This week, our guest host Xenia of Tranature has chosen Sanctuary for our challenge. She reminds us that “Sanctuary can be found and created in a garden, a park, a field of wild flowers and by the sea …… watching wildlife, listening to birdsong …… along the forest trails and in the mountains.” She has asked us to show where we find it or how we create our calm and healing.
America’s National Parks and Wildlife Refuges are national treasures and wonderful places to find sanctuary.
Pa-Hay-Otee Overlook in Everglades National ParkCypress Trees in the Okefenokee National Wildlife RefugePolychrome Overlook, Denali National Park, Alaska
Closer to home, I can find my sanctuary watching the sun rise over the Atlantic Ocean on one of Georgia’s barrier islands (image at the top of the page), walking on the beach, or watching the birds and butterflies in my backyard butterfly garden.
This July “Seasons” will be the theme for the entire month with a different season featured each week. “Winter” is the last challenge of the series..
In coastal Georgia, a day below freezing is rare and we only get snow or ice every few years. Still, we enjoy sitting by the fireplace when the temperature drops outside.
Staying warm by the fireplace
Occasionally there are snow flurries but the snow usually melts as soon as it hits the warm ground. The last time the snow stuck and accumulated a few inches was in 2018. Our neighborhood was like a winter wonderland for a few days.
Icy morningSnow and ice in JanuaryIce covered salt marshSnow covered walkway over the marsh
This July “Seasons” will be the theme for the entire month with a different season featured each week. This week the challenge is “Autumn”.
In coastal Georgia, cool fall weather is always a treat after the sweltering heat of summer. The sweetgrass (muhly grass) that grows here announces autumn with it’s brilliant pink colors.
In coastal Georgia, Muhly grass (sweetgrass) turns a pink in autumn
When we want to see red, orange, and yellow autumn leaves we travel away from the coast.
Fall Colors in GeorgiaVibrant autumn colors on the UGA campusFall colors at Lake of the OzarksFall Colors on Blue Ridge Parkway in NC
In our house, autumn means it’s college football season. We have spent many fall Saturday afternoons at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Georgia cheering on the Dawgs.
This July “Seasons” will be the theme for the entire month with a different season featured each week. This week the challenge is “Spring”. For me, spring is best represented by the vibrant colors of flowers.
Here in coastal Georgia I know it is spring when the azaleas, dogwoods and fruit trees are blooming.
Spring AzaleasSpring Dogwood BloomPeach Blossoms in Georgia
Spring is a beautiful time for a road trip. In Texas, fields are filled with the bluebonnets and other brightly colored wildflowers.
Bluebonnets near Stonewall, TexasBoots and Bluebonnets in TexasBluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush along Park Road 4
The spring blossoms in the Blue Ridge Mountains add bright colors to the landscape.
Flame Azaleas on the Blue Ridge ParkwayWild Rhododendron along the Blue Ridge ParkwayEastern Redbud at rest area in Western North Carolina
This July “Seasons” will be the theme for the entire month with a different season featured each week. Amy is starting the challenge with “summer”. For this challenge I’m taking a trip down memory lane to some of my most memorable summer road trips.
When I was growing up my family took a road trip every summer to visit relatives. However, the most memorable summer road trip from my childhood didn’t revolve around visiting family. In the summer of 1959, when I was eight years old, my father’s work required him to spend several weeks in California. My whole family went with him on a cross country road trip to see America. I spent many hours sitting between my two brothers in the back seat of our Ford station wagon as we made our way to the west coast. We stopped at national parks, a Santa Claus village, prairie dog towns, and bought cowboy hats. While in California we panned for gold, went to Disneyland, San Francisco, and Yosemite. On the return trip back east we saw more national parks and many more road side attractions. There’s more about my 1959 adventure at Revisiting My Childhood in Pictures.
Our family of 5 traveled cross country and back in this Ford Station wagon in 1959Old Faithful Lodge in Yellowstone National Park, 1959 ~ photo from my Dad’s digitized slideSan Francisco street, 1959 ~ photo digitized from my Dad’s slide
Now flash forward to 2006 when Henry and I made our first cross country RV trip. Our main destinations were the Grand Canyon North Rim, Yellowstone, Glacier National Park, three Utah National Parks, the Black Hills and lots of places in between.
Grand Canyon North Rim Roosevelt Point OverlookWandering Dawgs at Old Faithful Geyser in Yellowstone National Park in 2006Arches National Park – Delicate Arch (Utah)
Our biggest summer road trip was our four month long RV trip to Alaska in 2013. Truly the trip of a lifetime!
Watching for whales in Haines, AlaskaPolychrome Overlook, Denali National Park, AlaskaMama bear looking for more fish near ValdezA pair of Orcas on Columbia Glacier tour from Valdez
Sadly, this summer there will be no long summer road trips for us. Stay tuned for more about a short weekend trip we have coming up next week.
Wandering Dawgs 