Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: trees

(+6 insets!) Trip Talk: Big Qualicum River, Qualicum River, Little Qualicum River…WHAT?! When I put our itinerary together for this area of Vancouver Island, I knew that Little Qualicum Falls was a spot we must not miss. Wow, what an understatement…it was GORGEOUS! And with all of the fuss over Little Qualicum Falls, I expected to see lots of information about Big Qualicum Falls too. I do remember being a bit confused about the deal with Qualicum River while we were in the area and now I've finally figured it all out! It turns out that the indigenous Qualicum people had two rivers named after them in that area--the Qualicum River and the Little Qualicum River. To make matters confusing, the Qualicum River is usually called the Big Qualicum River. The location of these two beautiful rivers is within 10 miles of each other. Little Qualicum originates from Cameron Lake and empties out into the ocean just north of Qualicum Beach at the southern end of Qualicum Bay. (Big) Qualicum River originates in the hills beyond Horne Lake, spills out the other side and empties out into the ocean at the north end of Qualicum Bay. To make this clear, I have included a topographical map inset which shows the two lakes and the paths leading to the ocean. It's nice to have this straight in my head! :) Today's Pictures I originally planned to show another magnificent view of Little Qualicum Falls as my main image. However, the image that gets first billing is a glimpse of the river through a quartet of glowing, moss-covered trees, surrounded by verdant greenery. It gives an very nice understanding of how rich and lovely it was in the forests of Vancouver Island. The first inset is the image of Little Qualicum Falls dumping down into a log-wreathed pool in tones of teal and aqua. It was incredible to stand at the edge of the chasm and appreciate that awesome sight. It's also no wonder there is fencing erected all along this area…too many irresponsible selfie-junkies out there and they kept falling of the ledges! The second inset shows a tree-accented view of the colorful water as we headed up to the falls. Inset three shows a log panorama covered with carefully-stacked prayer stones. At that particular spot there were piled prayer stones all over the ground, in small and big groups--they were everywhere! Unfortunately the many grey piles of stones blended together, so the pictures really weren't showing how cool they looked. Until I saw this rock-covered log! I knew it would be just right to show that spot and it turned out as I'd hoped! My other insets include tree shadows on a pool of water and an abstract, blurry image of a fellow jumping off a ledge into a deep pool--his girlfriend had just jumped and though he was visibly nervous, he threw caution to the wind and followed suit. Neither of them were hurt but I couldn't stop thinking about my older brother who once jumped off a rope swing into a river and didn't realize the water level was too low…he broke his left femur and was in a cast for three months! Pam, what is the health like of the forests where you live? Dry and ailing like ours? It's really incredible to visit a place where the forests are simply glowing with good health. We do have plenty of healthy forests here in southern Oregon--the ones that border rivers and streams are fine--but areas without a constant source of water are definitely not doing as well with the slow increase of heat over the years we've lived here. It didn't hit home until we spent a lot of time on Vancouver Island. Oddly enough--distressing to learn as well--the amount of moisture on Vancouver Island has decreased over the years as well. Lower rivers, less rain, more stress-related tree problems…even though it seems like their forests are in perfect shape, climate change has been affecting them too. We are happy that we've gotten to visit this place before the damage has become obvious. *sigh* Well, I hope that your day is going well…here it started off chilly with twinkling frost and bright sunshine and promises to warm up and continue to be fabulous and beautiful! *many HUGSSSSS and happy tidings!* Explored on 2/26/20; highest placement #5.

