Category: National Parks

Arizona- A Natural and Historic Wonderland

Posted on by

After spending a few short days in northern Arizona in 2016, I have been planning to go back for an extended trip. That opportunity arose in April, and I was very fortunate that Cathie was also able to go on this trip. It’s always more fun to share amazing experiences with someone else.

Sedona and the Grand Canyon were on our list, as Cathie was only able to join me for the first few days of the trip. During Cathie’s time on the trip, we also visited the meteor crater outside of Winslow. Having seen it in photos, I still was surprised how massive the crater is. Not only did the size of it amaze me, but there was the added bonus of having incredibly strong winds, gusting to will over 60 mph. The winds were due to two storm systems in the area.

After Cathie had to return home, I still had two full days on my own before I returned home. I was not sure how I would fill those days, but after doing some research, discovered there were sites in around the Flagstaff and Sedona region that I was not previously aware of.

Montezuma Castle National Monumenthttps://www.nps.gov/moca/index.htm– A Sinaguan cliffside dwelling built somewhere between 1100 and 1300 AD.

Montezuma Castle- Infrared

Tuzigoot National Monument https://www.nps.gov/tuzi/index.htm– the remnants of another Sinaguan village, built between 1000 and 1400 AD.

Tuzigoot- Infrared

Montezuma Well https://www.nps.gov/moca/planyourvisit/exploring-montezuma-well.htm– A limestone sink formed naturally ages ago, continuously fed from the bottom. The Sinagua irrigated their crops with its waters. And the remains of their cliffside dwelling above the well still exist, as seen in the photo below.

Montezuma Well- Infrared

Wupatki and Sunset Crater Volcano National Monuments https://www.nps.gov/sucr/index.htm–https://www.nps.gov/wupa/index.htm both are within 20 miles of each other, separated by part of the Coconino National Forest. The volcano last erupted around 800 years ago. Thousands of people were farming in the nearby Wupatki pueblos, and they witnessed the eruption. They vacated the area not long after, but the structures they built remain to this day. You can hike the lava field at the base of the volcano, then drive to Wupatki to see how people lived when the volcano last erupted. The prairie between the two sites is one of the most astonishing landscapes I have ever seen.

The Lava Field Below Sunset Crater Volcano
Wupatki Pueblo
Coconino- The Prairie Between Sunset Crater and Wupatki

These are places everyone should see. And there are even other sites that I have learned about but have not yet seen. There will be another trip, I have barely explored the wonders this state has to offer.

The Smokies- Back of Beyond

Posted on by

“The dreamy, blue haze that ever hovers over the mountains softens all outlines, lends a mirage-like effect of great distance to objects that are but a few miles off while those farther removed grow more and more intangible, until finally the skyline blends with the sky itself.” Horace Kephart


It is becoming an annual tradition now, where Cathie and I head to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park. In 2018, we went twice. I wrote about the first trip, from April, but didn’t get a chance to write about the Thanksgiving excursion. Having just come back from there now, I have decided to just write a little about the park, not necessarily what I have done there, but the experience of being there.

It’s one of the few places where you can be in a heavy, tourist area like Pigeon Forge or Gatlinburg, but a short drive later, you are off the grid. Twenty minutes out of these heavily populated areas, you have no cellular signal. And while it is the most heavily visited parks, outpacing all of the others by quite a substantial margin each year, you can find yourself away from others. As primarily a landscape and nature photographer, hopefully it’s not hard to understand why I’m drawn to this place. After all, the park owes its existence to photographers.

I had the chance to see the park in late fall, over Thanksgiving last year. There were a few days where there was a heavy frost in the valleys. The park still held tremendous beauty, even if a little stark, with winter about to set in.

Prior to November, my trips had been in spring, although they were after the wildflowers had bloomed. This time, we planned our trip to be closer to bloom. The forests and valleys were awakening, we had timed our trip well this time. The day I arrived was quite rainy, and the rain continued the first full day in the park last Monday. As a result, the streams, rivers and waterfalls were raging. This offered us a myriad of photo opportunities during the week, which we took full advantage of.

Mostly, this past week was about detaching from day-to-day life. I didn’t come back with a tremendous amount of photos. I tried to make the photos count, though. And I also wanted to just be in the moment. Hearing the streams running. Walking out onto the balcony of our cabin with a cup of coffee in the morning, with the only sounds being birds chirping and wind blowing in the trees. It was sublime. It was a fantastic week, as was the week we spent there in November. And while I might not be able to return to the Smokies this year, I will be back, to the back of beyond.

