Tag: Photography

Acadia National Park – Bar Harbor Maine

 

 

2017-10-1621_17_30_previewAcadia is one of my favorite places to go. The park is enormous and has something to offer everyone. It has hiking trails of all levels and capabilities for the athletic among us but it also has a variety of stunning views you can either see directly out your car window or very easily access. If that’s not enough to tempt you there’s also a number of beaches both rocky and sandy and a few other attractions that lure the curious.

2017-10-1622_26_53_previewI have been to Acadia two or three times already, always off season, and I didn’t pay anything to get in because of this, but I guess I was either too early this year or they changed their policy. Some of the park remained free – like the drive up Cadillac Mountain, but by the time I got close to Thunderhole I approached a toll gate and had to fork over $25 for a week’s pass. That’s OK though, it was worth it.

2017-10-1622_35_23_previewThis visit was a short one as I was busy socializing for most fo the day and only arrived at 2PM but I still packed a lot into a few hours! I especially wanted to drive to the summit of Cadillac Mountain to get a few nice foliage photos and enjoy the fresh mountain air. I was shocked how many people were here! But I guess when the weather is a freakish 70-some-odd degrees people are more likely to come out and enjoy nature at its finest. I stopped at several points to take a few snaps and enjoyed the summit as well as the Overlook at Blue Hill the most as far as the mountain went. I ended up shuffling out onto the bare rocks at the summit and enjoyed a bit of time just soaking in the view – which included all the colorful trees I could wish for, a delightful pond, a few islands off the coast, and unseasonably blue skies. It was hard not to stay here forever. Unlike many parks Acadia is open 24/7 all year long…. Obviously this means I must return once more… at night. The view must be amazing then! I wonder if you can hear loons or if wolves exist in the park…

22520125_10212711999409188_2363148457676078679_oAnyway, that flight of fancy erased from my mind I continued onwards, driving back down the mountain. On my way I had to stop the car to let a deer pass and took a shot out my car window of a second that was staring at me from a few feet away. I got one good snap before another car barreled by in the travel lane scaring them both off.

2017-10-1622_54_06_preview I wanted to see Thunderhole – which is this rock formation at the coast that makes a thunderous noise when the waves from the ocean rush through it. I have been told about it for years from all sorts of relatives ad friends and had yet to check it out… but first I passed Sand Beach, the main sandy beach in the park, and had to get out to amble for a bit. It was low tide. I had never been here during low tide. I must say all the exposed rocks gave it extra character! There wasn’t too many people there at this time of day, or year, certainly no polar bear swimming club to be seen, but there were a few families playing with nerf balls and kites. I’m surprised there weren’t any dogs – as they are allowed in the park.

After Sand Beach I came across something called Otter Point. Apparently Maine has sea otters. There were probably fifteen photographers here, all piled up in different points just waiting around.

“What going on here?”

“Otters.” I giggled, winking at a strange woman who was laughing with me. “They must be waiting for otters! I don’t see any, do you?”

“No…….”

2017-10-1623_13_33_previewTruth be told these people were probably all here to take advantage of the sunset which was closing in soon. It was a good vantage point for that – though not the best conditions today. It was a bit gray out.

After this I FINALLY found Thunderhole! I parked at the  gift shop, which was afforded no electricity of any kind, and made my way towards the crowd across the street. Here there were railings out onto the rocks so I scrambled down, wondering if I would hear anything at low tide. As it turns out the rocks were making a little noise, not much, but enough to placate me. I took a short video. The day after this my great uncle told me there’s a louder more impressive Thunderhole somewhere else nearby that doesn’t have railings. Apparently several tourists a year get swept out to sea trying to find it. This didn’t deter me. Now I want to go back and find it!

Thunderhole was pretty neat but there was still the tiniest bit of daylight left so I was off to see what else I could see. I ended up at a small unmarked beach that was littered with shells, piles of seaweed, and a bunch of tiny tide pools that were alive with barnacles, snails, shrimp, and probably a number of other little sea bugs. There were two people here, a woman scouring the dry sands at the top of the beach and a man staring intently into the tide pools. I wondered what they were searching for so I asked the woman who was close to me. She was picking up tiny pieces of sea glass to make a novelty travel vial out of. She said being a national park you’re not supposed to take rocks or shells or anything natural so she decided sea glass would be best. I felt no remorse for the three tiny rocks in my pocket – one brilliantly orange, one dark red, one green. I made no mention of the two little shells in the other pocket. They were two amongst millions. I felt no guilt about kidnapping them whatsoever. Besides I am pretty sure the dude was searching for something besides sea glass. Was he a rock hound? Or searching for clams? I’ll never know because he was way too far off to ask. By now the sun had gone down to the point that scouring the beach or looking for other overlooks was pretty pointless so I headed home. It was however a gorgeous day and I had a whole lot of fun.

