Latest Trip Pics

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – BLASTS from the PAST – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

I started out in nature photography shooting slide film, resulting in a couple of file cabinet drawers filled with 2-inch-by-2-inch mounts. Recently, I had several dozen of my slides scanned, producing digital files. Below are a few of my favorites that bring back fond memories from years past:

October 1992

I don’t remember exactly where on the Blue Ridge Parkway this shot
was taken. But I do remember feeling blessed that I was able
to be there before the sun had time to evaporate the drops of dew.

August 1995

This photo was taken during what Jean and I called our “Volcanoes Vacation”
when we visited Mt. Ranier National Park, Crater Lake National Park,
Mt. St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, and Mt. Hood.
Being at Mt. Hood brought back strong memories of being there in 1973
and climbing this beautiful but very challenging peak with three other guys.

September 1996

Jean and I spent eight days in the Tetons and Yellowstone during
mid-September – and it snowed four of those days! I had gone out
early to photograph. At first, all of the mountains were in the clouds.
Then, as the clouds began to dissipate, I saw this moose ambling along.
I pulled off the road just south of Willow Flats Overlook, set up
and took this shot before this majestic animal wandered down the bank.

May 1998

I first visited Arches National Park in the early 1970s, not too long
after it became a national park. Having the largest collection
of natural arches on the planet, Arches is a special place.
Landscape Arch, at 290.1 feet, is the longest natural
stone arch in North America and 5th longest in the world.
Rockfalls from the arch – one in 1991 and two in 1995 – have
closed the trail that went beneath Landscape Arch.

July 1999

This field was covered with stunning wildflowers, outnumbered
only by the mosquitoes that thought we were present for their benefit.
Jean stood behind me swatting the voracious insects off of us
as I tried to compose the shot and click the shutter.
This location was so well-known that it was a photo destination
for field trips led by professional photographers. But no more.
The National Forest Service allowed cattle to be brought in and
graze this area. The last time Jean and I paid a summer visit
to this area in 2012, we did not see a single bloom.

April 2000

This photograph required driving to the Windows Section of
Arches National Park in pre-dawn light, hiking up and through North Window,
down the other side, and then rock climbing with my equipment
to the spot where I had this view. All of this effort was necessary to be
positioned in the right spot at the right time for the early morning sun.
This is such a popular shot that one professional photographer,
with tongue firmly planted in his cheek, quipped,
“You will know you’re in the right spot when you look down
and see holes for your tripod feet .”