My Favourite 11 Photos of 2011

Happy New Year!

A new year gives time to reflect on the previous year.  We travelled extensively last year with a trip down to Moab in the spring and another trip all the way up to Alaska and down to Washington in the summer.

All this travelling gave huge photo ops and it was tough to pick 11 shots from all of those that I took.

So, after adding and culling here is my 11.

Starting by date taken the first comes from Moab, Utah.  This is a foot bridge over the Colorado river.  I liked the way the colours blend together and that the leading lines draw your view right into a seemingly solid rock wall.  The trail in fact lead off the bridge and then to the left.

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Next favourite comes from Arches National Park.  This is Delicate Arch which is the arch that is featured on the Utah State licence plates.  To get here involves a hike up a slick rock trail which gains 480 feet in the 1.5 mile hike (3 miles return).  Part of the trail traverses a ledge that reminds one of an Indiana Jones movie with a steep rise on one side and a sheer drop on the other.  We were fortunate to have rain squalls moving through and I was able to capture one of those behind the arch.

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Next comes from near Pendleton, Oregon.  We took an evening drive out on a road that seemed to go nowhere through green fields as far as the eye could see.  We came across this old homestead and had to stop.  I always think about the history of a place such as this- the families that were raised here, the hopes and dreams of people long gone. 

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My photography covers many interests.  This next shot is a Bumblebee in an Aster blossom.  Shots like this normally need uncluttered backgrounds which is not always easy.  In this case it worked.

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The next group of shots are some of my favourite bird shots of the year.  The first is a Hooded Merganser.  This bird had eluded me for years until I got this shot in the spring in Buttertubs marsh in Nanaimo, BC

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This Bald Eagle comes from Lac la Hache in the Cariboo region of BC.  I photograph many eagles here on the coast so it is ironic that my favourite should come from so far from home!  It is a favourite because I caught it gathering nesting materials which you can see grasped in her talons.

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Sir Ru, our resident Rufous Hummingbird returns every year to our yard.  This guy gives me no end of photo ops and of all my shots this year this is my favourite.  I mentioned earlier about uncluttered backgrounds.  This one demonstrates what I strive for perfectly.

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Our yard also is home to a family of Northern Flickers.  For the past three years they have raised three babies a year and most of them spend the entire year in our garden.  They tend to get quite familiar with us and so allow me to get some up-close-and-personal shots of them.

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In Manning Provincial Park we found this Common Loon.  We did see loons elsewhere and even managed some great shots of them but this particular one was quite cooperative and allowed me to get quite close.  I spent the better part of an hour watching and shooting this one.  There is nothing that can compare with watching and listening to the Loons to make one feel they are truly in the Canadian wilderness.

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These next two shots are of a 2 year old Grizzly Bear which we found in Hyder, Alaska.  We had the opportunity to shoot a big male, this cub and his mother over three days while they were feeding on Chum Salmon.  To be so close to Grizzlies in their natural habitat was a high point of my year.  Watching the playful antics of this cub makes one realize that despite the ferocious nature of the Grizzly Bear children are the same no matter what the species.

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And now 2012 begins.  My camera batteries are charged and ready to go.  I wonder what my 12 for '12 pictures will be?

Sky High to Sea Level

We went up to the sub-alpine area in Manning Park early one morning since it was frosty down at our campsite anyway.  Nice to be up there without anyone else!  We had some awesome lighting as the sun broke through the clouds.

There is a viewpoint about halfway up to the sub-alpine area.  Here is a view to the east.

I shot a 7 shot panorama and stitched it in Photoshop.  Be sure to click on the picture to open up a larger version.  Below the pano is a shot of the information sign pointing at the mountains with their names.  Most of the peaks you see here are in the USA.

Later that day we hiked the Canyon trail which goes from the Gibson Pass road to Coldstream campground and back along both sides of the Similkameen River.  The headwaters of the Similkameen is in Manning Park and as you can see it is not very large at this point.  By the time it gets to Keremeos and points east it is a major source of irrigation water for tree fruits and grape vines.

After saying farewell to Manning we headed home.  Once on the ferry we were treated to a large pod of Orcas feeding on Salmon right in front of the dock.  I was disappointed that the ferries left the dock right into the middle of the pod.  One whale swam right up to the ferry and gave us the stink-eye so I guess they were not too impressed either!

Manning Park Critters

After leaving the Palouse in Washington and saying farewell to Gaye and Lee we headed for Manning Park for the final leg of our trip.

We dry-camped in Mule Deer campground and as I celebrated my birthday I was musing that the last time I spent a birthday in Manning was in about 1979 or 1980.  Far too long to have been away from one of our favourite parks!

In the campground we found this little Chipmunk feeding on Saskatoon berries.

On a drive up the Gibson Pass road we found a family of Grouse.  Here is one of the three juveniles we photographed.

Later we found yet another adult.

One of our favourite short hikes is 20 Minute Lake.  Despite this park being the most visited of all of BC's parks this little lake, located only minutes from Lightening Lake, the busiest area in the park, is often overlooked.  Rarely does anyone stop at this little jewel.  We found a single, lonely Loon which was very cooperative and gave me over an hour of shooting.

Lastly we had been hearing many woodpeckers but could never see one.  Finally I spotted this Black-backed Woodpecker up in a dead pine.  Perhaps the Mountain Pine Beetle have created habitat for woodpeckers.

Palouse, Washington

Two weeks ago Alaska and 15 degrees.  Today, Washington and 39 degrees!
SCORCHING!!!!!

But, the Palouse is a beautiful area and the wheat is being harvested right now.  We went up and caught the sunset from the top of Steptoe Butte which rises 3612 feet above sea level.  The road spirals to the top getting narrower to the point where there is only room for the parking lot and a set of microwave towers at the top.

Early morning light gives another spectacular perspective as the rolling hills create long shadows.

After the combines have been through there tracks will remain for the winter.

There are few places not planted in wheat or other crops but here and there in some watercourses a few trees manage to grow.

Some trees are planted as well around the farm houses and barns.  The barns here are worth a blog entry on their own but I'll have to get to them later.