<strong> If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

 

 

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Abandoned Power Plant – Fitchburg MA

Today was a bit different. A family friend who is deep into photography asked if she could tag along one of my adventures. I said that sounded like a lot of fun and it was perfect timing as Daisy’s transmission is about to blow and I haven’t been taking her very far these days because of that. Did I mention the two cars I usually borrow in place of her also died or were being used? Yeah, it’s been a bad few weeks for cars around here…

Anyway! I wasn’t sure where to take her but I wanted to pick a spot that would give DSC_0029ample opportunity to photograph. I figured the abandoned Central Steam Power Plant in Fitchburg would be super cool… but this is really just me loving the sight of industrial decay. Hindsight it may have been a little hardcore for a first trip out…

It took a little coaxing just to get her to drive into the parking lot. I provided reassurance, letting her know I have yet to get in trouble for snooping about… and this wasn’t in the dead center of Fitchburg or anything, it was in a weird windy little neighborhood on the outskirts I actually hadn’t been to yet. This is a little odd as it seems I’m always in Fitchburg for one reason or another. Yes, it’s a city with a rough reputation but this place seemed quiet. It was also slated for demolition according to sources online.

We drove to the end of the parking lot where there were three rusted out old train cars just sitting there next to a live track. That DSC_0061seemed as good as an opportunity as any so with a little more coaxing I hopped out with my fancy new used camera and set about steam-punking it up.

My travel companion is far more learned in the ways of photography than I am having actually spent the time to educate herself and dive deep into the hobby for a number of years. Me…. I’m just someone with a fancy camera, an itchy trigger finger, and a fistful of marbles. Half the time I don’t even stop walking as I snap away. Nothing wrong with either approach – as it turns out she took vastly different photos than I did which in it’s own way was fascinating. Who knew two individuals could spend an afternoon in the same little area and come up with such a fantastically different set of images! Hers were of flowers and close ups of the train tracks. Mine were all over the place… a bit of adorable graffiti I found of marshmallow cartoon characters being sucked up into a spaceship, a few horizon perspective photos of the train track, and of course a large focus on the beauty that is industrial decay. It was pretty cool and no one came by to arrest us so all went well…

***I apologize for any missing photos and galleries as I continue to work getting Catching Marbles fully migrated to a new host. Please come back soon for restored photos and thank you for your patience!***

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


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Gallivanting in Peterborough NH

Today had drop dead gorgeous weather but being a holiday weekend it was coupled with an inordinate amount of insane drivers so I didn’t really want to go too far… and I did have to go to the feed store to pick up a bag of food for my lovely bunnies. So I decided I’d got to Peterborough, which was two towns over, forsaking the feed store in town and the one that was one town over. Peterborough is about twenty minutes away but why just go directly there when you can meander? Little was I to know I was about to take a four hour ride into the most beautiful bits of nowhere.

I decided I would forsake all main roads and start going down a few rural dirt roads which I felt were going in the right direction. My hunch proved right! But before I made it to the feed store I started seeing the most wildly beautiful things. The first little discovery I found was on Sharon road. It was an abandoned bridge attached to a road that the wilderness has taken over. I stopped the car and parked on the shoulder of the road so I could explore further on foot. The bridge itself was beautiful made with intricate stonework. The river it spanned was even more stunning and I was delighted to see that it was still connected to an abandoned road. Of course I had to know where it led so I sauntered across the bridge and walked into the forest. This place was wild. Clearly there had once been a paved road here but over the years the plant life had grown up and reclaimed the land as it’s own. This place reminded me of a fairy tale – wild, mysterious, overgrown, and the smell of the river was absolutely heavenly. The “road” didn’t go very far, it just attached itself to another road running parallel to the one I had left not too far away. Still it was a wonderful little find and in 80 degree weather it was probably just long enough!

