This is our first trip as a family since Spring of 2005 when the four of us visited Bonita Springs, Florida. A lot has happened since then. A graduation, new jobs, etc.

Here is a map of the area near our flat. We are staying at the push pin (A). If you click on the map, you’ll see nearby landmarks. Some notable ones are Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace, Winchester Cathedral, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, and more. Lots of fun.

I know we’ll be traveling in a bigger circle than this map would indicate but we still have some planning to do.

I anticipate that before too long we’ll be replaying that Disney commercial theme “I am too excited to sleep”.

It was glorious.

Saturday morning at dawn I ventured into the fog (I think it was a mixture of moisture and mosquitos) and captured this.

That evening, we gathered at the Villas for our dinner. A couple of years ago we abandoned the Whistling (S*&$)bird due to bad service. I mean really bad service. We’ve been cooking in ever since. This is our crew, stomachs growling, waiting for food.We were pleased to have John and Sherri join us this year (and more to come!)

Sunday, the skies cleared and I was able to catch some nice shots of left over mining tools…

…beautiful skies (on a great par three)…

…even as nasty clouds approached.

It was a glorious weekend.

I recently picked a new tool to help. It is SmugMug. It is a very nice tool. It allows me to host all of my shots (or those that I am willing to let see the light of day). It also has a relationship with a professional photolab for printing.

I have finished posting most of my images. You can find them at http://photos.feikema.org. I have enabled printing so that any of the images can be ordered and paid for on-line. This is a highly reputable firm and trustworthy.

I will continue to post new pictures to both the blog and the galleries but there will always be more images in the galleries.

I hope you enjoy.

Overcast is good sometimes. In this case it means that the whites in Egret pictures are less likely to get blown out.

They were busy fishing this afternoon.

Step one, go to where the fish are.

Step two, sneak up on them.

Step three, attack!

Step four, keep your eye on it so that it doesn’t get away.

Here are a couple of shots from the top.

It was a little hazy but not too bad. We are at about 10,000ft.

The base was 80 degrees, the summit was 45. I don’t mind it when it gets a little chilly…

The trip down was nearing sunset. It made for very warm colors, and lots of defining shadows.

Sometimes nature frames photos better than we ever could.

At the base, there were still opportunities for cool images. Lynn is having fun with this succulent.

And Mary got some great images with the Point and Shoot. She has the eye, that is for sure (I am glad she doesn’t like lugging heavy cameras).

This is a Turkey Vulture. Speaking of lack of appetite, this guy isn’t helping.

This is a Double-crested Cormorant. Quite interesting, but talk about a Stoic. He barely moved.

In prime time, there are 17,000 cranes a day that stop at the bosque. I am guessing that I’ll be back.

While I didn’t see Sandies, I did see many other species. One was the Gambel Quail.

In this shot two male Pheasants, are fighting for more territory. You can tell by the feathers only view of the second who is winning.

After a bit of a tussle, this male was the victor. Interestingly, this is not a ringtail – which was introduced +25 years ago. This is a combo of a ringtail and an afghani pheasant (introduced in the last ten). The white wing was a giveaway.

Along the way we spotted a ‘wanna be’ park. Lots of interesting statues and sculptures. In the end it was this gate that caught my attention. It was in the middle of nowhere (a bit of Blazing Saddles esq).

The colors and the textures were great. I wish I had built this.

A short while later we stopped in Madrid (a location in the movie Wild Hogs). This old house is nearby, and more interesting than any of the set locations.

This old house is nearby, and more interesting than any of the set locations.

While I was shooting, a local stopped to chat. He said that the owner (who had lived there longer than he had – 34 years vs. 33 years) wanted the house to be a symbol of “where we have come from and where we are going.

The colors on the truck were fantastic.

Really fantastic.

I am not sure that this running board can be trusted.

I wonder if you could order a custom paint job like this.

After you enter the pueblo this set of homes is just west of the cemetery. The buildings have been there for a thousand years. There is NO running water (the river runs through town), and there is NO electricity. The most recent development are the doors. Traditionally the entry is a hole in the roof, hence all of the ladders. It was more secure to raise a ladder than do secure a door.

A couple of minutes later we emerged from one of the narrow avenues into the main square. I was not prepared for what I saw. This image is the main north building of the Pueblo with the Taos ski area in the background.

