Welcome back to part two of Alpine Magic where I continue my exploration of the Swiss and French Alps. If you haven’t read part 1, it’s worth a read, as I trekked around Zermatt and the Matterhorn before heading for Chamonix!

However, this part of Alpine Magic focuses on my adventures in Chamonix at the base of Mont Blanc in the French Alps.

Day 4: Monday, May 25th, 2009 – Off to France!

I awoke early in the morning, and like the day before, went out to shoot a cloud-less sunrise. I was still determined to try and get a decent Matterhorn sunrise, but unfortunately the weather never cooperated in giving me a great sunrise or sunset. Even so, it was still a blast trying and just seeing the Matterhorn left me in awe. Especially since it’s pyramid-like peak was covered in a golden alpine glow.

After the sunrise, we packed up and headed for the train station. Our train ride would take us from Zermatt back to Visp, and then to Martigny, across the border and finally to Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France! We grabbed one last amazing breakfast at Fuchs bakery on the way to the train station, and set off to visit France for the first time. The rail trips from Zermatt to Visp and then on to Martigny were beautiful. Martigny is an old Roman town, and I remember seeing at least one old castle up on a hill top that was likely Château de Tourbillon near Sion. The countryside was beautiful with the Rhone river running parallel to the train, vineyards on the hillsides and above them the Alps towering over the entire valley of Valais.

As beautiful as this train ride was, it didn’t even compare to the train ride that crossed the border from Martigny, Switzerland to Chamonix, France. This train ride is called the Mont Blanc Express and was covered by our Swiss rail pass even though Chamonix is in France. The scenery along the way is stunning. The train immediately climbs out of Martigny, passing through the Trient valley, with amazing views, dizzying heights, crashing waterfalls in beautiful forests and charming little villages. One of my biggest regrets to this trip was not having my camera out. I had expected to just enjoy the train ride to Chamonix, then take some shots when we came back this way towards the Berner Oberland a few days later, but that day was cloudy and rainy, so I missed the chance to keep a visual record, but I recall the train on the side of steep cliffs, looking off across the valleys and wondering how in the world people who lived in small houses on the mountainside ever got to their house with the incline on the side of some of these mountains. It looked like a dream mountain environment to explore.

By the time we arrived in France, the train was rolling through a few beautiful mountain towns like Vallorcine, where you changed trains to finish the ride to Chamonix. The Chamonix valley itself was gorgeous. Glacier’s hung from Mont Blanc massif, and the peaks towered over the valley in a way I’ve never seen before. Mont Blanc, which towers above the Chamonix valley on the south is the tallest mountain in Europe excluding Russia. Once we arrived in Chamonix, we had a few blocks to walk to our hotel, which gave us a good sense of the beautiful town. Hotel d’Larve, where we stayed in Chamonix, was right next to the Arve river, with great views of the Mont Blanc massif and Bossons glacier. We explored the hotel a little, and found they had a small rock climbing wall in their workout area. There was also a beautiful patio area next to the river with great views of Aiguille du Midi.

Once we had explored our hotel, we decided to walk through town and find some lunch. We happened upon an outdoor cafe, called Cafe Valentino. It took me a lot of Googling, looking at Google Maps and then pictures of restaurants to figure out what the name of this cafe was, and truthfully, I can’t even remember what I ate there for lunch. From the reviews online, it’s not surprising I can’t remember what I ate. The only thing I really remember about it was a waiter at the restaurant next door having the biggest handlebar mustache I’ve ever seen. We spent a the rest of the afternoon wandering the shops a little bit and just walking up and down some of the streets.

The best memory I have of Chamonix was when I ventured out on my own to explore the valley. In the evening, I took a walk towards the northeast in the Chamonix valley. It was in this evening that I fell in love with Chamonix. I walked along the Arve River, crossing bridges, through forests, shooting some photos and just generally enjoying an amazing evening in the quiet of this place. On a few occasions I talked to a local or two who was also out for a stroll. I was still in awe of how deep this valley was compared to the massive Mont Blanc. Mont Blanc is around 15000 feet, whereas the valley floor is around 3500 feet. That’s a HUGE different in elevation for someone living in the Great Plains of Kansas. Even Colorado, where I often visit, struggles to compare to this. Most ski resort and mountain towns are between 7500-9500 feet, and Colorado’s tallest mountains are called the 14ers, at 14000+ feet. And even those 14ers rarely nestle themselves right next to a town. So the grand scale of everything in Chamonix was impressive to say the least. Add in a beautiful evening and the sound of the glacier water roaring along the Arve River, and it made for a fantastic walk in the valley. Even as someone who is obsessed with taking photos of my travels, it was far more about the experience than the photos on this evening.

Day 5: Tuesday, May 26th, 2009 – Chamonix and the Mer de Glace

I awoke early (though a little later than I had planned), with hopes of getting a nice sunrise shot of Mont Blanc somewhere in the valley. I didn’t have a lot of time to find a good composition as the light was beginning to present some vivid colors in the clouds swirling above Mont Blanc. I set up shop in a open area near the Alpine Museum of Chamonix to shoot the beautiful sunrise unfolding above Bossons Glacier and Mont Blanc.

Breakfast at Hotel d’Larve was fantastic. There were many different types of breads and jams, local cheese, fruits and more. While we enjoyed this great food, we discussed what we wanted to do for the day. As we only had one full day in Chamonix, we had to decide how we were going to spend it. Many options were impossible. The cable cars and such on the north side of Chamonix to Brévent and Flégère were either on limited schedules or were still in off-season and not running. The original plan was to take the Aiguille du Midi cable car and then the cable car from there across the Mont Blanc massif to the Italian side at Courmayeur. The Aiguille du Midi cable car is the world’s highest vertical ascent cable car, going from just under 4000 feet in Chamonix, to the towering spires at over 12600 feet! At one point, during the trip planning, I had planned for to stay a night or two in Courmayeur, as they have a highly recommended hotel with an amazing Italian breakfast called Hotel Bouton d’Or. However, after contacting them, they informed me they were closed on the dates we were there for the off-season. This was a letdown, because the hotel and the entire area on the Italian side of Mont Blanc looked awesome.

Unfortunately, a number of things completely ended our hope to even make it to the Italian side of Mont Blanc. While the Aiguille du Midi cable car was running, the cable car running from there, across the border to Italy was in the off-season still. In addition, the weather looked a little sketchy with rain in the forecast, so we opted for taking the Montenvers train up to see the Mer de Glace instead of going up to Aiguille du Midi.

This option proved to be pretty amazing. We walked to the station that would take us from Chamonix up to the Montenvers rail station. The train that took us up here originally began operating in 1908 and the Grand Hotel in Montenvers has been open since 1880. But the real attraction to taking this train up here is the Mer de Glace which translates to “Sea of Ice.” The Mer de Glace is France’s longest glacier at almost 4.5 miles long and 650 feet deep of pure ice. We got off the train after a large group of French mountaineers with full gear, who immediately set off down the path and ladders that lead to the glacier to begin crossing it. In a few of the large stitched images I took of the glacier, this group of 20 or so mountaineers look like tiny ants on a giant sea of ice. We followed them down towards the glacier, stopping at the point where railings became sketchy without proper gear, admiring the beauty of Mer de Glace. As we went back to the train station, we found out about the Ice Cave. A cable car (or hike) with another walk down some bolted in metal stairs could take you down to the base of the glacier where you can enter the ice grotto. The Mer de Glace Ice Grotto was filled with many ice sculptures and beautiful caves. We explored these caves, reading about the history of the glacier and admiring the ice sculptures. As we left the ice grotto we decided to hike back up to the Montenvers train station. There were a lot of good look-out points to view the glacier from as we hiked back up. One of which can be seen below.

