Sunday, June 20, 2010

Hocking Hills

So this trip to Hocking Hills State Park near Lancaster, Ohio (birthplace of my Great Grandmother Ruth Mae Miller-Hardy) was finally the addition we've been wanting to make to BlackSheep - it is now officially 2 BlackSheep and a Little Brown Dog! Larry and I have been talking about this for a long time since it is he and I and Emma the dog - in fact my license plates are BLKSHEP - when we get a different SUV, the plates could be 2BLKSHP and when we have a third vehicle, the plate will be LTLBWNDG. It's an inside family joke, but finally, a trip we could take Emma and make it official!

Hocking Hills State park is a great place to visit and there are some real attributes for "non-hikers". Larry and I are gearing up for a trip to Jackson Hole - where last time we realized how out of shape we were! So, we've been hiking at Oak Openings (we did 16 miles or so one day) and we've been trying to do 20 miles a week to "get in shape". Well, Hocking Hills got the best of us and all we realized was that both BlackSheep and the little brown dog were ALL out of shape!

However, one of the wonderful things about Hocking Hills is that even if you don't like to "hike" or if you're out of shape, almost all of the most beautiful attractions are within 1/4 to 1/2 mile of the parking lots. There are plenty of great cabin rentals and a lot of campgrounds. The facilities seem very nice and it was a beautiful place - even if it was hot and humid! That just made the ice-cream taste better!

I have to admit I didn't get as many artistic photos as I should have - I did take my camera, but it was pretty hot and since it was our first time there, I didn't plan our visits to the sites as they relate to the best light as well as I could do it now. However, there are a few shots that came out great and I'm happy to share. If you'd like to see all 189 photos which include our very cool zip line through the canopy of Hocking Hills, you can view the album on Picasa.

We enjoyed our trip and would go back for sure as long as we could have another dinner at the Inn at Cedar Falls - that place was just terrific!! Happy hiking for the summer!

posted by Black Sheep Photography at 12:13 PM 0 Comments

Monday, April 12, 2010

Red River Gorge

They have a Cabin rental company in the Red River called "Georgeous" - that seems appropriate. The Gorge was a great place to hike and see some beautiful scenery. We went on a Friday and came back on a Monday, so not a very long trip - but we saw a lot in a short period of time!

There are many short and easy hikes you can do right from the main roads - pretty easy for even those elderly or very out of shape people. However, the Gorge is known for world famous rock-climbing, so it attracts even the most "hard core" adventurer - and for good reason.

On Saturday, we did a handful of short, easy hikes from the road just to "see the sights", but we did choose one moderate hike - according to the trail guide. The hike was supposed to be 5 miles round trip. Well, let's get a few things straight - 5 miles means 6 miles. Moderate means starting at an elevation of 915 feet, climbing across a ridge, then down the ridge to 335 feet, across the floor of the Gorge and up another ridge to 922 feet, then down halfway from that ridge to climb out again to get back to the road. It took us about 3.5 hours to go 6 miles - we didn't break any speed records for sure, but I wouldn't exactly call our route "moderate".

Anyway, the photos were great and it was a great deal of fun, but be careful what you bite off if you go!

posted by Black Sheep Photography at 6:34 PM 0 Comments

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Where's my Camera??

Once again, I have no photos to share - just like with the fashion show - I had the perfect opportunity but didn't have my camera. Isn't that the first rule of photography? Always have your camera with you! Since I haven't learned rule #1, I can only TELL you about what a great photo it would have been....

Emma and I are taking a walk around the Lily Pond in Iowa on vacation (after yet another Hawkeye win - we're 5-0 with a big game against Michigan coming up this weekend). It's about a 3 mile walk around the pond. The north side of the pond is generally the road, while the south side is more like the trails out by Grand Rapids - water on both sides and a path down the middle. Emma and I are walking along, taking in the sights of the pond when up pops a family of beavers. About 5 cute little heads bobbing in the water no more than 5 feet from us. Their water repellent fur made them look like they were greased, but their eyes were almost friendly! I'd seen all the beaver huts in the pond for years, but I'd never seen a family of beavers just hanging around - what a photo I missed!

The next day, Larry joined Emma and I and it was around 4p in the afternoon, so the sun was on it's way down, but the sky was bright blue and it was crisp outside. After my experience just the day before, you'd think I would have remembered my camera this day. Well, no. Blonds ARE slow, evidently, and I was not too happy with myself - yet again. As we turned on the south side of the pond, the entire turtle population of the Amana, Iowa Lilly Pond must have been having a sun bathing competition! Again, 5-10 feet from us were Turtles on logs everywhere! Turtles were actually stacked on top of each other to bathe in the sun. And I missed it. Again.

Well, the photos are in my head to enjoy, but the whole point is to share them with the rest of the world. I guess my brain really is taking a break this week - photos and all!

posted by Black Sheep Photography at 10:35 AM 0 Comments

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Monday, April 12, 2010

Thursday, October 8, 2009

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