Self

There are still places in this world where a person can be alone and never feel lonely and when you find yours everything just seems less complicated!

Zen

It is a very rare thing to find Kurt without a book or a trumpet in his hand yet Glacier will always get him to pause. I was snapping away when I looked over to find him perched on this outcrop taking in the view of Hidden Lake.

Rolling Storm

Kurt and I watched this storm rolling in over Bryce for most of the late afternoon. I took the opportunity to set up the tripod and try capture the shadow play. As the light faded and my exposures were getting into the 45sec-1 minute range it was perfect for capturing the lightning in the backdrop and still displaying the color banding of the formations.

Arches-Utah

Father and son trips are always something special but I really had no idea just how much. Kurt and I had always taken summer trips to places like Glacier, Yellowstone and Teton National Parks but we wanted something a bit more than our usual haunts for his last summer before moving off to University of Idaho. The result was 12 days in southern Utah hiking the big parks; Zion, Bryce, Canyonlands, Capital Reef and Arches. The sights were amazing and for once I felt that even my camera could not truly capture the views accurately. What really made this trip stand out for me however, were the little unplanned and spontaneous things that we let guide our days. A washed out road blocking one hiking destination turned into finding a new hidden spot that ended up even better. Picking a local eatery off the beaten path turned into my son playing trumpet on an open mic. I will always enjoy travel, treks and adventures but whether I needed this break more that I knew or it hit at some mid life mind shift, it still plays in my head nearly every day. This may be that lightning in a bottle event and I am thankful It was shared with one hell of a young man.

One Two Medicine Lake-Glacier National Park

Two Medicine is our family favorite camping spot in Glacier. Tucked in the South East corner of Glacier and being under two hours form home we visit is many times a summer. This was Mitchell's first canoe experience and he took right to it.

Prince Of Wales Hotel

Peince of Wales Hotel on Waterton Lake, Canada.

Waterton Canada

This black bear swam ashore a few yards from out picnic in Waterton.

Waterton Park Canada 2011

Tina, Mitch and I went for a day trip up into Waterton Park Canada before I left for Qatar. It was a great day and we enjoyed the great views. I hiked a little but we mostly strolled around and enjoyed the weather. We saw two big black bear one of which swam ashore right by our pinic lunch....we quickly moved into the car to eat.

Glacier 2011

Hiking around Many Glacier in the North East portion of Glacier National Park

Winter Sunset

Brisk winter sunset Feb.20, 2011 MT