Gull Island

One of the highlights of our Alaska trip was a two hour boat trip to Gull Island in Kachemak Bay. We enjoyed it so much that we actually returned the next day!

Gull Island is the breeding ground for several types of sea birds who return every year to make (and reuse) their nests and lay their eggs. There seemed to be many more kittiwakes (the white gulls) than the other species, and you can see them flying around and dotting the cliff in their nests. There were also many common murres and some puffins. A few eagles were sitting on the tops of the cliffs. Otters played in the waters below.

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Moose!

We returned yesterday from Alaska- arriving at 6:15am in Phoenix after a smooth but excruciating overnight flight from Anchorage. It was a smooth flight with the potential for a good night’s sleep in the darkened cabin, BUT. . . the lady behind us had brought her CAT which yowled continually the entire time! Sleep was beyond reach for me- I watched a movie and tried to calm my frazzled nerves by playing a meditation album on my iPhone and taking photos out the window. Lonnie actually managed to sleep for a few hours.

None of the above diminished the joy I felt from our wonderful reunion with our daughter and family and our 50th anniversary vacation within a vacation! It was perfect!

I’m posting an iconic Alaska photo first, because previously I had managed to travel to Alaska at least 5 times without capturing a moose image! It was raining lightly as we drove along the Seward highway as we were leaving Anchorage. We spotted a small group of moose, pulled over, and managed to get a shot of this young moose before he turned back to resume eating. The others had already disappeared into the brush. I love the look in his eye as he spotted us!

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Alaska Bound!

We will be in Alaska for the next two weeks! I am scheduling a few posts of some photos from previous Alaska trips to publish while I’m gone. We’ll be seeing our Alaska family for the first time in a year and a half; their youngest, Henry is now 10 1/2 and Miles is a teenager- 13 1/2! AND we will be celebrating our 50th anniversary!

Here is where we’ll be celebrating- Homer, Alaska!

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Ocean

Here is another ocean image taken at the same time as the one from a few days ago. I’ve been experimenting making colorful textures (a total departure for me) in an attempt to create a different painterly look than usual. I like how they blend with ocean and beach photos.

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Til the Cows Come Home

This is a re-edit of a photo from 2014. I have such clear memories of that drive through Paradise Valley in Montana with Lonnie and our grandson, Miles. It was such a beautiful day, and five year old Miles was totally involved in spotting old barns and picturesque country scenes for me to photograph. In this reimagining, I aged the mailboxes to make the image match how I was seeing them that day. I remember noticing the cows coming along as I snapped the photo, but didn’t stay to see if they stopped or turned off before they came to the road.

 

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Small Town Rodeo

Reaching way back to May of 2014 once more for a rodeo photo. . .

I will never forget this young rider and his horse racing around the ring, going faster and faster as the national anthem was playing- a heart-swelling patriotic tribute.

I know this looks like a simple edit- but there was a fence between me and the scene. I worked three days to remove it in Photoshop- definitely an exercise in patience! I am using it for this month’s photo club challenge- “As American as. . .”

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