Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: bridge

(+5 insets) Thank Goodness For Photography!!! Since today is Happy Fence Friday (hooray!), I must add my contribution, as I am a total junky for this crazy day too (I remember when I first encountered pictures labeled with "HFF" and was like…what is the DEAL with FENCES? Why is this even a thing?! Little did I know the insanity that would eventually come over me every time I find a cool fence or bridge or whatever might be acceptable for this day.)! Looking for a proper HFF contribution, I peeked in my finished pictures folder for our first campground stop at Harris Beach State Park and lo' and behold, discovered another folder inside. It was for a nearby place called Loeb State Park, and when I looked inside and found three pictures, one of which was this bridge shot. I could just barely remember this area. I looked at my trip notes…nothing. I guess I hadn't gotten around to mentioning our hike that day. Shucks. I went back to digging for clues. I went over to my folder of unfinished pictures for this place and it started to become clear. I oriented myself with a look at Google Maps, and suddenly, it all came back with a rush of memories. THIS PLACE!!! OH YEAH!!! I REMEMBER! WHAT A DAY! :D Scrolling through the pictures, I smiled and sighed in joy, stepping back in time to the beautiful trail we walked, the little waterfalls, the river, the flowers, the glow of springtime taking over…how lucky we were! I can't help but stop and think about the reality: if I hadn't taken all of these pictures, I'd have totally forgotten about this beautiful hike we took back in April. So much has happened since the beginning of our trip! There really isn't any way to keep it all straight except to take pictures and write down my impressions. I have tried to keep up with trip notes but it takes time, energy and a well of creativity to spend time writing. I don't always do it. But with the pictures, my memories are preserved and take me back to where I was. I say it again: THANK GOODNESS FOR PHOTOGRAPHY! (And Jenny, I'm thinking about you too--we've had conversations about the bad idea of travelling without recording the adventure in any way, just hoping the memories will be there. They probably won't! Here's the proof!) Today's Picture Loeb State Park has a small, primitive campground (no power or electricity) for tent campers and small trailers. What a special place to stay, it's just beautiful! The park also has a gorgeous trail which takes hikers along the Chetco River, past small waterfalls and through a gorgeous forest complete with dappled sunlight filtering down through the trees. This bridge was in a perfect spot for a cool picture and Steve and I had a great time playing with different angles and getting panoramas with our phone cameras too. It's wonderful to have an excuse to take pictures of fences and bridges because they really are neat, aren't they? Today's Insets I have so many pictures to share, but five insets will be perfect for today! You'll see the magnificent Chetco River and one of the many streams that had cascading waterfalls. A dappled trail picture is mandatory too! I have a view up through the trees to the blue sky peeking through and finally, a stunning white trillium blossom which looks ready for a wedding! Thank You For the Visits and Amazing Comments! I hope you're all having a wonderful start of your week. I want to tell you all how much your comments have meant to me--you've totally made my day with the things you've said! I'm totally glowing and truly delighted that I can make you guys happy with the images I've been sharing. :) Also, it's been such FUN to go around and visit! What a massive talent ipernity has! What a fine community…and what a lovely group of friends I have in you all. Have a super week and keep staying safe if you can!

(+2 insets!) EEK EEK! It's another late post! :D Not my fault! STUFF HAPPENED! :D Can't type much tonight! Today was another driving day! We left our wonderful site at Devil's Lake and drove several hours back down the coast to the Bullard's Beach State Park Campground for one night's stay as we begin to make our way back towards home. We got into camp at about 4:30 and fast forward, we got our bikes out and took a ride around the campground and then out to the beach where we laughed our heads off trying to ride our bikes on the wet sand! FAIL! So funny! It Doesn't Work! You must have really fat tires, which we don't have, heh! Then we road over a short distance to the bay and oh my it was so beautiful! My main picture shows our bikes on the dock with a beautiful local bridge behind! Insets are a couple of views from another spot in two directions. SO LOVELY! Our bike ride was soooooo much fun! We will definitely be back to this pretty place! Pam, I can't write now but you are in my thoughts as well as in Steve's! *BIG HUGS* Explored on 5/25/19; highest placement, #11.

