Category: Rivers

Animas River, CO, Colorado, Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge, CO, Durango, CO, Silverton, CO

Durango to Silverton Narrow Gauge Train

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Thursday, September 1, 2022

52 degrees at 6:00, high of 85

Yesterday we drove from Taos, NM to Durango, Colorado. It was one of the prettiest drives of the trip going through Carson National Forest in the San Juan Mountains. With 1.5 million acres, it makes you want to explore.

Carson National Forest
Pagosa Springs, CO

Voted the best train ride in America in 2020 & 2021, it is 3.5 hour out, 2 hrs. in Silverton and 3.5 hrs. back following the beautiful Animas River in the San Juan Mountains. We opted for inside seating with some amenities, and were very lucky to have the best guide possible, a young lady named Zoie. She kept it lively and informative. Only a month on the job, she had learned her lessons well. She is a geologist and her father is a botanist, so she pointed out some very interesting things.

Of course there were historical things, like mining in Silverton, and how the train became an important part. Her boyfriend is a fisherman, so she knew a few things about the fishing. Hikers use the train a lot, and they can get on and off at designated places. About half way up is a zip-line camp and lodge that looked very busy.

Riding the train for 7 hours, you get to know most of the people in your car. Mike and Vickie from Louisiana sat across from us, and we had some interesting talks. A “Rusty Spike” drink from Zoie helped break the ice. Mike and Vickie had a Motorhome and travel a lot. They also tow a Jeep, and they like to drive the dirt and gravel roads through the mountains. They know the area well.

Silverton still has the feel of a western town, although they are mostly supported by tourism. We took a short spin around town in a stage coach. That’s a first for me, and I was surprised to find it pretty comfortable. 

In two hours, train passengers will shop a bit, but everyone wants to eat lunch, so there are lots of restaurants. Zoie told us about a unique jewelry shop where they mine a stone not found anywhere else. 

  • Silverton

Mostly we walked around town, but finally had to get a bite to eat before boarding the train. We now had the river side of the train, so imagined fishing it. Zoie pointed out the place Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kit jumped on the train from a cliff in the movie. Some hikers got on and off the train in a couple of places.

  • Hiker heading out

It was a beautiful train ride with good company and a great guide. Mike and I gave her a hug when we got off the train. Well, we had sipped a little bourbon on the way down. 

Colorado River, Dead Horse State Park, Utah, Moab, Uttah, Utah

Dead Horse State Park, Utah

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Sunday, July 3, 2022

On our way up to Canyonlands National Park, we first stopped at “The Monitor and Merrimac” rock features.  To the east were the La Sal Mountains and Mount Waas at 12,306’. We turned left (east) we came to Dead Horse State Park, not knowing what to expect. Well, my new friend, Cindy, at Riverside Plumbing said she and her future husband used to go up to Dead Horse State Park  for a date.

I think it was a $10 entry fee, but we had bought a Utah State Park pass, so they waved us on. The park overlooks a gooseneck turn in the great Colorado River. It really is as pretty a spot as one could wish for. A cute couple were having breakfast at the overlook at sunrise, giddy in their young love in such a gorgeous spot.

Canyonlands National Park, Colorado River, Green River, Moab, Uttah, Portal RV Resort, Utah

Canyonlands National Park

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Thursday, June 30, 2022

To avoid the heat, we drove 40 minutes to Canyonlands National Park, up a big mountain and onto a giant Mesa that is divided into three sections by two rivers, the Colorado and the Green River. Like the Grand Canyons, the mesa sits above the rivers, carved away by a giant inland sea, the Cretaceous Seaway or the Western Interior Seaway. 

“The Cretaceous Sea, also known as the Cretaceous Interior Seaway, was a narrow, rather shallow sea that connected the modern Gulf of Mexico and modern Arctic Ocean. The formation of the sea is rather complicated. Basically, the Earth’s crust is divided into slabs of crust called plates. These plates float on semi-molten rock and get pushed around by rising hotter rock and get pulled towards areas of sinking cooler rock. Sometimes the plates collide and this can result in crumpling of the crust forming mountain ranges. As mountains are pushed upwards, they often pull the surrounding land down making the landscape look like a crumbled rug.” From https://eastern.usu.edu/museum/paleontology/cretaceous-sea/index

Continuing from Utah State University Eastern:

“Simplified, the story began about 170 million years ago, during the Middle Jurassic as the North American Plate moving west at about an inch per year, started a slow crashed into the Farallon Plate that was moving east at about the same speed. Over the next 105 million years this slow-motion collision created a series of mountains between the west coast and western Utah. To the east of these mountains, the land was pulled downwards allowing ocean water to flood the center of North America. 

