Two Medicine Lake /  by Dave Hileman

Located in the Eastern side of Glacier National Park, Two Medicine Lake does not get the tourist traffic that the two main areas attract. But, like all of Glacier, the scenery is amazing and here you can take a boat to trails on the other side of the lake and feel miles away. 

One You Should Plan On /  by Dave Hileman

In St. Louis on the old Route 66 you will find the original Ted Drewes Custard Stand. Good custard and the first time I ever had a concrete where they hand it back to you upside down to show you how thick it is. But the main thing to concentrate on here is the excellent custard. Really good. And a treat to have it along the road that still remains a nostalgic reminder of a rather remarkable time in our history. 

Dream the Impossible Dream /  by Dave Hileman

Clearly it is not possible for this four footed animal to get into this position by itself. I expect that crane operators work all night to place these animals on ledges simply to entertain the gullible tourists. 

"O  lord, what a variety of things you have made!
In wisdom you have made them all.
The earth is full of your creatures." Psalm 104:24 NLT

Jupiter Terrace /  by Dave Hileman

Near the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park is one of the intriguing outflows of the mineral waters that lead to these formations. This one is known as the Jupiter Terrace. Notice that the waters kill the trees and other vegetation around the springs. This one is quite high are reached by a boardwalk and steps. Not my favorite portion of the park but still interesting. These Yellowstone photos are from my early attempts with my first digital camera. 

Looking from Jupiter toward the original park headquarters and barracks. 

Looking from Jupiter toward the original park headquarters and barracks. 

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore /  by Dave Hileman

This is atop a dune at this lakeshore site along Lake Michigan. If you look carefully the tiny specks on the sand are people trudging back up the insane slope of this dune and trying not to roll back down. We did not go the the water here because the very best view was right where we were standing. 

Tiny /  by Dave Hileman

The mushroom peaking out of the moss is only about an inch or two long. It is nestled in the mossy greens just off a path in Acadia.

An Actual Cowboy /  by Dave Hileman

Grant-Koors Ranch National Historic Site is a little known gem of a park in Montana. With Yellowstone just to the south and Glacier a bit north not too many people choose to spend a lot of time at this ranch. They are missing a treat. The ranch was once over one million acres, and they leased millions more. It began just after the Civil War and the last building constructed was in the very early 1900's. It was an active ranch until late 1960's and turned over to the National Park System intact. Every rope, fence, pot, wagon etc. It is an amazing slice of history. This man - who was retired and not a professional cowboy actually rode with some of the last cattle drives as a young boy. 

Birthday /  by Dave Hileman

A happy birthday to Cindy. I am so thankful for her. She, among many things, is a great traveling and hiking companion. Here we are after a hike in western Glacier National Park at a lake with several snow-melt waterfalls in the background. And a bonus with Cindy as Captain of our temporary yacht with Grandkids in Charleston, SC. One last photo, along with our friend Rusty, in Acadia atop another mountain reached after a strenuous long climb. The post was set for January 7, her actual birthday but I could not get back to the house and, because of a dose of stupid, could not get this up from the computer at Geof's house. Anyway, it was a nice day.

"The man who finds a wife finds a treasure,
and he receives favor from the lord" Proverbs 18:22 NLT

 

Weather /  by Dave Hileman

So, we are supposed to be getting a significant snow storm by the time this posts. So I found this older photo taken on top of the pass over the Great Smoky Mountains. It was shot in February and it was cold, very. 

Weathered /  by Dave Hileman

Old boat tied up at a dock in Southwest Harbor, Maine. The man that owns it is a mackerel fisherman. He catches them and trades them for lobsters and then sells the lobster to area restaurants. 

Where Are We Aiming In 2017? /  by Dave Hileman

We started this quest to visit the 409, 411, 413, 415 National Park Service sites this past year about February. (They added more than I ever expected just last year with 6 new parks and there are still that many in process.) We started with the 139 we had already visited and about 25 of those recently enough to have some sort of photos. Now we are at 158 with about 70 sites photographed. The new website went live in early summer and this latest revision is still in process. Should be finished by the end of the weekend with several more galleries posted in the National Park Photos by States section. What is next? This winter we hope to get to a couple of new sites and some that need better photographs. Not sure how many that will be because other things, work for example, is very busy. But we do have a long vacation scheduled for mid-April to late May in the Southwest and expect to visit as many as 20 new parks. There will only be limited time for fall sites so our goal for 2017 will be 30 new sites. It would be great if we could reach 200 total by this time next year.  

Fort Moultrie in part of the Fort Sumter National Monument in Charlestown, SC. This fort was where South Carolina gets the nickname Palmetto State. This fort is the only place to follow the entire history of seacoast defense can be traced starting i…

Fort Moultrie in part of the Fort Sumter National Monument in Charlestown, SC. This fort was where South Carolina gets the nickname Palmetto State. This fort is the only place to follow the entire history of seacoast defense can be traced starting in 1776 until it closed in 1947.

Nineteen Too /  by Dave Hileman

We also re-visited 19 National Park Service units this past year including our 14th week in Acadia National Park. Many of those we revisited were ones we went to BC (before camera). So the photos were a primary reason but we had a great time and some of the ones we did visit we had not been to in decades. Arlington House since the late 60's, Eisenhower house since the early 80's are two of those places. This group was very diverse, two National Parks, two National Seashores, National Military Parks, National Battlefields, Memorials, Historic Sites and one dedicated to the arts. We completed all the parks in Vermont and New Hampshire (one each!) and really enjoyed Boston area. Especially the pastry shops which, sadly, are not listed in NPS - even though they were worthy of national recognition. 

Tomorrow we will finish the look back and talk about where we are going. 

Nineteen /  by Dave Hileman

New National Park Sites visited and photographed in 2016. The nineteen were spread over 12 states. Eight of them were battlefields in French and Indian, Revolutionary and Civil War sites. Shiloh was the highlight of those with Stone's River the biggest surprise as to the scope of the battle. Tupelo was the biggest disappointment - very small, no parking, over grown and little information. Seven of them were houses, including Lincoln, Adams, JFK and Maggie Walker. Adams house were just a bit of a let down because of the context, very small lots amidst lots of traffic and noise a few feet away. George Washington's Headquarters / Longfellow house was the most interesting. The Aviation Heritage Center in Dayton was the best of those we knew nothing about but were entranced by the story of those men. George Rogers Clark in Vincennes was also in the running, we really enjoyed that stop. This brings us to well over 150. More tomorrow. 

George Rogers Clark Memorial

George Rogers Clark Memorial