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

 

From here I wandered badly on a bunch of little roads that I found interesting. I criss-crossed the river several times and found another adorable bridge – though this was far more modern I had fun crawling under it. Judging by the tags an dthe empty beer bottle I wasn’t the only one to find it!

As I crawled back up to my car I couldn’t help but feel so lucky in having found this whole area. It was so quiet, alive only with the gurgling of the river. Occasionally I’d find a farm here and there, or other properties that clearly used to be farms, places that owned vast acreages. It was breath taking and I was often rewarded with the sight of deer, wild flowers, and views of Mount Monadknock.

Eventually I made it to the feed store. I bought my bunny food. I came out feeling like I still needed to poke around for a bit. So that’s what I did. I turned into a plaza I had driven by hundreds of times and learned all sorts of things aout Peterborough’s history! Here there was a sign that told of the founding of the town, badly damaged with age, apparently no one has paid much attention to it for some time. Here, right aside the road, was another view of the river which was choked with water lilies. As I walked  back to my car I noticed another car drive around the building. I pondered this and decided to go for it. That’s when I found myself transported through time. I had no idea this building was an old mill but it’s backside made t his obvious. Even more stunning was a dam and a waterfall which must have been used once to generate electricity. Who knew this was in cute little Peterborough?!

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“Persecuted for wearing the beard” Gravestone – Evergreen Cemetery – Leominster MA

Evergreen Cemetery had eluded me previously. Little was I to know I had made it here once but I came in through the upper gate which wasn’t labelled with the cemetery’s name. Even funnier still I was within eye shot of the stone I was looking for that day and had no idea. Today I went with a few “before you go” tips.

I wanted to find the stone of Joseph Palmer who was a man after my own heart. He died in 1873, with great humor. He ordered a stone to be carved in his likeness with the epitaph, “Persecuted for wearing the beard.” Apparently in his day and age men didn’t wear beards in New England, especially ones with any status. It was considered brutish, unclean, and the men who did wear beards tended to be the same people we liked to harass at the time – minorities like the tiny Jewish population that was probably somewhere (in the cities perhaps?) The church wasn’t any happier with his dogged insistence on facial hair than the community was and he was harassed here too. When the local pastor asked rather unkindly why he didn’t shave Palmer replied, “… Jesus wore a beard not unlike mine.” which has to be the best answer ever, if not the reason he was eventually excommunicated from the church.

In May 1830 things got even worse when he was attacked in the streets of Fitchburg by four men armed with scissors and razors who had plotted to shave the beard off themselves. They hadn’t realized they’d be in for the fight of their lives. The old farmer wasn’t terribly patient with such things and he pulled out a knife and began slashing, wounding two of the four assailants. To add insult to injury he found himself arrested after this for “unprovoked assault,” known today as self defense. He was found guilty and fined by Judge David Brigham. Palmer refused on principle to cough up $750 for his fine, court fees, and bond, and was sent to prison for fifteen months.

Prison life didn’t treat him any better than the outside world. Other prisoners continued to try and shave off his beard and prison officials kept coming up with increasingly cruel and sadistic punishments for him. He kept a detailed journal of the whole charade and eventually left…. beard in tact and free… if not with a slightly bruised ego. He only gained his freedom by paying his $10 fine after the judge who sent him to prison begged him to.

His life after that got even more interesting as he befriended many intellectuals and writers of the day. He even ended up being the basis of the character Moses White in Louisa May Alcott’s Transcendental Wild Oats. In 1843 he even joined a commune called the Fruitlands Experiment and when that failed he even tried to run his own commune later in life. He remained active in politics, religious reform, abolitionism, and of course beard activism until the day he died — which funny enough was the same era where beards had once again become fashionable. So now you know the twisted and strange story of Joseph Palmer.

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I must admit the cemetery Joseph Palmer is buried in is gorgeous. Clearly people of great wealth had been buried here for quite some time. I spent a few hours walking and snapping photos of the angels and Cherubs who decorated many stones. Another stone of interest was found in the new part of the cemetery where a woman had been buried with her beloved pet cat Dr Pepper.