Late Cretaceous

This down-pull was erratic and the land surface would alternately bob up-and down very, very slowly over millions of years. The result was alternating times of submergence below sea level and rising above it. During the Cretaceous, the central part of North America began a downwards cycle around 130 million years ago (Early Cretaceous) and the sea reached Utah around 110 million years ago. The landscape began bouncing upwards around 70 million years ago, forming the Rocky Mountains and pushing the ocean off the continent.  
Much of this up and down motion during the Cretaceous is preserved in the Book Cliffs and in the Grand Staircase National Monument as alternating layers of marine and terrestrial sedimentary rocks as the coastline shifted back and forth. It is for this reason that these areas are famous among geologists.”

Eagles, Louisiana, Middendorf's Manchac Restaurant, Mississippi River, New Orleans, Oak Alley Plantation Restaurant, Oak Alley Plantation, Louisiana

Oak Alley Plantation

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Wednesday, May 4, 2022

We are on a photography workshop with Mark Zablotsky (https://www.markzphotoworkshops.com) in New Orleans. Driving north, we crossed the Mississippi River, that always impresses me. It is big, appears to be rather fast and is heavily trafficked by barges shipping products.

We visited Oak Alley Plantation. Oak Alley is.a beautiful place with its oak-lined drive, gardens and slave quarters. Turning away from the house, I saw a ship making its way up the Mississippi. The plantation has rooms and cabins for rent as well as an excellent dining room, where we had breakfast.

After some initial shots, we went into the restaurant for a good breakfast.

Picture on the wall of he restaurant

Back outside, we walked the grounds and gardens.

Heading back, Mark had found an eagle’s nest with a young one taking short flights.

Then on to Middendorf’s Manchac Restaurant at the Manchac Swamp Bridge, known for its thin-sliced catfish. A lot of other things also looked good on the menu.

Back at the hotel, Mark reviewed and helped us with our images, pointing out ways to improve and showing us editing techniques and sequence. In the evening, we took a ghost tour, but it was rather disappointing, so we dropped out.

Florida, Manatee, Manatee Springs State Park, Manatee State Park, Suwannee Belle Landing, Suwannee River, Suwannee River

Manatee Springs State Park

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This is the second time we have been to Manatee Springs, and we will be back! The campground is excellent and the springs and boardwalk are very cool. It is a short stream from the springs to the lovely Suwannee River, but don’t underestimate it. Depending on the time you come, there will be opportunities to see a large variety of wildlife. This site lists 179 species of birds sighted: https://ebird.org/hotspot/L127260. Of course, there are manatees which we were fortunate to see. This is a place for kayaking, swimming, picnicking, hiking and diving, so it is a popular spot.

We hiked a beautiful trail through the park, then went to dinner at Suwannee Belle Landing, a very good restaurant on the river. Using a shuttle service to take us up stream, we kayaked the Suwannee for two hours down to the springs. I wasn’t too excited about floating what seemed to be a docile river with little wildlife, so I didn’t take a camera. As luck would have it, I was once again proven wrong. The Suwanee is a beautiful river teeming with wildlife. We watched 50 Ibis fly into the trees, herons along the edges of the river, fish jumping, black vultures migrating and a tree full of wood storks. Sometimes it’s nice just to float along and enjoy the ride! Next time we will take a longer float and take the camera.

Suwanee River at dusk
Belle Landing
Alligator tacos
Key lime pie
New River, New River Gorge National Park, Photography, Sandstone Falls, WV, West Virginia

Sandstone Falls

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Sunday, October 9, 2021

I am on a photography workshop with Mark Zablotsky at https://www.markzphotoworkshops.com. We were rained out from a shoot of Sandstone Falls earlier in the week, so Mark suggested I go by there on my way home. We have had a great week, seeing some spectacular places and kicking my photography up a notch. I have a list of things to order when I get home, but first to see Sandstone Falls near Hinton, West Virginia.

