Category: United States

Iowa Back Roads

Posted on by Annie

The Interstate highways are great if you want to get from Point A to Point B as fast as possible. If you want to actually see the state you’re driving through, the back roads are the best. I’ve spent the last two days driving through Iowa, mostly because I’d never been here before and I wanted to see the small towns, the farms, and the wide open spaces I’d heard about. And Iowa did not disappoint. There are so many farms, massive places where the main house and outbuildings are completely surrounded and made small by the acres of fields…

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Sunday Serenity: Sunrise on Lake Superior

Posted on by Annie

Some days are diamonds, and some sunrises are too beautiful not to share. I invite you to take a few minutes and sit with me while we watch the sun come up over the western end of Lake Superior. The thin red line, too faint to capture with the camera, turns slowly to orange. To the west, the clouds light up and the breeze fades, the water changing from small waves to flat calm. And then, there it is. The giver of warmth and life, rising in the east, bringing light to the day. All hail the sun. For most…

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Sunday Serenity: Seasons Change

Posted on by Annie

After a couple of weeks of looking for it, I finally found the colors of autumn, driving I-75 the length of Michigan. After some early morning rain, the clouds turned white, the sky blue, and the trees showed off their finery. Each tree is different: size, shape, colors, branches, and yet, they look beautiful together. Hmm, maybe there’s a lesson in there somewhere, you think? As the season changes, the sun sets earlier and the overnight cold snaps are back. It’s part of the cycle of life, and trees show us every year that growth and renewal are possible. Why…

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Niagara Falls Redux

Posted on by Annie

Last April, on the way from Seattle to Quebec to pick up my Alto, I stopped at Niagara Falls for a night, staying on the Canadian side and enjoying a hotel-room-view of the Horseshoe Falls. I found the whole “big loud water” thing amazing and decided that I’d be back someday. Yesterday was that day. I hit the American Falls this time, up close and personal. Niagara Falls is still freaking amazing. Here’s my favorite shot of the American Falls from my visit. And here is American Falls on the left and Horseshoe Falls back to the right. Last year,…

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Erie Canal

Posted on by Annie

One of the iconic names in American history is the Erie Canal in upstate New York. From 1817 to 1825, men and horses dug a 363-mile path from the Great Lakes to the Hudson River, providing a faster way for goods to flow to and from the Northwest territories (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio). In providing a waterway to the heart of the continent, the Erie Canal changed history, providing a critical supply line during the Civil War and making New York the financial capital of the country. First, a short geography lesson. The image below shows the path of…

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