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

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Three Covered Bridges – New Hampshire

I drove for another half an hour before I came to the next GPS destination – again in the middle of nowhere. I drove around where I thought this bridge might be, looking at the rivers illustrated on my GPS map, and just driving towards them. Eventually I hit pay dirt with the Rowell Bridge in West Hopkinton. This bridge was completed in 1853 and still sees a good deal of traffic – from both directions even though it is a one lane bridge. I have to admit the idea of crossing it with my car made me a bit skittish but it didn’t rock, or sway, or do anything strange, and I made it across without a fuss. However despite there being signs pointing the way to the bridge there are no parking spaces and being one lane it wasn’t particularly pedestrian friendly either. I pulled over aside the road the best I could next to what may or may not have been a primitive road to somewhere else. I walked down there a bit to get a better shot of the side of the bridge and I poked around taking photos. The locals here kept slowing their cars and staring at me like I was some sort of circus attraction. Surely, others must come to walk and photograph their bridge??

 

 

I was back in the car and heading towards the next bridge on my agenda – Waterloo Bridge in Warner New Hampshire. This one was a fun one to find! My GPS decided that half the roads in the area were imaginary and for most of the trip there it said I was floating in mid air. Again it was not at the address listed and I had to just drive circles in the area crossing over the river again and again until I got the right road. Boy was I happy when I found it! This little beauty was built in 1859-60.

 

I was doing well today! Why not go for a third bridge? I drove off and got onto the highway, the same highway I felt I was becoming a little too familiar with, when I noticed the RAV was thirsty. I needed to find a gas station… and as usual when you ask a GPS to find one for you it’ll inevitably lead you on a wild goose chase, which is exactly what it did. I took an exit and followed directions only to end up… nowhere. I tried the next nearest gas station and again ended up in a residential neighborhood with not even the faintest hint of a gas station. I was starting to get punchy when I tried for a third time. This time it said “main street” so I figured it was a good bet. My hunch was right — and even better the gas station was right across the street from another covered bridge! A completely accidental find! This one was attached to an old train station turned park so I wandered across the road to take a peek. It was called the Contoocook Railway Bridge and Depot. It was a big one! And boy did it take nice black and whites! And unlike the other bridges there were people around this one playing just as I was.

 

From here I continued to Merrimack where there was a cluster of covered bridges but it was getting late and I kept hitting closed roads and construction. Plus by this time I really needed to pee and was getting hungry so I decided three bridges are good enough for one day and I came home… stopping only once more to take a photo of my favorite paint horse farm in Temple…

***I apologize for any missing photos and galleries as I continue to work getting Catching Marbles fully migrated to a new host. Please come back soon for restored photos and thank you for your patience!***

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


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Cascade Marsh – Sutton NH (Bonus dried up dam)

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I needed to take an adventure today so badly that I was crawling out of my skin. With my health increasingly dogging me and other situations arising I haven’t had the pure and simple joy of just getting into the car and driving off into the wild blue yonder. Still, there’s no better medicine than doing just that so this morning I spent some time trying to figure out where to go.

A long time ago my brother used to live in this apartment literally in the middle of nowhere. You had to drive over two separate covered bridges and go back in time to get there. It was so deep in the woods that you could hear the cracking of a twig a mile away. He didn’t live there for long but I was always jealous. I should have called him and asked for his old address so I could drive right to these happy memories. Instead I googled, “Covered Bridges in New Hampshire” figuring there might be ten or so to chose from and my powers of deduction could figure out the rest but I’ll be damned, there are forty-two covered bridges listed in New Hampshire! Now what? I stared at a map to find a good cluster and decided I would head towards Merrimack and call it good.

My car is in the shop getting treated for post traumatic stress disorder which it got from it’s previous owner. Normally when this happens I borrow a Prius but the Prius I normally borrowed was scooting along it’s own adventure which means I was left borrowing my mother’s insanely temperamental RAV. If you’ve ever had the joy of holding a crazed husky on a leash you’ll know what driving the RAV is like – it pulls in both directions at once and whenever it feels like it. The gas is so outrageous that I pealed rubber trying to feather my way out of the driveway, and the brakes…. what brakes? Yeeeeeah…. this would be an adventure alright!