By the time we got back to Chamonix on the train, we were starving. Fortunately, Chamonix didn’t shut down shop like Zermatt did in the afternoon, so after dropping off our backpacks at the hotel we went in search of food. After walking up and down the streets of Chamonix, we decided to try a place called Poco Loco. We had eaten tons of cheese and bread most of the trip, but had been craving some protein and figured a good burger and fries would fit the bill. I got the special Poco Loco burger with fries (frites) while the others tried different kinds of burgers. Feeling satisfied from a good meal, we decided to get a nap in at the hotel for a bit.

Once we awoke in late afternoon, the stormy looking clouds that had been up at the glacier earlier in the day had made their way into the valley. We still wanted to do a little walking of the streets, knowing we would be leaving fairly early in the morning for our next destination and wouldn’t have time to explore then. So we walked the streets to check out the shops. I always like to see what local landscape photographers in mountain towns like Chamonix have to offer. I found a photo gallery of Chamonix photographer Mario Colonel that was unfortunately closed for the evening. I admired the images in the window as the rain began to fall. Within a few minutes, the drizzle turned to sheer downpour and we ducked into, of all places, a French McDonalds.

Once the rain died back off to a drizzle, we made our way back to the hotel. As this was my last night in France I wanted to make the most of it so I decided to venture out in the drizzle to explore the nearby area. While there was no chance of a sunset, the drizzle and clouds over the valley still created a nice effect moody scene. I wandered around the town square near the Tourism Office and eventually just past the church, where I eventually shot the image below.

Tour du Mont Blanc

Before finishing this part of the Alpine Magic travel series, I wanted to bring up a part of the trip that I researched heavily, but never actually did. When originally looking up where to visit in Europe, one spectacular idea called the Tour of Mont Blanc came up on a number of occasions. The Tour du Mont Blanc is an extremely amazing multi-day trek around the entire Mont Blanc massif, spanning France, Italy and Switzerland! It’s over 100 miles in length, typically starting in Chamonix, France, heading south, then cutting east into Italy, and eventually turning more northward from Courmayeur and into Switzerland before cutting back to the west and south to finish in Chamonix. The tour boasts more than 6 miles of ascent and descent in Val Veni, Val Ferret, Vallee des Glaciers, the Trient valley and more amazing places. There is a plethora of accommodations on the trek, ranging from simple dormitory based refuges to luxurious hotels. When I was considering this trek as part of my trip, I realized late May was quite a bit early for someone to tackle the Tour du Mont Blanc, as snow still covers many places of the trail, and most of the refuges and huts in the mountains, and even hotels in Courmayeur and other locations, were closed for the off season. While it didn’t work out on this trip, some day I still want to give this trek a go. The opportunities for great photography and just an amazing experience still keep me researching and thinking about this trek at least once a year.

Join me in a few days when part three of Alpine Magic continues back into Switzerland with a day spent walking the promenade of Montreux and exploring Switzerland’s famous Chateau de Chillon!

I have to admit, I should have written this travel journal of my 10 days in the Alps about 5 years ago and not waited so long to start a travel blog. This trip is what started my true love for traveling beyond the familiar to new places. Looking back through my life, the one place I have visited the most is Colorado. I still visit it at least once a year. These days it’s usually for it’s beautiful autumn aspens. It’s practically been my home away from home. From skiing as a 3-year old to hiking a 14er after college, I never get tired of the mountains. And the smell of those pine trees on a cool summer evening or crisp autumn morning has stuck with me all of my life. For almost 29 years, with the exception of a trip to Yellowstone and twice to the Black Hills of South Dakota, the majority of my vacation experiences were from the Colorado Rockies. Going out of the country was something I had always imagined and dreamed about, but until my late 20’s, I never took serious enough to realize that dream. By the time I was 26, I had become fairly overweight. I spent 3 months losing 60 pounds and getting into great shape. This new-found confidence in myself and an ever-growing interest in landscape photography had me again dreaming of visiting some of the world’s most beautiful mountain ranges to photograph and trek. The mountain landscapes of New Zealand. Torres del Paine and Los Glaciares National Park of South America. The Canadian Rockies. Denali National Park in Alaska. The Himalayas. European’s famous Alps. These are some of the most impressive and beautiful mountain ranges in the world. And I needed to finally take that step and visit one!

Like many people, I felt Europe was a great place to start my international travel experience. So I began researching a Europe trip. I started all over the place, from the Scottish Highlands to the islands of Greece. But I finally settled on the Swiss and French Alps. I spent months pouring over Switzerland travel books and Googling all the best places to visit. The iconic Matterhorn stuck out in my mind as a mountain I had to see in my lifetime. I read about Chamonix, just past the border of Switzerland, in the French Alps. I learned about a stunning cable car ride across the craggy peaks and giant glaciers of the Mont Blanc Massif lies Courmayeur in Italy. I saw pictures of all these places and got excited. And then I saw photos of the Lauterbrunnental Valley. This sold me. This beautiful green valley that is surrounded by cliff walls adorned with waterfalls from every angle. And yet higher still, the cliff walls are surrounded by some of the famous peaks of the Alps, including the mighty Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau! In the 1910’s, J.R.R. Tolkien took a backpacking trip through this reason, and it’s said that the beauty of the Lauterbrunnental Valley inspired the creation of Rivendell in the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit books. And so I decided upon a 10 day trip: Three nights in Zermatt-Matterhorn, Switzerland, two nights in Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France with a possible day-trip into Courmayeur in Italy, four nights in Lauterbrunnen and a final night in Zurich before flying home. The trip was set!

A little snag

With dreams of hiking near the Matterhorn, viewing Mont Blanc in Chamonix, and gazing on the beautiful Berner Oberland calling, I booked the plane tickets, hotel rooms and Swiss rail passes! The trip was originally supposed to be a group of four. Two friends who were moving back home after college, my brother and myself. Unfortunately our two friends couldn’t make it, but my brother’s girlfriend at the time was interested in seeing Europe. So the three of us put in our passport applications and waited. A few weeks later, two of us received passports. A few more weeks passed, but my brother’s passport never came. Less than a week remained before our flights to Zurich. This turned into quite the ordeal. Two days before our trip, my brother was forced into taking a flight to Houston to speak with the passport office in person. He was told that was the only way he would have a chance at getting his passport in time. Once he arrived and waiting in line for an hour, he was told he had wasted his time and there was nothing that could be done. Thankfully a phone call to a congressman’s office changed all that. Within an hour of that phone call, my brother was back at the passport office, with passport in hand.

Day 1: Friday, May 22nd, 2009 – My first day in Europe

After months of planning and a diverted fiasco, the day was finally here! We had two legs: Wichita to Atlanta and Atlanta to Zurich, Switzerland! By the time we boarded our flights from Wichita, we were already exhausted. My brother had already done a spur of the moment trip to Houston over the previous two days and I was so excited for the trip I barely slept in the days leading up to the trip. The time spent in the Atlanta airport was a blur. And the flight to Zurich was an over-nighter that at least brought a few hours of sleep. However, because of the direction we were going, we were losing about 8 hours, which drastically reduced the night time sleep on the plane. By the time we arrived in Zurich, it was 8AM but felt like 2AM! (because it practically was midnight in the States) The excitement of where we were was the only thing keeping us going! As tired as we were, we had a train ride from one end of the country to the other. Zurich is situated closer to the Germany border in the north, whereas Zermatt, our first destination, is maybe five miles from the Italian border in the south. What people from the United States don’t realize is that many countries in Europe are no bigger than most states in the US. So the world class rail system (more on that in a minute) is only 3-4 hours. So we got off the plane, and did some money exchanging while waiting for the next train ride out of Zurich. As the Swiss rail system is, as they say, like clockwork, our train was right on time. The train ride itself was beautiful, but I literally dozed off multiple times on the train, nearly missing our connection in Visp to Zermatt. However, in my zombie-like state, I still remember seeing amazing scenery! I’ve never seen so much color in my life! The train passed through many Swiss towns, including Bern, which is one of Switzerland’s famous and beautiful cities. The trees, plants and grass were just so green! Everything from Zurich to Zermatt was absolutely gorgeous! And even though I was dying from exhaustion, the thought of finally glimpsing one of the most famous mountains in the world, the Matterhorn, kept me awake on the final train ride up from Visp to Zermatt. I still remember bending around a mountain and finally glimpsing that majestic peak for the first time!