First Road Trip for 2018- Finale

Posted on by

The day started with a drive on Newfound Gap Road, which traverses the highest parts of the park, and ends in North Carolina. Along the way is Clingman’s Dome, the highest peak in the park. The hike to the observation tower is not a long hike, but, the trail is very steep, it is ranked as one of the more strenuous hikes in the park. Knowing that, we all decided to stay by the parking lot, which still offers some fantastic views of the mountains. Among the cars parked were several Minis, they were either on their to or from a rally. One of the Minis caught my eye- I am a huge Jeremy Clarkson fan, and the owner of the car turned it into a Clarkson/Top Gear tribute. I had to get some photos.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had a picnic lunch on the way to North Carolina, and continued on to the old Mingus Mill, which is near the Oconluftee Visitor’s Center (the North Carolina side of the park).

After stopping at the center, we headed back, and stopped at a turnoff overlooking the Oconoluftee River. We got some long exposures of the rushing water, and then continued back toward the NW end of the park where we were staying. We made another stop at Tremont, and by the time we were done there, it was dinner time.

 

 

 

 

We drove into Gatlinburg and had dinner at Bones BBQ Joint, it was a great last meal of the trip. Afterward, we went to the Ole Smoky Distillery and had a moonshine tasting. I bought some to bring back, it was really good!

 

 

 

 

 

Thus ended our spring excursion to the Smokies. As always, a fantastic time, with great people to share the experience with. Cathie and I will be returning to the Smokies in November. Before then, other adventures await, it will be a great summer!

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 6

Posted on by

Thursday, May 3- recovery day. We didn’t have a set wake up time due to the strenuous hike from the previous day. The simple act of walking, going up and down stairs, standing up and sitting down, all were very tough. My legs were not prepared for the work, but, I’m not one to just sit around either. We went to breakfast at a place Cathie had seen during one of her previous trips, the Applewood Farmhouse Restaurant The food was incredible, we ate more than we should have, but, it was a great reward for the previous day’s efforts. Their apple fritters were delicious, and Cathie bought some of their mix to take home. We walked around the candy store and their general stores, before heading out for our next stop, back to Cades Cove. After stopping at their stores, we left the park and played a round of miniature golf. We drove back out to Townsend, to see if we could get some information on cabins or hotels for future trips.

We intentionally left the day open and didn’t push our bodies too far, although Cathie fared better than I did. Later in the afternoon, we went back to photograph some of the roadside streams in Greenbriar, and on better days, I would have walked down the somewhat steep slopes to get closer to the water. But, I knew my legs were not going to handle it well, and I could just envision me tumbling down, breaking either bones, or my camera gear, or both. So, I played it safe and stayed up where we parked. Still, I got some photos I was pleased with.

We went back to the cabin, had dinner and relaxed a bit. It was a very light day.

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 5

Posted on by

Wednesday, May 2.

We had breakfast at the cabin, and prepared for what we knew was going to be the toughest day of the trip. There are two very strenuous distance hikes in the park, and we wanted to do at least one of them on this trip. We chose the Ramsey Cascade’s trail, because it seemed that it would be the easier of the two, on paper. The waterfalls at the end of the trail are the tallest in the park. The last photo doesn’t do them justice, they are about 60-70 feet tall.

We arrived around 9:15 am at the parking lot at the trail head. The trail is about 4 linear miles one way, and we knew from what we had read that it was uphill most of the way to the falls. While I had not really trained for this kind of hike, I was confident. After all, this is not one of the trails chosen by the Navy SEALs for BUDs training. So we set off with the idea that we would be back to the car by mid afternoon.

We got back to the car a little over 9 hours later.

There is about a 2,200 elevation change one way. I was carrying over 40 lbs of camera gear, with plantar fasciitis in my right foot, two herniated discs in my back, and a surgically repaired right knee. But, none of that stopped me. It just meant that the going was slow. And it was for all of us. We had to make numerous stops on the way up. And when I say it is uphill, it’s steep in several spots. And, the last 1/8 of a mile was basically climbing over and around huge boulders, there wasn’t really a “trail.”

 

We brought provisions for the hike. It was one bottle of water for each of us, and one granola bar. For the entire day. By the time I had gotten to the 3 mile mark (going up), my granola bar was gone. And I finished the water before I got to the waterfalls. So, there were no provisions at all for the return hike.

When we finally got to the falls, Cathie had already sat down on the big rock in front of the falls. I put my gear down, and lay down flat on the rock on my stomach. I didn’t kiss the rock, but it was the same idea.

