Zion National Park, Utah

Zion National Park; truly a haven of safety and peace. As I was coming back from town one evening, I caught the moon rising over the mountains.
One morning I was eating breakfast and looked up and saw clouds hovering in the mountains. I jumped in my car and drove outside the campground and snapped this photo.

October is the perfect month to visit Zion; the leaves are starting to change, the air is crisp and cool and occasional downpours wash the earth clean.

During my stay, rain, thunder and lightening continually fill the sky. Wispy clouds play games with the mountains and keep me spellbound with their frail beauty. This view of the Towers of the Virgin is taken from behind the Human History Museum in Zion National Park.

Clear skies interchange with dark thunderclouds, wind and rain. This was taken on a clear day while out and about on the trails.
Erosion looks so good on trees and rocks; enough said.
My favorite swimming hole in Zion; it appears to be getting smaller as a huge deposit of sand has accumulated near the edges.

Up a little further from the waterhole is a second waterhole with a small waterfall pouring into it. This is where I went swimming today; nobody else was there, just me and the dragonflies which occasionally came over to kiss me.

The Watchman stands guard day and night, beautifully framed in a field of yellow.

While sorting through my emotional issues, I took a hike up to Hidden Canyon. The Great White Throne is the white mountain in the background, reminding me that God is here, watching over me and keeping me safe.
On my way up to Hidden Canyon, I had to bypass this tarantula, but grab on to the chain at the same time; quite a feat.
The Towers of the Virgin as viewed from the Pairus trail. Each day I hike this trail through the Zion wilderness; a time to absorb the beauty and spend time in quiet contemplation.
The Virgin River; I found this special spot away from the crowds and sat down to enjoy. I dipped my feet in the mountain stream and certainly was baptized in its foam!
One of the arches in Zion, way at the back of Hidden Canyon. Many people pass by the arch without even seeing it; a good lesson to keep your eyes open and observe your surroundings.
Maple leaves were falling all over the place; this one landed on the side of the cliff.
In order to reach the back of Hidden Canyon, you have to climb over this boulder, which I did, walk along the sandy bottom, climb over tree trunks, scale rocks and generally have an all around good time.

Mt. Whitney, Lone Pine, California

Over the weekend I camped up in Lone Pine, California. It was an incredible experience, full of rugged wild scenery, high lonesome nights and hot desert days. Mt. Whitney is the star in the Sierra Nevada Mountain range, and tons of people climb it each year; I am not one of those people. I prefer to look up at the jagged mountain peaks and hike short beautiful trails and scramble over the weird boulder fields known as the Alabama Hills. Pretty in pink, this little Columbine flower caught my eye.
The last morning of my stay, I wanted to catch the mountain in the early morning light, so I bypassed my coffee stop and drove up the Whitney Portal Road. At the Alabama Hills I scrambled around the boulders, eager to get some nice shots. Just me and my camera, along with the rocks and trees and mountains and deep blue sky. When I was quite done, I treated myself to an extra hot, non fat, triple Latte.
The first few days of my stay, I camped at Lower Grays Meadow in Independence, halfway up the road to Onion Valley. Sunrise was spectacular and found me roaming about the campground in my red flannel jammies shooting photos. My eyes feasted on gorgeous layered color, which changed every few minutes.
The sun hit the top of the mountains first and slowly worked its way down into the valley. At last the whole mountainside turned a glorious shade of pink.
My humble campsite in Lower Grays Meadow in the early morning light. The first night, the campground was nearly filled. The second night, I was all alone except for one couple in an RV at the very end. They couldn't hear or see me and I couldn't hear or see them. Kind of spooky when the lights went out. The good part was lots of sparkling stars, the Milky Way, a few shooting stars, the sound of the creek and the wind blowing through the trees.
Independence Creek runs right through the campground and people were catching fish like you cannot believe!
After two nights in Grays, I drove up to Onion Valley to camp in the high country. Fragile poppies bloomed along the road, somehow surviving this incredibly harsh environment.
My campsite in Onion Valley was spectacular. This is the view from my table as I sat looking up into the clouds.
This is the view in the other direction; an outstanding view of the Kearsage Pass saddle. There is a different feel when you are up over 9000 feet. Even the wind whistling through the pine and aspen trees sounds different; more lonesome, more wistful. "Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean." John Muir
The morning I got to Onion Valley, I took a hike up the Kearsage Pass trail. It is a bit steep with quite a few rocky switchbacks, but well worth the views. I passed by a rushing stream cascading over the rocks, twisted, gnarled trees, a small mountain lake and amazing views of the valley. Never saw any onions, but stir fried a nice big red onion with some chicken, cherry tomatoes and zucchini for dinner. The lake was so still, no one around but the trees, mountains and a large, gray and black Clark's nuthatch, calling out like a crow. I sat down on a rock and ate my lunch looking all about me at the brilliant, yellow daisies lining the water, waterfalls flowing down the mountain and bright pink flowers flanking a small stream that flowed into the pond. Never saw another soul.
I wanted to swim, but the wind was so cold that it made me nervous to be soaking wet in this wild place. Several years ago I was not so careful and nearly got hypothermia.
My faithful Subaru parked in my campsite at Onion Valley. I sleep in the back, unless the weather is real nice and I want to listen to a creek or feel the wind in my hair. Then I set up my tent without the rain fly and sleep under the stars; it only works if its not raining. Down in Grays Meadow I slept out under the trees and listened to the night noises; terribly good fun.

