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Daphne Inlet

If you walk to the back of Butchart Gardens in Victoria, you'll come upon Daphne Inlet. Not that I know anything about it, it was just a pleasant surprise. I love little surprises tucked away. You walk down a path, through some trees and plants and it opens up into an inlet, kind of like a scene in a movie only for reel. Sorry, bad pun. In any case, most of the surprise today were in the grounds of the gardens, the biggest being that plants and flowers held my attention for an entire day. You really must visit if you ever go to Victoria BC because if I (Mr. Dont-know-nothin-about-gardning) liked it, then pretty much anyone would like it. I'm not sure that came out right but you get my drift.

If you walk to the back of Butchart Gardens in Victoria, you’ll come upon Daphne Inlet. Not that I know anything about it, it was just a pleasant surprise. I love little surprises tucked away. You walk down a path, through some trees and plants and it opens up into an inlet, kind of like a scene in a movie only for reel. Sorry, bad pun. In any case, most of the surprise today were in the grounds of the gardens, the biggest being that plants and flowers held my attention for an entire day. You really must visit if you ever go to Victoria BC because if I (Mr. Dont-know-nothin-about-gardning) liked it, then pretty much anyone would like it. I’m not sure that came out right but you get my drift.

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California Wildflowers

I noticed these while walking along a path to the ocean in California. I was on a stopover from New Zealand so I still had that magic streaming through my veins. If you look closely you can just see the fairies trying not to be noticed. I think I caught them off guard.

I noticed these while walking along a path to the ocean in California. I was on a stopover from New Zealand so I still had that magic streaming through my veins. If you look closely you can just see the fairies trying not to be noticed. I think I caught them off guard.

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Sunrise at the Pier

This is the Anna Maria Pier one morning which is probably my favorite place to be if I can wake up on time. Problem is when I do then I don't feel like doing much the rest of the day. It's too easy to get relaxed down here and sometimes when I work I have to close the curtains lest I get distracted by things like clouds, sunsets and all manner of stuff peeking through the window. I think I need to move to Norway just to get a little work done. Naw, that wouldn't work, too many cool things to take pictures of. Maybe the moon.

This is the Anna Maria Pier one morning which is probably my favorite place to be if I can wake up on time. Problem is when I do then I don’t feel like doing much the rest of the day. It’s too easy to get relaxed down here and sometimes when I work I have to close the curtains lest I get distracted by things like clouds, sunsets and all manner of stuff peeking through the window. I think I need to move to Norway just to get a little work done. Naw, that wouldn’t work, too many cool things to take pictures of. Maybe the moon.

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Cottage at Lake Hays

In between Queenstown and Arrowtown in New Zealand is Lake Hayes. This cottage sits right on the lake and can be rented. I was staying at a hotel but I have my eyes on this for the next time. When I go on vacation I like to wake up in places that are spectacular and take me far away from normal life. This is one of those places so it's high on the list. The little hill reminds me of a cottage my grandmother used to have. When I was four or five I used to ride a red wagon down the hill full speed, quite often crashing at the bottom. It was so much fun that I'd get right up and do it again. Isn't that a kick in the pants. ;-)

In between Queenstown and Arrowtown in New Zealand is Lake Hayes. This cottage sits right on the lake and can be rented. I was staying at a hotel but I have my eyes on this for the next time. When I go on vacation I like to wake up in places that are spectacular and take me far away from normal life. This is one of those places so it’s high on the list. The little hill reminds me of a cottage my grandmother used to have. When I was four or five I used to ride a red wagon down the hill full speed, quite often crashing at the bottom. It was so much fun that I’d get right up and do it again. Isn’t that a kick in the pants. 😉

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Ucluelet Fishing Vessel

This is taken from the harbour in Ucluelet, British Columbia. This was the scene one evening as we sat outside at a little floating restaurant while the sun lowered below the horizon. A nice place to sit and relax after a long day of sightseeing and whale watching. A good many of the town residents are commercial fishermen and these boats come and go all times of the day and night. Aside from the natural beauty, sport fishing is probably the biggest attraction in Ucluelet. I think this is one of those places fishermen must read about in magazines and then one day make it here to catch their hearts content. On a related note, I passed up fish and had the ribs. Not that I don't like fish, maybe being surrounded by so much fish I had the urge for something different.

This is taken from the harbour in Ucluelet, British Columbia. This was the scene one evening as we sat outside at a little floating restaurant while the sun lowered below the horizon. A nice place to sit and relax after a long day of sightseeing and whale watching. A good many of the town residents are commercial fishermen and these boats come and go all times of the day and night. Aside from the natural beauty, sport fishing is probably the biggest attraction in Ucluelet. I think this is one of those places fishermen must read about in magazines and then one day make it here to catch their hearts content. On a related note, I passed up fish and had the ribs. Not that I don’t like fish, maybe being surrounded by so much fish I had the urge for something different.