Cathie christened this “the hike from hell.” I will not disagree. She and I also made a suicide pact on the way back down. It was brutal. My legs were hardly holding me up as we were heading back down the trail. I tripped over my own feet, over rocks, branches, tree roots, you name it. And you know what? I would do it again. Because with all this being said, the pay off was incredible. And even with all this, there were spots that were achingly beautiful along the way. They had put narrow log bridges across some sections of the stream. I paused at these just lose myself in the moment, the water rushing below, the wind in the trees, and no other ambient sounds. In those moments, I truly understand what John Muir meant when he said “Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares drop away from you like the leaves of autumn.”

I used up everything I had that day on that hike. It took my legs several days to really recover from it. Walking was not easy, but even worse was the hill we had to walk up and down to get to and from our cabin. And the stairs in the cabin to and from my bedroom really, really sucked. But these were just muscle aches. My foot, back and knee held up fine.

It was a day we all will never forget.

 

First Road Trip for 2018, Part 4

Posted on by

The adventure continued on Tuesday, May 1. We got up extremely early in order to catch sunrise from the location we had scouted on the Foothills Parkway. We arrived just as dawn was breaking. The valley below the overlook had a farm with some cows grazing, and due to the temperature, there was a mist hugging the valley floor. It was serene. As the sun cleared the mountains on the horizon, I was able to catch the sunburst over the valley (the featured photo). While the sky itself was not overly dramatic, it was still a great sunrise. We spent the better par of an hour there, then, headed back to cabin for breakfast.

At the start of the trip, I mentioned to Cathie that I really needed to get a haircut. I didn’t have the chance to do it before I left. My day job had been extremely hectic that week, and, Saturdays are my normal haircut day. But, we were in Kentucky on that past Saturday. Cathie thought this whole thing was strange, but, hair doesn’t cut itself. And, I’m all about supporting local businesses. After breakfast, I called the place I chose, and made my appointment, and Joe also took advantage and scheduled an appointment as well.

As our appointments were at 12:30, we decided to kill some time and played a round of miniature golf. On my trip to visit Cathie last August, we played a LOT of miniature golf. We also were battling some very harsh mid-day light, so, we had to find other ways to occupy ourselves. As much as sunny days are nice, and they are, for photography, they do not work well. After the first round of golf, we got lunch, then went for our haircuts. Cathie was still bemused by this whole thing, and got some photos of Joe and I as we were getting our haircuts.

Afterward, we played another round of golf, and the second course was much more fun than the first one. By the end of that round, we had gotten to later afternoon, the light was starting to improve, so we went to Roaring Fork Nature Motor Trail. There are some great hikes to waterfalls, but we didn’t have the time to do either one, so we drove the loop road until we got toward the end. There is an excellent roadside stream among some large rock formations, and the water was running strong. I navigated through the stream, trying not to hurt myself on the very slippery rocks, and set up for a couple of long exposures in the middle of the stream. Whatever it takes to get the shot!

We spent well over an hour and a half there, and the light was starting to fade. Since the light was no longer ideal, we did not stop at the old mill at the end of the motor trail. Instead, we headed back to the cabin, had dinner and relaxed a little. And we thought we were prepared for what awaited us the next day.

First Road Trip for 2018 Continues

Posted on by

Sunday morning, after getting breakfast at the hotel in Danville, KY, Joe and I set off for the Smokies. The drive isn’t a very long one, so rather than taking interstates, we jumped off and took some back roads south through Kentucky, until we joined up with I-75 just south of the border with Tennessee. The drive took us through part of the Daniel Boone National Forest, some beautiful country. Our meet up with Cathie was at the Sugarlands Visitor Center in the Smokies. When we got into Sevierville, and then into Pigeon Forge, what would have been a 20-30 minute drive into the park took nearly twice as long, traffic was very much like a weekday rush hour in Chicago.

We ended up having to park in the RV parking lot, and then walked over to the visitor center where Cathie was waiting outside on one of the benches. After the first of many purchases in and around the park for the rest of the week, and Joe joining the Great Smoky Mountains Association, we drove into Gatlinburg, got lunch, dropped off our rental in a public parking lot, and ventured back into the park to introduce Joe to it. We intended to head into Cades Cove, and stopped at a roadside bridge over one of the many rivers in the park. I took a few infrared photos from there, including the one below.

 

But, as it was early afternoon and a cloudless day, the light was very harsh, so we didn’t take a lot of photos. We decided to continue on to Cades Cove, and, ran into a traffic jam due to repaving. We found a space to turn around, and, realizing that we still had to go back into Pigeon Forge to check in to our cabin, we decided to leave and take care of that. We also needed to stock up on food and other items we would need for the week.

