Lens Artists Photo Challenge #405 – 13 years of RV Adventures

Welcome back to the Lens-Artists challenge after our two week summer break! Ann-Christine:’s challenge is to show adventures from one destination only or from more than one place. She tells us: “Personally, I think every day is an adventure, but indeed some feel a bit more vivid and easier to describe.”

I am focusing on a few memorable highlights of our 13 years of RV adventures. Every day on the road was an adventure. I’ve posted many times about visiting National Parks and about our Alaska RV adventures so for this post I am featuring just a few of our other most memorable adventures.

Our first trip was a two month adventure traveling west to explore some of our western National Parks. Our second day on the road a bedroom window blew out of the camper as we were driving along the Interstate through Mississippi. It was a challenge working out how to get it replaced but that just added to the adventure. You can see photos of the National Parks we visited at Looking Back on our First RV Trip.

Our 3 months traveling from Georgia to the Pacific coast in 2007 began with several days of snow and icy road conditions in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Montana. We even had to spend the night in a motel in Minnesota. I posted about it at Stormy RV Trip. We were grateful to have survived the storms and were able to have many adventures the rest of the trip. I’ll never forget the thrill of walking on a short trail behind our campsite in Cape Disappointment state Park in Washington to discover a beautiful Pacific Ocean beach at the end of the trail. The featured image is a view from that walk on the beach.

View from the beach behind our campsite at Cape Disappointment State Park, Washington

The adventures continued as we drove south along the Pacific Coast on U.S. Highway 101. Whenever there was a scenic view with a parking area we pulled over to take in the spectacular views. We camped in several places in Oregon and northern California with many adventures at each location.

Harbor Seals in Oregon

One year we met our daughter’s family at Itasca State Park in Minnesota to explore the headwaters of the Mississippi River with them. One night after we walked across the headwaters we all watched the sunset over Lake Itasca.

Son in Law and Grandson at sunset at Lake Itasca

Some of our most memorable adventures were in what I call the drive through places because many travelers travel as fast as they can on their way to another destination. We had fun camping in the Winterset City campground in Iowa to search for all of the Bridges of Madison County and the birthplace of John Wayne.

Roseman Covered Bridge, Winterset, Iowa

Watching the Lonesome Dove miniseries for about the third time gave us the idea for a Lonesome Dove Cattle Trail, Gulf Coast, Cajun Country, Whooping Crane, Bluebonnet and Brisket Tour. Yes, we did all of those things! Surprisingly, the most viewed post on my blog is Starting the Lonesome Dove Cattle Trail.

Mustang Island State Park, Texas
Blondie with Texas Bluebonnets

Every once in a while we stumbled upon a campground in an out of the way place with a spectacular view right from our campsite. Even better was watching wildlife while relaxing in our chair.

Sangre de Cristo Mountains as seen from San Luis State Park
Watching a Blue Heron from our campsite at Mississippi River State Park, Arkansas
Hawk in a tree behind our campsite in Big Cypress Preserve, Florida
Morning Sky over the Mississippi River in Missouri

The more we traveled the more we discovered incredible beauty every where we went. We started slowing down so we could enjoy the many interesting places along the way. No matter where we were, the people we met were friendly and helpful. Although our RV days are over we still enjoy traveling and enjoying each journey.

Thank you so much to everyone who responded to my challenge two weeks ago. You showed us some creative and fun images of Subjects that start with the letter B.

Many thanks to Ann-Christine for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #405: Adventures.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, July 25 at noon eastern time when Anne will be hosting the challenge.

I will be having some personal medical events going on this week and may not be able to respond to your comments right away. Please be assured I appreciate all of your visits and all of your comments.

You can keep up with all of our challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #400 – The Rule of Three

Tina introduces us to the rule of three for this challenge. The rule says that images with three subjects make them more interesting and memorable. Our challenge is to include images with three subjects.

I’ve included a few images of groups of three I found in nature.

Three Whooping Cranes
Three Puffins
Three White Pelicans
Three Palm Trees

Three Southern Magnolia Blossoms

The Three Gossips, Arches National Park, Utah

Last week Egidio challenged us to be creative while we were stuck in one place for 30 or more minutes. Your responses were wonderful. Thank you to everyone who joined the challenge..

Many thanks to Tina for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #400: The Rule of Three.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, June 6 at noon eastern time when Patti will be your host for the challenge.

If you don’t want to miss any of our challenges you may want to think about subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Lens-Artists challenge please click here.

Lens Artists Photo Challenge #393 – Lucky Shot

Sofia’s challenge is to see how luck can play a big role in capturing some of our best shots.