I ended up following a motorcyclist some 30 minutes with five separate turns from Jaffrey to Benton I think. At first this was fine but when he took an exit to shake me and I still followed him he seemed to get increasingly agitated. Another motorcyclist joined him for a while and it seemed as if he was both annoyed to be suddenly riding with someone else and relieved there was someone else here to witness the creepy RAV behind him. When the second motorcyclist took another exit and I was still following the first guy he literally just pulled aside the road on the highway and let me pass! Sorry dude, I wasn’t stalking you I swear! Truth be told I was hit with a sudden wave of fatigue and nearly stopped off myself for a short road-side nap but I didn’t because this motorcyclist was intriguing me. Where was he going? To the covered bridge I was trying to find?? What were the odds?! And by the time he finally pulled over I had woken up again. Another great roadside sight was what I could have sworn was a thunder bird swooping over the car. Biggest bird I have EVER seen. No idea what it was! Also almost ran over a suicidal hawk who swooped past my windshield.

I had been driving for over an hour by the time my GPS claimed I found my first destination. The funny thing about covered bridges is they don’t have addresses so asking my GPS is always one of those “let’s flip a coin!” sort of deals. I had “hints” downloaded from the internet but after driving in several circles the first bridge was nowhere to be found. So I started on my journey to see the second bridge on my list. I had five or six programmed into the GPS and it decided which ones were closest and what route made the most sense. I can’t say I agreed as I found myself driving the same road three times over but I digress!

As I was driving along I saw a “primitive” dirt road with a big poorly constructed sign reading “cemetery.” A cemetery on a road that looks like you  need four wheel drive? What more could you do to entice me?! I ignored my increasingly angry GPS yelling at me and took a little detour. Wow, this road was gorgeous! Out in the middle of the woods, so quiet, a grated dirt road filled with only thousands of acres of woods dotted with big colonial farmhouses from time to time. Way to make my heart flutter!

And then I saw something interesting… a big sign reading, “Cascade Marsh.” I had yet to visit any marshes on my journey, in fact I am not entirely sure what constitutes a marsh. Is it just a fancy word for swamp? I decided to check it out. I parked the car and headed into the woods where a big gate went over a trail. I didn’t walk for very long before I came across a hidden utopia. This was so worth the detour! Hidden coyly behind the trees was what I can only guess was a popular local fishing spot right off of a dam. The view was astounding! I snapped photos, probably more than I needed for such a small area, but it gave me such peace and joy to do so. I realized when I was playing with the marbles that this would be another really awesome place to take whimsical photos with props. Suddenly I decided I needed a backpack – and props! just in case I came across another sight such as this! I stayed here for quite a while, not another soul in sight, just enjoying watching the birds – a kingfisher and a blue herring. I was so at peace here I didn’t want to leave!

***I apologize for any missing photos and galleries as I continue to work getting Catching Marbles fully migrated to a new host. Please come back soon for restored photos and thank you for your patience!***

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

 

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I was thoroughly rejuvenated after that little jaunt. For being summer it was a fairly brisk day and breezy which made the water ripple all over. I wanted to see where the rest of the trail would lead but the trail turned into a dense thicket of random weeds and bushes not too far from the dam. A little sad I walked back to the car to resume my search for these elusive covered bridges I had been hearing about.

As I was driving I came across a very weird sight – an old dried up dam. I pulled over and took a couple snaps as the locals wondered what was wrong with me. I found it so fascinating! There amongst a jungle of weeds was a big gully where a river once was and the cracking crumbling ruins of an old dam.

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Continue the journey to find the covered bridges in the next entry…

 

 

 

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Lowell City Cemetery & Lowell Cemetery

Yet again I set out to go to one cemetery and ended up at another. I can find obscure paths with no markers, historical landmarks no one has ever heard of, cool places guarded by whispering locals, but ask me to find a cemetery, any cemetery what-so-ever and I will find a different one! That’s OK. They’re all beautiful in their own ways. The confusion came from the fact there is both a Lowell City Cemetery (which I ended up at first) and a Lowell Cemetery which has the ever gorgeous Ayer Lion who I like to visit from time to time.

Seeing as I was already at the Lowell City Cemetery I decided to take a quick peak. An enormous monument of an elk had caught my eye as well as an equally enormous statue of a Native American which I couldn’t fathom why it existed in a rich white man’s cemetery. Turns out the Indian was Aspinquid, Chief of the Penacook Indians. Looks like he must have impressed someone… but I am not so certain his age marker of 122 years old at death is correct.