(+10 insets!) For photo info, please scroll down to "Today's Pictures". Trip Talk: State Parks RULE! Until Steve and I got our first trailer, neither of us had ever stayed at a state park before. Honestly, we didn't think they would be anything special. Knowing that state parks often don't get proper funding, I imagined that the campgrounds would be plain, simple and boring--just a place to stay which was close to park trails but otherwise forgettable. How much more wrong could I be? Joseph Stewart State Park was the second place we went camping at with our first rig (the first spot was a private campground at Upper Klamath Lake) and I'll never forget our reaction when we pulled in to the campground. The park is very wide-open and carpeted with literally miles of mowed meadows dotted with oaks and conifers. The view as we drove into the area literally took our breaths away--it seemed like a rich country club, not a state park! How could such a gorgeous place be a mere 45 minutes from our home? Where were the run-down campsites and over-capacity outhouses? Not here, that's for sure! We would come to learn that RV-friendly state park campgrounds are extremely well-designed with campsites which can often accommodate even the largest rigs. They arrange the sites around one or more very large, one-way loops with lots of space between spots and angles which are easy to back a rig into. In fact, some camping spots are known as "pull-throughs," which means you just drive into the space and park! When you're ready to leave, you just drive out and off you go! How's that for easy?! Our first visit with the Grey Wolf was so much fun that we knew we'd be back many times. What's not to love about the place? Right on Lost Creek Lake, one can go boating, fishing or swimming. Photography opportunities are everywhere! There are miles of biking and hiking trails which showcase the gorgeous local. Just riding our bikes around the three loops was great fun and a really super way to see all of the different RVs staying there. We wondered if all state parks were this spectacular. We would learn that more times than not they are just fantastic. Another fabulous thing about state park campgrounds is how INEXPENSIVE they are! Nightly fees range between $26 and $34, which is a lot less than the average private campground fee of about $45. Think about the price of staying at a motel or hotel--good luck finding a decent room for less than $75/night! (The maximum number of nights you can stay at a campground is 14 in any 17-day period. So you could leave for three days and then return for another 14 days!) State campground staff are also amazing! They are super friendly and helpful and whenever there's a question or problem, it's easy to find someone for assistance. We also learned that state campgrounds are run by hosts who are RV campers too. They aren't paid but instead get to camp for free during their stay in exchange for a part-time work schedule. What an incredible way to save money while enjoying a park! Steve and I will definitely be signing up to be campsite hosts down the road and look forward to being part of the park system. Are there any downsides to state park campgrounds? Ok, yeah…that. As amazing as they are, almost every campground we've stayed at has no internet or phone coverage whatsoever. Our first stay was pretty annoying because it didn't occur to us but we got comfortable with the idea once we realized that state parks are black holes for data. Other than that, it seems that state parks are the absolute perfect place to stay! Our second stay at Joseph Stewart State Park was every bit as wonderful as our first visit. In some ways it was even better because we'd been there before and knew what to expect. It's such a pleasant place to be and I hope that we will be back many times in the future! Today's Pictures My main picture today shows one of the breathtaking, expansive meadows found everywhere at Joseph Stewart State Park. The autumn show was mostly over but I still managed to get plenty of seasonal images and you'll notice that many of my insets feature a favorite subject: LEAVES! :) You'll also see one of the many mushrooms I found, a pretty park bench scene, the husk of a cicada (I think), another scenic view, madrone bark, another maple "bat", and a "flower" on a pine tree where the cone had broken off, leaving wooden "petals" behind to enjoy! Pam, I wonder what your favorite season is? It's so hard for me to say…I'm crazy about whatever is current--well, maybe with the exception of the end of summer when everything is dry, grey-brown and listless. But then the leaves begin to turn and suddenly everything is glorious again! :) BTW, thanks for your lovely remarks on my latest series, it makes me so happy that you enjoy my pictures so much! :) *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* Explored on 11/19/19; highest placement #2.

