For this challenge Tina is challenging us to show no more than five of our all time personal favorite images representing special moments or memories.
This is a really hard challenge for me. I have thousands of pictures in my archives. Most of them remind me of a special time, place or event. The sunrise in the header image was taken in my own back yard. It reminds me of how grateful I am for the gift of another day.
One of the most memorable events from our very first long RV trip occurred in Arches National Park in Utah. We wanted to take the hike for a close up view of Delicate Arch. The hike involved walking up slick red rock and included walking along a narrow ledge before getting to the Arch. I am terrified of heights and the idea of the ledge terrified me but I managed to get all the way to the top to take this picture. This picture reminds me of how I overcame my fears to see this beautiful sight.
Henry standing underneath Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, Utah
This silhouette of Henry at sunset reminds me of all the wonderful memories we have from our RV trip traveling south from Washington to California on Highway 101.
Henry watching the sunset over the Pacific Ocean in Washington
I have literally thousands of images from our 2013 RV trip to Alaska. We saw amazing landscapes and wildlife and visited many unique places. I chose this image because it brings back happy memories of our fun filled week in Haines. We took the time at the end of each day to enjoy this spectacular view from our campsite.
Watching for whales at the end of the day in Haines, Alaska
The last image reminds me to take the time to stop and enjoy a sunset when I get a chance. I call this tree the bird tree because I often see herons, egrets, wood storks, roseate spoonbills, and other birds perched on the dead limbs. The tree is located on the road to our neighborhood. I’ve driven past it many times over the years and have captured many beautiful sunsets here but this one is my all time favorite.
Anne introduced this challenge by starting out with the question “Where do you find peace and relaxation?”
The rest of her introduction says “I find mine wherever water touches land. Yes, any type of shoreline. It may be a beach, a lake, a pond, a creek; you know where I’m going. I’m heading to the shore.”
I agree 100% with Anne. Wherever water touches land is where I want to be. Being near water soothes my soul.
I have thousands of shoreline images from our travels. I narrowed down my selections for this challenge to include American shorelines along the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the Gulf of Mexico, and Alaska.
Here are a few Atlantic Ocean shorelines from Maine to Florida.
Bass Harbor Light, MainePortland Head Light, MaineBiddeford, MaineHatteras Beach, Outer Banks, NCHunting Island State Park, SC Tybee Island, GeorgiaUninhabited Georgia barrier islandNanny Goat Beach, Sapelo Island, GeorgiaSunrise at Driftwood Beach, Jekyll Island, GASt. Simons Island, Georgia from top of lighthouseAnastasia State Park, St. Augustine, FloridaPonce Inlet, Florida
The next gallery features some Florida and Texas Gulf Coast shorelines.
Gulf Islands National Seashore at Ft. Pickens, FloridaSt. Joseph Peninsula State Park, FLSunrise over the Gulf at Galveston Island State Park, TexasMustang Island State Park, TexasPadre Island National Seashore, Texas
Pacific Coast Shorelines from the United States west coast and Hawaii.
Cape Disappointment, WashingtonRuby Beach, Washington Port Orford, OregonNorthern CaliforniaPoint Loma, CaliforniaOahu, Hawaii
I’ll finish with some Alaska Shorelines.
Lynn Canal, Haines, AlaskaLynn Canal between Haines and Juneau, AlaskaKenai Fjords National Park, AlaskaResurrection Bay, Seward, AlaskaValdez, Alaska
Welcome to the next post in my series highlighting states we have visited throughout the years. I hope you will enjoy coming along for the ride!
I will be featuring the states alphabetically. The next state in my series is
Oregon
Oregon became the 33rd state on February 14, 1859. The capital is Salem.
Our visit to Oregon was entirely along the spectacular Pacific coast along Highway 101. In order to have easy access to the scenic overlooks we traveled south from Washington. After crossing the Columbia River bridge our Oregon journey began.
Crossing the Columbia River into Oregon
We were towing our fifth wheel as we drove south. Lucky for us the overlooks were big enough that we didn’t have any trouble finding parking places.
Tillimook Rock Lighthouse
Northern Oregon Coast
Northern Oregon Coast
We enjoy camping in state parks so before we left home I called the Oregon State Parks to find out if I needed campground reservations. We were traveling in late April and the ranger assured me we would not have a problem finding a campsite that time of year (this was ten years ago and campsites may be harder to get now). Our first two night stay was at Beverly Beach State Park in Newport. With the fifth wheel parked in our campsite we were able to take the truck on several scenic drives.
Devil’s Punchbowl
Surfer’s on the beach looking for the right waves
Bridge at Depoe Bay
Bridge on Otter Crest Drive
We visited two lighthouses near Newport.
Yaquina Head Lighthouse, OR
Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, OR
After climbing to the top of the Yaquina Head Lighthouse we walked down a series of stairs for a stroll along the beach. We came upon Harbor Seals sunning themselves on the rocks.
Harbor Seals at Quarry Cove
Harbor Seal
Henry and Blondie on the Beach at Yaquina Head Lighthouse
I love the Oregon bridges and this one we saw from the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse was one of my favorites.
Bridge near Yaquina Bay Lighthouse
Our Oregon adventure continued as we continued south from Newport on Hwy 101. The first stop of the day was at the Sea Lion Caves near Florence. The caves are 250 feet below the visitors center. After a long elevator ride we were down in the caves for a close up view of the Stellar Sea Lions. The waves crashed into the cave while the seals held on to the rocks and barked at each other.
Sea Lion in the Sea Lion Caves
Sea Lions in the Sea Lion Cave
Haceta Head Lighthouse as seen from the Sea Lion Caves
As we continued south we passed the huge Oregon sand dunes and stopped for lunch at the Umqua Lighthouse State Park.
Umpqua Lighthouse
We settled into our campsite at Humbug Mountain State Park near Port Orford for our next two night stay. Our campsite was a short walk from the beach.
Bridge at Humbug Mountain
View from the beach at Humbug Mountain State Park
View from the beach at Humbug Mountain
The campground was just a short drive to the Port Orford Heads State Park and Lifeboat Stations. The ocean views were breathtaking as we hiked along the trails on top of the cliffs. At the museum we learned the Coast Guardsmen used to go down over 500 steps to launch their lifeboats.
Beach from an overlook at Port Orford
Port Orford Lifeboat Station
Port Orford at Coast Guard Lifeboat Station
Along the nature trail in Port Orford
When we weren’t enjoying the rugged coast, lighthouses, dog friendly beaches, bridges, seals and lifeboat stations in Oregon we took time out to enjoy some amazing fresh seafood in Newport and Port Orford. Our time there was short and we didn’t waste a minute of it.
Wandering Dawgs 