The cabin rental company’s office is right next to the Titanic museum, and I was hoping that wouldn’t be a metaphor for the rest of the week. We checked in, and headed to the cabin. It was quite an entertaining (and nerve-wracking drive) up some winding mountain roads to get to it. While the directions seemed complicated, it didn’t take us long to master them, as well as finding a shortcut that wasn’t mentioned by the cabin rental folks. We unloaded the vehicles, then headed back down to Pigeon Forge to get dinner, and then stock up. We got back to the cabin after dark, settled in, and made our plans for the next day.

The Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Final

Posted on by

I have combined the final two days of our trip into one post, because the virus I picked up was greatly impacting my ability to be active. Wednesday was still pretty active, but I needed breaks throughout the day. Thursday was the worst of it, and Mother Nature actually helped a little by giving us some bad weather on Thursday.

Wednesday, we planned to start the day back in Cades Cove, at Sparks Lane. On Wednesdays, the loop road is closed to motor vehicles until 10 am, so we planned on walking to Sparks Lane from the main parking lot. When we got there, the gate was open, so we drove to Sparks Lane instead. We spent a couple of hours photographing the area, which was enveloped in a heavy fog. While we were there, another photographer came with a couple from Germany who he was leading on a workshop. We all hung out, talked, took some great photos, and Cathie and I made a great connection with a phenomenal photographer, Joseph Rossbach.

Since we did not eat breakfast before leaving for Cades Cove, we decided to leave and get something to eat. On the way out of the park, we stopped at a pull-off to photograph a rapidly running river, because we hadn’t gotten any photos of them the previous days (joking).

Things were really starting to get tough for me, though. I started running a fever, and even though the temperature was in the upper 70s, I was wearing a thermal shirt due to the chills. After breakfast, we went back into the park and there was a shorter hike that I felt I could handle. When we got there, though, there was a sign stating that the trail was closed about halfway to the spot we wanted to get to. So, we ended up doing some longer exposures of another river that ran past the parking lot. We left that area, drove around for a bit, then decided to get some dinner. We wanted to get back to the Newfound Gap Road and up to the Morton Overlook for sunset. When we got to the Morton Overlook, a pleasant surprise was waiting for us. Tony Sweet, a photographer I have long admired (and who led the workshop in the Badlands that I attended last September) was there with his workshop. Cathie got to meet Tony, we talked, and then we got set up for the sunset. The sunset was great, although due to the clouds near the horizon, the color faded pretty quickly. Still, it was fantastic seeing Tony again, and finally getting a great sunset from a signature spot in the Smokies. The sunset is the banner photo for this article. On the drive back down the mountains, unfortunately, my ears plugged up and did not pop. This just added to the rest of my miseries, as it was really messing with my equilibrium, as well as just being plain annoying.

Thursday morning started with a torrential downpour, and me feeling like absolute crap. I was deep in the throes of this virus, and aside from getting a small breakfast, I didn’t do much of anything except go back to sleep. A few hours later, we went and got lunch at the local A & W- I haven’t been to one in a VERY long time. The rain was still coming down heavy, and I ended up sleeping some more in the afternoon. Finally, around 4 pm, I started feeling slightly better, and the rain stopped, so we drove back to the Park, and went to Roaring Fork. It’s a beautiful area, deep in the woods, with a loop road that winds its way up and back down the hills. Which meant I had more ear issues. But, we still got some great photos of the river, and the mill toward the end of the loop road.

We had dinner, got back to the hotel, and I prepped all of my gear for the return trip. I still had a 9-10 hour drive to get back home Friday, and I had no idea what shape I was going to be in for it. Fortunately, the worst of the virus seemed to have passed, and I was able to get up and be on the road early Friday morning, and made the drive back. And thus ended my first Smokies adventure. Even with the health issues I ended up with, it was an unforgettable trip. The beauty of the area cannot be described, it has to be seen. I can see why it is the most visited National Park year after year. It has something for everyone- great hikes, scenic vistas, valleys with mountains shrouded by clouds and fog, and while we did not see a bear, wildlife abounds. I will be returning, sooner rather than later. There is still so much I have to see there. And hopefully next time, I won’t be dealing with a plague at the same time.

The Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Part 2

Posted on by

Tuesday turned out to be the most active day Cathie and I had in the Smokies. Unbeknownst to me, a virus was manifesting itself in my system. What I had thought was just allergies due to the extremely high pollen in the area was something else entirely, although I had not realized it yet.