(+1 inset) (please view large!) Now that Steve and I have been home from Upper Klamath Lake for a day, we've been reflecting on the differences. Most notably, it was only just entering spring there, though the temperature was quite nice and cold only late at night. Did you experience a long winter where you live? We did and I know that many places in Oregon had a very late winter too. Talking to the folks at Rocky Point Resort, we learned that they've only been open for business for a couple of weeks because their winter was about a month longer than normal--just like us. In fact, daffodils were just beginning to bloom there, whereas our daffodils peaked a month ago. Checking the elevation, I was surprised to find that Upper Klamath Lake sits at 4100 feet, whereas we are at 1500 feet. This all made sense to us when we thought about it and all of this explains why it didn't feel like spring hadn't arrived yet. I've only stayed at a campground once, many years ago, and that was traditional tent camping so it this place was very interesting to me. Modern campgrounds in the United States have specific sites meant for RVs and other spots are just for tents or small camper vans. Some spots have no "hookups" and are just a place to pitch a tent or to "dry camp", which means that you have to provide water and electricity. Fancy spots, like the one we had, included "full hook-ups", which meant we had electricity, water AND a sewer. Sewer hookups are uncommon but most campgrounds offer water and electricity hookups. It was all new and fascinating to me. Another interesting point is that sites are sorted by size of trailer. Many campsites, especially remote ones without the luxury of a lot of space cannot accept camper vehicles at all, only tents. Some can only accommodate camper vans or trailers up to 25 feet long or so. More often than not, campsites are only long enough for a trailer; the truck must be unhooked and parked beside the trailer. However, there are some campsites that have spots which will allow a very long RV AND a truck which doesn't even need to be unhooked! We're talking 80 feet or longer!! That's just astonishing to me! I really shouldn't be surprised because I've seen some unbelievably long combinations of truck + RV or huge motorhome + car towed behind. Still, I never really thought about it before! Did you know that in most cases, you reserve your campsite online? In fact, there are many places that are so popular that you must reserve a spot an entire YEAR (or longer) before you want to go!! And then, there are lots of places that don't allow reservation at all!. How would you like to drive all day to get to a campsite without even knowing if there is a place to pull into?! What do you do if you can't get in? It's a whole new thing for us to learn about and it's lots of fun to figure it all out. I'll be writing about what we learn as we go whenever it's interesting enough to pass along. I expect it's probably fascinating to some of you who live in Europe and don't see anything larger than camper vans. The difference between European camping and US camping totally blows me away and I figure it's fun to read about! I'll do my best to be entertaining! :) Today's picture was taken yesterday morning before sunrise when I stepped out of our RV and headed towards the dock. The colors in the sky behind the bare trees was just incredible. Part of me wanted to rush out to the dock because I didn't want to miss the sunrise but I simply couldn't miss this picture. I'm so glad I got it. :) My inset was the picture I thought about posting yesterday for Happy Fence Friday. It shows the Rocky Point Lodge and the actual "rocky point" which is the namesake of this beautiful place. I am very happy with the way the picture turned out but I don't think it's got the "wow-factor" I am hoping for in a main shot. I hope you like it! This lodge is a restaurant but it's currently being remodeled and because of the long winter they are far behind on the renovations. Maybe we'll get the chance to eat there some day on a return trip! Pam, I did a search for "lake" and came up with a picture that looks a bit like Upper Klamath, namely one of your pictures of Lake Arbuckle ! :D Such a lovely view. Looks like a wonderful place for a picnic! By the way, thank you for your sweet comments about our trip…and I hope that your day has been a nice one! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 4/27/19, highest placement, #2.

(+6 insets!) (please view large!) I'm going to make this a quick write-up because it's getting late and I need to post my pictures for Saturday-Self Challenge! The theme this week is "Trees" so today I went around on our property looking for likely candidates. I found a good choice in our big meadow that shows our bulldozer in the background. I also took a picture of a huge old Oak tree that had been turned into a tree house many years ago. It had died by the time we moved there, the tree house long since decayed into ruin. Then, the ancient relic toppled over a few years ago. It makes me sad when I see this fallen friend but I do my best to honor it by capturing images when I can of the interesting things about it. The wood from the tree house has nails and old carpet and growing all over it are various kinds of moss and lichen. I've even found mushrooms there. Perhaps I should to a series on this departed fellow, I think that would be fun and give it some well-deserved immortality. :) I turned and walked across our big meadow and made my way up to the base of our steep hillside. Looking back across our little valley, I saw the view which is my main image today--a line of trees marching along the far ridge. Cool. I climbed up onto our hillside and at the top I got many pictures of the burned trees which are just skeletons now. Some had their tops broken off and stand like sentries. Another looked out over the valley and forest beyond. One of the silhouetted images shows the huge old madrone which I loved so dearly. Even though it looks dead, all around its base and 6-feet high and taller are new branches and vibrant growth. It's going to be just fine, though it will take many years before it regains its past magnificence. I especially liked the tree skeleton which appears to be windswept. I felt very satisfied by my tree-finding excursion, and tomorrow I'll tell you--and show you--what else I found on my adventure! Pam, does your home reside in a valley like ours? I get the impression that it doesn't because I've never seen pictures of yours which indicate a valley. I did a search for "valley" and found your gorgeous coastal image, Valley of the Rocks Sunset . It's incredible, and yet, rife with sorrow, for it was a goodbye for you of a place you love. :( *MANY HUGS* for what is behind you but I do hope that you have plenty of special memories to add in the future. Thinking of you! Explored on 4/7/19, highest placement, #3.

This image was taken during my trip to San Francisco during September 12-15, 2011.

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon

Photographed on the Rogue Gorge Trail, near Union Creek, Southern Oregon