit of blue sky but it's mostly clouds behind the refuge, and some Alps are peeking through.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 13/09/2026

I wrote a photos post for August and posted it a few days ago, but haven't had time to post a thread yet. Here it is. Once again, I'm travelling, so the thread may be somewhat delayed... patricklam.ca/post/20260907-august-… Featuring pictures from […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

Multi-tiered waterfalls with a slow shutter speed and hence creamy-looking water. The falls are running in front of slabby rocks, with more rock (overhanging) to the left. There is various lush Aotearoa greenery on the fringes of the picture.

A horse in a pasture near the Maison Vielle refuge above Courmayeur. The white and brown horse looks like it's prancing. There's also a cow in the picture doing cow things.

A view of the Fleuve St. Laurent from atop a ski hill (Le Massif). It's like you're skiing right down into the river. This was in winter just before the staff went on strike.

Me with a mountain bike, looking muddy and somewhat the worse for wear. Note the new tears in my jacket.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 12/09/2026

Buongiorno de Napoli. I feel like one could easily get run over by a car here.

A narrow street with paving stones and several-storey buildings. It is open to cars.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 01/09/2026

I was sitting on the bus from the airport the other day and saw this, which inspired a small rabbit hole and new learning about how things work...

A yellow plastic thing that something could be attached to.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

Finally! I collected some summit pictures from this day on the TMB. And that's it for the July pictures. Since I was (and still am) actively travelling in August, we should expect to see far fewer pictures in next month's post... though there are still a few more […] [Original post on mastodon.nz]

An atmospheric picture of three peaks with some clouds covering the front-most picture. Almost black and white, but it's actually brown.

Alps with a rainbow across the picture, in front of some glaciers. Mostly rock and ice.

The toe of the Brenva glacier, with blue ice and dirt and a lot of glacier-carved rock, which was surely recently under ice as well.

Some surprisingly shiny locking rock faces. Not sure what's going on here.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

We continued hiking back to Courmayeur on a good track. #Hiking #Alps

A pretty fast hiker striding through (though maybe not as fast as the UTMB ultra runners). Of course there are Alps in the background, though not glaciers in this picture.

Heaps of sheep and goats pretty far below us (they're kind of dot sized and white/black in front of a green background).

The second refuge of the day, Bertone, which is above Courmayeur, and pretty busy.

A man leading a heavily-loaded mule down a path. There's a building and some vehicles in the background, and some hikers letting the mule pass.

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Patrick Lam :tinoflag: @va2lam.mastodon.nz.ap.brid.gy · 25/08/2026

Flight boarded and I was offline for 9 hours, but am now back and can post the pictures from another TMB day last summer: from Rifugio Bonatti back to Courmayeur (we stayed in Courmayeur for two nights and took the bus to loop back). #Hiking #Alps

A large building of wood and stone with mountains in the background. Everything here is green (i.e. we're not that high up).

Two people standing in front of flags (red-and-black, and the Italian flag) with Alps in the background, including glaciers.

Another view with the Alps in the background, some rocky cliffs closer, and a building just at the bottom of the picture. We're also still in grassy territory here.

Purple and yellow flowers on the ground (whorled lousewort).

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