Back to Tuesday. We decided to to do a longer hike in the morning, up to Laurel Falls. The trail is paved, but it is uphill all the way to the top, 1.3 miles one way. A good way to get the blood flowing! When you arrive at the top, you cross a footbridge and can spend time at the top of the falls. That is not all there is to see, though. If you’re adventurous, you can hike down the rocky trails on either side, and see the lower part of the falls. Cathie and I hung out at the top for a bit, getting lots of long exposures of the top of the falls. I also set up my iPhone on a Platypod, and shot both timelapses and slow motion videos of the falls. Product plug: get a Platypod! They are the BEST! They provide a stable platform either for a phone or camera, where tripods are not either allowed or practical. With some bungie cords, you can tie it to a tree too. I highly recommend them, I have both the Platypod Max and Platypod Pro, and I do NOT travel without them.

Enough product plugging! We took some portraits of the other tourists at the top, in front of the falls, and it occurred to me we should have charged a fee! I made a few connections, hopefully some are reading this post! Cathie and I were able to get our portraits taken by a kind tourist, the first time really we ended up in front of the camera together. I’d really rather be taking photos than having my photo taken.

Being adventurous souls, Cathie and I went down the side of the hill, and got some photos of the lower part of the falls. And, in keeping with the “falls” theme, I slipped on a wet rock at the bottom, and went down on my left hip and arm. I still have quite an impressive bruise on my hip. That, and a bruised ego were the only injuries, luckily.

From there, we hiked back down the trail, and intended to visit the Roaring Fork area next. As it turns out, we went the wrong way, and ended up on the Newfound Gap Road, which takes you up to the ridgeline. It turned out to be a fortuitous happenstance (good band name!). As we got to the top, we decided to go up to the top of Clingman’s Dome, and the observation tower. That half mile hike to the observation tower turned out to be a FAR more strenuous hike than the 1.3 mile hike to Laurel Falls. Still, it was absolutely worth it. We got to look down on the tops of the clouds which covered the valley from which we had just come. Words cannot describe it. The featured photo of this blog is an infrared photo I took from the observation tower.

The drive down, after we finished at Clingman’s Dome, featured a lot of “WHEEE”s from Cathie, and some groaning from me. I have not gotten car sick since I was a kid. I came close on this drive.

The day finished in Greenbriar, along another fast moving river. I shot some more long exposures there, and some video. We then got some burgers at the Burger Barn (and I got a beer). A great finish to a spectacular day. Up next, the plague rears its ugly head…

The Great Smoky Mountain National Park, Part One

Posted on by

My friend Cathie and I had been talking about taking a trip to the Great Smoky Mountains since she returned from her trip there this past October. Since I usually travel the last week of April somewhere, we decided this would be a good time for our trip. I drove out Sunday morning, April 23, and arrived late afternoon. We then set about creating a general outline of how we would tackle the park. The first full day was Monday, and the one spot I wanted to see was Sparks Lane in Cades Cove. Since Cades Cove is set in a valley, it frequently is foggy in the morning. As infrared photography is my favorite photographic medium, I knew it would provide some excellent infrared opportunities. But, earlier is better, the fog tends to burn off quickly. So, we couldn’t get there early enough for sunrise, but we would get there not long after sunrise. I say “would” because Mother Nature threw a curve ball at us- due to the heavy rains the area had experienced both Saturday and Sunday, the road into Cades Cove was closed because of a downed tree. The featured image is the road, just past the closed gate. So, we explored the area near the gate. At one point, a park ranger drove past Cathie, and he said we could take an alternate route to get to Cades Cove after all. It was a long detour, but we did get there after all, and the fog was still in the valley. The photo below is one of the infrared photos I took there.

We explored more of the Cades Cove area- the loop itself can take up a few hours, winding through the valley, stopping at several old structures, and giving great views of the valley. We stopped at the John Oliver cabin, one of 80 historic buildings in the park. The cabin is set deep in the woods, and is very well preserved.

We continued on to the old Cable Grist Mill and the surrounding buildings, including the barn and corn cribs. The woods surrounding the mill provided us an unexpected opportunity to photograph some deer up close and personal.

After leaving the Cades Cove area, later in the afternoon, we went to the Tremont area, along the Middle Prong Little River. Due to the rains, the rivers and streams were running fiercely, and there was an abundance of opportunities to photograph the running waters, and waterfalls on the roadside.

This was the start of my first exploration of the Smokies. There is more to come, we had three more days of fun!