From:https://www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/the-sandstone-falls.htm:

The largest waterfall on the New River, Sandstone Falls spans the river where it is 1500 feet wide. Divided by a series of islands, the river drops 10 to 25 feet.

Sandstone Falls marks the transition zone of the New River from a broad river of large bottomlands, to a narrow mountain river roaring through a deep boulder strewn V- shaped gorge. The falls form the dramatic starting line for the New Rivers final rush trough the New River Gorge to its confluence with the Gauley River to form the Kanawha River.

Your journey to view the falls will require some driving time, but it will take you along two of the park’s most scenic roads, Route 20 from I-64 at the community of Sandstone, ten miles upstream to the town of Hinton, then downstream eight miles along River Road, the park’s only scenic riverside drive. Both these routes offer several overlooks, historic sites, natural areas, trails, and river access points.

Most visitors will find the best starting point for their journey to Sandstone Falls at the Sandstone Visitor Center at the Sandstone exit 139 on I-64. The Visitor Center has excellent exhibits on the New River watershed, water resources, and natural and cultural history of the upper New River Gorge, plus park maps and information.

As you drive south, high above the river on Route 20 to Hinton you will pass two park vistas. The Sandstone Falls Overlook provides an aerial view of the falls from 600 feet above the river. Brooks Overlook looks down on the mile-long Brooks Island, a perennial bald eagle nesting site.

Hinton is the southern gateway to New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. A once booming railroad center, the town has a large historic district, railroad museum, antique shops, and restaurants.

After crossing the bridge at Hinton you will begin driving alongside the New River down River Road. There are great riverside vistas, several river access points, a trail, picnic area and small boardwalk view at Brooks Falls, a powerful Class III rapid. The journey ends at the Sandstone Falls day use area, where you begin your walk along the boardwalk and bridges that span the two islands below the falls.

For some reason geese seem to love rapids. Several times I have seen them frolicking in the rapids, taking baths, eating something from the bottom. Mallard ducks were in with this group, and seemed quite happy. I could have photographed the geese all day, but it was time to get home. Many thanks to Mark for all the work, research, scouting and teaching. His tremendous enthusiasm is contagious.

Little Beaver State Park, WV, New River, New River Gorge National Park, Photography, West Virginia

Grandview/Little Beaver Lake

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Sunday, October 9, 2021

“Grandview is a peaceful place to relax and unwind while enjoying outstanding views of the New River. From 1400 feet above the river at Main Overlook, visitors are rewarded with one of the most outstanding views in the park. On a clear day you can see directly into the heart of New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, including seven miles of the New River and its watershed. From Main Overlook visitors can also get a glimpse of some of the gorge’s unique cultural history. From here you see an active railway and the town of Quinnimont, where the first coal was shipped out of the gorge in 1873. Don’t miss the views from Turkey Spur Overlook, and be sure to walk the woodland trails.

Grandview is a great place to see the spectacular displays of Catawba rhododendrons that bloom here every spring. The purple Catawba rhododendrons bloom in mid May, while the white great rhododendrons bloom in July. The exact bloom times are not always consistent year to year, so check with a ranger at one of our visitor centers or check our facebook page for updates. 

The Grandview section of the park includes overlooks of the New River, a visitor center (open seasonally), five hiking trails, ranger-led walks and talks, summer outdoor dramas, and picnic areas with playgrounds. Information about renting picnic shelters at Grandview can be found on the Permits and Reservations page of this website. Grandview is home to Theatre West Virginia, which features outdoor drama presentations from June through August.

Grandview was originally a part of the West Virginia State Park system. In 1939, the state of West Virginia purchased 52 acres of land at Grandview to develop a day use park. The Civilian Conservation Corps built roads, shelters, and a picnic area, all still in use today. Construction began in 1960 on the 1200-seat Cliffside Amphitheater. The children’s playgrounds, recreation area, and additional walkways were built from 1961 to 1964. After more than 50 years as one of West Virginia’s most popular state parks, Grandview was transferred to the National Park Service in 1990.

