My World: First Sighting of Petrified Wood

August 16, 2011

Erosion at Blue Mesa, Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona. June 13, 2011.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

When Betsy and I visited the Petrified National Park in June, we went into the park through the northern entrance.  As a result we first saw the Painted Desert, which  was absolutely beautiful.  We knew that we would see petrified wood as we drove south through the park.

Yesterday I posted about Blue Mesa, an area of the park where the effects of erosion can be readily seen.  The picture above was taken from an overlook on Blue Mesa.   If you look at the cliff across the valley, you’ll notice debris from erosion.

Petrified Wood at the base of a cliff at Blue Mesa. June 13, 2011.

My telephoto lens showed that the debris was petrified wood.  It was our first sighting of petrified wood, but definitely wouldn’t be our last.

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Scenic Sunday: Blue Mesa

August 14, 2011

The Painted Desert from an overlook on Blue Mesa, Petrified Forest National Park. June 13, 2011.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

The Blue Mesa is an area which is just about in the center of the Petrified Forest National Park.  It is reached by a scenic road and loop off the main park road.  The elevation of Blue Mesa is higher than those parts of the Painted Desert in the northern part of the park.  The view from Blue Mesa is fantastic, as can be seen from the picture above.

Erosion along the rim of Blue Mesa. June 13, 2011.

Because of a thicker protective sandstone cap, erosion around Blue Mesa has been slower than the erosion in other parts of the Painted Desert.  While erosion is obviously going on, the colors uncovered so far are darker than those of other parts of the Painted Desert.  As erosion continues the reds and pinks seen in the northern part of the park will be present at Blue Mesa as well.

View from the Blue Mesa Trail, Petrified Forest National Park. June 13, 2011.

At the northern end of Blue Mesa, the Blue Mesa trail makes a mile loop down into the badlands.  While we did not have time to hike the entire trail, we did hike far enough to see more of the work of erosion at Blue Mesa.

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SkyWatch Friday: Oklahoma Evening Sky

August 12, 2011

The evening sky in Oklahoma. June 11, 2011.

This is my post for Skywatch Friday, a meme for sharing views of the sky from all over the world.  To see more, or to join and share your own photos of the sky, click HERE.

Betsy and I were impressed — not always favorably — by the flat landscape in some of the western states.  But we found that one advantage to a flat landscape is sunsets that are as fantastic — if not more so — than those we have here in the mountains.  I captured the scene above as we were driving across Oklahoma.

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Down Memory Lane: Panther and Angel Falls (2009)

August 11, 2011

Betsy and I celebrated our anniversary in 2009 by visiting waterfalls in north Georgia.  Tallulah Gorge State Park was certainly the high point of our visit, but we also saw other waterfalls.

All of these waterfalls are in or near Rabun Beach Recreation Area, near Tallulah Falls, Georgia.  Getting to Panther and Angel Falls involved a moderate hike through the woods.  Visiting Minnehahha Falls involved a shorter, but steeper hike.

To see larger versions of these pictures and others, click HERE.

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Watery Wednesday #152: Union Temple Falls

August 10, 2011

Union Temple Falls, Baileyton, Tennessee. November 28, 2009.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

Betsy and I enjoy tracking down little known waterfalls.  This beauty is in northeastern Tennessee, out in the country and off the beaten path.  Although the waterfall itself is on private property, and can be easily seen from the road.

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My World: Birthday Sunshine

August 9, 2011

Sunflowers on the Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

We went to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville on Betsy’s birthday.  There is so much to see and the gardens change with each season.  We visited the Italian Garden on this trip, and I’ll have pictures from there at a later date.

But as we were leaving the estate, we came upon a field of sunflowers.  Of course we had to stop and get some pictures.  We especially liked the mountains and hills in the background.

Sunflowers for the Birthday Girl. August 5, 2011. (Photo by Betsy)

The sunflowers themselves were big, bright and beautiful, as you can see in this picture Betsy captured.

Betsy enjoying her birthday sunflowers. Biltmore Estate, Asheville, North Carolina. August 5, 2011.

But I personally think that the sunflowers paled in comparison to the smile of my Beautiful Bride.

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Scenic Sunday: Above the Clouds (Sometimes)

August 7, 2011

Looking down on clouds from View John Rock overlook on the Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina. August 4, 2011.

This is my post for the Scenic Sunday meme, which shares beautiful scenes from around the world.  To see more Scenic Sunday posts, or to join and show your own pictures, click HERE.