We arrived in Zermatt right on schedule, thanks again to that ever effecient Swiss timing. As it turns out, the apartment we stayed at, Casa Vanessa, in Zermatt was a little over half a mile from the rail station. Exhausted though we were, walking through a town as gorgeous as Zermatt for the first time is pretty amazing. Seeing the little tourist shops, the bakeries (a lot more on these later), the various stores selling cheese and chocolate, both of which Switzerland is famous for, was a great introduction to our first Swiss town! However, as enticing as these stores were, we needed a nap in a bad way and trudged on to the south end of Zermatt.

It took us a moment to find our apartment. One of the things I remember most about staying at the Casa Vanessa apartment was entering from the street level into what seemed like a cave. Once in the “cave”, we took an elevator and ended up in a really nice apartment complex. The rooms were great, with spacious area, nice beds, a great kitchen. While I knew I would spend far less time in any hotel or apartment than I would out seeing everything on this trip, it was still nice to stay in a great place!

After a much needed nap, we awoke in late afternoon to stroll around Zermatt, just taking in the sights. We walked across the town to the northeast side of town, on a hill, where I was able to shoot a post-sunset twilight image of Zermatt and the Matterhorn during the “blue hour” of the evening. After grabbing a few shots, we eventually made our way back towards the center of town where we stopped and ate at a restaraunt near the train station, splitting two delicious pizzas between the three of us before heading back to the apartment to call it a night.

Swiss Rail System

I should really take a pause from my adventure here to mention the extremely efficient Swiss rail system. It’s world class! It’s a beautiful way to travel in this amazing country. I’m not sure how the rail system is throughout the rest of Europe, as I’ve heard some places can be pretty bad – worker strikes, really late arrivals and departures, etc. – but in Switzerland, the train system is as punctual as their famous Swiss watches! It’s a cheaper alternative in most cases to renting a car or any other method of transportation within the country. Plus, there are some places in the Alps that are car free (Zermatt, Wengen, Murren and Gimmelwald all come to mind) that are accessible by rail, cable car or foot only. It’s a great way for someone from the States to really see the country! We had purchased a multiple-day Swiss rail pass that basically allowed us to ride the Swiss rail system as much as you like in the alloted time. There were a few specific or special train rides that were seperate of the cost of this, but for the most part, the pass could get you all over the country. One of the best features of the rail system is that it comes with free admission into many museums, castles, attractions and other discounts! It also gave both discounts and free admission on many of the cable cars that we took. In addition, even if a special train ride wasn’t part of the Swiss Pass, it usually gave quite a bit of discount to those with a pass. We took advantage of this multiple times on the trip, including the Jungfraujoch and Gornergrat! We also took advantage of it to visit other attractions such as the Chateau de Chillon and castle in Spiez to get in for free or much less than normal cost. All things considered, if you ever take a trip to Switzerland, a Swiss rail pass is the way to go.

Day 2: Saturday, May 23nd, 2009 – Exploring the Alps

Before my trip, I had many people tell me that the first few days would be tiring from the jetlag, but I actually awoke full of energy and ready to tackle a good hike! I chalked it up to a weird schedule which let us take a nap after arriving in Switzerland, which compensated for the time difference. Either way, I never felt this supposed jetlag the entire time I was there. It was like my body adjusted to the schedule immediately. Our plan for the morning was to take the underground funicular cable car to the Sunnegga Paradise area. We stopped at a local bakery called Fuchs to get some breakfast. This was our first experience in a Swiss bakery. And it wouldn’t be our last. I can’t explain how amazing the bakeries in Switzerland are! And Fuchs was one of the best. We grabbed some pastries and ate them on the way to the Sunnegga funicular station.

The funicular ride up to Sunnegga was interesting. It could probably be best described as a cross between a train and a ski lift built into a tunnel inside the mountain that stretched from Zermatt to a beautiful viewing platform and area called Sunnegga. My hope was to hike the famous 5-Seenweg (Five Lakes Walk), but we only really made it to two. The first, Leisee, was right near the Sunnegga paradise area, and only about a 10 minute walk down from there. We then hiked to Grindjisee, which is a beautiful lake with a clear view of the Matterhorn.

As a photographer, my hope was to capture a nice reflection shot of the Matterhorn in one of these lakes, but the day was extremely hazy, making it difficult to get any sort of good shot. In addition, being there in the off-season of late May had it’s trade offs. While it was more peaceful with less tourists, many of the cable cars and lifts were either on shortened hours or not running until June. It was after 10AM before we even arrived at Sunnegga and unfortuantely, the day we were up here it was extremely hazy. Other than the one above, I never really captured that reflection shot I hoped for. However, thankfully I did have a great time hiking around the mountainside on my first full day in Switzerland!

Aftter hiking in the high country, we were pretty tired and hungry. We got back to Zermatt a little later than lunch time, and found that most restaurants close for a few hours in the afternoon. So we grabbed some food at the COOP, which is Switzerland’s largest retail and wholesale company. It’s a pretty sweet grocery store, selling lots of organic foods and leading the charge as a very eco-friendly and sustainable retailer. Back in 2011, they were awarded the title of “World’s Most Sustainable Retailer” by German-based Oekom Research agency.

Once we got back to the apartment, we had a nice lunch that probably consisted of way too much cheese (not that I’m complaining – it was amazing!), some great bread and Fanta soda. The rest of the afternoon was spent napping. After a few hours of rest, I set off to explore the south side of Zermatt. My hope was to shoot a nice sunset of the Matterhorn, but clouds muted any color I could hope for. Even without a vivid sunset, it was still a beautiful place to be, and as we were there in the off-season, it was very peaceful to just explore and relax.

Day 3: Sunday, May 24th, 2009 – Glimpsing a Glacier

We awoke to a beautiful clear morning and so I was up early to attempt a sunrise. I really was hoping for that iconic alpineglow view of the Matterhorn. After 2 days, I was still so mesmerized by this famous mountain that I had only seen in books or on the Internet. After getting a few shots, we decided to splurge for a train ride up to the Gornergrat (Gorner Ridge) and the giant Gorner glacier that resided up there. So we trekked back through town and stopped at another Fuchs bakery for more delicious breakfast treats near the entrance for the Gornergrat train.

The train ride up the Gornergrat was spectacular! The Gornergrat Bahn (or train) was the first fully electrified cog railway, built in the late 1800’s! Nowadays, like many things in Switzerland, it’s very green and eco-friendly. On the ride up to the Gornergrat station, we glimpsed some amazing views of the Matterhorn along the way, also crossing some beautiful bridges that had dizzying views. Once at the top, we found that not much was open. Like many things in late May, we were there in the off-season, so while everything was far less touristy (and cheaper), many things were either not open, or had limited hours. Some had hotels, like the Gornergrat, but unfortunately, were not open when we were there. Had I been there during these times, I’m sure I would have taken advantage to shoot some sunrises and sunsets from higher in the Alps! But we really weren’t at the Gornergrat to shop or eat, so we set foot above the observatory to take in the stunning panorama before us!

This was my first time seeing a glacier in person. I will never forget it. Nothing can fully explain what it’s like to see a giant glacier sprawled out before you. A huge river of ice with the power to crush the rock below it. The Gorner glacial system is actually the second largest glacial system in the Alps, only smaller than the massive Aletsch glacial system to the north of it. From the Gornergrat we could not only see this massive glacier, but also many of the famous peaks of the Alps. Obviously the Matterhorn was in view, with it’s famous pyramidal peak, but also Monte Rosa, Switzerland’s tallest mountain, topping out at 15,203 feet stood before us!

