I never wonder why I do this.
I’m intrigued by the history of the areas I live in, how people lived in another time, and why they up and leave their homes, abandoning what may have been precious items.
I make up stories in my head, some of them inspired by Criminal Minds episodes, and I don’t share most of them with you. I’d rather you not know just how dark my imagination can be. Ha!
Bella and I are bachelorettes for the week, while Our American is away on business.
I told her we were going chasing sunsets.
She seemed excited.
We just spent our third weekend camping!
That’s three times already this year, doubling the amount of times we’ve been camping with My American since we started dating in 2010.
We’ve done two trips to Bumblebee near Kingston, Idaho, and our most recent was to our regular Memorial Day haunt, Chatcolet at the southern trip of Coeur d’Alene Lake. It’s in Heyburn State Park, the oldest state park in the Pacific Northwest.
Almost three years ago, we were cruising down a dusty South Dakota highway.
It was hot as hell in early July and the three of us — me, Shep and My American — were bound for Nova Scotia and M.A.’s first opportunity to meet my family.
He and Shep were about to be exposed to a town bathed in tartan and the skirl of the bagpipe.
It’s been all over my Facebook and RSS feeds.
Some people tag or DM me and say, “You’d be perfect for this.”
I smile and think, “Been there, done that.”
Associated Press picked up a recent story from The Missoulian, detailing the droves of volunteers who signed up for the opportunity to spend a month at the ghost town of Garnet, MT.
Few locations in Central Alberta are photographed as frequently as the East Coulee bridge.
It serviced trains and vehicles crossing the Red Deer River and provided access and service to two mines. Both mines were left to rot when the coal-mining industry dried up but the Atlas has been turned into an historical site.
The bridge is made with impressive, strong wooden beams, although they’re rotting away and I fear the bridge’s days are numbered.
It’s a beautiful, blue-sky day in Eastern Washington.
Part of me wants to hit the road and go somewhere fun.
Today, however, my beautiful Bella is recovering from surgery. It was time to get her spayed and add on a prophylactic gastropaxy (a procedure in a which her stomach is attached the chest cavity to prevent bloat and torsion).
That means we’re grounded for a few days or a week. No matter, we still haven’t shared our story about the first great road trip since moving to Spokane.
November?!?!? November was the last time I wrote about an adventure?
Shame.
What’s worse is how much time I have on my hands these days. In late January, Bella and I packed up a U-Haul and moved to Spokane, Wash., to join Our American in our Happily Ever After.
There must be time for adventure.
There is.
Last week, Bella and I set out for two photowalks.
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I try to take a 360-degree approach when I’m out exploring and taking pictures.
I take some shots of what I see, then turn and turn and turn, making sure I don’t miss anything.
Some places draw me back for more. Dorothy, the Atlas Mine and Rawley are my Alberta favourites. I’m keeping a mental list of Washington spots.
Sometimes I get home, look at my pictures and think, “I didn’t quite get that right.”
Or maybe, no matter how many times I turned around, I know there’s more to see.
This is my favourite time of year for shooting.
I’m always excited by the bright reds, yellows and oranges against a brilliant blue sky.
Since I moved back to B.C. temporarily, I’ve passed by this lake countless times, en route to Spokane or Omak to visit My American. We spent last weekend in Omak with Bella, our seven-month-old Maremma sheepdog.
The lake again caught my eye on a day trip to Oroville. It was surrounded by trees losing their leafy green colour and the water was so calm, it could have been mistaken for a mirror.