Directions

To reach Grandview from Beckley follow I-64 East five miles to Exit 129 B. From Lewisburg follow I-64 West forty miles to Exit 129. From either exit, turn right and follow Route 9 North six miles to Grandview.” from: https://www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/grandview.htm.

It sometimes looks like this:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/573575702516450754/

butt what we found was:

Off we went to Little Beaver Lake, trying to get there before the sun got too high and the winds picked up. It is a beautiful, little lake, complete with campground and state park. “With 562-acres, Little Beaver State Park offers family fun, beautiful scenery and incredible outdoor recreation. The park features nearly 20 miles of trails to explore and an 18-acre lake where anglers may fish year-round. Stand up paddle board, kayak, canoe and paddleboat rentals are available seasonally. Park visitors can also enjoy biking, picnicking and camping at Little Beaver.” from: https://wvstateparks.com/park/little-beaver-state-park/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_Lfxn_Ho8wIVHR-tBh1ZbAOeEAAYASAAEgJr3vD_BwE.

New River, New River Gorge National Park, Photography, West Virginia

The New River Bridgewalk

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Saturday, October 8, 2021

I am on a great photography workshop with Mark Zablotsky (https://www.markzphotoworkshops.com) touring some of the best places in West Virginia. After an early shoot at Babcock State Park, Mark and I went to Bridge Walk LLC for a walk across the New River Bridge on a catwalk running underneath the highway. I do not like heights, but Mark convinced me this is a highlight of the trip. Yesterday we explored a bridge beneath the bridge that gave us a great view of the larger bridge.

“When the New River Gorge Bridge was completed on October 22, 1977, a travel challenge was solved. The bridge reduced a 40-minute drive down narrow mountain roads and across one of North America’s oldest rivers to less than a minute. When it comes to road construction, mountains do pose a challenge. In the case of the New River Gorge Bridge, challenge was transformed into a work of structural art – the longest steel span in the western hemisphere and the third highest in the United States

The New River Gorge Bridge is one of the most photographed places in West Virginia. The bridge was chosen to represent the state on the commemorative quarter released by the U.S. Mint in 2006. In 2013, the National Park Service listed the New River Gorge Bridge in the National Register of Historic Places as a significant historic resource.” (https://www.nps.gov/neri/planyourvisit/nrgbridge.htm)

Bridge Day

two base jumpers against a blue sky
Two BASE jumpers on their way down. NPS photo/John Chapman

“On the third Saturday of October, the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce hosts “Bridge Day.” On this one day a year, the famous New River Gorge Bridge is open to pedestrians and a wide variety of activities—great views, food and crafts vendors, BASE jumping, rappelling, music, and more—draw thousands of people. Bridge Day is West Virginia’s largest one-day festival, and it is the largest extreme sports event in the world.

The first official Bridge Day was celebrated in 1980 when two parachutists jumped from a plane onto the bridge. They were joined by three additional parachutists, and all five then jumped from the bridge into the gorge.Today, the event lures hundreds of BASE jumpers, cheered on by thousands of spectators. “BASE” stands for Building, Antenna (tower), Span (arch or bridge), and Earth (cliff or natural formation), the four categories of objects in which BASE jumpers jump from.

Looking for information on Bridge Day? While the bridge may be the crown on the Beautiful New River Gorge, Bridge Day is an event hosted by the Bridge Day commission. For more information, visit the Official Bridgeday website, or call the New River Convention and Visitors Bureau at (800) 927-0263″.

As we were shooting the little waterfall from the middle of the bridge, a truck stopped, asking us if we were the ones shooting pictures from the bridge. They were the ones in the raft, and asked if we could send them a picture. Mark smiled and quickly air-dropped a picture to them. He is an expert iPhone photographer, and seems to always shoot some pictures with his phone. The pictures he gets with his phone are pretty amazing.