I took Betsy to Asheville, North Carolina, to celebrate her birthday.  Fortunately we both love that part of the country and are happy for any excuse to go there.  As usual, we were in no hurry, so we took the scenic route by getting on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Maggie Valley and taking that to Asheville.  It took much longer than the interstate would have taken, but the scenery was much more enjoyable.

Thursday started out partly cloudy, but as the afternoon wore on the skies became more and more overcast.  We found it hard to get good pictures until we got near View John Rock overlook (Milepost 419).  There we found we could look down on clouds in the valleys below us, as you can see from the picture above.

The view from Cherry Cove overlook, Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina. August 4, 2011.

We stopped at the next several overlooks if we could see clouds below us.  This gave us a very pretty view, even if the day was cloudy.

Blue skies above low clouds in the valleys. August 4, 2011.

As we approached Mount Pisgah, breaks began to appear in the clouds overhead.  This allowed us to see blue skies and sun light above the clouds in the valley below.

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Someone Is Having a Birthday

August 4, 2011

I don’t want to mention any names, but someone is having a birthday tomorrow.  I definitely won’t mention anything as crass as age, but can you guess who this birthday person is?

The picture above shows her with her father before she grew into an accomplished drive-by shooter (with a camera!).  But even at that young age she was in the driver’s seat, making sure the men in her life went in the proper direction.

As you can see, Birthday Girl developed an early appreciation for flowers.  So really, what choice did I have but to promise her a rose garden?

I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that the Birthday Girl is my Beautiful Bride, Betsy.  If you would like to wish her a Happy Birthday, you can do so by clicking HERE.

I’m trying my best to have a proper birthday celebration, so we may not have much computer time through the weekend.  But we’ll both be back on Monday.

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Watery Wednesday #151: Lake Mead

August 3, 2011
Lake Mead from an overlook at Hoover Dam. June 17, 2011.

Lake Mead from an overlook at Hoover Dam. June 17, 2011.

This is my post for Watery Wednesday.  To see more of our beautiful watery world, or to join and post your own pictures to share, click HERE.

After visiting the Grand Canyon, Betsy and I headed west to go around the canyon to get to Utah and Zion National Park.  Along the way we stopped at Hoover Dam and Lake Mead.

Lake Mead was formed by Hoover Dam on the Colorado River, and was named after Elwood Mead, the Bureau of Reclamation commissioner at the time the dam was built.  Lake Mead is the 16th largest man-made lake in the world and the largest man-made lake in the Western Hemisphere.  The lake occupies about 1.5 million acres — twice the size of Rhode Island — and has a shoreline of approximately 820 miles.

The National Park Service established Lake Mead as a national recreation area in 1964.  The lake offers year-round recreation, including boating, swimming, hiking and wildlife viewing.

Lake Mead as seen from across the desert. June 17, 2011.

Lake Mead is surrounded by red sandstone and black lava rock in Black Canyon.  Some of the lava hills are approximately 6 million years old.  The contrast between the blue lake and the desert sands is striking, and attracts many visitors each year.

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My World: Day Lilies in Bloom

August 2, 2011

Spanish Glow Day Lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. July 25, 2011.

This is my post for the My World meme.  It is hosted by Klaus, Ivar, Sandy, Wren, and Fishing Guy.  To learn more about our world or to join and share your part of the world, click HERE.

Betsy and I missed the blooming of most of the lilies and day lilies in our yard because of our trip last month.  But some day lilies are continuing to bloom, and we are enjoying their bright refreshing colors during this hot spell we’re enduring.

All of these day lilies are in our new flower bed along the road, and this is the first time they’ve bloomed for us.  The day lily above is Spanish Glow.

Carlotta Day Lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. July 5, 2011.

Carlotta is the reddest of our day lilies.

Wild Horses Day Lily, Fiarfield Glade, Tennessee. June 30, 2011.

Wild Horses only had one blossom while we were home, which made it difficult to get a good picture.  But I did like the color.

Elegant Candy Day Lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. July 5, 2011.

Elegant Candy Day Lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. July 5, 2011.

Elegant Candy has a pretty — dare I say, elegant — pastel color.

Fooled Me Day Lily, Fairfield Glade, Tennessee. July 25, 2011.

We weren’t sure that Fooled Me was going to bloom this year, but it did come through and shared its bright colors with us.

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