 

After that little detour I finally arrived back at the correct cemetery, the Lowell Cemetery, where the famous Ayer Lion resides. He’s the saddest lion you will ever meet – carved life size in marble he can melt the heart of anyone who gazes upon his sorrowful face or his retiring paws. I have admired him for years, occasionally stopping in to say hi, and respected him just for the sheer fine art aspect of this monument. The artist who carved him put so much attention to detail that he even got the skin flap between the legs and body completely life-like. I know it sounds strange but I always feel like consoling the poor beast with a hug, as if he were somehow real. He’s garnered much attention over the years, as have a few other monuments like “Witch Bonney” who was never a witch and I am not even sure was named Bonney. One of New England’s favorite past times has been to make up scary bullshit stories to scare our children. That was one of them…

 

***I apologize for any missing photos and galleries as I continue to work getting Catching Marbles fully migrated to a new host. Please come back soon for restored photos and thank you for your patience!***

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


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BONUS! There’s a tiny park just a little ways away from the cemetery which is what I can only call a swamp with a few tables. Totally worth checking out if only for the fact you can say, “I’ve been to a swamp park and befriended some amorous bullfrogs!” I know what you’re thinking and no, none of them turned out to be princes.

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West Rutland Quarry – Vermont

Today I decided to venture farther than I have gone in the past few weeks and take a trip into a more Northern locality, West Rutland Vermont, to check out an abandoned quarry. I couldn’t find any photos of the quarry itself but the photos of a dilapidated old building and machinery had really peaked my interest. I had no idea if it was private or public property and decided to take a chance as I drove over two hours to get there. I was not disappointed!

Finding it was somewhat difficult. It’s a path on an old rural dirt road. There is nowhere to pull in and right in front of it there’s a No Parking sign. I pulled off somewhat up the road where there was a little turn-around. The path was behind a bunch of rocks reading, “No shooting!” which was a super comforting thought. I can’t say I found any of the buildings or machinery but the path did lead around the quarry which was gorgeous. Here there were at least six different swimming holes, all with a fantastic view. It was raining and cold and not the best day to take a plunge into the black waters but I enjoyed it just the same. It was QUIET out here and someone had obviously put a lot of time and effort into making the swimming holes safe, adding ladders and stairs. I had grown up weary of quarries, knowing only they’re very deep and teenagers drown in them like ship rats all the time but now I was staring down into my first quarry I was not overcome by fear but more an urge to jump. The water was indeed deep and black but near the edges it was a shimmering emerald green that took my breath away. Fairly sizable fish even swam back and forth eating pond skippers and Orioles flew by at terrific speeds. This was a short path, very short, but I think it was worth the drive especially since I also got to take some dramatic snaps of the surrounding area. The people near by were all super friendly too. Vermont makes my heart dance with joy.

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

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Grand Teton National Park – Wyoming

From the fossil fish dig I went straight to Grand Teton National Park. It was exceptionally cloudy and I stopped to take some rather mystical looking photos of the snow-topped mountains. I also walked a little ways around Jenny Lake which, for a lake, was beautiful. The water was crystal clear and the mountains overlooking it gave it a wonderful vibe. I dipped my hands in the water, which was so soft and cool. It was starting to rain and I needed to get to our campground before it closed. I’d already made reservations at Madison in Yellowstone.

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

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Grand Canyon North – Arizona

So the Four Corners guy also told me the grand canyon has a North and South side.. something I probably should have known but I am finding the research t hat went before this trip to be… lacking. that wasn’t my department. That’s fine, though I did almost miss Valley of the Gods due to it and did miss the dinosaur footprints. SIGH. In any event, I decided to see the North side today. I drove only two and half hours and suddenly there’s trees, tall ones. With no warning whatsoever. They’re everywhere, pine, and they smell like home. I am suddenly hit with a pang of homesickness but its quickly disturbed by the sighting of an elk, real close. I took photos.

I walked the path to Bright Angel Point. Maybe I were just tired but none of it was that impressive. The trees were so much like home and the canyon? Yeah it was huge and all sorts of pretty colors but I’d been driving through much prettier all day. I’m going to the South canyon in the morning. It’s the more touristy side and I’ll see if I’m more impressed with it.

If you are enjoying Catching Marbles please consider adding a dollar or two to my limited gas money fund so I can continue going on adventures and sharing them with you! Thank you!


 

 

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