The above photo is a stitched panorama that can be printed at ridiculous sizes (at least 20×5 feet). One of my obsessions on this trip was to stitch photos together to be printed at extremely larger sizes. Once I got home and had to do all the editing of these, I thought twice about doing this on future trips. It takes a lot of time. However, you can read more about these large format images on my prints page. Many of the photos I took on this trip can be printed at giant sizes.

In addition to the amazing views, some of the local wildlife also greeted us. A family of ibex (a mountain goat that live in the Alps) were happily content to hover around the salt lick that’s installed at the Gornergrat. Walking back to the train station, we stopped to admire the “Bernhard von Aosta” chapel. After about 50 years of Sunday mass being held in the Gornergrat hotel dining room, the bishop expressed a wish for this chapel to be built. In 1950, construction began and when finished, it was dedicated to Saint Bernard. And it was soon after seeing the chapel dedicated to Saint Bernard that we met our first St. Bernard dog! We had just left the chapel, and wandered in to where the shops were. A post card shop owner was telling his dog to come into the store. This was pretty cool, as we were probably 15 miles from Great St. Bernard Pass where the St. Bernard is said to have originated from. After checking out some shops and buying a few postcards to send to family, we decided to head back to town.

That evening was a relaxing one, again spent wandering around the south side of Zermatt and into the countryside. I often find these times to be the best of a trip. It was a beautiful night with no wind and great temperatures. I took my camera and just walked and explored. Sometimes shooting a scene, and sometimes just marveling at the beauty around me. We stopped at the cross in the picture above numerous times, as it was just south of our apartment. This night wasn’t so much about photography, but just walking at the base of possibly the most famous mountain on the planet. I can also still remember the farms outside of town, with lots of sheep running around, the cross situated on the trail to Zmutt and the signs to hike to one of the Ricola herbal farms. On the way back, I shot what I could get of a subdued and cloudy sunset and we went back to the apartment complex to get ready for our next location: Chamonix, France.

Check back in a few days for part 2 of Alpine Magic where we travel just across the border to Chamonix, France.

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of photographing a couple of iconic Wichita locations during a winter storm that had already dumped huge amounts of snow on the western half of the US. While we didn’t get the same dumping here in Wichita, what we did receive made for some beautiful photography weather! Below are a couple of shots from that photo session in the snow!

Friends University campus, during a subdued sunset hour that added a purple tint to the scene!

The Keeper of the Plains, iconic here in Wichita, is illuminated by the falling snow and winter conditions.

To view more photos from from these locations in the wintery weather, visit the New Photos gallery!

It has been a great year for Mickey Shannon Photography, with opportunities to shoot in a multitude of locations from my home in Kansas, to the Garden Island of Kauai, Hawaii! This collection comes from images I have posted on here on my website, along with my Facebook, Instragram and other social media pages. Thanks for taking the time to view and read, and I appreciate all your support over the past year!

1. Kilauea Lighthouse Sunset

My absolute #1 best photo in 2014, like many of the other photos from this top 14 in 2014 feature comes from the Garden Island of Kauai! I shot this at the overlook of Kilauea Lighthouse on the north side of Kauai, and captured one of the best sunsets of the trip! The sky lit up in amazing shades of purple, blue and red. The turbulent Pacific Ocean was a deep shade of blue, and they don’t call Kauai the Garden Island for nothing, as the plants in the area were a deep shade of green. There may not have been a rainbow in this photo, but almost all the vivid colors of a rainbow were presented in this amazing sunset overlooking the most famous lighthouse on Kauai!

2. Waimea Canyon Rainbow

#2 in my top 14 photos of 2014 is one of the best shots I’ve ever captured! This was completely by chance too. A rainstorm (which is quite typical on Kauai) rolled through the beautiful Waimea Canyon on the afternoon I shot this. We were driving by one of the small pulloffs on the road up to Kokee State Park and this vivid rainbow was in full view near Waipoo Falls. So I composed the shot with both the falls and the rainbow and came away with this shot!

3. Colorful Hanging Lake

Coming at #3 in my top 14 photos of 2014 is my favorite shot of Hanging Lake in Visit Glenwood Springs Colorado! I shot this back in October and it’s definitely one of my favorite shots of the year! The color of that lake is absolutely stunning and a must-do hike to see it for anyone traveling in the state of Colorado!

4. Winter Twilight in Rocky Mountain National Park

Coming at #4 in my top 14 photos of 2014 is a unique winter shot of Rocky Mountain National Park from early January! The atmosphere in this shot is what makes it special to me. I normally don’t shoot as many winter scenes as summer or autumn, but I feel this one is one of my better ones!

5. Magical Hanalei Valley

Coming in at #5 is another shot from the beautiful Hanalei Valley. This was shot in the afternoon at the tail end of an amazing rainbow that faded away fast as this shot was being taken. You can see it off in the left of the photo.

6. Early Morning at the Hanalei Bay Pier

#6 in the list top 14 in 2014 feature also comes from the Hanalei area. This is the Hanalei Bay Pier, which was built in the late 1800s and remodeled on a few occasions over the years. The area is popular with local surfers as I was shooting this sunrise with at least a dozen local surfers getting ready to head into what I thought were some pretty rough waves out there. Hanalei Bay is also a popular boating and fishing area, as you can see many sailboats out there in the waters.

7. Purple Hanalei Bay

#7 on the list of top 14 photos from 2014 is called “Purple Hanalei”. I shot this at the overlook of Hanalei Bay as sunset was beginning to light up the entire scene with a vivid purple hue.

8. Stormy Coronado Heights Panorama

#8 in my top 14 photos of 2014 brings another Kansas shot. This one was a hair-raiser. We were traveling south from Minneapolis, Kansas, and had visited Rock City. Some late season storms (it was the day before Labor Day) were forming and looking pretty ominous!

As we got to Coronado Heights, I started setting up my camera and realized these storms were moving in fast! I started shooting this image, and within 30 seconds, a wall of wind slammed the area. Considering tornadoes were accompanying some of these storms, we high-tailed it out of there after finishing this image. But it was one of those raw awe-inspiring moments for the quick time I was watching this storm close down on the the hill that houses Coronado Heights!

9. Hanalei Valley Sunrise

Coming in at #9 in my top 14 photos of 2014 is Hanalei Valley Sunrise. This valley is one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to in my life! The tropical mountains and taro fields mix with warm light coming in from the sunrise to the left to create a beautiful scene below! The amount of deep green in the photo is indicative to Kauai’s title of the Garden Island of Hawaii. There’s color everywhere. And everywhere you turn is a waterfall or tropical plant.

10. Ke’e Beach Sunset

This sunset was one of the best we had in our time in Hawaii! It clocks in at #10 for the top 14 photos in 2014 feature! Ke’e Beach, where this was taken, is the starting point for the famous Kalalau Trail. You can see the rugged mountains jutting out of the ocean in the left of the picture. The Kalalau Trail follows those mountains around the northwest side of Kauai before landing in the beautiful Kalalau valley!

11. The Colors of Natural Falls

Coming in at #11 of the “Top 14 in 2014” feature is from a waterfall in eastern Oklahoma on the edge of the Ozarks. While on a trip to Tulsa, OK for a soccer tournament, the wife and I took a side adventure to a place called Natural Falls State Park, which features this dual waterfall. The tallest of the falls tops out at 77 feet!

One interesting note about this photo: About a month ago, Alaska Airlines used it to promote their new Oklahoma City runs! You can view that on the Alaska Airlines Instagram Account Page for this photo.

12. Fiery Sunrise at the Maroon Bells

#12 of my top 14 photos in 2014 brings the autumn colors of the Maroon Bells to life! I shot this from the edge of Maroon Creek, which empties into the famous Maroon Lake where hundreds of photographers will line the edge waiting for sunrise in autumn over the Maroon Bells! I’ve been on multiple occasions, and almost always try to find a different angle of the autumn color-coated Bells. This was 2014’s result!

