Finally Made It: Pismo Beach

As a child, I was intrigued by Bugs Bunny’s efforts to find Pismo Beach and “all the clams I can eat”. Central California offers a relaxed atmosphere, shrubby landscapes, and a complex history.

Cliffs of Pismo Beach
The world is a little tilted in California 🙂
Peaceful, rugged, colorful
Nearby, the Channel Islands provide even more remote opportunities for beauty
The Island Fox
Abloom
Remnants of destruction or “progress”
Beckoning
The mysterious Solvang, a Danish City in America

We can use this for sure

Mission La Purisima – part of that complex history
Spring water
Oxnard Beaches
The famous garden of LotusLand
Baklava in Santa Barbara

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Mesmerizing Autumn

Gently falling yellow gingko leaves signify a change of season. The moon roars. The rivers hum. The trees stand strong.

Moon power
To the Pomona Natural Bridge
In the city of giants
Gingko shedding their burdens
The Sweetgum‘s final hurrah
Giant City Lodge
Freedom
Landform (abridged)

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DisneyWorld – Little Touches

50th anniversary of WDW – 50 years of trips. trying to find things I’ve never noticed before.

France from the back at Epcot
Gertie’s Eyes at Night – Hollywood Studios
Soul
Logo in Starbucks – Disney Springs
Reflections
A Moroccan Urn
Retro – in an Art Deco setting
On the Galaxy’s Edge
Bungalow Life
Harmonious

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Carving Out Space in a Crowded World

Humans have systemically taken over the natural habitats of other species. At the same time, we delight in seeing living creatures in a natural setting.

Greetings from a Skate
A bumblebee hanging in there
A Rabbit Surviving at Logan Airport – Boston
Dead center – honeybees fuzzy existence or survival
A Red Fox Visiting the Cape Cod Seashore
Visitor Center
Trapped (or saved?) in the Providence Zoo
Some living things thrive in the human world
Kids these days – working on a farm
Hemlocks versus humans and woolly adelgids.
The Geese Persist
Emerging Queen – the hearty coneflowers

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Art Too

New Bedford Street Mural
Synesthesia – John Coltrane by Lennie Peterson
In Flight – Origami – Missouri Botanical Garden
9/11 Memorial – Logan Airport
Cape Cod Yarn – Black Purls
Cape Cod Museum of Art
Freshly Pic’ed

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To the Sea

This series of pictures focuses on the connection between leisure travel and the ocean in New England.

Sachuest Point – a national wildlife refuge
in Newport RI
Access Point – tide pools and cormorants
A mysterious Cliff Walk
Solitude
Under the Mansions – photo credit Rich Bruer
Sunset on Narraganset Bay
Flotsam from a Harbor Town
Jetsam from the Sea
Moonrise – full and powerful

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The Green Mountains

A favorite escape from the heat during the blazing summers.

Killington morning
Woodstock at the Mont Vert Cafe for Coffee
Colorful Burlington
Quaint Stowe at Butlers Pantry
Cider Tasting – chilled
A splash of color
Lake Champlain with Adirondack Mountain background
Robert Frost Country

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Rich With Hue

Spring Blossoms in Lafayette Park, Saint Louis, Missouri.

Iris
Chives
Spiderwort
Peonies
Clematis
Coreopsis
Raindrops

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Wrapping up a Quest

I have been on a mission to visit every state park site in Missouri. This weekend I wrapped up the quest with my final two locations: Dillard Mill and Nathan and Olive Boone Homestead state historic sites. These are both lovely locations worth a visit.

Dillard Mill
The Olive Boone Homestead
Damming the Huzzah River
Out the back door
The Millstone
The Root and Tornado Cellar

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Just The Facts – Traveling in March.

Fact: it’s really hot in Tennessee and Mississippi in the summer.

Fact: springtime flowers bloom a little sooner in the south, than in the north.

Fact: solo travel allows for maximum sightseeing with no negotiations. 😊

The State of Mississippi on the Natchez Trace Scenic Route

Spring break at a beach is crowded. Spring break to out-of-the-way state and national parks provides low crowds, no mosquitoes, and perfect temperatures.

I explored Western Tennessee and Northern Mississippi for a few days. The travel conditions were ideal. Here are a few glimpses of the equinox magic.

Fort Pillow State Historical Park
Pinson Mounds State Park and Archaeological Site – a solar calendar
Chickasaw State Park – Tennessee CCC masterpiece
Big Hill Pond State Park a Tennessee swamp, dam, and foothill.
Shiloh National Military Park. A place of unimaginable pain and suffering.
At Shiloh, I choose to remember the spring beauties instead of the graves.
This photograph greeted me at Pickwick Landing State Park Lodge. A Bald Eagle joined me for dinner.
In Corinth, MS – I was reminded that the Civil War still has many issues to resolve
We are all in this together
Tishomingo River in Mississippi. The namesake of a proud Chickasaw Chief. A beautiful place to hold a war – a civil war.
Redbuds emerging in the Magnolia State.
Tishomingo State Park. Mississippi
Cannons along the Cumberland River in Tennessee at the Fort Donelson National Battlefield .

There were plenty of things to see, eat, and do. These were my favorite images.

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Filed under American History, Art, National Parks, Photography