Because of our tight schedule, we had only a few hours to explore Shenandoah National Park. We certainly didn’t give the park the time it deserved, but despite our whirlwind adventure, we saw more wildlife, big and small, in Shenandoah, than we had seen in any other park.
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As we returned to blogging after a little, itty-bitty break of about 2 years, I realized that we were rapidly approaching our 500th post. I was a bit surprised – so much so that I had to go back and count, but sure enough this post is #500! So, what do you do with such a milestone? You create some unique content for your loyal followers.
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Sunset from Cape Royal on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon
Way back in the summer of 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed an act that created the National Park Service – a federal bureau designed to protect the 35 existing national parks and monuments (the first national park, Yellowstone, was founded by congress in 1872, with the remaining added in the next 40 years). Fast forward 100 years, and America’s parks system encompasses 413 areas (with Maine’s Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument being added just yesterday!). Of these, there are 59 national parks, 84 national monuments, and 78 national historic sites. In total, the Parks Service oversees over 84 million acres, with land in every state.
A Bull Bison crossing Geyser Hill in Yellowstone
Over the past year, we’ve had the pleasure of visiting many of the national parks, from Cape Cod to Bryce Canyon. This past autumn, we took a grand circle tour of 6 of the great western national parks: Yellowstone, Grand Tetons, Bryce Canyon, Grand Canyon, Arches and Mesa Verde. In total, we covered over 3,600 miles in just 10 days, but we packed those days plum full of adventure. Each park was spectacular in its own right, but if we had to choose a favorite, it would be the granddaddy of them all – Yellowstone. We spent four days in that park, two in and around Mammoth and two days around Old Faithful. We even had the great honor and luck of staying in the original 1903 portion of the Old Faithful Inn.
Spruce House dwellings at Mesa Verde
Since then, we’ve been on a few other national parks as business trips have brought us nearby. This past winter, I visited the Grand Canyon and Arches again, and for the first time, visited the Colorado National Monument and its epic Rim Rock Road. Just a few weeks ago, we took our family to explore another first for us, the Cape Cod National Seashore. All in all, we were blessed with spectacular weather throughout – including more than one sky-on-fire-gorgeous sunset. This year may have marked our first big foray into the national parks, but rest assured, Lord willing, it will not be our last! Happy birthday National Park Service – and here’s to many, many more centuries of success and joy!
Glowing Aspens and Vibrant Blue Skies in the Grand Tetons
As always, please feel free to download as many photos as you like – we have sized the photos to 1080P HD wallpaper, perfect for your desktop, laptop, tablet or TV – and if you enjoy our photos, please share this blog with your friends and help us get the word out!
Interested in buying some of our fine art photography or just want to see some more of our work? Check out our New England collection at our site: http://fineart.deremerstudios.com
Please note all photos on this site are the copyrighted property of Deremer Studios LLC unless otherwise noted. We share many of our photos for use as personal desktop wallpaper, but any other uses, including but not limited to printing, modifying, and any commercial use are strictly prohibited without prior written consent.
Summer Wanderings Part 3: Massachusetts
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Well, you’ve made it. Welcome to the penultimate post (#5 of 6) from our summer wanderings series – this time featuring a few of our favorite images from our time in western Virginia. Not 30 minuets into Virginia, the sun set was absolutely spectacular! As it set below the western ridge of the Shenandoah Valley, we hopped off the interstate to see if we could find a few rural scenes to photograph before darkness overtook the region. By chance, we took the exit for Toms Brook, a small farming community that proved the perfect backdrop for a few quick photos, like the one above.
Another first for us was a trip up Interstate 81 to the town of Fort Chiswell, Virginia and its unique and adventurous Animal Park. Located on 45 acres of rolling hills, the park features a diverse collection of animals for kids of all ages to interact with (just be careful of the grey crowned cranes – they bite photographers when said photographers aren’t paying attention… hypothetically of course). Included with admission is a safari bus ride, where you can feed everything from a camel to an ostrich – both of which have no qualms about invading your personal space by sticking their heads into the bus in search of treats. Other species, like the bison and zebra preferred to keep their heads outside the bus, but would still walk right up to be fed. While we’ve photographed many of these animals in the wild, or at free range parks, there is something very special about being able to look one of these gigantic animals in the eye, just a foot or two from your face.
As always, please feel free to download as many photos as you like – we have sized the photos to 1080P HD wallpaper, perfect for your desktop, laptop, tablet or TV – and if you enjoy our photos, please share this blog with your friends and help us get the word out!
Interested in buying some of our fine art photography or just want to see some more of our work? Check out our Appalachia collection at our site: http://fineart.deremerstudios.com
Please note all photos on this site are the copyrighted property of Deremer Studios LLC unless otherwise noted. We share many of our photos for use as personal desktop wallpaper, but any other uses, including but not limited to printing, modifying, and any commercial use are strictly prohibited without prior written consent.
Summer Wanderings Part 5: Virginia
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Copyright 2016 Deremer Studios LLC – Jacksonville, FL
904-744-1103 | info@deremerstudios.com
This weekend, Bryn and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary – and naturally, we thought, what better place to celebrate, than Amelia Island. So, we grabbed the cameras (just in case), hopped in the car, and set off for a romantic dinner for two. Needless to say, it was a good thing the cameras came along, as it seemed nature wanted to put on a rather grand show. Even before we got to Amelia Island proper, we stopped just shy of the causeway that connects Big Talbot Island to Amelia Island, our interest piqued by birds that were relaxing in the broad, shallow pond along the edge of the Nassau Sound. We were surprised to find not only a flock of spoonbills, but also the more elusive white pelicans. Add to that ducks, egrets and other wading birds, and you had a veritable cornucopia of winged fauna. Our birding appetite satisfied, we headed onto the island for dinner…
…But, as providence would have it, the thunderstorms off to the west of Amelia Island transitioned from grey and ominous clouds to a pastel collection of oranges, purples, reds and blues as the fleeting rays of the setting sun lit the storms’ anvils on fire. It made for a truly stunning site, and one we just couldn’t pass up! So, now on Amelia Island, we ventured out toward the marina and found a spot among the marsh grass to capture the last few moments of light. Our impromptu photo shoot complete, we finally settled down for dinner at about 8:30 at the wonderful Cafe Karibo.
As it turns out, there was a theme to our night – namely shrimp. The spoonbills we first encountered have wings tinted pink due to their diet of shrimp. Likewise was the obvious connection between shrimp and shrimp boats, and finally, our delicious dinner of shrimp and grits from Cafe Karibo. Hope I don’t turn any more pink…
As always, please feel free to download as many photos as you like – we have sized the photos to 1080P HD wallpaper, perfect for your desktop, laptop, tablet or TV – and if you enjoy our photos, please share this blog with your friends and help us get the word out!
Interested in buying some of our fine art photography or just want to see some more of our work? Check out our Florida collection at our site: http://fineart.deremerstudios.com
Please note all photos on this site are the copyrighted property of Deremer Studios LLC unless otherwise noted. We share many of our photos for use as personal desktop wallpaper, but any other uses, including but not limited to printing, modifying, and any commercial use are strictly prohibited without prior written consent.
A Night to Remember: A Vibrant Amelia Island Evening
Check out our Deremer Studios site:
Commercial | Fine Art | Wedding & Portrait | Blog
Copyright 2016 Deremer Studios LLC – Jacksonville, FL
904-744-1103 | info@deremerstudios.com