13. Stormy Sunset at the Keeper of the Plains

Coming in at #13 in the top 14 photos of 2014 feature is the only shot I actually put in my portfolio from the Keeper of the Plains this year. Usually I have a slew of Keeper shots each year, but I took a bit of a break to shoot other things. This year, I will be attempting to shoot at least one shot of the Keeper every week of the year (excluding when I’m out of town).

This particular shot was taken as clouds were rolling by. The upper clouds in the distance had intense orange and red in them, while the lower darker clouds were never hit by the sun. The contrast was really interesting and made for a unique shot.

This photo was featured in a 27 Things People From Wichita Have To Explain To Out-Of-Towners. I featured at #4!

14. Blue Hour at Waimea Bay Pier

Coming in at #14 is a shot I took on my very first morning in Kauai! It was a beautiful morning. While the sunrise never really took on a lot of color, the sky was still beautiful and it was amazing just listening to the crashing waves at the pier in Waimea. I was almost completely alone on this gorgeous beach with only a lone Hawaiian fishermen sharing the beach with me that morning.

2013 was an interesting year for my photography and contrasted greatly with 2012. In 2012, I traveled more than I have ever traveled in a single year. Two massive road trips that covered a majority of the entire US and Canada west coast combined for 7,000 plus miles of stunning scenery dominated my portfolio in 2012.. For 2013, outside of a short trip to Colorado for fall colors, my entire year is made up with local Kansas shots. In one year, I went from single to married, and it was absolutely a great year! However, just because my life changed dramatically, I don’t feel as though my photography suffered. It just took a different and unique direction. I focused more on the local scene, spending a lot of time at the Keeper of the Plains and out on the open skies of the beautiful Flint Hills of Kansas! Below is a collection of 13 of my best images from 2013!

13. Star Trails Over Teter Rock

Teter Rock, Kansas, USA – February

This image stands out to me mostly because I tried something a little different with my star trails. When I shot the star trails in this image, I took 30 second exposures for 30 minutes to an hour. Usually when I use this technique, I stack them into one image to create this effect. The other method is to just shoot a long bulb shot for 30 minutes or more. In this particular image I used the stacking method. However, I tried something new by increasing the exposure on the last shot. It created a sort of brighter “tail” to each star trail. I’ll be using this technique and more to try to make my night shots stand out as more unique in the coming year.

12. Geary State Fishing Lake Waterfall

Geary State Fishing Lake, Kansas – June

This was shot during a short trip into the Flint Hills for my now-wife’s birthday. We wanted to find this waterfall as I had heard it was one of the largest in Kansas. It was before the flooding later in the summer, but still had some good spring melt runoff going on. It stands out to me as the first Kansas waterfall in an adventure I’ve started to undertake to find them all!

11. Kansas Gold

Wichita, Kansas – June

I shot this shortly before harvest near Wichita. The wheat fields swaying in the wind looked like swirls of gold against a beautiful Kansas sky. Hence the title Kansas Gold.

10. A Hint of Autumn

Maroon Bells, Colorado – September

This one is a little different for me. I usually get drawn in by grand landscape scenes, but lately I’ve been trying my hand at more intimate scenes like the one here. This was one of my favorites from the September fall colors trip out to Colorado. I was really happy with the contrast between the snow covered pine’s and the few stands of aspens spread out to give it a splash of warm color.

9. Chisolm Creek Fall Colors

Wichita, Kansas, USA – October

This autumn there was a good 2-3 day period of lots of rain. I had moved to a new place on the northeast side of Wichita, and decided to check out the Chisholm Creek Park trail system to find a few good locations to shoot. I managed to find this little waterfall (shortly after dropping my lens cap in the same creek and slipping camera first into the mud). With the water pouring heavily over the falls, I shot what I feel is one of the best autumn shots I’ve managed in Kansas.

8. Summer Sunset at the Keeper of the Plains

Wichita, Kansas – July

After years of drought an a nearly empty Arkansas River in downtown Wichita, the area was graced by lots of flooding, causing the River to swell to heights not seen for a few years. It made for some more interesting shots than a foreground of grass where there should be water. I shot this when the river was at about it’s normal height, with the fire pits going and a beautiful sunset in the background.

7. Keeper of the Plains Lightning

Wichita, Kansas, USA – July

Every year, I manage to get at least one crazy lightning shot down at the Keeper of the Plains. This year was no exception, and produced the shot above. Usually the place clears out when the storms get closer, but there was a surprisingly large amount of people enjoying the light show with us. The end result is what you see above.

6. Lower Chase Lake Falls

Chase State Fishing Lake, Kansas – June

I took this shot back in June on a birthday day trip with my now wife. This was the best shot from that particular trip. While the waterfall wasn’t flowing heavily, it still made for a beautiful scene. It’s still probably my favorite waterfall to shoot in the state, because I always seem to get a good shot there. I’m sure I’ll be back in the spring this year, or even in the winter if a good rainstorm hits.

5. The Heartland of America

Wichita, Kansas, USA – June

One complaint I’ve had for years about my Kansas galleries is the lack of wheat and sunflower fields. While I’ve yet to get a few sunflower field shots, I did manage to capture a few good shots of the beautiful wheat fields that Kansas farms are known for! The sky was brilliant the night I shot this, with beautiful cloud formations to work with and the wind rustling the amber waves of grain gave some of the images from that day a swirl of gold for the foreground.

4. Silent Night Over East Beckwith Mountain

Lost Lake Slough, Kebler Pass Area, Colorado, USA – September

This one took a lot of time to get right. Every time I go to Colorado, I plan to take a few night shots. Whether it’s because of time constraints, weather or some other reason, I never seem to get one. This time I was bound and determined to shoot a good Milky Way shot. This particular one was fun, as it was a new place. I had heard that the Kebler Pass area west of Crested Butte was beautiful in the autumn, but didn’t realize how beautiful! Camped at Lost Lake Slough, the area is definitely one of the more remote campgrounds in the state. Beautiful aspen colors, tons of hiking trails and gorgeous scenery dominate the area. A few hours after I shot this, clouds rolled in and we woke up to a snow covered tent the next morning. But what a beautiful night of stars it was!

3. Autumn at Chase Lake Falls

Chase State Fishing Lake, Chase County, Kansas, USA

This image was shot by complete accident. I had been trying to find time to shoot a good autumn scene at one of the many waterfalls I had found over the summer. I missed shooting with the leaves still up in the trees, but made it over to the falls at Chase State Fishing Lake as the leaves scattered the ground and pool of water below the lower waterfall. The early morning sun kept peeking out from the clouds just enough to give some interesting side light to the scene. To say I had planned this shot would be a lie, as this is one of those photos that I love but was taken by sheer luck!

2. Autumn and Winter Collide at the Maroon Bells

Maroon Bells, Aspen, Colorado – September

This photo moved up the ranks of my top photos pretty quick. The day I spent traveling around the mountains near Aspen during a brief collision of autumn and winter was pretty spectacular! Beautiful autumn colors mixed with wintery scenes to create the scene above. One of the nice things about shooting on the night this was taken was the complete lack of photographers. I’ve been there on cool autumn mornings with 200 other photographers lining the lake trying to capture the same sunrise image of the Bells. I usually become disappointed in knowing I’m getting the same shot as everyone, and walk around the lake to the creek beyond. On this evening, however, there were only two of us braving the cold for a good shot of the Bells as they would appear, disappear and reappear every few minutes from the clouds that were, at times, dropping good amounts of snow on the already beautiful scene. Shortly before I shot this scene, a moose wandered out of the woods to the north of the lake, followed by 4-5 photographers all trying to get a good shot of him. Even more comical, after I finished shooting this scene, the moose wandered back out of the trees on the other side of the lake stalking those same photographers who had gotten way too close.

