The only way to get to this park, is by a small plane. Port Allsworth serves as the hub. lake Clark Airlines out of Anchorage makes it fairly simple, not inexpensive, but straightforward. The park provides a remote setting with gorgeous vistas. The Ranger Station and Visitor Center are closed on Sundays.
Filed under National Parks, Photography, Travel
Filed under Art, National Parks, Photography, Travel
I travel to Florida for theme parks, beaches, and state parks. Along with those popular attractions, there are more casual experiences.
In Winter Garden at the Conservation Center
Filed under Photography, Travel, wildlife
A favorite escape from the heat during the blazing summers.
Filed under Art, Photography, Travel
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. 😊
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.
There were plenty of things to see, eat, and do. These were my favorite images.
Filed under American History, Art, National Parks, Photography
Illinois was first colonized by the French on the Mississippi River. The Kaskaskia area contains the secrets of that time period.
Fort de Chartres provided a staging area for the French communities in the area: Prairie du Rocher and even Ste Genevieve in Missouri.
Fort Kaskaskia down the river didn’t fare as well.
The only way to get to the old city of Kaskaskia Illinois is to cross the Mississippi River and drive through Missouri. This is the only section of Illinois west of the Mississippi River.
Kaskaskia was the most populous city when Illinois became a state, and it served as the capital for a few years.
Ste. Genevieve, MO is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Missouri. Kaskaskia and Ste Genevieve are in the same area.
In 1881 a major flood wrecked the area and the Mississippi River took over the Kaskaskia river channel. This is how this section of Illinois ended up on the “wrong” side of the river. In the map, the Mississippi is in the background. But in 1881 the mighty Mississippi took over the river in the foreground.
Filed under National Parks, Photography, Travel
Since the Covid shut down all my vacations in 2020 I have been heading out on short trips to see parks, small towns, geological formations, and wildlife. On Halloween, I visited some of the most rural areas in the Midwest – central western Illinois. You can’t find any coffee shops, there aren’t any museums, there are barely any people. The land is glaciated and generally flat. There is lots of corn. And of course, colorful trees.
After the Mexican war and Blackhawk war soldiers were given land in Illinois. One gentleman, George Meyer, was given a beautiful piece of property in western Illinois near the Illinois River. This land had a spring and a small town grew up around it. The man lived to be 104 years old, so everyone believed the water was healing. After George passed on, a real estate man got his hands on it and sold the water for decades. Later this area became Siloam Springs State Park. This history is hidden among the picnic pavilions and hiking trails.
We left Siloam Springs for the biggest town in the region – Jacksonville: the county seat of Morgan county. When we arrived, it too was a ghost town.
Or…
I don’t know if the coffee shop was really closed today or everyday. I don’t know how it could survive with no people. I walked into the bakery to see if I could find a doughnut. The door was open but nobody was inside. I could see cakes and cupcakes – but no doughnuts. And no people.
We wandered to another remote state park – Beaver Dam State Park. We heard there was people there.
So we headed home.
Filed under American History, Art, Photography, Travel
The Dakota Sioux controlled this quarry from 1700 to the mid 1850’s before American settlement started poaching the valuable mineral. This red/brown stone was soft enough to carve and durable enough to last centuries. Ceremonial pipes carved from the rock for thousands of years. This stone made its way all over the Americas before the Europeans arrived. The one square mile site is a sacred place for the Plains Indians even today. The United States government protected this valuable commodity and gave exclusive quarrying rights to the Sioux. The rest of us can still respectively enjoy the stunning red quartzite cliffs, the flowering prairie, and the waterfall fed forest.
An American Indian Monument
A quarry no longer used
This is either the pipestone or quartzite
regardless of type its stunning
The Town of Pipestone used Quartzite
The quartzite is abundant
The pipestone is much deeper underground
The trails through this monument surprise
sacred land for the Sioux and Crow
Minnesota – hard to believe
3/4 mile trail it’s worth an hour of your time
Active Quarry for American Indians
U.S. History omits the horror of assimilation
The trail surrounds a prairie
a river runs through the land
wild bergamont
lizard’s tail
Sacred ceremonies still continue
A peaceful place to commune with nature
Connections
Filed under American History, Art, National Parks, Photography, Uncategorized
In the age of Quarantine 2020, I have spent time studying my backyard. I have noticed the robins, the amorous grey squirrels, the carpenter bees, and even the shrew. I have an abundance of flowers I have forgotten about. Even pulling weeds has been engaging.
Filed under Art, Photography, wildlife
I decided to go out to the woods to see what was waiting for me today. Sometimes in my hectic life, I forget that other living organisms exist. It only took about five steps into the forest before I stumbled on to my old friends.
Any Colour You Like:
Fungus (Three Different Ones)
Hey You
Outside the Wall(s):
A Great Blue Heron is taking off in the background…
Lost For Words:
Fat Old Sun
Filed under Photography
Freshly "Pic'ed" 