Jeff Keller's Blog http://lostworld.pair.com/blog Because everyone else is doing it... Mon, 20 May 2013 16:35:49 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5 A trip to Lake Tahoe http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/08/01/a-trip-to-lake-tahoe/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/08/01/a-trip-to-lake-tahoe/#comments Thu, 02 Aug 2012 00:52:10 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3852 Despite living only three hours away, I haven’t been on a proper trip to Lake Tahoe in around twenty years. I took care of that this past weekend, spending three days up at the lake on this year’s summer vacation.   Below are my favorite photos from the trip, which I took using the Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX100.

Donner Lake Train in Truckee, en route to Chicago Panorama of the beach at the Hyatt Lake Tahoe Nearby mountain and moon Almost sunset The lake, post sunset Another day at the beach I'm on a boat! Sea kayaking is hard work! Somewhere at sea Panorama of Lake Tahoe from Mt. Rose Beautiful Tahoe Meadows Panorama of Tahoe Meadows off of Mt. Rose Highway Little creek through the meadow Looking toward Reno from Mt. Rose Mouth of the Truckee river Lake Tahoe near the mouth of the Truckee River The gates at the mouth of the Truckee River. There are always fish swimming around down there. Emerald Bay Fannette Island in Emerald Bay Eagle Falls Vikingsholm More Vikingsholm Local flora and fauna Chimney Beach The water is just amazingly clear in Tahoe Paradise Cove (naked old guy alert) Artsy shot of the day Heavenly gondola. $34 for a ride up in the summer! Expensive but worth it! Looking back toward the lake is a little unnerving Gondolas approaching the observation deck View from the observation deck near the top of the gondola (~9100 ft) Panorama of the lake So this is what a ski run looks like in the summer. Talk about clear-cutting! This one's not high on my list of potential careers. Looking toward Carson Valley in Nevada ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/08/01/a-trip-to-lake-tahoe/feed/ 0 A few Disneyland photos http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/a-few-disneyland-photos-2/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/a-few-disneyland-photos-2/#comments Wed, 13 Jun 2012 04:50:46 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3840 While most of my photos this time around were taken at California Adventure, here are a few extras from Disneyland:

Mickey leading the marching band Refurbed Main Street buildings Looking good! The Matterhorn was almost ready to reopen Mark Twain Cars Land themed monorail over the sub lagoon ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/a-few-disneyland-photos-2/feed/ 0 Radiator Springs Racers on-ride video http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/radiator-springs-racers-ride-video/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/radiator-springs-racers-ride-video/#comments Wed, 13 Jun 2012 04:41:59 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3834 Here’s a low budget HD video of the entire Radiator Springs Racers ride.  Consider this your spoiler warning!

]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/12/radiator-springs-racers-ride-video/feed/ 0 California Adventure: Cars Land and Buena Vista Street http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/11/cars-land-and-buena-vista-street/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/11/cars-land-and-buena-vista-street/#comments Tue, 12 Jun 2012 04:52:07 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3761 I got the chance to go to one of the charity Cars Land / Buena Vista Street previews that was offered to Disneyland annual pass holders.  I went for the $75 package, which included all-day access to Buena Vista Street, 5 hours in Cars Land, and a private showing of World of Color.

It feels like California Adventure has finally come of age. The new entrance is understated but classy, as opposed to the somewhat tacky original entrance.  The style of Buena Vista Street reminds me a lot of the Studios theme park in Florida, which is okay by me.  The only thing that seemed out of place were all the generic Starbucks cups being sold at the new FF&P cafe — hopefully themed cups will arrive soon.

Cars Land looks fantastic. You can tell that no expense was spared. The big E-ticket attraction, Radiator Springs Racers, is a fun ride for the whole family. I wouldn’t call it a thrill ride, but it’s certainly fun — especially the racing aspect. The technology and animatronics are impressive, as well.  Like its predecessor, Test Track, RSR seems prone to breakdowns — it went down at least three times in about 3 hours.  Hopefully it’ll get more reliable in time. Oh and a little tip — the single rider line moves quickly!

I didn’t try the other two attractions: Luigi’s Flying Tires and Mater’s Junkyard Jamboree.  The former looked pretty boring and I wasn’t about to wait in line for it.  Mater’s looked a bit more exciting but I chose to take photos and ride RSR a few more times instead.

