When I was a young boy, Trumpeter Swans almost became extinct. In the 60's and 70's if I remember correctly, there were only 35 breeding pairs in North America. Even today, they are one of the rarest birds in North America.

Given my love of the outdoors and birds, you can imagine my glee when driving home from work I noticed a flock of "late migrants". Our lake had been mostly iced over, but some warm weather this week opened everything up. The swans took advantage of the open water to rest up on their way south.

After arriving home, I quickly grabbed my camera and headed out for a photo shoot. Luck was on my side; it was even the golden hour of the day for photography. Although my hands became really cold during the 25 minutes I stocked this one flock, the pain was well worth while. I consider myself lucky to have seen this sight in my lifetime. I even managed to photograph another flock in air as they were about to land. However, when they saw me, not being impressed they flew on!

I hope you enjoy these photos. Click upon any photo to view at full size and resolution. I've not put any watermarks or copyright on the photos, but if you do share the pictures, please grant me credit, NorthStarNerd.Org. Thanks!

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When I started this blog back in 2006, little did I know or expect that the day would come when I would obtain 500,000 pageviews (1,203 posts)! Thank you for your support and readership over the years. In return I've always kept this blog true to its roots:

• My theme: Dedicated to open access sharing of knowledge
• My pledge: You will never find a single advertisement on my site
• My commitment: My reviews will only be for products & services I purchase with my own money

Thus, it is with great pleasure … today … November, 16, 2012 … I announce you have combined for 500,000 pageviews of NorthStarNerd.Org! (see screenshot below, and then read on)

Obviously in the early years, the views were somewhat few and far between. However recent stats have seen 350 to 450 pageviews per day. Not bad for a 56 year old nerd from northern Minnesota (get it … the North Star Nerd). Perhaps you would like to read one of my earliest posts: Steak, Chips and a Pint of Cider (or what I learned in India).

Just today, the BBC published an article titled: Are Geek and Nerd now positive terms? In my mind, this is not even a question; the answer is now, and always has been … yes!

Here are just a few services I've provided and reported about over the years via my blog:

• NorthStarNerd builds 2 schools and 1 dorm in rural China
  • YouTube Video | Learn More
• NorthStarNerd builds open access education portals
  • Two examples: Engineering eLearning | Lego Robotics 
• The NY Times inteviews the NorthStarNerd 
• Popular product reviews provided by the NorthStarNerd
  • Two examples: KindleFire | Republic Wireless

However, all work and no play is never a good idea … thus …

• NorthStarNerd TV
• Purple Cows at Dawn
• SkiCamMan

I hope you'll be with me for the next 500,000 pageviews. Who knows what exciting and intrigueing things the world of the future will hold. There may be challenges, roadblocks and "hills", however the one thing I do know is … I'll blog about it!

I welcome emails at: RichardHoeg{at}GMail{dot}Com. Consider signing up for blog updates via RSS or Facebook Like. See the lefthand column of this blog. Cheers.

For those of you who do not live in the Northwoods, my use of Google Maps may not seem valuable, but make certain you give consideration on how you might be able to utilize the satellite or street view for your own locale. It is amazing how a "birds-eye" view can help you plan activities. Here are just three examples of my own research conducted using Google Maps during 2012.

1. Before starting on a long bike ride in the country, understand which roads are dirt as opposed to paved. While you may be willing to bike on dirt roads, a 30 mile ride on loose gravel is challenging, and depending upon your bike's tires … almost impossible. A quick check of Google Maps in the street view mode lets you plan routes in advance. Here is the intersection of Turtle Lake Road and Highway #6 near my cabin in northern Minnesota. I've actually biked this dirt road many times, but at least I knew what I was getting myself into the first time I took this route. (click to maximize any image)
   
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2. When planning a bike tour, it's nice to know how big the shoulder is on a given road. In this case you are looking at the Trans-Canada Highway as it winds its way through the Quetico-Superior just north of the US border. While you might expect the major highway across Canada to have wide shoulders, trip reports from other cyclings indicate otherwise. I've been hoping to ride from International Falls to Thunder Bay, but being on a bike when a logging truck goes by at 70 mph can be quite scarey. As you can see, the shoulder is very narrow on my planned route. While I have not ended my trip research with this one data point, I next need to understand how much traffic is on this section of highway. I'm willing to ride on roads without shoulders, but only if the traffic is very light. I ALWAYS check out the size of the shoulder relative to the amount of vehicle traffic before heading off on multi-day rides into regions I don't know.
   
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3. My last example is much more close to home. Using Google Maps I discovered a "phantom stone bridge" in the forest. I love to trail run in the Fall, but like to know in advance where my trails might lead. Research via Google Maps discovered this abandonned bridge which allows me to cross Lester River and thus complete a nice 5 mile loop.
   

In closing, give some consideration on how you might use the satellite and street view of Google Maps. Sometimes there are very nice ways to use a common web resource for personal benefit. Finally, if you're curious, here are the three spots in my research examples. Hopefully the expanded Google Maps view will give you a pespective on my region. The yellow "X's" show my research points.