Back from the "Dust Bin"

In anticipation of our summer trip this year, as well as the arrival of summer weather here, I was going through some photos (some previously posted, others not), and I just thought that I would share some with you. These were all from prior summer excursions, either very local, or very far away.

Enjoy this fanciful collage! 

Just a few more - this time from Monument Valley

I was going through some of my photos from our recent trip out west, and thought you might enjoy a few more of these shots from Monument Valley. It is "The Location" for so many iconic Westerns, including a bunch of John Wayne films, Gunsmoke, and so many more. It is hallowed ground for the Navajo people, and having visited there I can see why.

Anyway, my wife and I will be going to Alaska again this summer, and I hope to take some more fabulous photos while there - but if you don't think they're any good, I'm sure you'll tell me :)

A second look

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Now that I've had the chance to look over my photo collection again, I thought that I'd share some of these with you. In my way of thinking, some of the photos that I took, were taken from a peculiar perspective (e.g. numbers 1 & 6). While others were just memories of what it felt like - to be there at sunset, with the incredible silence (photos 2 - 4). And what about number 5? Well, it just seemed to me to speak of great distances...

From the footpaths, a different perspective

This is a bit of different kind of travelogue for me. Our last full day in Zion Canyon was essentially up to us, so my wife and I filled it up on foot, hiking the easy and some not so easy trails that meander through Zion Canyon. The Virgin River had recently receded from flooding rains, and the whole place was thoroughly alive.

All this walking around was invigorating, yet somewhat humbling, too, as if we were treading somewhere on the planet where we could bring back memories, if we could just catch enough of the sights and colors to make us remember the sounds and smells of a most magnificent trip. Enjoy!

Looking up. The first of our Zion Canyon Experience.

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The first thing that strikes you as you drive into Zion Canyon, is that, unlike the Grand Canyon and Bryce Canyon, your major direction of awe is upwards. For in Zion Canyon, you arrive on the floor of the canyon, with the majestic formations rising up all around you. As you can see, with the exception of photo number 7, the scenery draws you upward. (And just to warn you, the better pictures are to come in the next session).

OK, here's where I need your help.

As we headed toward Zion Canyon, we made a stop at Bryce Canyon. As you can see photogenic hardly begins to describe the place. And I had a very hard time picking out photos to show. So, what I'm asking is that you vote for your own three favorites. Well, here they are...

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Anyway, enjoy!9

Lake Powell, Antelope Canyon and Glenn Canyon Dam

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The next leg on our western adventure was a more relaxing one, with mostly sight-seeing. We stayed at the Glenn Canyon Resort, and we were taken on a boat ride through Antelope Canyon, which is not very well known, but it is definitely worth seeing, as it is unlike anything else you'll ever see (photos 2 - 4). The landscape is forbidding and seems otherworldly. Then we visited Glenn Canyon Dam, which is less awesome than Hoover Dam, but, nevertheless turned out to be instructional (not terribly photogenic, in my view), and worth the visit. Well, the next segment will be spectacular...