The entrance to the "new" California Adventure New street cars near the park entrance Side view Inside the street car This is the first souvenir shop that you'll find after entering the park Another angle Guest Relations Fruit stand Behind these doors are guess what: stores I'm sure this address is significant This is DCA's version of the Emporium. It's very nice! Another view And another entrance Fiddler, Fifer, and Practical Cafe. WIth a Starbucks! Candy store More shopping Lots of little details if you look around Looking back down BVS toward the entrance Monorail crossing what used to be the Golden Gate Bridge Carthay Circle theater / restaurant Slightly different view New fountain by the theater Plaque near the front door Goodbye tortillas, hello chocolate! Bonus picture front the Tower of Terror Radiator Springs Racers! Unintentionally artsy shot Only one car on the track here The "actual" Radiator Springs is just inside the ride entrance Lots of funny stuff in the RSR Queue Boarding area Very impressive faux rock Waterfall. And no, you don't go over the bridge. Two of many fancy animatronics on the ride The fading light looks great on the fake rock work Here's another dusk shot Looking in from one of the entrances at night Elsewhere in Cars Land, we have city hall The tire store is home of... Luigi's Flying Tires, which looked extremely dull Mater's Junkyard Jamboree Didn't try it, supposed to be decent The theming here is amazing. They spared no expense. Everything here comes in a traffic cone. Drinks, popcorn, ice cream, and more. Flo's V8 Cafe At dusk all the neon turns on, one building at a time. Just like in the movie. Cozy Cone Motel Sarge's is one of several souvenir stores Flo's at dusk Looks amazing at night! Hopefully they'll keep the neon in working order Ramone's House of Body Art Entrances to RSR, at night Looking down Route 66 at night ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/06/11/cars-land-and-buena-vista-street/feed/ 0 Golden Gate Bridge 75th Anniversary Fireworks http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/05/28/golden-gate-bridge-75th-anniversary-fireworks/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/05/28/golden-gate-bridge-75th-anniversary-fireworks/#comments Mon, 28 May 2012 19:14:29 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3754 This weekend we’re celebrating the 75th Anniversary of San Francisco’s most famous landmark: the Golden Gate Bridge.  I went out last night with my trusty EOS-7D and set up on a planter with a bunch of other photographers to take some pictures of the big show.  While the show didn’t go off as planned (at least one barge stopped working), it was still pretty impressive. Below are some photos from the event — enjoy!

]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/05/28/golden-gate-bridge-75th-anniversary-fireworks/feed/ 0 California Adventure Trip Report – March 2012 http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/california-adventure-trip-report-march-2012/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/california-adventure-trip-report-march-2012/#comments Mon, 26 Mar 2012 19:56:50 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3734 The biggest surprise of my March 2012 wasn’t all the construction at DCA (which was nice and all), but the incredible crowds.  Not too long ago I recall practically having the whole place to myself — not anymore. At least Cars Land will spread the crowds out a bit more.

New Carthay Circle Theater at DCA A closer look These are on the ground next to the new trolley tracks Looking right down Route 66 in the upcoming Cars Land My favorite non-rollercoaster Once home to an uninspiring movie about California history, now a decent attraction Paradise Pier is always beautiful at night Highlights from World of Color IMG_0132 IMG_0131 IMG_0151 IMG_0139 IMG_0163 IMG_0162 IMG_0174 ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/california-adventure-trip-report-march-2012/feed/ 0 Disneyland Trip Report – March 2012 http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/disneyland-trip-report-march-2012/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/disneyland-trip-report-march-2012/#comments Mon, 26 Mar 2012 19:28:54 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3703 I joined my old college roommate and fellow DL aficionado Ashley for a trip to the Disneyland Resort. It was a fairly crowded day, though it was actually worse next door at DCA.  Below are photo from Disneyland that I took with the Canon PowerShot SX260 HS:

Standard park entrance shot Beautiful trees in the hub Another angle Took this one for my niece Postcard castle photo Another angle Space Mountain looks the same as last time The Matterhorn is being refurbed, big time Thunder Mountain Thunder Mountain blur Top goat in the petting zoo Random artsy shot near Rancho del Zocalo Mark Twain Haunted Mansion Lunch was at Blue Bayou. Haven't been since I was a kid. The clouds made this probably my best Splash Mountain shot ever The only part of Splash Mountain that doesn't come out blurry Main Street at night More night Main Street Night castle Fireworks from a distance Star Tours sign at night Inside Star Tours queue Our future pilot Astro Orbiter in motion Still love the Star Trader sign ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2012/03/26/disneyland-trip-report-march-2012/feed/ 0 Six Flags Magic Mountain trip photos http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2011/11/26/six-flags-magic-mountain-trip-photos/ http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2011/11/26/six-flags-magic-mountain-trip-photos/#comments Sun, 27 Nov 2011 06:07:22 +0000 Jeff Keller http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/?p=3682 It was just like old times earlier today, when my friend Ashley and I went to Magic Mountain, just like we used to do several years ago. We rode some new rides as well as some old favorites. The sleeper hit was probably Apocalypse (formerly Terminator: Salvation), and Tatsu and X2 were newer rides that we enjoyed, as well.  Below are some photos from the trip!

X2 - much smoother than the original and just as intense. I spent most of the ride trying to keep my glasses from falling off! Tatsu, an amazing flying coaster Tatsu train approaching What a ride... The second time we rode we got the front row, and it was well worth it. More Tatsu The Sky Tower with Tatsu track in the foreground World's tallest and fastest ear-bruising stand-up coaster, Riddler's Revenge We didn't ride Superman due to the lines and short park operating hours. More Superman Apocalypse (formerly Terminator- Salvation) is a fantastic two year-old wooden coaster. I've never been on a wooden coaster that gave an "out of control" sensation as this one. The new Green Lantern vertical coaster (note how the cars are on the sides of the track). Didn't ride. Riddler's Revenge with the moon Superman at night Goliath entry at night ]]> http://lostworld.pair.com/blog/2011/11/26/six-flags-magic-mountain-trip-photos/feed/ 0