Terri’s challenge is to share images of places or things that are on our bucket list.
I created a bucket list many years ago. I’ve been checking things off and adding more items ever since.
Checking travel destinations off my bucket list.
Ireland and Scotland
Dingle Peninsula, IrelandBeach on the Wild Atlantic Way, IrelandHighland Cow, ScotlandEilean Donan Castle, Scotland
Hawaii
Green Sea TurtleDiamond Head LighthousePearl Harbor National Monumemt
Alaska
Glacier CalvingBrown Bear Mama and CubPair of OrcasBald EagleHumpback Whales bubble net feedingLanding on a Glacier
New York City
Statue of Liberty with Manhattan SkylineThe Lake in Central Park West, NYC
Checking wildlife sightings off my bucket list.
Bull Elk Bugling in Cataloochee Valley, NCTrio of Whooping Cranes, TexasSwam with the Manatees, Florida
My bucket list is constantly changing. I keep checking things off and adding new ones. Terri’s challenge has inspired me to start checking off a few more items!
“Life is a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!” – Auntie Mame
This year Sea Otter Awareness Week is from September 22 – 28, 2024. In the 1800’s these animals were prized for their fur and by the early early 1900’s they were nearing extinction because of the over hunting. Hunting bans and conservation efforts have helped the population rebound but in some areas their population is declining. Some aquariums and zoos are offering special programs this week to celebrate the sea otters.
I fell in love with these adorable animals when I first saw them on a wildlife cruise in Seward, Alaska in 2013. They are so fun to see floating on their backs. Sometimes they hold on to each other to stay together. A mother otter will often float on her back with the baby otter on her stomach.
Edigio’s challenge is to feature images that show two rectangles. He explains “By two rectangles, I mean you have two dominant rectangular areas in your image. For many people, this is one of those compositional tools we use without thinking about it. These rectangles give balance, harmony, and unity to a composition.”
I had never heard of the idea of using two rectangles as a technique in photography before reading Edigio’s post. I was surprised to find many images in my archives that met his description.
Eleven years ago we were traveling around Alaska in our RV. All of the images in this post are from that trip.
The header image of the Eagle on a branch uses negative space to create the two rectangles. This next image shows how architecture can be used to define the rectangles in an image. This blue building is a good example of rectangles within rectangles.
Juneau, Alaska
For the next image the horizontal line at the edge of the water defines the two rectangles.
Moose in Denali National Park, Alaska
In the next image the two rectangles are defined by the horizontal line which divides the glacier in the upper rectangle and the water in the lower rectangle.
Calving on Aialik Glacier, Alaska
This sunset image is divided into two rectangles, the sky with the volcano in the upper rectangle and the water in the lower.
For this challenge Ann-Christine has asked us to focus on Work in Progress.
Crazy Horse Monument in the Black Hills of South Dakota has been a Work in Progress since the Memorial was dedicated on the day of the first blast, June 3, 1948. The monument honoring Lakota Chief Crazy Horse was the dream of Oglala Lakota Chief Henry Standing Bear and is the world’s largest mountain carving in progress. To learn more about the history of this amazing project please visit Crazy Horse Memorial.
Our mission is to protect and preserve the culture, tradition and living heritage of the North American Indians
Mission of Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation
We first visited the monument in the summer of 2006. We toured the museum, watched an interesting video about the the memorial, and bought some native made items in the gift shop.
Crazy Horse Monument in the summer of 2006Scale Model of the Crazy Horse MonumentHorse Head of the Scale Model with the Monument in the background, 2006
We returned to the Black Hills of South Dakota in the spring of 2011. We chose not to tour the museum again but I captured this image from the highway. It doesn’t look much different than it did in 2006 but some progress was made during those five years.
Ketchikan, Alaska is famous for it totem poles hand carved by native carvers. At the Herring Bay Lumber Company we learned from a native master carver how the totems were made and how each totem tells a story. After learning about the totems and viewing his work in progress we wandered through the totem park to see some finished totems.
For this challenge Anne asks us to tell us about a new experience we had.
Ten years ago this week Henry and I were in the final planning stages of a four month RV trip to Alaska from Georgia. We weren’t new to RVing and had made several long cross country trips but this would be the longest we would be away from home. The entire trip was filled with new experiences. I’ve included a few of the most memorable.
New Experience: Welcome to AlaskaNew experience: Humpback Whale on our first wildlife cruiseNew Experience: crossing the Arctic Circle on the Dalton Highway in AlaskaNew experience: Glacier Calving on Aialik Glacier, AlaskaNew Experience: Halibut FishingNew Experience: Denali National Park, AlaskaNew Experience: Orcas on Columbia Glacier tour from Valdez
Our most exciting and most memorable new experience was a flightseeing trip from the airfield in Talkeetna to the south face of Mt. Denali (it was called Mt. McKinley back then) with a landing on Ruth Glacier.
I was really nervous about flying in a small plane but it was worth it. It’s a day I will never forget.
Wandering Dawgs 