(+6 insets…please be sure to look, there are some pretty views of the park and waterfall!) Trip Talk: Enjoying Beautiful Englishman River Provincial Park There is something extra wonderful about the parks on Vancouver Island. I believe the forests here are healthier because I feel such strong and vibrant energy from them. Don't get me wrong--the forests we visited in Oregon and Washington were also glowing and rich, but it seems that global warming has not affected this place as much as others. Or whatever it is…less people, a more wild state…I cannot tell you exactly what it is but I do know that the feeling of immersion was remarkable and has stayed indelibly in my mind. Established and protected in 1940, Englishmen Provincial Park has always been a very popular destination for locals and tourists alike. Visitors are drawn by its pair of gorgeous waterfalls and lovely forest trails which give hikers a glimpse of the park's 240 acres (97 hectares). For some historical background, Wiki says the following: According to a local legend, indigenous people in the area found the skeleton of a Caucasian man near the waterfalls, thus giving the river its current name; the river was given its name because "an Englishman was drowned while attempting to cross." Spanish mapmakers originally named it the "Rio de Grullas," presumably because of the large number of great blue herons living at its estuary (grulla being Spanish for "crane")." I must admit my confusion regarding the two waterfalls because Steve and I only saw one. I wasn't sure where the other one was but apparently we missed it. However, when I was looking up historical information for my post today, I suddenly saw the answer to my question! There on the wiki page was a picture of the second waterfall…and when I looked at my pictures, I was delighted to see that I'd gotten a wonderful picture of it after all! The only difference was that there was no water flowing over the falls in my picture--in other words, the water level had dropped by the time we visited in August…which of course makes sense! Many waterfalls cease to flow in the dry months of the year. (I have included a picture of the second waterfall with an attribution to the author-- DG Brown --noted on the picture) Today's Pictures My main picture today features one of the two bridges that cross the Englishman River on the way to the top of the waterfalls. The picture by itself wasn't all that interesting so I took some creative license with a few filters--I hope you like the outcome! I thought it would be perfect for the day--HAPPY FENCE FRIDAY! My first inset shows the second waterfall--without the waterfall! I laughed out loud when I found the picture on Wikipedia because I instantly recognized the rocks and deep canyon that form the area. You'll see my added inset from DG Brown that shows what the waterfall looks like. The cool thing to me is that the huge rock jammed into place, which is the basis for the waterfall, is really neat looking and something you'd miss when the water flows over it! Other insets include a picture of water rushing down the narrow canyon, complete with logs stuck in place; there's a close-up of water crashing over the waterfall, a view of lovely water making its way around rocks in a slower part of the river, and finally, another breathtaking forest view that we saw along our hike. I hope you like the show! :) Pam, I was amused to learn that the photos in the link I sent you were from an area not even remotely close to you. *wipes egg from face* LOL, oh well! Thanks for the info on the place that is actually near you, what a bummer that it's not a very impressive, boo! Well, hopefully you can enjoy some watery beauty through my photography and tales! Anyway, it's an absolutely gorgeous day here which started with sparkling frost and promises to warm up to be tee-shirt weather! Maybe your day is equally lovely! *BIG HUGS from southern Oregon* Explored on 2/21/20; highest placement #1.

