La Jolla Shores Beach & Tennis Club

My wife and I feel really blessed to be able to spend time with our family and friends in La Jolla, CA.  We have vacationed there for the last several years and have found it to be one of the best family friendly locations along the coast of CA.  This year our kids and our nephew spent more time in the water than they did on the beach.  This was the first year the kids both enjoyed the boogie board.  My daughter spent a few waves hanging on my neck before tackling the board herself.  She then wanted me to be around but wanted to master the board herself.  She did a great job!  My son was perfectly content to ride the board while hanging from my neck.  It was just a blast to see them enjoying the water as much as I do.

Some family friends came to visit which was a fun time for all.  Their kids and our kids have known each other since practically birth.  They all were great sand crab hunters..... We enjoyed dinner on the beach as the sun set below the pacific.

Some of the best moments included the glorious sunsets on the beach, 4th of July festivities, two nice dates with my wife to fantastic italian and sushi restaurants down the street, finding sea life at the tide pools and the times my son collapsed from exhaustion in my arms on the beach to nap for 2 hours (wondering how much longer I'll be able to do that with him?)

For more photos, visit:  La Jolla Vacation (July 2011)

Christopher Creek Crawdad Hunters (Payson / Mogollon Rim, Arizona)

When the heat rises in Arizona, often times one is looking to escape the Valley of the Sun by the time June rolls around.  I grew up camping with my family at Christopher Creek campground just outside Payson near the Mogollon Rim.  I have vivid memories of time spent being a kid..... catching crawdads, snakes, fishing, hiking, campfires, smore's, etc.  It's probably what birthed my passion for the great outdoors.  In passing down the great legacy of this time in my life with my kids, you can see the joy in their eyes as they spend most of the time in the water catching every critter that comes their way.

Golden Gate Bridge

I had business in San Francisco and was on the fence about bringing my camera gear, mainly because the weather called for two straight days of pouring rain.  Well, it did rain for two straight days, however, the day before showed the storm coming in just before dusk.  Since I was arriving in the afternoon, I took a chance and spent the late afternoon all around the Golden Gate Bridge.  Perfect timing I might add as the storm clouds rolled in but not before a great day hiking the beautiful park.  By dusk, it began to pour and I was drenched waiting for a taxi to pick me up.  Some of the best times for a photographer are just before and right after a big storm.  Of course, you have to expect to get a little wet.... People in Arizona don't live in the rain and typically run inside at the onset of any possible weather (if you did that in Portland, you would never go outside!)  I did this most of my life.... Not anymore....Live a little!

Sometimes the best locations for photographs are known to the locals... I asked a guy at the cafe near the bridge for any cool spots and he walked me past the public area to a restricted area away from the crowds....

These last two photos were tough to take as it was pouring rain and as much as I tried to shield my lens, there was so much water on it.  I would clean it and have time for one photo before it would be wet again...Ugh!

Lugging my 30+ pound camera gear on the plane for a chance to shoot for a couple hours paid off!  The joy of this almost-lost adventure carried me through the next two days of gloomy weather spent in a conference room.  

Tucson Mountain Park

On Wednesday, I took an early morning hike on the Yetman Trail in the Tucson Mountain Park that started right outside my hotel in Tucson (Star Pass Resort).  The Desert was drenched from the previous night's thunderstorm.  About 1 1/2 miles from the hotel, I came across the Bowen House, a 1930's stone house built on pristine desert wilderness by an editor for the Arizona Daily Star newspaper (for more, see Bowen House information at bottom).  Now I had been here before and was a little impressed with it.  However, this day was unlike the others as the clouds were rolling in and the rainwater had littered the floor creating a reflecting pool.  As I sat there resting and eating my breakfast, I started to realize that the beauty of the stone house and surrounding landscape was magnified tenfold by the reflection in the water.  Time to pull out my camera!

A hiker (ok, that's me) takes in a thunderstorm-drenched desert view from the Bowen House on the Yetman Trail in the Tucson Mountain Park 

100% reflection of chimney!

Some sort of insect (still researching) gathering nectar on a wildflower.

The END of the great Saguaro....

Woodpecker feeding her baby in giant saguaro...

Javelina crosses my path...

Crown of Thorns!

Bowen House
The Old Stone House is located just off of the David Yetman Trail in the Tucson Mountains. Sherry Bowen, a typesetter and later city editor for the Arizona Daily Star, built it of native stone in the early 1930s. The Bowens had lived in Rockford, Illinois but moved to Tucson in the late twenties with the hope that the change in climate would help Ruby Bowen’s serious heart condition. The Bowens first lived in Tucson but soon decided to homestead in the Tucson Mountains. They moved to the homestead in 1931 and lived in a cabin while the house was being built. The Bowens eventually expanded their claim to 2000 acres.

Ruby Bowen kept a diary of her first year in the Tucson Mountains. The diary makes several references to the wildlife that existed in the area including javelina, deer, wild horses and sheep that would come down from the cliffs every evening to graze in the valley. She even mentions a mountain lion that would come near the house when she was cooking meat and that one time attempted to get in a window.

The Bowens left Tucson in 1944 and moved to New York City where Sherry Bowen worked for the Associated Press. The valley and their homestead became part of Tucson Mountain Park in 1983.
This Summary was prepared from the Tucson Hiking Guide written by Betty Leavengood.

Kent Springs in Madera Canyon (Green Valley)

A 5+ mile hike with 2400' elevation gain... Labeled "Moderate".... I give it a "Strenuous" when carrying bulky camera gear! After arriving to Kent Springs (at the highest point of the trail), it was really refreshing to shed the pack and sit/listen to the bubbling cold water coming out of the ground (and throwing it on my face!) Isn't that what life is like sometimes? We have mountains or obstacles to overcome, but at some point HE leads us beside still waters to be renewed and revived.

For more photos go to:  Arizona Excursions on Blaze-A-Trail.com

Sedona Hikes

I was able to take two hikes in Sedona in February.  The highest temperature of the day, you ask?  18 degrees.  Don't let the sunny days fool you....It was COLD (especially for a native of Phoenix.)  Since I was hiking alone and uncertain there would be any other crazies on the trail, I was in full survival gear mode -- just in case something happened I would hopefully be able to survive sub-zero temperatures at night.  Everything went according to plan and I enjoyed the peaceful serenity and expansive views of one of the most beautiful places on the planet.  Special thanks to Great Sedona Hikes for the excellent descriptions of hikes in Sedona.

Doe Mountain Hike

Fay Canyon Hike (and Fay Canyon Natural Arch)

Wet Beaver Creek

For additional Sedona photos, go to: More Sedona on Blaze-A-Trail.com

Spring Flowers and Baby Ducks

We barely remembered the agony of planting 100 individual tulip bulbs in our front garden when the fruits of our labor produced a spectacular show of color and beauty.

Erin spent about 3 months coaxing me into buying a pair of ducks for Easter.  Being a city slicker I was very hesitant and my farm girl bride just kept nudging me..... All of a sudden we were getting in the car and driving to a feed store.... I don't actually remember saying yes to this plan.  Anyway, it's been quite an adventure with our new babies.  The kids are learning to take care of these precious animals named "Good Friday" and "Easter Egg".  The current game plan is to ship them off to the family farm in Washington when they grow up so we can visit them every summer.

Our fierce hamster aka "little guy" visits the ducks.

Happy Easter!!!

For more pictures go to: Spring Flowers & Baby Ducks