Best Travel Photos 2013, Manhattan Skyline
August 12. 2013 - "Manhattan Skyline" Everyone who has ever wanted to photograph the Manhattan Skyline has dreamed of getting a sky like this. I can't believe how lucky I was on the one night I went shooting.

The Best Travel Photos of 2013

It’s been a year, that’s for sure, and I think the set of my best travel photos of 2013 will definitely reflect that.  2013 really has been the wildest ride of my life and there is absolutely no doubt about it.  This year alone I’ve been to 27 countries, most of them completely new to me.  For me, 2013 was rung in at an outdoor bar in Burkina Faso.  I had, of course, just started off on my epic scooter trip down the west side of Africa.  And well the trip was arduous it also led to loads of really interesting pictures.  The truth is however, that I really didn’t take as many photos on that trip as I should have.  I was too camera shy.

Anyways, 2013 also took me home to visit my family, let me roadtrip around Alberta, Canada, had me rail around Europe, and led me to meet Tiffany.  The year has ended with a couple weeks based here in Bali, Indonesia where I’ve been attempting to catch up on the things that this wild year has left be behind on.

The truth is, however, as I have been here seeing countless posts about the new year and Christmas, I have done almost nothing but reflect upon my travel photos from the year that has now almost past.  I love how a travel photo can just whisk you back to not only the place you once were, but the emotion you were feeling that day.  These are my best travel photos from 2013, or at least my favourite, like my images from 2012, I’ve done these all in chronological order so you can kind of follow along with the story of my year. It was difficult to narrow this list down so much. I think I could have easily posted a couple hundred images here. But I somehow managed to stop myself from doing so.

Which one is your favourite?

