Sequoia National Park, California

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Travel Spirit

My ITMI Tour Director class stopped at Sequoia National Park and we walked around for about an hour. One of our classmates gave his five-minute presentation there (instead of on the motor coach) because his topic was the difference between giant Sequoia trees and Redwood trees. Loving photography as I do, when we arrived, I’m rushing here and there taking photos of these amazing Sequoia trees.

When it was time for his presentation, he got choked up trying to impart his emotions concerning the magnificence and wonder of these living things. He made me stop and really think about how blessed we were to be standing there amongst the largest and oldest living things on the planet. To think that some are approaching 3,000 to 4,000 years of age is simply amazing!

The giant sequoia is the largest tree in the world in volume and has an immense trunk with very slight taper; the redwood is the world’s tallest tree and has a slender trunk. Sequoias reach around 300 ft. and redwoods up to 364 ft.

The General Sherman tree is the largest living thing on the planet!

It’s fun to learn something new!

Montecito Sequoia Lodge…Sequoia Nat’l Park

Posted on November 1, 2011 by Travel Spirit

My Tour Director class stayed at the Montecito Sequoia Lodge for one night in October. It’s located in the Sequoia National Park, California. That evening we had a bonfire and it was magical! First, one of our classmates’ topics was Sasquatch aka Big Foot, so having her present at night by the campfire was a perfect setting. She did a great job and then another classmate who is also a singer, sang O Danny Boy. She’s Irish and has a lovely voice! I cried (trying not to let others see me)! To top off the evening, a man named Frank gave a talk about John Muir, playing the character of John Muir. He spoke for at least 30 minutes and I was amazed at how he could recite and remember so much!

The next morning, I woke as usual before dawn and watched the sun rise. It was gorgeous!

The lake on the property was perfect for taking reflection shots of the trees and as the sun came out, I was able to capture some breathtaking colors…

We had a hearty breakfast before embarking on our tour of Sequoia and Kings Canyon Nat’l Parks!

Everything is a Miracle

Posted on October 6, 2011 by Travel Spirit

I believe everything is a miracle. You are a miracle. There is no one else on earth like you! Everywhere you look, there is a miracle…the spider web in the windowsill, the computer I’m typing on, flying in a plane, being able to hear and see and taste and touch everything!

People are amazing…the things that they can do physically and intellectually! Animals are so cool! Anyway, this is the park I trail run at, but I took a hike there tonight…some of the photos may seem to look-alike, but they are actually quite dissimilar…the colors of green are different and the composition of the trees, etc.

This is what I see first after exiting the vehicle to jog or hike…

Then…I walk down this gravel road and turn to the left…

Jake, the spoiled hunting dog runs ahead…

That’s me…

It felt strange hiking rather than running the trail this time…

I love the light in this photo…

Here comes Jake…

There goes Jake…

Hope you can see the miracles all around you and in you and have gratitude for them!!

Hiking in Hocking Hills State Park

Posted on September 4, 2011 by Travel Spirit

Since returning from my whirlwind trips through Washington, British Columbia, Colorado and New Mexico, I’ve been thinking more about finding beauty in your own backyard. Many people from Cincinnati usually feel that there are much better places to live than here, but because of work or family, continue to reside in this area. I’m beginning to embrace living here and realize there are wonderful places for enjoying the “great outdoors”. I have been a member of Meetup.com for four years and joined a hiking club at that time. My friend Dee, my husband Randy and I decided to take a day trip to Hocking Hills State Park, which is located 2 1/2 hours from Cincinnati in Logan Ohio, to hike 5-6 miles with the club. These are photos from the day…

This is a “Hickory Horned Devil” and then it becomes a “Royal Walnut Moth” or “Regal Moth”. Later that day when I showed my friend Dee a photo of it, she thought it was a fake photo because it looks like it has sunglasses on. It was about 4 inches long by 1 inch wide.

Since I was taking quite a few photos…I was usually lagging behind and had to run to catch up…but sometimes it’s better to be by yourself. It’s quieter, no people in your photos and the timing was good for getting this photo. I was told that this guy just dropped out of a tree a minute earlier.

I love the “gnarled” look of these roots…

Everything seemed to have a green hue…lots of moss-covered rocks and even trees.

Since today was a record 100 degrees…I had to take a dip in the ice-cold water!

This is Dee…

I usually try to turn around frequently when I’m taking photos so that I can see things from a different vantage point or observe when the light changes or is really nice…like this photo!

Hope you’re finding beauty in your day!

Positive Energy Adventure – Colorado/New Mexico – 8/2011 – Day 5

Posted on August 21, 2011 by Travel Spirit

We left our rental near Durango, Colorado about 9:30am to drive to Santa Fe. Along the way we saw some stunning scenery…

The route we took was through Pagosa Springs…Chama…Abiquiu and the photo below is of Chimney Rock.

We stopped at “Ghost Ranch“…

We arrived at our VRBO…which was another great deal…$59.00 per night with great views…

This was in the backyard…

I understand why so many artists live in Santa Fe now…

Washington/British Columbia Trip – Day 4

Posted on August 8, 2011 by Travel Spirit

Although we hadn’t planned on going to Olympic National Park, it turned out to be the highlight of the entire trip for me. It was another 13 hour day. We drove 40 minutes from Seattle to catch the Edmonds/Kingston ferry, where we drove our car on. The ferry ride over took about 20 minutes. After driving a couple of hours, our first stop was the beautiful Crescent Lake, where we had lunch at the Lodge. The blues are so brilliant!

From there we made our way to the Hurricane Ridge Road entrance to Olympic National Park. It was a windy road with scary cliff drop offs, but so worth it! We hiked the 3 mile round trip, Hurricane Hill trail. I have hiked at some amazing places, but this is my favorite hike.