Most of my lucky shots occurred because I was in the right place at the right time with my camera and the right lens. When we are traveling I always have my camera or my phone handy just in case we see something by the side of the road. When we are home I keep my camera close by so I can grab it if I see something interesting outside. Full disclosure: I have previously posted photos of all of these animals except for the Bald Eagle.

I would never have captured the birds in the following gallery without a little help from friends. Last week a neighbor called to let me know there was an American Bald Eagle perched on the power pole across from our house. I had to scramble to get my camera and telephoto lens ready. Lucky for me he stayed perched on the pole long enough for me to set my camera on burst and start shooting. I grabbed my camera on my way out the door one day last year after a friend texted me about a Roseate Spoonbill in a tree beside the road.

I captured the next three shots as we were riding along in our truck. For each of these shots Henry had to pull over on the side of the road so I could take a few photos. In each case the animal totally ignored us.

Black Bear in field of dandelions on the side of the road, Canada

Bull Elk beside the road in Banff National Park, Canada

Big Horn Sheep posing for the camera in Zion National Park, Utah

I was walking along a beach in Oahu when I came across this sea turtle on the sand. I was so glad I had my camera!

Green Sea Turtle on the beach, Oahu, Hawaii

I’ll finish with my favorite Lucky Shot. The look on this woman’s face is priceless.

Alligator with an attitude at Shark Valley, Everglades National Park

Patti’s challenge last week asked us to explore using the foreground, middle ground, and background when framing our shots. I enjoyed all of your creative responses.

Many thanks to Sofia for this week’s challenge. If you would like to join the challenge please be sure to tag your post with Lens-Artists and include a link back to her post Lens-Artists #393: Lucky Shot.

Be sure to check back on Saturday, April 18 at noon eastern time when John will be hosting the challenge

You can keep up with all the challenges by subscribing to the Lens-Artists team members websites: Tina, Patti, Ann-Christine, John, Sofia, Anne, Egidio, Ritva, Beth.

For information on how to join the Len-Artists challenge please click here.

Sunday Stills – Hooves and Claws

Bison at Land Between the Lakes, Kentucky

Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge is Hooves and Claws in honor of National Bison Day which was celebrated on Saturday, November 1, 2025. She tells us that “this week’s Sunday Stills photo challenge is not just about bison, but about members of the animal kingdom that possess HOOVES and CLAWS.”

I decided to focus only on animals with hooves and mostly on bison and buffalo. Sadly, the hooves aren’t visible in all these images. The header image is of a small herd of American Bison at Land Between the Lakes in Kentucky.

Bison at Custer State Park, South Dakota

Bison at Custer State Park, South Dakota

Wood Bison in Yukon Territory, Canada

Wood Bison in Yukon Territory, Canada

Water Buffalo, Costa Rica

Water Buffalo in Costa Rica

Budweiser Clydesdales

Budweiser Clydesdales

Many thanks to Terri for her Sunday Stills challenge Hooves and Claws

Sunday Stills – World Animal Day

Whooping Crane, Texas

Terri’s latest Sunday Stills challenge is World Animal Day which was celebrated on October 4, 2025. Two animals that were on my bucket list were Whooping Cranes in Texas and Elk in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Seeing these animals in the wild was an amazing experience.

Whooping Cranes

According to the International Crane Foundation – North America, Whooping Cranes were near extinction with fewer than 20 individuals in 1941. Today, over 849 Whooping Cranes exist in the entire world.

We traveled to the Texas Gulf Coast one year hoping to see some of the Whooping Cranes who winter in and around the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. These birds breed at Canada’s Wood Buffalo National Park and migrate to Texas every winter. Today there are more than 500 of these beautiful birds.

We found these magnificent Whooping Cranes near Goose Island State Park, south of the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. I posted about this amazing experience at Magnificent Endangered Whooping Cranes.

Pair of Whooping Cranes, Texas

Pair of Whooping Cranes, near Aransas National Wildlife Refuge, Texas

Cataloochee Valley Elk

One fall we traveled to Waynesville, North Carolina in search of Elk in Cataloochee Valley on the eastern side of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I posted about our Elk viewing adventure at Cataloochee Valley Elk.

In February, 2001, the National Park Service began an experimental reintroduction of elk into Cataloochee Valley by releasing 25 elk from the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area on the Tennessee-Kentucky border. Another 27 elk from Canada were released in 2002. Today there are approximately 200 elk.

Bugling Elk, Cataloochee Valley, North Carolina

The breeding season, also known as the rutting season, is in the fall. During this time the bull elk make their bugling calls to attract females and challenge other bulls.

Female Elk, Cataloochee Valley, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, North Carolina

Female Elk, Cataloochee Valley, North Carolona

Many thanks to Terri for her Sunday Stills challenge World Animal Day