Kings Canyon National Park, California

Kings Canyon National Park was my final stop on my 51 day trip throughout the western United States and Canada. Wow am I tired! After 6,210 miles, eight American National Parks, two Canadian National Parks, and lots of places in between, I am finally home!
Zumwalt Meadows, in Kings Canyon, is a gorgeous green meadow surrounded by rugged mountains and the Kings River.
This little guy would not stop staring at me. He sat there perfectly still, probably wondering who the heck I was and what was I doing taking his picture.
Roaring River Falls in Kings Canyon National Park is one of the most spectacular places in the canyon. It is an incredibly forceful waterfall that rushes through a narrow granite chute and crashes down into a pool of water. Quite a sight. I have probably been to Kings Canyon at least a dozen times, and each time I go, I stop at Zumwalt Meadows. From the Zumwalt Meadow boardwalk, North Dome can be clearly seen, rising so proud and tall above the valley floor. Thunderclouds are a common sight in the canyon and often bring with them a quick cloud burst of rain. In early summer, the Kings River is usually raging full and absolutely beautiful as it rushes through the canyon. One of my favorite pastimes in the canyon is to jump in the river and swim. At Roads End, there is a huge rock known as the John Muir Rock, where Muir actually stood and preached to the crowds. Today people of all ages, including myself, stand on the edge of the rock and jump in the water, then float down the river a bit before crawling out over the rocks to the shore.Of all the times I have visited Kings Canyon, this was my first time to see Grizzly Falls!
Giant Sequoias in Grant Grove, at the upper end of the Canyon. Sort of puts your life in perspective when you stand at the base of the trees and look up.

Lassen Volcanic National Park, California

After leaving Mt. Rainier National Park, I had the bright idea to drive down the Oregon coast and camp along the way. My first stop was the quaint town of Florence. The one drawback was that everything was covered in fog. I patiently sat in this lovely coffee shop, drinking Latte's and working on my pictures while waiting for the fog to clear.
Old pilings line the riverbank; the remains of the original ferry landing. The fog is resting so beautifully upon the bridge, trees, coastline and unfortunately upon all my plans.
Small bird boxes rest in the pilings of the old ferry, inhabited by many inquisitive little birds!
After a while, I got in my car and started driving past miles and miles of sand dunes covered with ATV's and dirt bikes, hoping the fog would lift off the Oregon coast; but alas it was still hiding in the mist. I abruptly changed course and started driving to Lassen Volcanic National Park and on the way found this awesome spot to swim at Bear Creek. Very cool, very relaxing!
At last I made it to Lassen; a beautiful park filled with frozen lakes, smoking fumaroles, volcanic mountains, rivers, lakes and snow covered Lassen Peak. The peak in this picture is actually called Brokeoff Mountain!
My first campsite at Manzanita Lake was crowded but also near the lake. Early in the morning I went down to the Lake and watched Osprey, Ravens, a Bald Eagle, wild geese and songbirds flying and squawking and singing all at the same time.
Parts of Lassen Volcanic National Park were completely snow covered, with just bits of ground exposed by the snowmelt showing through.
Lake Helen in Lassen Volcanic National Park was just beginning to melt, exposing the beautiful light blue color in the snow.

The trail out to Mill Creek Falls was filled with green meadows, forests of pine trees and blankets of yellow daisies.

Hiking up to Crags Lake was a bear, but worth the end result. People were swimming in the lake, but I forgot my swim suit and had to sit out and just watch. I did get to swim in Manzanita and Butte Lakes!
Forest fires have devastated parts of Lassen. It was delightful to see wildflowers and new growth underneath the burned out trees.
Giant dandelions were blooming everywhere in the burned out areas. Make a wish!
Frail wildflowers blooming in the midst of burned trees; life in the midst of death; hope in the midst of darkness; faith in the midst of unfortunate circumstances. Believe.
Early one morning I was out poking around and found this little bird nesting in an old hole in the tree, most likely made by a woodpecker.
Lassen Peak in all of its snow covered glory!
After leaving the Manzanita area, I drove over and camped at Butte Lake. That would be me enjoying the twilight and warm fire. It was wonderfully peaceful there; a moment in time I will always remember.
Cinder Cone is a cinder cone volcano that is just waiting to be climbed. The trail began right across from my campsite, so after I set up my camp, I walked over to the trail. It was downright ominous standing at the base. Lucky for me Dr. Eugene arrived at the base the same time I did. We encouraged each other that we could make it to the top, so off we went, with Dr. Eugene in the lead.The trail is difficult to say the least; made up of loose scoria which is kind of like ground up gravel; easier to walk on then sand, but not much easier. It is an abrupt 700 ft elevation gain as you walk up to the top, but as you can see I made it!
It felt like I was standing at the top of the world as I looked down into the crater of the volcano. You can actually walk down into it, but that also means you have to walk back up; I was so done with that.

Some of the loose lava rocks at the top; so pretty!

Looking down into the crater; kind of spooky. The view at the top was outrageous. In the background you can just see Lassen Peak, to the sides are the Lava Beds and Painted Dunes. Incredible feeling.

Down in the Warner Valley, there is quite a bit of volcanic activity. Boiling Springs Lake has steam rising from the surface, as well as hot springs, mudpots, and fumaroles along the western shore. I half way expected to see a dinosaur emerge from the shadows.

On the way out to Devil's Kitchen in Lassen Volcanic National Park, I found this handmade waterwheel turning round and round in the little stream.

The trail takes you through nearly a mile of lush green meadows. I was alone crossing the meadow and it sort of felt like the Sound of Music; but no singing. Devil's Kitchen is filled with the stench of sulphur, smoking fumaroles, steam vents, bubbling mud pits and milky white hot streams of water. You can safely walk through the area on established trails and boardwalks and look down at the red and yellow cracked ground, feel the heat from the steam vents and hear the weird sounds of bubbling, plopping and belching filling the air; a perfect heaven for boys.