I have been doing intentional camera movement (ICM) for many years off and on, but I have never enjoyed it as much as I have when photographing birds this summer. The image below is gulls over Alaska’s Kasitsna Bay near the cabin on the MacDonald Spit where we stayed for our fiftieth anniversary.
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.
Our first day and a half in Homer, Alaska were rainy. The surrounding peaks were mostly invisible behind clouds. But at the end of our first full day, the rain had mostly stopped and light was peeking through the clouds.
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!
I don’t know what these wildflowers are called, but I was attracted to their wild shagginess.
Seen on our 2018 Alaska trip.
A L A S K A- green trees and wildflowers!
Of course it’s also majestic peaks, glaciers, icy seas, and incredible wildlife . . .
Himalayan blue poppies became one of my favorite flowers on a previous visit to Homer. Here’s an image from 2018. I hope to see more on this year’s trip.
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!
FYI- looking at bay water shining through a grate in Homer, Alaska
I’m reaching back into the archives for another beach photo. This one is from our 2018 trip to Homer, Alaska. Really sad to miss seeing our Alaska family this summer. . .
I took the photo below last summer at the beautiful Anchorage Museum- I just loved the graphic elements on the wall and the line of bean bag chairs, with the pattern broken by my grandson Miles. I brought it to my photo class yesterday for our assignment on Patterns.
Back to the 26 Glacier Cruise in Alaska- here is one of the twenty-six! I think this was just the first glimpse.
Actually, for me, the best part of the above image is the reflection- hence this crop:
Some of the Alaska native peoples built smokehouses and dwellings underground like these, seen at the Alaska Native Heritage Center in Anchorage (I believe they were Yupik).
Spotted on Glacier Bay while on our 26 Glacier Cruise
This photo was also taken at the Eagle River Nature Center and is probably close to what Alaska looks like right now. It was taken on our Thanksgiving visit in 2016.
melinda anderson photography 