Category: vacation photos

Back to Work

One of the greatest things about being my own boss is that I can have cause to make two vacation posts on my blog in a row.  After being back home from my Yellowstone trip for a little over a week and spending that time working on some new creations, prepping to improve some of the older photos in my Etsy shop (which I hope to complete this week), and planning for Halloween and Christmas (I know, it’s early – but I promised myself it had to be done earlier this year!)… I was lucky enough to be able to leave for another vacation to California, where my husband spent two weeks road tripping, camping and hiking our way through Yosemite, Death Valley, Joshua Tree, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks.

Below are some of my photos from our travels.  My husband has also added a bunch more (even better!) photos to his Etsy photography print shop, Max Gorski Photography.

Liberty Cap and Nevada Falls in Yosemite National Park
Liberty Cap and Nevada Falls in Yosemite National Park. It was in the mid 60s during the day in Yosemite, and just above freezing overnight.
Death Valley Sand Dunes
The desert sand dunes in Death Valley near sunset. Here it was 109 degrees.
The Devil's Golf Course in Death Valley
The Devil's Golf Course in Death Valley - a vast salt pan left behind by in an ancient dry lake bed.
Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua trees in Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua trees in Joshua Tree National Park
Giant Sequoia in Sequoia National Park
A giant Sequoia in Sequoia National Park. For a sense of scale, the tiny black upside-down V that you see at the bottom center of the trunk is about the size of a person. It's hard to comprehend just how massive these 2,000+ year old giants are until you see them in person.

I also have two new spun cotton ornament designs to share – two kitties in fall friendly colors. The second one is the first of my Halloween 2011 designs – many more to follow!

spun cotton cat ornament

spun cotton cat ornament

 

An Inspiring Wilderness Respite

This week I am back from vacation after a week spent backcountry hiking and wildlife watching in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. This was my 4th time visiting Yellowstone, and this time I was lucky enough to spot wolves, grizzly bears, black bears, bison (including a mother and newborn calf – just 2 hours old – right in front of Old Faithful), pronghorn, big horn sheep elk, mule deer, sage grouse, sandhill cranes, marmots, colonies of ground squirrels, eagles, and two nesting osprey. I also saw a moose in the aptly named town of Moose in Grand Teton on our final day.

It was definitely a great year to have my brand new spotting scope along with me! Through it I saw a wolf attempt to steal a bison calf from the herd, only to be chased away by an angry mob of mother bison; a grizzly bear sow with two cubs charge away a male who was stalking them… twice!… until he got the hint and left; and a large bison bull charge a black bear who decided that meant it was time to flee the area.

Below are some photos from my trip of the wildlife that was within range of my 300mm lens.

migrating bison herd

bison cow and newborn calf in front of Old Faithful

black wolf in Yellowstone National Park - spring 2011

bighorn sheep in Yellowstone National Park - spring 2011

black bear in Yellowstone National Park - spring 2011

grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park - spring 2011

moose in Grand Teton National Park - spring 2011

bison calf in Yellowstone National Park - spring 2011

Vacation in Poland and Slovakia

I just returned from my 2 week vacation in Poland and Slovakia and have been working on catching up on e-mails, orders, news, my blog reading list, and getting back into the swing of things. In the meantime, I have some photos from my trip to share…

Poland June 2009
Demänovská Ice Cave in Liptovský Mikuláš, Slovakia

Poland June 2009
Demänovská Cave of Liberty in Liptovský Mikuláš, Slovakia

Poland June 2009
View from atop the High Tatras in Zakopane, Poland

Poland June 2009
Raft tour along along the Dunajec River between Slovakia and Poland

Poland June 2009
Driving through a Slovak village

Poland June 2009
Entrance gate to Auschwitz – Oświęcim, Poland

Poland June 2009
Auschwitz

Poland June 2009
Hiking in the Tatra Mountains in Zakopane, Poland

Poland June 2009
Hiking in the Tatra Mountains in Zakopane, Poland

Poland June 2009
Hiking in the Tatra Mountains in Zakopane, Poland

Poland June 2009
View from a castle tower in Poland

Poland June 2009
Wilanów Palace in Warsaw, Poland

Country Living

I am back from Canada and ready to start working on the custom orders that await me – while I get back to the sewing machine, here are some photos from my trip that I have to share.

Westport, Ontario, Canada
Westport, Ontario

Westport, Ontario, Canada
Westport, Ontario

Forfar, Ontario, Canada
Forfar, Ontario

Delta, Ontario, Canada
Reenacted living quarters inside an 1810 gristmill in Delta, Ontario

Delta, Ontario, Canada
Display inside an 1810 gristmill in Delta, Ontario

Westport, Ontario, Canada
Westport, Ontario

Back From Vacation

I have been quiet for awhile because I recently got back from my annual vacation to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming, which was amazing and inspiring. Now I just need to get back to working on new primitive dolls again. In the meantime, I have a few pictures of highlights from my trip to share. The photos were taken by my husband and I with our new Canon 30D and new super zoom & wide angle lenses.

Bison calf in Yellowstone National Park
A frolicking bison calf (who was having a bit of a snit because Mommy wasn’t ready to wake up just yet that morning to nurse him)

Grizzly bear in Yellowstone National Park
A yearling grizzly bear who was marauding around the Old Faithful Inn area

Bison in Yellowstone National Park
Part of a bison herd slowly migrating south

Yellowstone National Park
The gorgeous Emerald Spring in Norris Geyser Basin

Yellowstone National Park
The brilliantly colored Economic Geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin

Yellowstone National Park
A rare treat: Grand Geyser erupting

Yellowstone National Park
Coyote carrying a ground squirrel

Yellowstone National Park
An elusive North American Pronghorn in the sagebrush

Yellowstone National Park
Hiking trail along the rim of the 800-foot-deep Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone

Bears in Yellowstone National Park
Mother black bear with two cubs

Bears in Yellowstone National Park
The nicest man let us use his 800mm+ lens to take some extreme closeups

I already can’t wait to go back again next year.