Tucked down in the southernmost part of the Needles District in Canyonlands National Park is Druid Arch. It is accessible only by foot and is a 13 mile day hike from the nearest parking lot. So, needless to say, this one is off the beaten path. However, at the end you are rewarded with an amazing view of this unique monument. We hiked out here on the second day of our 3 day backpacking trip. In this part of Canyonlands, there is so much to see, but this arch is unlike the majority of the thousands of arches in the area. It is aptly named for its uncanny resemblance to Stonehenge.
If you are planning a trip to the area, I recommend shooting for early spring or late fall due to the extreme temperatures and lack of water in the summer. There are several back country campsites that are well used and kept in great shape. Reservations are needed so make sure you plan you trip well in advance if you are looking to spend time in the backcountry.
For those that are curious:
This panorama is composed of 65 images 13 groups of 5 bracketed shots (-2 to +2)
San Diego is a beautiful place. No matter where you go in this area, you can find something amazing. On our recent trip to San Diego, we drove over the bridge to Coronado Island in the hopes of seeing a great view of the San Diego skyline. We were not disappointed! I was able to stand on the ferry dock to look back over San Diego bay. An odd phenomenon occurs here. Every June, sunny San Diego is socked in with low hanging clouds – the “June gloom” as they call it. However, the clouds created the perfect canvas for the city lights to reflect off of. The lights were bright and their reflection in the water made for a great picture! Hats off to my wife, mom and mother-in-law for waiting around patiently in the cold while I captured this image!
In a way Las Vegas is kind of funny. Used to be Las Vegas was a dank pit. All of the hotels were kinda sleazy, smoke filled and jam packed with every possible way imaginable to lose your hard earned money. These days they try extremely hard to cater to every walk of life, conservative to liberal, from the kids all the way up to grandma and grandpa. This new family friendly environment has turned Vegas in to the interesting place it is today. Don’t get me wrong. There are still the dank, smoke filled casinos where you can part ways with large sums of money faster the you can recite your cell phone number. However, it is this new appeal-to-everyone mentality which has created some of the other amazing sights in Vegas, such as this hallway. This is simply the hallway to hotel check-in at the Venetian. I cant even begin to fathom how much money was spent to make this extravagant walkway, but it had to be a lot. This is one of several gems hidden away in plain sight all over the strip. If you find yourself in Las Vegas and either don’t gamble or have already lost everything, you can quite literally go on a modern day treasure hunt of sorts. Just go to flickr and search for “Las Vegas” and you will be presented with a vast list of hidden treasures. Half the fun is trying to find them.
Howdy! You may have noticed I have been making some changes around here. I have been working hard to try and offer a better visitor experience here at Terra Trekking Photography, and today I am pleased to announce that you can finally order prints directly from my website.
We offer prints on premium photographic paper, fine art giclee’s printed with archival quality inks on high quality paper, canvas prints, and metal prints. I have partnered with the folks over at fotomoto.com to provide my prints. They are an outstanding group of people and work hard to provide top quality prints. So, if you are interested in purchasing a print, simply click the buy print link located under the photo.
Should you have any questions regarding ordering prints or anything else for that matter, you can use our handy new contact form here:
On to this week’s post…
You remember Puff The Magic Dragon, don’t you?
Hanalei is a real place. No kidding…although I did not see a dragon frolicking in the autumn mist, I did come across this cool green church. It was a remarkably picturesque place with the tall palm trees blowing in the breeze, the misty fog rolling down the side of the cliffs, and the overly dramatic sky.
Honestly, if it weren’t for the extremely outrageous housing prices I really think I could live on the island of Kauai. Of course, I would probably put on 100lbs from eating banana pancakes every morning.
For those interested, this is the Wai`oli Hui`ia Church.
Ok… so maybe not a dogfight, seeing as none of these planes have any weaponry.
I took this photo at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington D.C. They have quite a collection that spans from early canvas and timber airplanes to the space shuttle. The museum is actually a giant aircraft hanger with elevated walkways that allow you to see every aircraft from almost every angle. They really have done a fantastic job putting this museum together. With over 100 aircraft and 122 space objects (satellites, rockets, spacesuits, etc.) on display you will wander around for hours… I did.
The Museum is a little outside of Washington D.C but well worth the trip. It is an extremely popular attraction so If you are going to go I highly recommend getting there right as they open in the morning. This will give you a few hours to wander around before the big crowds show up.
Aircraft in this picture:
Junkers Ju 52/3m
Monocoupe 110 Special “Little Butch”
Dehavilland Canada DHC-1a Chipmunk
Curtiss 1A Gulfhawk
Bellanca C.F.
Arrow Sport A2-60
At first glance, the Joint Trail seems like it is going to be a steep and treacherous journey through the Canyonlands backcountry. But once you get down the steep stairs, the trail turns into a beautiful, peaceful and cool walk – a nice getaway from the heat of a Utah desert day. Standing in between the steep rock walls is intimidating as you think about the forces at work surrounding us on Earth. Millions of years of movement created a path just wide enough to fit my shoulders. We walked for a couple of hours in the shady canyon and it couldn’t have been a better way to spend a hot afternoon.
I took this photo of the New York New York Casino / Hotel on a recent business trip to Las Vegas. I gotta say, it must just be a wonderful thing to be an architect in Las Vegas. I can only imagine that if you can dream it they can build it. However, it has to be tough to try and out-do your last design.
This summer I had a chance to take a long weekend in San Diego. One of the places I visited was La Jolla. While I was out walking around I saw a large group of people hanging out on the wall over looking the beach. I went over to see what was going on and was surprised to see the beach full of seals. It was really cool! I found it amusing how indifferent they seemed (most of them were sleeping) about the ever growing crowd. According to one of the locals I spoke with, the city built the break wall in order to make a more kid friendly swim beach. However, as soon as construction was finished the seals moved in. This abundance of seals caused the bacteria levels in the water to increase to the point where it was unsafe for use as a swim beach. So, now there is a constant struggle of man over animal lover…. In one corner people say the city should do some thing about the seals and reclaim the beach. In the other corner are the animal activists who think that this new seal sanctuary should be preserved.
Regardless to what side of the argument you are on, I think we can all agree it is a beautiful beach.
All of the seals were piled up near the wall on the left. I could not include them in this photo without also including a large throng of people gawking at the wild life. 
So, I just returned from a 12 day business trip to Las Vegas… I gotta say, 12 days is a bit long. In fact I got home and a day later headed out to Moab for some much needed fresh air and some wide open space It is funny…even the people who work on the strip will say 12 days is a long time to be in Vegas.
Anyway, I would work during the day and set out at night to take photos. I stayed at Caesars Palace, which I guess is about central to the strip or so it seemed. I did not have to walk to far to find something cool to take a picture of. Next door to Caesars is the Bellagio. Inside, just behind the room with the famous Chihuly glass ceiling, is a large greenhouse-like area they call “Via Fiore.” Here is how they describe it:
“Like beautiful gems thoughtfully placed in their destined settings, the shops of Via Fiore gracefully outline the Conservatory & Botanical Gardens.”
Ahhh.. where would Vegas be without its shopping?…
Regardless, their Botanical Gardens & Conservatory was done up like something out of a Tim Burton film.
I found this Treeman of the Bellagio to be quite fascinating. The artist paid a tremendous amount of attention to detail. It almost looks like he could just get up and walk out in to the desert heat if he were so inclined. 
The town of Caribou was established in 1870 to house the miners of the Caribou Silver Mine. In its hay day it is estimated that Caribou was home to approximately 3,000 people. However, this one of only two buildings that remain standing today.
