A clear and cold day in the Willamette Valley.  Mt. Hood as seen from the farm lands surrounding Silverton, OR.  Days like this are so rare in January that it just forces you go out an get some sun on your face.

Holy cow that's a big belly.  I can't imagine it getting any bigger!  We still have three months left, we'll see if it grows any more (ha, ha).

When you live in Oregon you have to take it when you can get it.  We visited Keith's sister's family in Illinois for Christmas.  Jamie decided to take a little time out and get some sun on her growing belly.  The baby was kicking with delight.

After exploring the deepest depths of South America, and a short stint living in Bellingham, WA, the Krejci family has settled down in Silverton, Oregon.  We have "christened" our new home and are creating a To Do list of home improvements.  The house is more spacious than we ever though possible for our modest careers, but will make a great place to raise a family.

This is my friend Chris skinning towards the Summit of Mt. Baker. We climbed just about 5000 vertical ft. to withing 2000 ft. of the glaciated summit. We then skied down through a mixture of gorgeous powder, sticky slush, and rock hard ice covered with pine needles. What a beautiful day!

Keith's first major outing in our new home town of Bellingham, Washington. This is near the summit of Mt. Baker, Bellingham's prominent peak.

This one is for you, Mary!!

Mendoza, Argentina is the Napa of South America. I hate to tell ya´Chile, but Argentinian wine is way better. We rented bikes and rode from one winery to the next. They actually pour you almost half a glass for each taste. With the bike riding and perfect blue skies it was nice to get back and relax with a big Steak and a nice bottle of "Vino Tinto." The Malbec is especially good and Mendoza is famous for it. It has been very difficult controlling Jamie since we have been in wine country.

Glacier Frias was the location of our second night of the Paso De Las Numbes hike in the Lakes District of Argentina. We camped across the river from this dynamic glacier. From our camp we could see 19 waterfalls. There were at least 10 more that were just our of view from our campsite. At one point in the late evening there were also between 20 and 25 Andean Condors circling overhead above the glacier.

Maté is the official drink of Argentina. It is enjoyed by placing loose tea leaves in a gourd or other small container. Hot water is then poured over the leaves and sipped through a slotted metal straw. What a great place to share some hot tea.

Sunrise on Mt. Tronodor in Argentina. ´Tronodor´means Thunder in Spanish because there are numerous glaciers surrounding the mountain. As these glaciers calve the thunderous sound of the pieces of ice crashing down the mountain echoes throughout the valley. We were camped about 100 yards from the edge of one of these glaciers. There was a group from the Argentinian military that was up there training on the glacier in order to be stationed in Antarctica.

The Lakes District at it´s finest. Craggy peaks, year round snow, cold lakes of every size and, yes, more clouds.

Parque National Nahuel Huapi in the Lake District of Patagonian Argentina is the most ´Like Home´place we have found in South America. The scenery reminds us of Colorado, not to mention a ski area on the backside of the mountain and large rustic wooden lodges with nice smelling fires burning. We started on a five day trek that turned into a three and a half day due to weather. We did have a nice time hanging out in the tent for a day playing cards. Jamie always wins.

This really puts things in perspective. We had no idea that the ice looked that high, or that we looked that small. This was truelly an amazing experience to be this close to a glacier on the water with it rumbling and cracking. We had a chance to paddle around a bunch of little ice-bergs, touching them and watching them glow blue in the sunlight. Other than a short time on the last day, the weather on our Kayaking trip was horrible. Rain, high winds, and cold, cold, cold. You thought your hands get cold when you ski? You havn´t experienced paddling in glacier runoff in the rain with 30 mph winds. The crazy thing is that we both loved the experience and want to continue kayaking when we get back to the States.

The world famous Torres Del Paine at sunrise. What a perfect last day to end a wonderful ten day backpacking trip in the Torres Del Paine National Park in Patagonia, Chile. Not a cloud in the sky made for a perfect sunrise at the towers.

Cerro Paine Grande, the highest peak in Torres Del Paine National Park, Chile. How could you not fall in love with a mountain like that. We spent most of the previous evening watching the sun-set reflect off the "ice mushrooms" on the summit and listening to the thunderous sound of the glaciers calving in powder waterfalls.

Water, water everywhere. This is a spring next to one of our campsites in Torres Del Paine National Park. We were lucky in that most of the water we saw was already on the ground and not falling from the sky which is what normally happens in Patagonia.

This is what really old ice looks like. A little different from the piles you see around Telluride Town Park in the springtime. We actually had a chance to see a large peice of this glacier "calve" into the lake while we were eating cream cheese and salami sandwiches for lunch. The sound is a lot like a thunder clap mixted with an air force fighter jet. The wall of ice is probably about 100 ft. high out of the water.

Yes, it is very windy; and yes my hair really does have that much body. This was the first pass on the Torres Del Paine Circuit hike that really afforded a nice view. The one nice thing about the wind is that is keeps the pesky mosquitoes away.

La Paz, Bolivia - The highest capital city in the world at over 12,000 ft. It is a jumbled mess of circular streets, round-a-bouts, and plazas. It seems like every streets sidewalk is lined with black market venders booths which encroach on the sidewalk to make them just as crowded with pedestrians as the streets are with trafic. From where I am sitting at this computer I could by hairspray, a belt, packing tape, or a Pentium 4 processor within about 10 ft.
From here, we start our long travel down to Patagonia. We are pretty much going to head straight south from Arica, Chile until we hit Puerto Natalas and Torres Del Paine National Park in Patagonia.