January 1st - " Deux Bales Sunset" My first sunset of 2013 was a good one.  This was taken in Deux Bales National Park in Burikina Faso
January 1st – ” Deux Bales Sunset”
My first sunset of 2013 was a good one. This was taken in Deux Bales National Park in Burikina Faso
Best Travel Photos 2013, Ouagadougou
January 5th – “Ouagoudougou Mosque”
In the Capital of Burkina Faso, I ran into this type of view
Best Travel Photos 2013, ghana
January 21st – “Boabeng Monkey”
This is a black and white Colobus Monkey in Boabeng-Fiema, Ghana
January 16, 2013 - "Preying Mantis" I saw this Preying mantis in Mole National Park, Ghana
January 16, 2013 – “Preying Mantis”
I saw this Preying mantis in Mole National Park, Ghana
Best Travel Photos 2013, Akwidaa
January 28th – “World’s Best Boy Band”
When this group of boys saw me in the town of Akwidaa, Ghana they immediately went about putting on a show.
February 4, 2013 - "Cape Coast Castle" This is likely the most famous "slave castle" in Africa.
February 4, 2013 – “Cape Coast Castle” This is likely the most famous “slave castle” in Africa.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Wli Falls
February 11. 2013 – “Wli Falls”
In the Volta Region of Ghana, Wli Falls is really impressive!
Best Travel Photos 2013, Abomey
February 22, 2013 – “Abomey Statues”
In the old capital of the Dahomey Empire in Benin.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Drill Monkey
March 3, 2013 – “Drill Monkey”
This Drill Monkey is one of only 3,000 left on the planet. Such a shame for such a beautiful animal.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Cameroon
March 5, 2013 – “The Hard Road to Limbe”
To get to Limbe, Cameroon I had to take a rough road. Luckily, this paved bridge gave a bit of a reprieve from the bumps.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Mount Cameroon
March 12, 2013 – “African Sherpa”
The day after a massive crash with my scooter. I climbed Mount Cameroon. A peak of over 4,000m. This was my guide.
March 30, 2013 - "Gabonese Road" Following Cameroon I made the push through the hardest part of western Africa.  This is the road to Lope National Park in Gabon.
March 30, 2013 – “Gabonese Road”
Following Cameroon I made the push through the hardest part of western Africa. This is the road to Lope National Park in Gabon.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Congo
April 9, 2013 – “Anxiety”
This might not be a great photo, but sums up my mood so well. I was nervous about this road, and for good reason. That was easily the most physically demanding day I’ve ever had in travel.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Congo
April 14, 2013 – “Congolese Welcome”
I’m fairly sure there are no kids in the world that enjoy having their photo taken as much as Congolese children.
Best Travel Photos 2013, DRC
April 13, 2013 – “Following Double Dutch”
Was really nice having some people to travel with in the DRC for a couple days. Especially since I had malaria.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Victoria Falls
May 7, 2013 – “Victoria Falls Reward”
What a reward. After hard travel through western Africa, I had nearly a month to chill in Zambia and enjoy these amazing sights.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Lion
May 4, 2013 – “Stalking Lion Cub”
This young lion was playing in the grass near Livingstone, Zambia
Best Travel Photos 2013
May 11, 2013 – “What Time is it Mr. Wolf”
Loved this shot of a village girl playing “What time is it Mr. Wolf” with some tourists.
Best Travel Photos 2013, one-eyed lioness
May 22, 2013 – “One-Eyed Lioness”
In Bostwana, I got so close to this one-eyed lioness that I couldn’t even focus my lens eventually. Powerful feeling for sure.
Best Travel Photos 2013, impala
May 23, 2013 – “Impala Sunrise”
I shot this image directly into some soft morning light. It couldn’t have come out any better.
Best Travel Photos 2013, wet elephant
May 24, 2013 – “Wet Elephant Close-up”
I love this image for so many reasons. For one, you rarely see a perfectly clean elephant this colour. I also love it because I shot it on a wide angle lens which is really something rare.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Namibia
June 3, 2013 – “Namibian Stars”
There are few places with better skies than Namibia. I took full advantage of it with this shot.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Dune 45
June 8, 2013 – “Dune 45”
I wanted to take a classic image of what is perhaps the most famous sand dune in the world in Sossusvlei, Namibia. I think I succeeded.
Best Travel Photos 2013, oryx
June 8, 2013 – “Namib Orxy”
I think this is my favourite image of the year. It just tells such an interesting story.
Best Travel Photos 2013, cheetah
June 9 – “Hungary Cheetah”
I love cheetahs, and though this is a decent image, it could be terrible and it’d still make the list. See a wild cheetah was the #1 wildlife goal I had in Africa.
Best Travel Photos 2013, lambert's bay
June 26, 2013 – “Lambert’s Bay”
Making it to the coast of South Africa was a powerful experience. Finishing up my scooter journey was such an emotional thing. Somehow, this image conveys that emotion. Where every wave ends, a new one begins.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Cape Town
June 30, 2013 – “Cape Town View”
The view from the Cape Sun hotel in Cape Town, South Africa
Best Travel Photos 2013, kudu
July 14, 2013 – “Kudu View”
I shot this image in Addo National Park, South Africa. Such a beautiful animal, the kudu.
Best Travel Photos 2013, leopard
July 23, 2013 – “My Leopard”
After spending an entire day searching for Leopards, I found this one in a tree eating a springbox. I had this leopard all to myself for a little while before a mass of people turned up to the sighting as well.
Best Travel Photos 2013, bee eater
July 31, 2013 – “Swazi Bird”
I spotted this bee eater on a fence in Swaziland.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Manhattan Skyline
August 12. 2013 – “Manhattan Skyline”
Everyone who has ever wanted to photograph the Manhattan Skyline has dreamed of getting a sky like this. I can’t believe how lucky I was on the one night I went shooting.
Best Travel Photos 2013
August 16, 2013 – “Family Time”
After waiting far too long, I finally got to meet my nephew and niece in Toronto, Canada
Best Travel Photos 2013, canmore
September 5, 2013 – “Return to Canmore”
After a long time away from Alberta, Canada I headed home to some incredible views.
Best Travel Photos 2013, bow river
September 6, 2013 – “Bow River Dusk”
I used to come to this place in Banff, Canada weekly when I lived in the area. But this was the first time I had ever photographed it.
Best Travel Photos 2013, moraine lake
September 7, 2013 – “My Favourite Lake”
Moraine Lake in Banff National Park is easily one of my favourite places in the world.
Best Travel Photos 2013, lake louise
September 8, 2013 – “Lake Louise Dawn”
Few places look more peaceful, yet powerful, as Lake Louise at dawn.
Best Travel Photos 2013, stars
September 13, 2013 – “Skyline Stars”
In Jasper National Park, this was an insanely long exposure I shot while laying down under the stars. I think the exposure was about an hour and a half.
Best Travel Photos 2013, tangle falls
September 14, 2013 – “Tangle Falls”
Another one of those places I’ve passed by 100 times and never photographed until this shot. Loved how it came out.
Best Travel Photos 2013
September 22, 2013 – “‘Murica”
Ok, this photo wasn’t taken in ‘Murica, but how does a bald eagle like this not scream that out?
Best Travel Photos 2013, Lucerne
October 17, 2013 – “Lucerne”
Leaving North America again, I headed across the pond to Europe. This photo was taken i Lucerne, Switzerland
Best Travel Photos 2013, berlin
Oct 22, 2013 – “Berlin Bubbles”
One of my favourite photos of 2013, this was taken in front of the Berlin Cathedral
Best Travel Photos 2013, Prague
October 26, 2013 – “Karlov Most”
This is one of the photos that’s grown on me from Prague. I almost deleted it in the initial edit, but as time goes on, I think it’s my favourite from Karlov Most Bridge.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Budapest
November 7, 2013 – “The Chain Bridge”
Sometimes you have to do some climbing to get a shot. I got right up on the Chain Bridge in Budapest for this image.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Dubrovnik
November 18, 2013 – “Dubrovnik Frame”
I’m not sure if this is my favourite photo from Dubrovnik. However, I had a hard time choosing just 1 from the city and picked this one in the end.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Sarajevo
November 24, 2013 – “Sarajevo Sermon”
This entrance to the Cathedral in Sarajevo happened by chance, and is one of the favourite photos of 2013.
Best Travel Photos 2013, istanbul
November 29, 2013 – “Istanbul View”
I love this image from Istanbul. Actually, I loved all my images from the city. Such an awesome place to photograph.
Best Travel Photos 2013, Galata Bridge
December 1, 2013 – “Galata Bridge”
Again, I had a hard time narrowing down images from Istanbul. But this image from Galata Bridge stuck out for some reason.
Best Travel Photos 2013
December 10, 2013 – “Uluwoman”
I think the thing that’s missing in these photos is people. I’m making it a goal in 2014 to take more pictures of the people. This is a woman spotted in Uluwatu, Indonesia
Best Travel Photos 2013, Tanah Lot
December 17, 2013 – “Tan-a-Lot”
This is an image taken at Tanah Lot temple in Indonesia.