Up above the clouds

This cell phone shot was taken on a turnout as we were going over Clingmans Dome Pass at around 6,644 feet, just as we started going home from our visit to the Great Smoky Mountains. I almost didn't pull into the turnout as I didn't see this cloud and fog covered view from the road. After a week in the mountains, did I really want one more shot of the view? Yes!!! The mountains gave us another reason why they are named as such. The view was so great, I wanted to turn the camper around and go back to the campground. Definitely will look to go back one day, hopefully soon.

Purple Flowers in a green world

The Smoky Mountains are green. Really, really green. So any other color really stands out. Happened here with the purple flowers attracting the eye.

Gatlinburg from afar and up close

From afar, Gatlinburg looks like a cool town. From up close, it is fudge shops, ice cream and pancakes. Long lines at the pancake places too. They even have a Ripley's Believe it or Not, which is the kiss of death for tourist traps. Not much social distancing going on. Michael and I stayed away from Gatlinburg although I would have liked to just walk the strip once. Just nothing to do there but gain calories and buy tourist trinkets that no one would appreciate. We did stop in to one strip mall in Pigeon Forge to see what was there but no, nothing worth buying. Everything was from China or the Philippines, even at places supposed to be Cherokee owned. Anyway, it is a strange juxtaposition of those tourist traps, the lack of social distancing and having the Smoky Mountain National Park minutes away. Come to think of it, I could have justified an ice cream after all those hikes!!!

"They say it's your birthday...."

Well, Happy Birthday to you. You couldn't wait a day to get on my birthday, could you? That's ok. You now share a day with Clio!!!

Thanks for taking me on all those hikes I never want to do. Painful, but thanks anyway. Have a great year.

Why do they call the Smoky Mountains, "Smoky"?

See, this is why they call these mountains, "smoky". It is the rising humidity which creates clouds and the bluish midst in the background. Anyway, great visit to the Smokies in the past weekend.

Tower of London

Until I get to start traveling again, it is back to the old pictures drawers to see what is in there. This one is from my sabbatical trip to Europe with the family to see Nina, who way back in 2006 was studying in Paris. We hit London on the way back and got to spend 2 days there. We were all pretty tired of traveling by that point and we did try to leave for home early but too hard to get 5 tickets back home. Now of course, I am glad we got to see London because who knows if we will ever get another chance? There are so many places I haven't seen so it is hard to go back to places you have been to already. I would love to see Iceland and Ireland and northern Europe. Now, Florence I would go back to but then I would also love to go to Greece. Instead, this year it is national parks--which are great as well and I want to see all of them eventually in the continental US. Too hard to get to the ones in Alaska and Hawaii. Anyway, given time and enough funds (both in scarce supply) we do what we can.

Ponte Vecchio Bridge, Florence

From the way back machine, here is one of my first shots from restarting my photography hobby back in 2006. I was shooting with my first digital camera, the wonderful Nikon D200. Wasn't a great day weather wise in Florence, hence the grey skies, but what I remember is the rich history, the colors--and the gelato. This trip was part of my 6 week sabbatical, which Nuveen gave to employees after 15 years employment. That benefit went away but it was wonderful to have at the time. Can't imagine being away for 6 days in this market. Anyway, I still have Florence on my list as places I would love to visit again. This is where the Renaissance started and grew as a cultural movement. It was a change in perspective, literally, as artists learned to put perspective in pictures, just as the bridge is seen here in the background. Before the Renaissance, artist would put things in one plane, with elements in the background put in the top of the picture. That looks strange to us but it was understood to be in the background from viewers in the 14th century. That change in perspective caused other perspectives to change. Anyway, can't wait to go back one day.

Echo -- Motion Defined

 

Echo is fun in motion. He never stops moving. He never stops playing. He is a fun kid to be around. 

Bryce Canyon NP--where chess pieces come from

Whenever I look at my old pictures of Bryce Canyon from our trip back in 2017, I always think of chess pieces. The pawns, bishops and rooks are all there. Plus lots of pieces that could be made into Kings and Queens. Don't see any knights, but the rest of the pieces are all there. So far, my favorite national park with a lot more to go. It is just so different. Like you are on another planet.

For 2020, I just got done drawing up the plans for a 2 week trip this September to 4 national parks, hitting Theodore Roosevelt, Yellowstone, Grand Tetons and the Badlands. I am going to save my vacation time this summer to string 2 weeks in a row. We would hit the towns of Medora, West Yellowstone, Jackson and Cody--all places that I have read about and look forward to visiting. Should be a fun trip with lots of photographic possibilities.

Sea Stacks of Ruby Beach

Pretty cool memory of Michael Jr and my trip to Ruby Beach on the coast of Washington State near Olympic National Park. The tide was low enough so that you could walk to this sea stack. There are a few people just at the edge of the picture right at the base on the beach side. Probably a good idea to know when the tides are rolling in if you want to walk out there. Anyway, looking forward to going out there again. Wonderful area. Sea stacks, in case you are curious are just headlands that jut out to sea that have had their landslide portion worn away from ocean activity. The stack will eventually go away too but we get to enjoy the view while they are still with us. I bet it takes centuries to erode one away.

Bristol Faire Fun -- not this year

Another casualty of the coronavirus is the Bristol Renaissance Faire, a fun afternoon in the hot summer days of jolly old England aka Kenosha, Wisconsin. You have to feel sad for the actors as I am sure they look forward to a summer full of tourist fun (and paychecks). I will save a few bucks as we usually take the grandkids for an expensive afternoon visit. Each year I try to take better shots as it is difficult to get the action and eliminate the busy background. Oh well, we will try again next year.

Reflections with a smiley face

There is a lot to reflect on these days. Here is a happy reflection with a smiley face in the clock off of a building in downtown Chicago. From a shot taken in 2018. Ok, not everything is as it seems.

Matthiessen State Park

Mattiessen State Park is a wonderful place to hike, located near the much more famous Starved Rock SP out west and south of Chicago. These two parks are great places to hike and to get out and see the outdoors, without having to drive hours and hours to see something unusual. There are dozens of excellent waterfalls in both parks and with all the water in the past month, they are probably still running fairly strong. This shot is from the way back machine as I haven't been out there recently, but with the shut down ending, this could be a nice little trip to get out into some nature.