Tag: national-parks

White Sands National Park

~ Wandering Cindi ~ 4 Comments

On our way west to Arizona, we stopped at White Sands National Park. We decided a quick drive through was necessary. It was not the best time of day to take pictures, due to a very bright sun, but I did the best I could using a polarized filter. I am a bit sad that our timing could not get us there at sunrise or sunset. I can only imagine how the white dunes would glow in the dawn and dusk of the day. Hopefully, we will get a chance later on to experience that.

This national park is the world’s largest gypsum dunefield, covering 275 square miles of desert. It offers sand dune sledding, self-guided tours, and is super pet friendly. There are hiking trails and picnic areas to enjoy a meal with incredible views.

Our dog, Murphy, is part Siberian husky, and we adopted him in Washington State. So, he was accustomed to cold and snow. When he saw the giant white sand dunes, he got extremely excited. He thought it was snow. Aaron had him on a long, retractable leash, and he went running up the closest dune. Aaron could hardly keep up. Sadly, in his excitement, Murphy tried to eat the “snow.” Poor pup was spitting out sand and giving us a perplexed look. He still had fun running in the soft white powder.

The park is vast, with dunes of sand stretching as far as the eye can see. In this picture, in the distant right is a tree, and to the distant left is a person with a sled. When I was taking the photo, I did not even notice the person in the distance. The gift shop in the park sells sleds so that people can sled down the sand dunes. I think that is brilliant.

This is one example of a trail left by someone sledding down the dune.

The patterns in the sand mesmerized me.

This is one of the most dog friendly national parks, so it really made me angry to come across this bag of dog poop left on one of the dunes. If people continue to disrespect national parks, monuments, and national forests, they will ruin it for the people who actually care, that clean up after themselves and their pets. Sorry, rant over.

As we explored, we saw snake trails and other prints from animals that live in the dunes. It was like art that would change with the shifting wind and sand.

I also really enjoyed the reflection of the dunes on our Airstream. They looked very Vincent van Gogh. This work would have been titled The Sandy Afternoon instead of The Starry Night.

We had a great time briefly exploring White Sands, but we needed to get back on the road and into Arizona. Aaron had an office to get opened, we had family coming in for Christmas, and we wanted to get further south before winter really settled in.

We stopped at our usual Arizona standby, West Pinal County Park. We spent a few days here relaxing and working before heading up to Tortilla Flats just north of Apache Junction. My next blog will cover our time there and our Christmas spent with all three kids and my mom in a house…well, mostly in a house.

Back to Aaron, the Airstream, and Yellowstone!

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I flew back to Bozeman, Montana, and got settled back into the camper with Aaron and the dog, Murphy. We had a few days before it was time for us to head further west. We had a sweet doe visit us. She was shy for the first picture, then she came out from behind the tree.

We only had a few days left in Montana, and Aaron had to work them all. So, I decided to take a day and drive around Yellowstone National Park one more time. I had hopes of catching some wildlife photos. The best times for viewing animals there are at dawn and at dusk. I woke up super early, made a coffee to go, and was in the truck driving into the park by 5:00 a.m.

The sunrise was beautiful, and I saw my first bison of the day.

The morning was looking promising! As I was driving, I saw a coyote jogging down the side of the road. Between my surprise, my excitement, and the pace of the coyote’s jog, I could not catch a great photo. I did the best I could from the driver’s side window.

Even though it was past Labor Day, the park was still very crowded. I could not get to the most popular spots due to the lack of available parking and the size of our truck. But I still really enjoyed the day. Driving through Lamar Valley, I saw some cars parked on the side of the road and people with their cameras and tripods set up to take pictures. That is always a sign that something cool is out there. I pulled over, grabbed my camera, and tried to find what they were looking at. There was a herd of pronghorn antelope way off in the distance. Even with my strongest telephoto lens, the pictures I took were not great. They were beautiful to watch.

One guarantee when visiting Yellowstone is bison. They are everywhere, all the time.

After the pronghorn herd and the buffalo, I was able to catch a mated pair of ospreys near their nest. Again, the distance made for less-than-desirable photos, but I was able to at least capture them. One is sitting atop the nest, the other lower on the tree.

The rest of my day was spent looking for wildlife, and I did not really find much. There are bears, moose, elk, eagles, wolves, and many other types of animals there, but they were not where I was this time around. I did see a duck and a a few birds, and some people fly fishing.

Yellowstone is never disappointing, the landscapes are beautiful and dramatic. There are gravel roads to explore, and many majestic sights.

Even though I could not reach the main part of Mammoth Springs, I was able to drive to the top and take pictures of the backside and the calcium deposits made by the springs.

I really missed having Aaron with me while I drove through the park. It is easier for one person to drive and the other to spot animals, places to stop, spots to park, and, most importantly, someone to share the experience. I did not see all that I wanted, but it was still an excellent way to spend the day.

I made it back to our campsite in time for dinner. It was good to be back. In a few weeks, Aaron needed to be in Fremont, California. We planned our route, packed it up, and headed west. Our next stop was Massacre Rocks State Park in Idaho. My post next week will have lots of pictures and a little history about this campground that sits on part of the historical Oregon Trail.

