This website illuminates my life and adventures. My longing for freedom has led me to over 2600 of the world’s 3978 provinces, to every country on earth and to the summit of the highest peak on each continent (thank heaven for good weather!). In my travels, I learned to respect the intelligence and ingenuity of people of all races and callings both past and present. Come see the world as I see it: as a peaceful place, full of nature and beauty. With the right spirit and intent, we can make our world a virtual Garden of Eden.
DISTINCTIONS: BBC 2017 Travel Pioneer • Journal Articles • Explorer’s Club Flag Expeditions
World Parks Project • Walk Across South America • Jeff Shea Travel Map
Romania, Generations, 1997 - A few months before I took this photograph I had driven through Romania. I fell in love with Transylvania, with it rolling fields. It seems so suitable for walking, and I yearned to get out of the car. Shortly after I planned a walk. I purchased a used Rolleiflex in Munich. Carrying all my gear in a minimal pack, and toting the camera and a small tripod, I set off on foot from Cluj Napoca and walked by compass point to Brasov. On the way, I stopped to take this photograph of children and their grandmothers, generations apart.
Walking in Transylvania was spectacular. I walked through fields, forests, across streams, always following my compass. The people were friendly.
(6 cm format)
Slovenia, Tabor Prov, Man On Bike
The Golden Train, 2009 Myanmar, Shan Province (Division)
Myanmar, Mandalay Prov, Bagan Temple Detail
UK, Wigan Prov, For Sale
Azerbaijan, Ganca Prov, Landscape
Iran, Esfahan, Women at Mosque, 1984 - When the Shah of Iran was replaced by the Ayatollah Khomeini, Islamic rule came back in force. Prior to the fall of the Shah, women in Iran were modernizing. When I was there, all women were covered in public in the black capes shown here. In this photograph, veiled women pay their respects in a mosque in Esfahan.
Syria, Bosra Amphitheatre, 1984 - After visiting Cappadocia in Turkey, I travelled, mostly hitchhiking, down to Bosra in the south of Syria, making a detour to Palmyra on the way. In Bosra, I visited an amphitheater for the first time. The acoustics were impressive.
Turkey, Mt Nemrud, 1984 - One of the most interesting historical sites I have seen is Mount Nemrud in central Turkey. One of the things that made is so fascinating was that it was out of the way, a place I had never heard of. Gigantic heads of Greek gods lay on the ground, fallen from their original position atop the stone bodies to which they belonged.
Slovenia, Podlehnik Prov, Village Scene