(+10 insets!) (bigger = better) :) Trip Talk: Balancing Planned Itineraries with the Wonder of Unexpected Surprises It was my job to come up with things for us to do on our trip to Vancouver Island…what a challenge! There seemed to be no end of things we could do, should do, and couldn't miss. We agreed that the best idea would be a list of 3-5 possibilities for each leg of our trip and that meant coming up with ideas for 9 places. Almost every spot we stayed at had seemingly countless activities for us to do so it took a while to find out which ones would be the best choices for us. At the same time, we didn't want to set all of our ideas into stone. One of the best things that can happen on a trip is when you discover something really cool that you didn't know about. We definitely wanted some of that and happily, the balance of planned destinations vs. unplanned special discoveries was really good. I didn't dig too hard into exact details of a place because I wanted us to have these surprises, and we sure did have them! In fact, our hike at Goldstream Park featured a totally memorable surprise which turned out to be a really exciting and unforgettable adventure for us! Today's Pictures Goldstream Provincial Park is located in the southern end of Vancouver Island and is very popular due to its easy access and proximity to Victoria. There are lots of hiking trails, one of which ascends steeply to the top of nearby Mount Finlayson. We opted to go on the much shorter and more reasonable Gold Mine trail instead. The trail climbed quickly from the Niagara Falls creek bed and brought us to a feature we weren't aware of until a passing hiker pointed the way…a railroad trestle with access! Hot dog!!! The trestle crossed over a very deep gorge and had many signs warning of the extreme danger for any who dared travel over the trestle. Did they think that would stop us? We would not be denied! No matter how terrified of heights that I can be, I refuse to let my fears stop me from certain activities. Such as walking on a trestle that spans an abyss! There were plenty of others who braved the trestle walk and all of us took great care to watch our footing. There were no railings so the safest place to walk was directly down the center of the trestle. Passing one another meant stepping to the side to allow them to get by and everyone was careful as they went. Naturally I had a battle of wills going on as I made my way across. The trestle was so unbelievably HIGH that I only peeked a couple of times through the tracks to see the tall trees underneath. Holy heebie-jeebies, what sort of insanity led me to cross this thing anyway?!! Seriously, I couldn't help thinking about the reality: if you tripped and went terribly wrong, you'd fall right off the side and plummet for what seems like forever! Insanity. Shaking my head in amazement as I slowly made my way along, I also reminded myself that the bridge was totally safe if one was careful. And after all, it could support entire TRAINS so one puny little person would probably be fine. On either side of the trestle there were a couple of places where you could walk out to the very edge and stand on a platform complete with metal railings to cling to. When I first noticed these spots I was all, "Not Gonna Happen." But by the time I got to each of them, I was able to creep over to the platforms and appreciate the (terrifying) view beyond. I couldn't help but notice various people who were actually sitting at the edge with legs dangling over the side as they enjoyed a snack and some conversation. The thought of doing such a thing totally freaked me out! Even Steve agreed: CRAZY! The trip across the entire length took about 10 minutes because I went slowly and stopped on the platforms along the way. When I got to the far side I was very pleased with myself for conquering my fears, but I was also very relieved to have solid ground under my feet again! :D Standing from the safety of the ground, I enjoyed watching people crossing over and returning. It was comforting to see that I wasn't the only one who was obviously quite nervous but there were plenty who were so relaxed they almost seemed too incautious. They walked near the edges with calm indifference but all I could do was scream inside as my mind's eye saw them tripping and falling to their doom. Still, it was nice to see everyone enjoying this awesome place. The fact was that each of us made a conscious decision to walk on the trestle despite being strongly discouraged against it. I liked being in the Cool Club! :) Steve had fun taking pictures through the tracks as he slowly went along. I watched him curiously while he studied the changing views, stopping now and again for another picture. I wondered how he managed to deal with seeing the dizzying sight below without freaking out. I can handle compartmentalizing my fears to a point but actively looking as Steve was doing…NO WAY JOSE!!! My main picture today shows the trestle as we made our way up the hillside trail to the track above. What an awesome sight! I am such a fan of this type of bridge construction and I also love the way the trestle emerges from the forest before disappearing into it again on the other side of the chasm. Inset 1: I couldn't resist taking a picture of Steve taking a picture of the trestle! Inset 2: "RAIL BRIDGE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS" Yeah, yeah…we're still going! Inset 3: The straight path across seemed safe enough when there weren't any people on it! Inset 4: I forced myself to look down and take this picture…holy freakout Batman, that's HIGH! Inset 5: The view of the trestle when standing on a platform near the edge. I actually liked the graffiti on the bridge. For some reason it seems to fit--what a switch…I usually detest graffiti! Inset 6: An abstract view showing the edge and bottomless pit below… Inset 7: A graffiti-adorned post with a lovely view beyond. Inset 8: The tracks from where they came on the starting side. Inset 9: The tracks heading away from the far side. Inset 10: Lil' ol' me clinging to one of the platform's railings. Pam, would you have been able to cross this trestle? I bet you would have done fine, especially since we'd do it together! :) I do appreciate working on my fear of heights because the rewards are always so huge and meaningful. I'll never ever forget this trestle because it was so potentially deadly but was just that much more cool because of the danger! I hope that your day is going well my dear, many hugs going your way! :) Explored on 9/14/19; highest placement #2.

