Skagit Sunset

It is kinda wierd to be editing pictures from the beginning of fall while the weather is now turning into summer. It is a little unsettling. Like wearing shoes that don't match. Or wearing a scarf in August. Or... I better stop. Anyway, these pictures were taken in mid-September up in the Skagit Valley again. This time, we went to Rasar State Park where it was rainy, rainy, rainy, then headed west to Bayview State Park for sunset. Just another lovely day!

Another round down... I am totally, totally catching up ;) Thanks so much for taking a look!!

Northern State

Back in September, DMA and I drove up to Sedro Woolley to the former campus of Northern State Hospital. What a beautiful, yet creepy place. The grounds were designed by the Olmsted Brothers, who had also designed parts of the UW campus & Volunteer Park, among many, many other places. The hospital closed down back in the 70's, and now houses the offices of Job Corps. We weren't able to get close to the old hospital building, but the grounds and the old farm are now part of a park.

Here are a few images of the grounds... I would love to go back there & walk around. It seemed quite serene.

And here are some images of the old farm....

Ok, just a few more posts from September! I h0pe to be caught up sooooooon!! Thanks for taking a look!

Almost a Dozen

Even though I have a bajillion new pics from my vacation last week, I am determined to catch up on my old ones too. These pictures were taken on a nice evening back in September last year at one of my favorite places: the Bellevue botanical garden. I thought it would be too late in the season for flowers, figuring it would be a garden full of rhodies, but, ooooh man, it was full of all kinds of little beauties!

Here are ten of my favorites...

there you go... almost a dozen. Thanks for taking a look!!

September Begins

Let the pictures from September 2010 begin!

yikes, my editing is so far behind!

Back in early/mid September, dma & I went to the Sunrise area of Mt. Ranier. It was pretty cool... I have only visited the Paradise side, so it was nice to see something new. Too bad the weather wasn't cooperating... it was a gloomy, cloudy day. Sad! There were remnants of wild flowers all over, so I know where to go this August, eh? I managed to capture a few botanical gems. ...

Thanks for taking a look! It will probably be a little while until I post again... I am headed out on a roadtrip! I am looking forward to some pretty dang awesome destinations!

NPS 3: The Glacier Survey

Ta-daaaaa.... my last round of NPS 3 pics!!!! These were taken on the way back from Yellowstone when we took a quick survey of Glacier National Park. I am completely in love with Glacier; the mountains, the sky, the colors, the textures, the animals, the flowers... aaaaah.

We entered from the east side, via the St. Mary's entrance, and spent the first night exploring the east side of the park (just to Logan Pass) and squeezed in a bit of star trailing, too. Then we stayed in the creepiest place to date (brrr, just got the chills from thinking about it!) But, it came equipped with electricity, a decent heater & hot water, so it was at least a notch above the Sentra ;)

The next day, we got coffee at the bootsy hotel coffee bar then took the Going to the Sun road in reverse, so, Going from the Sun road? We stopped here & there at whatever caught our eye. I really, really want to go back there... the hiking opportunities seem amazing!

The Vistas

The Night Sky (so many planes!!)

The Wildlife

The Little Things

And that is about it! NPS 3 is wrapped up, just in time for NPS 4 next week!!!

Thanks for taking a look & hope that you are having a beautiful day!

Day 4: Teeny Tiny Yellowstone

Memories.
so.
hazy.

I can't exactly remember the details of this day... we started the day in a "rustic" cabin in the northern part of Yellowstone (and by "rustic" I mean no indoor bathroom, limited furnishings and PAPER thin walls, oh gosh, we could actually hear our neighbors zipping up their luggage!) Well, then we grabbed some coffee from the hotel lobby & hit the road. Did we go near or far? I can't remember now... Note to self: take notes for goodness sake.

What do I remember? It was a blazingly sunny day. blazing. And, well, I know my limits, and I absolutely cannot take a landscape at high noon. The question is, is my lack of skill or my lack of interest in contrasty lighting? Not sure. A stubborn mental block?

One of our stops for the day was the Minerva Terrace. It was fun to explore the trails near this geological marvel, but it would have been *even* cooler if there was some water pooled up!!! Anyway, the picture below is a representative image of the terrace. The whole thing looks similar to this scene...

Even with the sharp, sharp lighting, I was determined to not pass up a day of shooting in the park. So, being me, I pointed my camera down & found some interesting scenes. Given the grand scale of Yellowstone, these images are absolutely teeny tiny. And, in some respects may seem to "be a waste" of such an epic locale; however, these are real scenes of Yellowstone, right? It may not be an expansive vista, but why place value only on grandeur?

These are a few things that caught my eye...

As always, thanks so much for taking a look! I still have one more set of images to edit... just the pics from Glacier! I better hurry, eh, NPS 4 will be here before I know it ;)