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Lone Tree at Elk Lake

I have this list in the back of my mind when I'm out taking photos. One of the things on it is any kind of lone tree. Of course I see lovely trees all the time but rarely alone. I was just about to leave Elk Lake near Victoria BC when I turned around and noticed this tree, ...alone! Needless to say I was a little excited. To get this I had to walk around a bit to get just the right composition, but in the end I was please with the result. Truth be told there are other trees just off camera, but from where I was standing this tree had the whole picture to itself. If trees have feeling, then this one should be a little proud.

I have this list in the back of my mind when I’m out taking photos. One of the things on it is any kind of lone tree. Of course I see lovely trees all the time but rarely alone. I was just about to leave Elk Lake near Victoria BC when I turned around and noticed this tree, …alone! Needless to say I was a little excited. To get this I had to walk around a bit to get just the right composition, but in the end I was please with the result. Truth be told there are other trees just off camera, but from where I was standing this tree had the whole picture to itself. If trees have feeling, then this one should be a little proud.

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Skippers Canyon Ridgeline

While in New Zealand I was with a group that hiked down Skippers Canyon road not far from Queenstown. When we started in the morning it was chilly but by the time we hiked back the layers were peeled off as the sun rose above the mountains. This ridgeline was opposite the road we traveled and from this vantage I could begin to get a sense of the scale. Just behind this ridge was an extreme mountain bike trail and while I didn't see anyone on it, I could tell that on a scale of one to ten it was an eleven. The only thing more exhilarating might be bungee jumping which by the way was available at the bottom of the trail. And if that wasn't enough you could finish the day with a raft ride down some class three rapids. Lets just say Kiwis know how to have a good time.

While in New Zealand I was with a group that hiked down Skippers Canyon road not far from Queenstown. When we started in the morning it was chilly but by the time we hiked back the layers were peeled off as the sun rose above the mountains. This ridgeline was opposite the road we traveled and from this vantage I could begin to get a sense of the scale. Just behind this ridge was an extreme mountain bike trail and while I didn’t see anyone on it, I could tell that on a scale of one to ten it was an eleven. The only thing more exhilarating might be bungee jumping which by the way was available at the bottom of the trail. And if that wasn’t enough you could finish the day with a raft ride down some class three rapids. Lets just say Kiwis know how to have a good time.

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Fort DeSoto Lifeguard Stand

This is another shot from the northern tip of Fort DeSoto Park in St Petersburg Florida. For me sunset is the best time to be at the beach, yet usually there are only a few people left. That's just fine because you feel you have the whole place to yourself. And then finally when all the colors fade, the last stragglers walk back to their cars and leave, knowing the best was saved for last.

This is another shot from the northern tip of Fort DeSoto Park in St Petersburg Florida. For me sunset is the best time to be at the beach, yet usually there are only a few people left. That’s just fine because you feel you have the whole place to yourself. And then finally when all the colors fade, the last stragglers walk back to their cars and leave, knowing the best was saved for last.

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Kennedy Lake

When you drive through the mountains to the west coast of Vancouver Island you pass Kennedy Lake. There's not a lot of places to stop here and from what I understand the lake is mostly used for hunting and fishing. What caught my eye midday was how calm the water water was. I just had to pullover to capture this scene. I think that's kind of theme with me, must be some meaning in there somewhere.

When you drive through the mountains to the west coast of Vancouver Island you pass Kennedy Lake. There’s not a lot of places to stop here and from what I understand the lake is mostly used for hunting and fishing. What caught my eye midday was how calm the water water was. I just had to pullover to capture this scene. I think that’s kind of theme with me, must be some meaning in there somewhere.

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Sunshine Skyway Bridge

All ships coming into Tampa Bay pass under this bridge. Knowing that, when they built it about thirty years ago they made it fairly tall at about 130 meters. Now it turns out it's not tall enough for the new mega ships which has planners scratching their collective heads. One idea would be to take the bridge down and build a tunnel under the bay. I don't think that will ever happen but that's just me, you never know. Once I took a cruise out of Tampa and stood on the top deck as we passed with what looked like only a few feet of clearance. And that ship was small as compared to the

All ships coming into Tampa Bay pass under this bridge. Knowing that, when they built it about thirty years ago they made it fairly tall at about 130 meters. Now it turns out it’s not tall enough for the new mega ships which has planners scratching their collective heads. One idea would be to take the bridge down and build a tunnel under the bay. I don’t think that will ever happen but that’s just me, you never know. Once I took a cruise out of Tampa and stood on the top deck as we passed with what looked like only a few feet of clearance. And that ship was small as compared to the “mega” ships. Boggles the mind.

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