Niagara Falls 1988 (Maid of the Mist)

Niagara Falls 1988 (2)

Here's another random 1988 shot from Niagara Falls for the weekend...

Niagara Falls 1988 (1)

Here's a scanned slide from 1988 of Niagara Falls; how's that for a random weekend post?

Ruby Falls!

I've shown you some of the Ruby Falls cavern (which you walk through to get to the waterfall) in the last couple of posts, but the spectacular part is the destination, completely within part of the cave. After walking for a while the waterfall becomes audible, and eventually you come to its cavern.

The lights change as you watch.

In my opinion you don't get to spend enough time at the waterfall, but it's certainly impressive while you're there.

Great Falls, 1991 (2)

Taken on a day without much water, here's another shot of Great Falls, between Maryland and Virginia, scanned from a 1991 slide.

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Seven Falls

Last week I promised to show you the actual waterfalls at Seven Falls, so here they are - I wish it had been a sunny day but we had visitors in town so couldn't choose when to go. The first shot is near the top.

Here's the same spot, looking from above.

Taken from across the canyon, here's a close-up of the upper series of falls.

And finally, the entire impressive set of waterfalls - last week's photo looking up the stairs was taken at the very bottom. There are 224 steps to reach the top.

One of these days I'll go back at night as it's lit up. Admission is $14.00 for adults, $8.00 for children. Visit Our World Tuesday to see lots more photos from around the world.

Seven Falls

Recently sold to the famous Broadmoor Hotel, Seven Falls is a well-known local tourist attraction.

A few years ago the trails were destroyed by a flood but were completely rebuilt. If you want to climb to the top bring your high-altitude lungs!

It's a beautiful place, and next week I'll show you the actual waterfalls.

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Niagara Falls 1978 (8)

The last good image from scans of some slides I took back in 1978, it's similar to the first of this series.

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Niagara Falls 1978 (7)

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Horsethief Park Hike (1)

One of my favorite areas to hike is Horsethief Park, on the back of Pikes Peak. It's an hour from the house so it's not one I go to that often; these photos are from last summer. Right where it starts is an old railroad tunnel, which was then used for the road with traffic lights since it was one lane, and is now abandoned and closed off.

The trail winds uphill through beautiful forest.

I love the long shadows cast by the tall trees.

In one place there's a beaver pond next to the trail.

This trail ends up at a pretty waterfall.

Of course I had my dogs with me, and silly Laika got completely tangled in her leash. She doesn't usually do that! I've got another set of photos from this hike that I'll post in a few days.

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Niagara Falls 1978 (6)

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Niagara Falls 1978 (4)

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Niagara Falls 1978 (3)

Seasons

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Niagara Falls 1978 (2)

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Niagara Falls 1978 (1)

From my first trip to the United States of America, in the middle of 1978, scanned and corrected from an old slide.

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Zapata Falls

The stream I showed you last week led to Zapata Falls, a waterfall almost enclosed within a cave.

It was definitely worth the short hike to see this unusual natural formation.

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Yellowstone's Artist Point

The view at Artist Point in Yellowstone must not be missed. It's one of the best views I've ever seen anywhere, and neither words nor photographs can do it justice. But here's my attempt to show it, for the wonderful Scenic Sunday meme.

Lots of Waterfalls

Last summer, Unni and I went for a hike on the Thomas Trail, on the north side of Pikes Peak. You start by walking up a street in the small town of Green Mountain Falls, and crossing over a wooden bridge.

From there the trail leads steeply up, with various waterfalls next to the path.

Then the trail winds around a mountainside with steep, high dropoffs in places. Yes, this is the trail.

And this leads to - another stream and more waterfalls!

If you like waterfalls and can handle a trail with steep rocky sections and some heights, this is the the place for you. And that's my Scenic Sunday entry for the week. (Socks loved this hike - here's a photo of him resting on one of the many rocks.)

Yellowstone's Upper & Lower Falls

First, my thoughts are with the Japanese today after the terrible events there.

The Yellowstone River plunges over two major waterfalls that are accessible to the casual tourist - the Upper Falls and the Lower Falls. Here's one of the best views of the Lower Falls.

The above view is from the bottom of the Uncle Tom's Trail, which descends 328 steps down this steep, iron staircase.

Of course, once you're at the bottom you have to climb back up.

You can get right up to the top of the Upper Falls, right next to the river.

The power of the water as it goes over the falls is incredible.

This is a must-see part of Yellowstone, and it's my Scenic Sunday post for the week.

Watery Horsethief Park

One of my favorite hikes last summer was to Horsethief Park, which is on the western side of Pikes Peak (the opposite side from Colorado Springs). It's named because it's where horse thieves used to hide out in the days of the Old West. On this day, there had been some rain the previous night, making for some lovely reflections.

The trail travels up a valley near a creek, and at one point the land opens up and a beaver dam (on the left side of this photo) creates a pond.

This area is wet enough that moss survives, not a common thing in this part of Colorado.

 If you continue up by the creek, the trail splits in two. A long climb to the right heads up to the wonderful Pancake Rocks, but that's not where I headed this time. Instead I followed the shorter trail to The Falls.

As I continued, I marveled at the wonder of nature around me, including this tree branch.

The views across the valley were terrific.

Finally I reached the waterfall, more of a cascade down a slab of rock.

This is one of my favorite places to hike, and I try to head  up there a couple of times each summer. You may find more hiking photos from around the world at the Scenic Sunday meme.