1. Delano District Sunset

Wichita, Kansas – January

There is no way that this image wasn’t going to make first place! I could have traveled as much as I did in 2012 and probably not found a sunset as stunning as this one was back in January. This was shot on a chilly Friday evening in January only one year ago at the Delano clocktower. Besides the beauty of the sunrise, there are two things that I remember standing out to this photograph. First, the image was used as the cover of the 2013 Delano Visitors Guide, available at businesses throughout the Delano area of Wichita. Second, I remember my now-wife going nuts for this photo when I first posted it. (we had traded Facebook comments about both the sunrise and sunset that day. It was only a few shorts weeks later that I took her to a local lake to teach her star trails. This photo will always be special to me for that reason!

I also want to share one photo that I don’t have for sale, but would for sure be on this list if it was in my portfolio. Back in late July, I proposed to my then girlfriend and now wife (married for all of 12 days now!). Being a landscape photographer, I had to get the ultimate picture of my proposal. I had it all ready to go. Teter Rock was a special place for us, as we hung out for one of the first times out there on the prairie. I had taken a few night shots out there before, and knew exactly what I wanted for my proposal. A picture of the proposal with all the beautiful stars in the background. Full the full story of the proposal, just click the picture. You can read all about how I used a remote to capture the scene below.

As you can see, this was a pretty active year of local photography. 2014 is already shaping up to be a great year as well! I’ve already made it to Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado to start the year off with some winter fun! For all who have asked me for years to add some tropical ocean shots to my portfolio, it looks like this will be the year to do it! I will also have a major art show this summer at a good location here in Wichita that I will announce at some point soon! Not to mention, plans for a complete revamp of my website and blog! So keep checking back in 2014 to see what kind of amazing stuff I have in store! And feel free to comment here and on Facebook to let me know what kinds of photography you’d like to see!

Here’s a few honorable mentions:
Lined up for the Show
Chase Lake Falls of Gold
Waterfalls of Cowley State Fishing Lake
Keeper of the Clouds
Lights of Delano District
Keeper of the Fog
Blizzard of Oz
Keeper of the Plains Winter Landscape
Star Trails Over Teter Rock

Last Friday I proposed to my girlfriend! While this blog has mostly been used to update you with new photography or trip reports, I thought it would be nice to show a bit of the personal side and give you the story of our proposal and engagement! It’s also worth posting the photograph of our engagement, as I had to do a little creative planning to get the photograph I wanted of our proposal moment. Teter Rock has been one of my favorite places to photograph here in Kansas, as I have been shooting there for over a year now. I really wanted a beautiful nighttime proposal scene under a sky full of stars. I shot the proposal with a remote trigger, and combined three exposures. One for the actual proposal/foreground elements, one for the candle-lit ground, and one for the sky. The photo below is the final product:

Now, what would a proposal picture be without a story to follow? This is the story of our engagement as I posted on Facebook last night:

“On Friday I proposed to my girlfriend and she said yes! 🙂 We wanted to share the story of the proposal, as many have asked us about it as we have been telling people about our engagement. As most of you know, I’m a photographer, and I had to make sure to get a good photo of our proposal, so I had my remote trigger ready for this event! I proposed at Teter Rock out on the Flint Hills near Cassoday, Kansas. This spot was memorable for us. It was only the second time hanging out when we first visited Teter Rock, and we spent at least 6 hours shooting photos, talking and becoming friends! She very quickly became my best friend, and on the night of July 26th, 2013 we became officially engaged!

Over the years, I had decided that when I found the right one, I wanted to propose in Italy at a place called Via dell’Amore in Cinque Terre on the Mediterranean Sea. Having only dated for a shorter period of time (because when you know, you just know!), a Europe trip would be difficult on such short notice. So as I was thinking of something special to come up with for a proposal idea, I remembered the story of the Via dell’Amore. Cinque Terre is a rugged area on the Mediterranean Sea that consists of five beautiful villages. Between two villages is the Via del’Amore (the Pathway of Love) where in the past, the guys and girls of these two villages would get together to propose or marry. Up until this trail was made, contact outside the villages was rare because of their remoteness and ruggedness of the region. One of the traditions of the Via dell’Amore is the “Love locks”. A couple will take a padlock and lock it together, then throw the key off the cliff into the ocean, meant to symbolize the locking of their love together. So I bought a vintage looking padlock and had it engraved with our initials. One day soon, we will take it to Italy and lock at Cinque Terre, as traveling is something we both want to do a lot of!

So last Friday, the weather was showing clear skies and wonderful temperatures for the middle of summer. For those not used to Kansas in the country, we have some of the most beautiful sunsets and starry night skies around! The idea of proposing under the stars has always been romantic to me. So I picked her up and we grabbed some dinner, along with candles, blankets and such for what she thought was a date night under the stars to watch a meteor shower. When we got to Teter Rock, the last light of the sunset had just faded and the stars were bright and shining! I knew the moon was supposed to come up around 11, which would illuminate the scene, but also kill the stars. So I set the camera up to shoot a scene with the Milky Way in the background that I would layer onto the proposal scene to create the photo this story is attached to. I snapped a few exposures, all the while she’s asking me to come eat with her instead of messing with my camera. She didn’t quite realize I was getting it ready to photograph her proposal. 🙂 So after getting the camera ready, I came to sit and eat with her. She was a little cold so we got her wrapped up in the blanket and finished off our food. At this point, a few coyotes decided to howl in the distance (if I’m honest, they were probably closer than I’ve ever heard them out there). While I know the coyotes out there are more afraid of us than we are of them, that didn’t help her desire to hightail it to the car and camp out to watch the stars in the comfort of safety. I wasn’t sure what to do at this point. I knew I needed to propose, but I didn’t want to do it while she was freaking out. I considered waiting for another time, but realized it might be a while before I got her out here again. After sitting in the car warming up a bit (and honking the horn and blaring the radio to scare off the coyotes) I talked her into taking the photo. She had calmed down and seemed fine at this point, so I went back out to get the camera settings changed for the new moonlit sky. I had her come out to model the settings, with her totally expecting to get a nice photo of us together. The settings were right. She was happy and not freaking out about coyotes. It was time! The moment had arrived! I walked over to our little romantic candlelit picnic area, and we took a photo together. After taking the photo, I told her “Oh, I want to get one more photo”. She looked at me, and at this point, I dropped to one knee and asked her to be my wife. I’ve never seen so much happiness before, as she was literally shaking and grinning from ear to ear. She said YES!

After we enjoyed the moment for a few minutes, I gave her the lock and explained the story. She already knew of Cinque Terre and the Via dell’Amore as I had told her I wanted to visit it someday. We left our special place in the Flint Hills with the promise to “love lock” the lock in Italy someday and throw the key off the cliffs into the sea below.”

That’s the story of our proposal and engagement! It was great to do it under a sky full of stars out at Teter Rock. It’s one of the most beautiful places in Kansas!

Over the course of the past few years, I have been blessed with the chance to travel to many beautiful places. In 2009, I took a trip to the Swiss and French Alps. I saw the majestic Matterhorn, many massive glaciers and a valley of waterfalls that inspired Tolkien to create Rivendell in Lord of the Rings. On a trip in early 2012 I took a 5 day, near 3000 mile whirlwind tour of the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas, Big Sur, San Francisco, the Redwoods, the Oregon Coast and finally the Columbia River Gorge near Portland. Later in 2012, I took a solo trip into the Canadian Rockies and saw some of the most beautiful mountain scenery I have ever witnessed. I camped out at the top of the famous Columbia Icefields near the Athabasca Glacier. And almost twice a year, like clockwork, I go hiking at my second home in the Colorado Rockies.

