National Parks

These two pictures were taken at the north rim of the grand canyon. I have to confess that I didn't expect this much vegetation and wildlife at the grand canyon, it was very beautiful. We also saw wild turkeys, chipmonks and deer.

The two pictures above were taken at close to the same elevation and in the same state but the two location couldn't be more different. The picture on the left was taken near Point Reyes National Seashore just north of San Fransico. When you've lived in Kansas and northwest Texas your whole life seeing the ocean is sort of a big deal. It was maybe 55 degrees and very windy, but as you can see had a very beautiful view. The picture on the right was taken in death valley at about 200 feet below sea level, it was the 30th of Sept. and it was 106 degrees. Deathvalley was more interesting and scenic than you might expect, I recommend going if you're in the area, just be sure to take water and have a reliable vehicle.

These two pictures were taken in the Painted Desert in Arizona. I had been told not to expect too much and frankly the only reason we even went was because the highway we were on went right past it and I figured we could pop in to see it so I could say I'd been there. After having seen it I would have to say that I had been misinformed. The painted desert ended up being one of the highlights of our trip.

This picture was taken in Sequoia National Park. Actually I think this is a picture of Pine trees, but they were nearly as big as the Sequoias. Our elevation was over 7000 feet when we took this picture, the air was cool and the scent from the pine trees was wonderful. I was very happy to be there.

Well OK this isn't a national park, it's the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose. If your not familar with this house here's the quick story. Sara Winchester was the heir the Wincherster rifle fortune and when she bought this house she went to a psychic who told her that she would be haunted by the souls that were killed by Winchester rifles, but that the spirts couldn't enter her house until it was completed. So to keep out the ghost she continued to build on to the house until she died many years later. I might not have told it exactly correctly but that's the basic story. It's a very interesting and bizarre house to tour, but the reason I included her was because of the garden and landscaping. Unfortunatly we didn't have time to take the full tour of the property but what we did see very beautiful.