It’s that time of the year again. Almost all of the leaves have fallen from the trees, the days are noticeably shorter and the temperature has decided to fall as well. With the onset of winter, this is when Mom is preparing to leave Michigan to head south for warmer environs. She’s booked her flight to Phoenix and is anxious to again become a “snowbird”.

Of course she’ll need a car in Phoenix for her winter stay. For the past several years, I’ve been the chosen one – I drive her car to Phoenix and then fly back home to Grand Rapids.

This year I’ve decided to make a slight detour on the drive to Phoenix. I’m planning to join the migrating birds at Bosque del Apache, a large bird sanctuary near Socorro in western New Mexico. I’ve heard about this wildlife refuge for a long time so now is the time to take the plunge, so to speak.

In preparing for the visit to Bosque, I found out about another close-by site. The Very Large Array (VLA) is an astronomical observatory made of 27 antennas each 80 feet in diameter. The VLA collects large amounts of data from outer space. Being only 50 miles from Socorro, I’m planning a short stop at the VLA following my visit to Bosque.

My drive is a southernly route taking me through Missouri, Oklahoma, the Texas panhandle and to Albuquerque; then south to Socorro. Up to here, the route is all interstate highways and the weather should be snowfree in early November. When I leave Socorro, I’ll head west following US 60 which takes me through some mountainous and forested areas in New Mexico and Arizona before flattening out near Globe, AZ. Hopefully the snow will hold off until later in the month. From Globe it’s clear sailing to Phoenix.

Many consider a cross country trip such as this an arduous undertaking. I have always enjoyed driving long distances and welcome the chance to stop at Bosque and VLA. I’m hoping that they will both offer me some interesting photography opportunities.

If the cameras are working and I make good with the photography opportunities, I’ll have some pictures here soon.

It’s not too Late to Capture the Fall Colors   This article was a fun and easy assignment for me. From beginning to end it took barely two hours to shoot and write. Confession: I spent an additional 30 minutes driving back to the office to fetch the camera’s memory card which I inadvertently left with my computer.

Why was this assignment so easy? Because the colors and lighting do all of the talking.

Here the sun is at my back. This emphasizes the texture of the leaves.

Here I’ve moved a few feet so that the light is now coming from in back of the leaves.

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Suddenly in early August, the summer turns busy for me.

My son Paul asks me to drive with him from our home in Grand Rapids to Orono, Maine to pick up a new vehicle (see below) to be returned to Michigan. This is a trip of 1000 miles each way through Canada and rural Maine. I agree to accompany him provided that I can enjoy a fresh Maine lobster and spend a few hours in Acadia National Park. Paul shakes on the “deal” and we’re off.

Our drive takes us through eastern Michigan, over the St Clair River Bridge into Canada, past London, Toronto and Montreal where we stop for a late lunch. Then eastward towards the Canada-USA border and finally south to Orono. After sixteen hours in the car, we arrive in Orono and settle down in the hotel for some sleep.

The next morning we are up early and conduct and conclude our vehicle purchase. By noon we point the car towards the resort town of Bar Harbor on the Atlantic Ocean and also the gateway to Acadia. Here’s where the lobster part of the “deal” is satisfied.

picturesque church in rural Quebec close to the Canadian-USA border

 

Acadia is largely situated on a few islands along the rugged Atlantic coastline. Visitors often spend weeks exploring the vastly different environments of the park. But now, I have only a few hours to satisfy my scenic cravings for this gorgeous part of the USA. To move this story along here’s the outcome:

Promise 1: our chef preparing a Maine lobster

Promise 2: a few hours at Acadia National Park

 
I stuff myself with lobster and stuff in a few hours of picture taking on the Atlantic.

Fast forward a few weeks (it’s still the busy month of August) and we’re visiting our daughter and grandkids in Oregon City, but only for a short 2 days. We decide to take a day trip over the coastal mountain range to Seaside and Ft Stevens on the Pacific Ocean. Again I am able to stuff a little more picturetaking into the visit.

the grandkids playing on banks of the Columbia River with Grandma

fishermen hoping for the big salmon catches

huge freighter entering the Columbia River from the Atlantic Ocean

clouds at sunset over the coastal range

 
While the purpose for being on both coasts has nothing to do with photography, I am able to walk away with some fun and interesting shots. As is often the case when traveling, when you’re pressed for time, it is still possible to squeeze in those pictures. Travel is one of my passions, but I also enjoy recalling the pleasures of travel through photos.

 

This is the vehicle that we picked up in Maine – a full service kitchen on wheels. We’re looking forward to some quality food.

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