These are all adventures that I cherish. However, I live in Kansas. We don’t have towering peaks, 10 mile long glaciers or the crashing Pacific Ocean. This leads many to think that there is no beauty or adventure to be found here. And so many people never bother to look and see what a place like Kansas has to offer. But if you’re willing to look, you can find beauty in Creation anywhere. A year ago, I went to find Teter Rock. Teter Rock is a 20-something foot tall rock at the top of a tall hill in the Flint Hills that was originally used as a way-point for settlers crossing the plains many years ago. Torn down to use as constructions materials, the current Teter Rock was erected in the 1950s as a monument to the original. The view from this area is really beautiful. You can see for miles. My first time visiting Teter Rock last July was meant to be a shooting session for a sunset. I definitely captured a beautiful Flint Hills sunset. (which can be viewed in my Flint Hills gallery) But what came with the sunset was an amazing experience. Being from Kansas, I’m used to thunderstorms. We get everything from a rain shower to a tornado warning. But experiencing a Kansas storm roll across the open prairie like that is much different than experiencing it from the window of your home. Watching lightning crash down and hearing the rumble of thunder across the Flint Hills was an awe-inspiring experience I won’t soon forget. This experience reminded me of some lyrics in the Rich Mullins song, Calling Out Your Name:

“Where the sacred rivers meet / Beneath the shadow of the Keeper of the Plains / I feel thunder in the sky / I see the sky about to rain / And I hear the prairies calling out Your name”

These lyrics sum up what it’s like to be standing on the prairie during a thunderstorm with not a soul around for miles. If you’re from here in Kansas and have never experienced the open prairie during a thunderstorm, take a drive out in the Flint Hills and just sit and watch for a bit. It’s a pretty amazing experience. I have been back to Teter Rock 4-5 times to shoot everything from the night time sky to the aftermath of a blizzard. It’s still beautiful no matter the season. I have also since expanded my Kansas travels past Teter Rock. A few weeks ago, I shot a sunset at the Konza Prairie which is another beautiful part of the Flint Hills that’s just south of Manhattan. This made me want to take my girlfriend there to show her the beauty here in Kansas. So last Sunday I took her on a bit of an adventure through the Flint Hills. She shares my desire to see lots of beautiful places around the world and I figured it would be fitting to start by having a little adventure right here in Kansas.

The plan was to visit a few waterfalls I had researched a few months ago and to stop at a few scenic viewpoints. You can view a map of our Flint Hills adventure to see where all our travels took us that day. The first main stop was probably the best: Geary State Fishing Lake. The lake itself is pretty enough. Hilly, lots of trees and even some small cliffs in places. However, it wasn’t the lake that we stopped for.

I had read that the spill-off for this lake has a pretty impressive waterfall during spring and after storms when water is flowing. So we parked in the little make-shift dirt parking lot and started walking across the dam. At the end of the damn, we started down a faint trail that led in the direction of the sound of running water. Not more than a minute or two later and we came out at the top of a 30-40 foot drop-off with a very impressive waterfall for the state of Kansas. As far as I know, this is the largest waterfall in the state. And it’s certainly impressive. After shooting some photos from the top of the waterfall, we hiked down an even fainter trail through the trees to the bottom of the waterfall to get another perspective. I kept thinking to myself that the area would look stunning in the fall right after a rain storm when the water is flowing and the leaves are golden. I made a mental note to come back to get some more shots in the fall. An overnight stay at the lake might be nice too; as I’m sure the stars would shine bright that far away from any major cities.

After spending some time wandering around the waterfall, we made our way back to the car and headed off for Manhattan for water and gas. After filling up, we stopped at the scenic overlook south of Manhattan. Lighting wasn’t good for photos, but I had stopped here two weeks previous and captured a really good sunset image.

This area is near to the Konza Prairie. We didn’t have time to stop and hike around, but one of these days I’d like to go back and do some exploring there. However, the scenic viewpoint is a great place to view a sunset. The Konza Prairie is a native tall grass preserve in the heart of the Flint Hills. Because of its steep-slopes overlain by shallow limestone soil, it is unsuitable for farming, which has left this area virtually untouched over the years. While it would have been nice to enjoy a quality sunset together at this scenic overlook, it was still hours before the sun was to go down.

We decided to head back towards home with a few more stops along the way. Heading south on KS-177, we stopped briefly at the scenic Council Grove Lake. As time was running out before sunset, we skipped the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, and made our way to Cottonwood Falls. We headed west for a few miles to the Chase County State Fishing Lake to find the waterfalls in the spill off of the lake. After parking and walking across the dam, we followed the spill off towards the area of the waterfalls. The lake spill off is known to have at least 3 separate falls. Unfortunately this area had not received as much rainfall as Geary State Fishing Lake, as the waterfalls were mere trickles. They were still beautiful, but not nearly as impressive as the waterfall we had viewed earlier in the day. We spent a little time exploring and I made a mental note to come back after a rainstorm and in the fall when the leaves are turning colors. Both this area and the other falls should provide some beautiful autumn colors to work with. The pools that form below the waterfalls twirled the water around enough that I’m sure a few golden leaves would create a beautiful swirl of gold and orange colors come autumn. As it was starting to get towards evening, we hiked back up to the car, and headed south for the turnpike. The sunset hit while we were heading back to Wichita with no place to really stop and shoot it, so we just enjoyed the view and had some wonderful conversation on the way back home.

This little day trip reminded me of the biggest reason I shoot photography when traveling. I have a great desire to share my experiences and adventures with my friends, family and all who are interested. But to take someone with me and show them beautiful places in person is even better. I was glad to share the experience of the Flint Hills with my girlfriend. It makes me anxious to hopefully one day show her my favorite places in the Colorado Rockies or the crashing waves of the Pacific Ocean. Nothing brings me greater joy and inspiration than to see the look of wonder and amazement on someone’s face when they see something so beautiful as a glacier or the waves crashing against the rocks at the ocean. Many people remark about how they wish they could travel to the places I visit. The truth is that I travel on a smaller budget than many realize. I save money where I can and use my vacation time wisely. But traveling doesn’t have to be to faraway exotic places. When I posted these waterfall photos on my personal Facebook page, I got comments and messages asking how in the world we found the Geary Lake waterfall. It’s easy. We explored. The point is that there is beauty to be found at home no matter where in the world you live. Many call Kansas “flat as a pancake” and “boring”. I find it beautiful. Not the same beautiful as the Swiss Alps or rainforests forests of the Pacific Northwest, but a beauty all of it’s own. You just have to be willing to experience it. So whatever place you call home, go explore it. There’s beauty to be had in Creation from the tallest mountain to the flat praire. You just be willing to go find it.

A few new photos have been added to the Wichita, Kansas gallery. Most are from the Keeper of the Plains, either at sunset or during a New Years Eve winter storm, but one image is from the historic Delano District here in Wichita. It might just be the best sunset I’ve ever had the privilege of shooting. After having posted it on Facebook, the photo went viral, being shared on various Kansas Facebook and Twitter pages. You can view these photos in the Wichita, Kansas gallery! I plan to keep shooting more frequently with a goal to bulk up the Kansas galleries heavily this year.

2012 was an amazing year for me! I managed to travel the American (US and Canada) West extensively in a short period of time. Two major road trips spanning a total of over 7,000 miles in under 2 weeks weilded some great adventures and my best photography yet! From the majestic Canadian Rockies to the rugged Pacific coastline, the west is truley a place to explore! After the amazing year that 2012 was for traveling, I can only hope 2013 turns out even better! With that said, I present the images below as my 12 favorite photographs of the year 2012!

1. Spectrum of a Sunrise

San Simeon, California – January

It’s interesting that my very first time visiting the Pacific Ocean should also end up being my best photograph of it. In late January, I took a crazy 3500 mile 5-day road trip from my home in Wichita, Kansas, passing through the Grand Canyon and Vegas on the way to the Pacific Ocean and eventually on up the coastline to San Francisco, the Redwoods and our final destination of Portland, Oregon. We hit the Pacific Ocean after dark at San Simeon on the south end of Big Sur. When I woke up the next morning, I was greeted to this magnificent sunrise! It was easily one of the most beautiful sunrises I have ever witnessed and produced a number of fine images that morning. This image was the first I took, and turned out the best!