(+1 inset) Holy cow, what an adventure we are having! Steve and I are now at a lovely state park called L.L. Stub Stewart and will be here until at least Wednesday we think. We were supposed to be in Tillamook today but an enormous wrench was thrown into the works… Our truck's transmission decided it no longer had the will to live and left us on a long and winding gravel road as we were heading out from L.L. Stub Stewart towards the coastal community of Tillamook, Oregon. Long story short, all is well and we are happy and safe with a wonderful site arranged for as long as we need it! I'm sharing a view from the rim of the 600-foot canyon of The Cove Palisades which looks down into the beautiful Lake Billy Chinook . We went on a hike from our campsite up to the top and around a loop trail which took us many enjoyable--though very hot--hours to complete. Incredible, breathtaking views the whole way, with countless flowers and interesting plants and trees to appreciate. I'm also including an inset…WE CAUGHT FISHIES!!! Hooray!!! After some bumpy failures on previous days, Steve caught his first fish one morning while fishing from the shore of Lake Billy Chinook. We learned that a small and adorably cute fishing boat was only $70 for 4 hours! The next day we got up early and soon found ourselves in a spot that was well-known to be a prime fishing spot. It WAS! Steve caught 2 7" Small-mouth Bass, a 12" California Squawfish (invasive junk fish which eats trout and salmon eggs and fry) and a gorgeous 16" Rainbow Trout! I caught a small but lovely silvery shimmering 8" land-locked salmon called a Kokanee! Both of us were beside ourselves with excitement and pride. We'd actually caught our DINNER which would give us two night's meals, hooray! I would love to spend more time chatting but I'm out of time! We will be hopping on our bikes after brunch and heading down the "rails to trails" path that leads between the town of Banks past L.L. Stub Stewart all the way out to Vernonia. It's a 22-mile paved path in total length and today we'll be doing the length between L.L. Stub Stewart and Vernonia. Two days ago we went to Banks and back and it thoroughly kicked our er…behinds with its slow but steady climb from Banks back to our campground. Today's ride will be a lot less strenuous. A good thing as we need groceries today and will be loaded down with full backpacks on the way back! Much love to you, Pam, to you, Marie-Claire, and to all of you who have visited in the past days! Explored on 6/23/19; highest placement, #1.

Steve and I went to Cottage Grove a couple of years ago so we could ride our bikes on a 30-mile tour of the covered bridges there. We had a wonderful day, and as we were making our way back at the end of our ride, we saw this handsome train bridge lit beautifully in the late afternoon sun.

This image was taken during October, 2011.

This image was taken during October, 2011.

This image was taken during October, 2011.

This image was taken during October, 2011.

Here is an abstract of the Applegate River Pioneer Bridge's beautiful construction. This photo was taken on October 21, 2011.

This image was taken during the month of October, 2011.

This image was taken during the month of October, 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