Here is the San Geronimo (St. Jerome) Church. It is one of the newer buildings, constructed in 1850. It replaced the original church which was first built in the 1600s.

This is an Eagle feather staff. It caught my eye as the wind picked up. It was blowing so hard that the elm seeds were blowing horizontally and it almost looked like it was snowing.

The terrain became rugged quickly as we left Santa Fe.

Early on near Santa Fe, the river was close at hand and slow moving.

Up near Taos, the river cut a mighty gorge. It was (is) beautiful. This is looking north. It was quite windy on the bridge (called the Gorge Bridge). I am not sure how fast it was but I would guess at least 50 MPH. I would guess that someone will find quite a few hats, etc. upwind.

The bridge has pedestrian walkways on both sides with a number of lookouts. This is taken from the middle now looking south towards Santa Fe.

This is a view of the bridge looking west. In 1966 it was awarded “Most Beautiful Steel Bridge” in the “Long Span” category. The bridge has appeared in several films, including Natural Born Killers, Twins, She’s Having a Baby, Wild Hogs and Terminator Salvation.

The colors and textures are so cool, I couldn’t help my self.

I just loved the colors…

I don’t think that this bike will go very fast, but I am sure that you’ll get lots of looks.

Moonrise Over Wagon Seat. Not quite Ansel’s Moonrise Over Hernandez but oh well.

Springtime brings new colors and fresh flowers.

It has been a beautiful couple of days in Santa Fe with Lynn and Bill. We’ve been exploring the 400 year old Plaza, sampling wonderful food and the quaint architecture. Later today, we’re going to Canyon Road. The local art is amazing. I’ve also been wandering the neighborhoods, taking pictures and exploring.

This is the first of two posts today. In this one, I’ve selected some of my favorite doors/entryways. Wonderful texture, earthy colors and always something different.

Adobe, adobe everywhere.

Even when they age, the doors look great.

Especially when they age, they look great.

I wonder if the backside of the mailbox is open.

Nicely manicured.

Chili peppers against turquoise.

This finch was also patient, but he decided that right on top was the best place to make sure that no one butted in line.

Finally!! Mary has been making sure to keep the grape jelly full (even though the chipmunks have been raiding it) so that the Orioles stay near. It works. They are really noisy once they take their place at the feeder. I have snapped Orioles here before but the “Finally!!” is that I have been able to catch one in its natural surroundings rather than on a plastic feeder.

Great spot with beautiful Wood Ducks.

I think he got too close…

There were also feeding egrets…

Roosting Redwing Blackbirds…

And what we think is a solo Pine Siskin

These are my last images on the main page.

This Sandhill Crane dropped in on us and decided that he didn’t mind company while he had breakfast.

He let me get quite close.

Here is another male. I am not used to be this close to the subject.

When they get mad, I think it is time to back away.

Sometimes when they come in for a landing, it is necessary to put the flaps all the way down or they miss the runway.

At first I thought that this was a salute –

- but after this shot I think that he lost something and couldn’t figure out which wing it was under.

This one caught me off guard. I thought it was another Great Egret into I saw the red near his eyes. Also much smaller than the others, 8 inches tall.

Having heard about the Venice Rookery, I opted for a slight diversion along the way. I stayed overnight in Venice FL, a couple of miles from the Rookery. Rising at dawn Saturday, I headed down for a morning of shooting. Between the couple of shots Friday evening in the harsh light to check it out, and those from 6:55 to about 9:55, I took about 500 pictures. I’ll show four in this post, plus a snapshot of the rookery.

The rookery itself is a small area behind the local Audubon Society. There are species everywhere (I saw about 15) and many nest on this small island. It is packed.

The first picture of the morning was a Great Egret coming in for a landing. It is not sharp, and is a little grainy since it was just getting light but I really love the feel of it.

The Male Anhinga is striking, and strange. I looks really strange as it flies. It was a new one for me.

This Glossy Ibis was an unusual find for me here. Much different than the birds I am used to in Minnesota.

This great egret was beautiful and I think she knew it. You can see her chick in the nest below, not getting much attention.

It was a blast. At the peak there were 12-15 photographers there, snapping away. I have many more shots, Great Blue Herons, more Egrets and even some Sandhill Cranes. I’ll probably just post one more set and then post an album in the selected photos tab.