2. Moraine Lake Sunset

Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada – August

It’s rather hard to take a bad picture at a place like Moraine Lake. For years, I dreamed of traveling to this spot to photograph the lake. There’s a reason it’s so highly regarded as one of the best mountain lakes in the world! It’s just that beautiful and easily the most stunning alpine mountain lake I’ve ever seen! The funny thing is, during the 2 days I had to photograph in this area, I never really captured the image I want. The weather never cooperated to give me a stunning sunrise or sunset. The wind never truley died down to give me that crystal clear reflection I had hoped for. Yet, I still love this image in all it’s imperfection.

3. Legend of Multnomah Falls

Columbia River Gorge, Oregon – August

When you visit Multnomah Falls in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge of Oregon, you get a sense of awe about them. Maybe it’s the local legends about how the falls were formed. Or maybe it’s just the fact that Multnomah Falls is the crown jewel of an area that’s highly regarded for it’s large concentration of waterfalls. Everywhere you turn in this area, there’s a beautiful waterfall pouring through the lush green rainforest. While spring is typically the time to go, as the waterfalls are rushing with snow melt-off from the mountains above, I visited in late January, shortly after a massive winter storm pounded the area. The wind was whipping around enough to give much of the trees and plants a nice green blur to them and the water was flowing as if spring time was in full effect making for the scene you see above.

4. Old Mill Gardens

Little Rock, Arkansas – April

I had a last minute chance to visit Little Rock, Arkansas back in April to play in a soccer tournament. Knowing I would be a new place, I looked up a few interesting places to visit in hopes of maybe getting a good image or two while down there. At the top of most lists was the Old Mill in North Little Rock, which was famous for being in the opening scenes of the classic Gone With The Wind. It just so happened that I visited when the flowers were in full spring bloom giving the place a very colorful look to it!

5. This Is Kansas

Teter Rock, Kansas – July

On my first visit to Teter Rock last July a massive thunderstorm rolled through the plains. There is nothing more awe-inspiring than standing at the top of a hill out on the prairie with the echoes of thunder and flashes of lightning off in the distant. Teter Rock itself was interesting enough, but throw in the crazy lightening storm that developed and it made for classic, iconic Kansas scenery. The image above is the best of the shots from that night and this location has become my favorite place to shoot out on the Kansas prairie.

6. Emerald Lake Calm

Yoho National Park, British Columbia, Canada – August

Across the border from Canada’s famous Banff National Park lies Yoho National Park. Another of the Canadian Rockies beautiful national parks. One of it’s best locations is Emerald Lake. The wind cooperated nicely on this morning, leaving the lake in perfect reflective stillness. Not many tourists were out that morning either, and the lake had a calm and tranquil feeling to it.

7. Mount Rainier Wildflowers

Mount Rainier National Park, Washington – September

I could not have planned my day-trip visit to the Paradise region of Mount Rainier any better! Typically wildflower season is much earlier in the summer, with many of the flowers peaking in August. This year, everything was late, and seemed to be peaking on Memorial Day weekend in early September. This was perfect for me, as I visited the Saturday before Memorial Day and was floored by how stunning the wildflowers were. While I had to share the area with more tourists than I have ever seen in my hiking days, I also got to share the trail with a very large black bear. Something I never expected to see, considering just how many people were out on the trails that weekend. This image is probably the best from that day, with some of the most vivid color, contrasted by the glaciers and clouds in the background on Rainier’s slopes.

8. The Ancient Redwood Forest

Redwood National Park, California – January

On my massive January road-trip, there were so many places I was excited to visit. While I was interested in visiting the Redwoods, in my mind, I was most interested in the Grand Canyon, Big Sur and the Oregon coastline. As it turned out though, the Redwoods were likely my favorite part of this 3500+ mile trip. Words can’t describe the feeling of hiking silently among ancient giants shrouded in mist and fog. My only regret was that I only got to pass through the area for an hour or two before heading on into Oregon. I would have spent days exploring the region if I would have had the time.

9. The Lights of Lombard Street

San Francisco, California – January

While traveling up the California coastline towards Oregon, I spent a night in San Francisco, seeing a few of the major sights. One of the more interesting places I visited was Lombard Street. Lombard Street is regarded as the most crooked street in the world, and I already had in mind to do a night shot with car lights streaking down it’s curvy streets. What I didn’t expect was the 20+ other photographers there taking the same shot as me. But I still like the shot, even if it wasn’t an original idea!

10. Sol Duc Falls

Olympic National Park, Washington – August

My time in Olympic National Park was a little bittersweet. Olympic was one of those places I had always wanted to visit. I had always pictured foggy rainforests with constant drizzle and rain. My hope was to capture some of that in photographs. Surprisingly though, it didn’t rain a drop the entire time I was at Olympic and the sun was out the majority of the 2 days I spent traveling the park. However, I still got a few good shots of the coastline and waterfalls, this being my favorite. This waterfall is called Sol Duc Falls, with two rocks that sort of seperate the waterfall into three falls. I thought the view of the bridge from behind the falls was the best of the shots. It’s also the best of the shots I got in Olympic National Park.

11. Explosive Sunrise

San Simeon, California – August
This was shot just minutes after the other San Simeon sunrise, which was my favorite shot of the year. This one is unique from that one not just in color, but that I captured a wave crashing into a rock 20 feet or so out in the ocean. Beacause of the winter storm that had just passed through much of the west coast, the ocean was rough and violent, creating scenes like this from southern California north to Washington.

12. Peyto Lake in the Fog Panorama

Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada – August
This was one of the first shots of possibly my greatest traveling day ever. I had slept in my rental SUV at the very top of the Icefields Parkway up in Jasper National Park to get up early in the morning and shoot some night scenes of the stars above the Athabasca Glacier. The weather had other plans. What had been forecast as a clear and warm (well, relatively speaking for being high in the Canadian Rockies) night turned to a foggy and drizzly night with snow about a thousand feet higher in elevation from where I had camped out. So I traveled south down the Icefields Parkway early in the morning, eventually making my way all the way across British Columbia to the coast and Vancouver late that night. One of my first stops was to get a shot of Peyto Lake in the fog as seen above. The day before the entire area was crawling with tour buses and hundreds of tourists. Because of the overcast and fog, on this morning, I was the only car in the parking lot and had the entire area to myself. And it was such a beautiful place to spend some time admiring one of Canada’s most iconic scenes.

I’ve added 16 new images from my recent trip to Colorado. This trip spanned Rocky Mountain National Park, the Maroon Bells, Hanging Lake and the Mount Sneffels region of the San Juans near Ridgway. The biggest challenge of these photos is that I shot the first two days in JPEG before realizing I wasn’t shooting in RAW. Most of the better images were salvaged (I’m particularly happy with a few of the Maroon Bells shots) but won’t be printable at my normal large sizes.

Thankfully I realized my error by the time we reached the San Juans, allowing me to shoot the Blue Lake region in RAW. This area was absolutely stunning. The lower Blue Lake reminds me of the color of Moraine Lake in Banff National Park up in the Canadian Rockies. In addition, we hit the area when wildflower season was at it’s peak, so stalks of all sorts of flowers surrounding the lake and meadows nearby. These were certainly the best images from the trip. I’ve set up a newest additions gallery to show all the newest photos from this trip (along with a more recent shot from Wichita, KS). You can view them in the Newest Additions photo gallery.

I’m still not sure where my next photo trip will be, but I’ll be trying to shoot a few new Kansas shots over the coming month or two. If anyone has any suggestions on where I should go shoot next, feel free to drop me a line! I’m always open to suggestions if I can manage it!

I just found out my photo, Elegance from the castle of Spiez, Switzerland just won fwaphoto.com’s photo of the day for August 3rd! I’m pretty excited about that as I’ve submitted a few photos into their system and now can finally say one of them passed with flying colors! You can check out the page for it by going to http://www.fwaphoto.com/#/2011-08-03/.