At Bridge Walk LLC, we got instructions from Paul Story, who has been doing this for a long time, and he has many stories. He is approximately my age, and I thought, if he can do this, so can I.We strapped up in a harness like one you would use for a zip line. Then he attached a line that would be connected to a long, overhead wire. I did not want to test its strength. We loaded a bus that didn’t have to go far to our starting point. Paul explained it is a 2-hour walk across the gorge on a walk suspended 25 feet below the 3,035 ft.bridge. Now I was getting a bit queazy.

Paul Story with some serious clips to attach us to the wire

In the afternoon, we had a great session with Mark on processing pictures, using a variety of software. Although I use and like Nikon View NX-i, I could see where Photoshop and several plug-ins take it to the next step. It was an excellent session.

Durbin Train, West Virginia, Greenbrier River, WV, Train Rides, West Virginia

Durbin Rocket Train Ride in West Virginia

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Thursday, October 7, 2021

I am on a photography workshop with Mark Zablotsky (https://www.markzphotoworkshops.com) touring some of the prettiest places in West Virginia. We were scheduled to take the Durbin Rocket Train ride at 10:00. That gave us just enough time for a shoot of Blackwater Falls from below. It is a beautiful waterfall. It’s fun to look over Mark’s shoulder as he composes, adjusts his exposure, positions himself, shoots and then to see the final result in the camera. It’s also fun to have him look at my pictures and point out what I might have changed. Why did I choose that F-stop. Why that speed? Could you have composed differently to save time in processing?

We arrived at the train station 30 minutes early, as planned and discussed settings for this moving environment. We could have taken the Cass Train ride, which is a 4-hour trip, but opted to try the Durbin, which is only two hours following the Greenbrier River. A vintage steam engine pulled four cars along the river. It picked up two caboose cars that were left on the tracks. A nice family had stayed there for two nights and said it was very comfortable, with plenty of room, and they really enjoyed it. The train also stopped briefly to load water for steam from a tributary stream.

Although not peak fall colors, there was plenty of color, interesting houses, farms, barns, apple trees and a beautiful river. the train went backward during the first half and forward on the way back. It was more pleasant on the first half, as the smell of diesel fuel got to us on the return.

He had more stories than a library has books

Heading down the road, we went to Green Bank Telescope, the world’s largest steerable radio telescope. Then on to Lewisburg. Of course we couldn’t resist shooting some pretty places along the way.

We thought we would shoot Droop Mountain Battlefield Tower at sunset, but it was all fogged in. We checked into the Holiday Inn Express and Suites in Lewisburg, then went to dinner at “Food and Friends” in downtown Lewisburg. It was excellent – great food, great service at a reasonable price, and we sat at a table next to a window so we could watch all the people passing by.

from: https://greenbrierwv.com/places/29/food-friends
Blackwater Falls State Park, WV, Blackwater River, West Virginia, Photography, West Virginia

Blackwater Falls State Park

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Tuesday, October 5, 2021

Located in the Allegheny Mountains of Tucker County, Blackwater Falls State Park is named for the amber waters of Blackwater Falls, a 57-foot cascade tinted by the tannic acid of fallen hemlock and red spruce needles. The falls, along with a few of the park’s other features like Elakala Falls, Lindy Point and Pendleton Point Overlook, are some of the state’s most photographed spots. Visitors can enjoy the scenic views year-round by taking the steps to the falls or using viewing platforms. The park has 20 miles of hiking trails, the longest sledding magic carpet on the East Coast in the winter, a comfortable lodge and more. (from https://wvstateparks.com/park/blackwater-falls-state-park/)

We stopped in the lodge to check into a 3-bedroom cabin, complete with a nice kitchen, two bathrooms, a laundry room and a deck out back with a fire pit surrounded by logs for seating. There is a lot to see in this park, and as you can see, we had already done a lot on this second day of the workshop. Still, Mark found time to show us his routing for downloading and backing up his images. Then there was a bit on processing images, but more was to come later. This was a part I was very interested. He also showed us how to clean our sensors. I have three Nikon cameras, and one I had given up on because of the big blob I get on the images, but we cleaned that right up 😊.

Lodge getting new Pella windows
Cabin, Blackwater Falls SP
From the bridge over the Blackwater River

At sunset we went to Lindy Point, a beautiful spot overlooking Blackwater Canyon.

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