Chestnut Trees

These two chestnut trees sit at the back of my property. You can't tell from this picture quite how large they are. I think the bigger one is at least 100 years old. But it's not going to get any older. This was the last year they put out any leaves, and there were only a few. My arborist did not know what had happened, only that they were dying. Right now they have lost all their leaves and stand skeleton against my fence. I'm so grateful I got this picture a couple of years ago, but I just can't quite wrap my head around why two mature trees would just up and die. It saddens my heart.

Looking Down on the Trail

Here's an old shot - taken from the bridge at Kinzua State Park here in Pennyslvania. This place is worth a visit in any season. There's a museum that tells the story of the railroad bridge that used to span the gorge, but was destroyed by a tornado. There is now an overhang built in the same spot, and the view is incredible.

Falls Creek

I loved how the light was beginning to shine through the trees at this location during a morning shoot at the Wind River Photographers’ Retreat this summer near Dubois, Wyoming. The air in this image is a little hazy with smoke from wildfires in California and Oregon.

Olympic National Park - Hoh Rainforest

Seven Weeks Across America

The sunlight seemed to pour in through the trees the day we visited the Hoh Rainforest.  We hiked the two loops nearest the visitor's center, and both were just gorgeous.  

Golden Afternoon on the Olympic Penninsula

Seven Weeks Across America

I've been waiting for decades to visit the rainy, perpetually overcast Washington rainforest that I've seen over and over again in film and photo.  But when we got there, it was lit with golden sun and there was nary a trace of the atmospheric gloom I was expecting.

William M. Tugman State Park

Seven Weeks Across America

We pulled into William M. Tugman State Park in Oregon  pretty late in the day.  It was drizzling, and we hunkered down inside our cozy camper to share an Instant Pot meal of beef stroganoff and later, my daughter's first game of cribbage.  The next morning before we left, I spent a half hour with two ravens, who I asked to fly from tree to tree right over this little opening through the branches.  And they did - six times in all.  I have no idea why they humored me, but I was delighted.  I think they are such curious creatures that they enjoy interacting with humans.  It certainly seems to me that they enjoy being photographed.

Kings Canyon National Park

Seven Weeks Across America

Though they are administered together and are geographically close, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks have some very different areas.  Kings Canyon is also the home to some giant sequoias (more on that later) but it is more than just that.  We drove the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway to its terminus down in the canyon.  It's a windy road that hugs cliff edges and offers superb views of the beautiful South Fork of the Kings River below.

Near the end of the road, we hiked around Zumwalt Meadow.  It's a pretty green gem, and the trail takes you through rocks and over boardwalks, at times skirting the river.  We were vigilant looking for rattlesnakes, but we are happy to report no sightings.

Our campground was back up the road, walking distance from the Visitor's Center and Grant Grove.  Unlike Sequoia National Park, there are no busses to ferry you around in Kings Canyon.  

We really enjoyed the paved interpretive trail around Grant's Grove, which includes not only the immense Grant Tree, but also an old cabin, signage about the history of logging in the area, and a giant fallen redwood that you can walk through upright.  I figured that would be my daughter's favorite part of the trail, and I was right.  But I was not expecting to delight in it so much myself.  It just seems so crazy to be walking through a huge tree that's laying on its side.

You can get a little closer to the trees here on the trail than you could at Sequoia.  Several are hollowed out from fire and this one was just right for a little fox to scramble through.