Glacier Bay National Park

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Our cruise ship spent one entire day floating around Glacier Bay National Park. This is why we wanted a balcony room! We ordered room service for breakfast and lunch so that we enjoy the majestic beauty of the bay without interruption. The national park sent park rangers to the ship to narrate what we were seeing and give information about the glaciers and the wildlife in the park. It was broadcast over the television so that we could listen to the information and view the park at the same time from the comfort of our room.

National parks are set aside and preserved for a reason. They protect natural wonders, wildlife, and historically significant sites for all to experience and enjoy. I feel so fortunate to have been lucky to get a small glimpse of Glacier Bay. I hope eventually, Aaron and I will manage to make the trip to Alaska so that we can further immerse ourselves in its beauty and experience some of what this beautiful state has to offer.

We saw so many breathtaking sights. I will start with photos of the glaciers, next the many waterfalls, then the animals we saw, and finish up with some landscape shots.

The Glaciers

Taking pictures was a challenge. It was foggy, misty, cold, and not much sunlight. Some of the pictures will have a blue tint to them. In editing, I was trying to bring out the blue in the glaciers that we experienced, but the camera did not capture. Also, we were usually half a mile to a mile away from the shoreline. One thing to keep in mind is that these glaciers were huge. Some of them were more than a mile wide and many, many miles in length.

Glaciers are made of snow that condenses into ice, and as they move, they carve out land due to their massive weight and size. They pick up rocks, boulders, soil, and minerals. These materials are deposited into the water as the glacier breaks apart (calves) and slowly melts. The soil and minerals enrich the water and feed small marine life, which in turn feeds larger marine life, and so on. Glaciers are a massive part of the formation of the landscape and the oceans.

This last photon is in black and white to show the dramatic detail of this amazing glacier.

The Waterfalls

Everywhere we looked, there were waterfalls. To see them so far from shore means that they are very large and powerful.

Sea Otters and Birds

Landscapes

I was mistaken last week. I had forgotten about our hovercraft experience in Ketchikan. So, I will finish up our Alaskan experience next week with the hovercraft trip. I will also include the Butchart Gardens in British Columbia. Lastly, I will cover our Seattle tour. Thank you to each one of you who takes the time to read this blog.

Lola, Kaibab National Forest, and The Grand Canyon

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We said goodbye to Lost Dutchman State Park and headed closer to Phoenix. Gage was flying out to Florida to spend the week of the 4th of July with our other two kids, Mason and Jenna, and I was going to dog sit Lola and house sit for Gage. Aaron dropped me off, and he headed back to Pinal Park to battle the desert heat with Murphy while enjoyed the air-condition and sweet Lola. She was very excited to see me again so soon. Lola and I had a nice quiet week. Aaron and Murphy enjoyed having the entire campground to themselves, except for the bees. Aaron learned that bees in the desert are highly attracted to water. Every time he ran the AC, the bees would flock to the condensation run-off. He battled them, battled keeping them out of the camper, and trying his best to not harm them at the same time.

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He bought some mesh material (like mosquito netting) and covered the AC unit to keep them from getting inside the camper. This is a screen shot from the video he sent me of them swarming the AC unit trying to get in.

Besides the bees, we had a quiet week. Gage came home, we had a quick visit, and then it was time for us to head north. We had one more stop in Arizona, the Grand Canyon. We found a great spot about five miles from the south rim entrance in the Kaibab National Forest. It was at a nice elevation, the temperatures were cooler, relatively anyway.

We were ;lucky to have the area to ourselves. We could tell that it was used quite often for camping and hunting. Murphy kept jumping at a tree trunk, and I could not figure out why until I looked up. There was the bottom part of an elk’s leg up in the branches. After exploring, we found more elk leg pieces, but no other part of the elk. Our best guess is that hunters dressed the kills, and left the legs. We also found a memorial bird house in one of the trees.

We were hoping to see some deer, elk, and other wild life while we spent the week here, but we only had one wild animal visit us, and it was most unexpected. I took Aaron to Flagstaff so he could catch a flight for an overnight trip to California. As soon as we left, our security cameras went off. There was motion all around the camper. It was a wild horse. We figured it would be gone by the time I got back, but nope, it was waiting for me and Murphy.

She was beautiful. Murphy was not happy about her invading his space, but she seemed not to care about his barking. I got him in the camper, and then took some pictures from the safety of just inside the door. I did not want to go one on one with a wild horse. She hung around the camper for another half an hour before she wandered off.

I picked Aaron up the next day, and we spent a few more quiet days before it was time to head north into Utah. Our route took us directly through the Grand Canyon National Park. Once again our National Park Pass (this year’s pass was the perfect Christmas gift from my mom) paid for itself.

Here are some photos of our stops around the south rim of the Grand Canyon. There was a smokey haze, so the views were partially obstructed. But is was breath taking and majestic regardless.

On the picture above, you can see just a bit of the Colorado River, which is what formed this beautiful place over millions and millions of years.

After a few hours spent admiring this natural wonder, we started into southern Utah. The Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park was our next destination, and hopefully our last desert camp site for a while. I am sure we will be revisiting Arizona in the cooler weather months. So, it is not a good bye to Arizona, but a fond farewell and a promise to return.