tandem
the weather was idyllic during last week’s visit to napa. it was crisp and sunny and two ducks enjoyed a leisurely swim along the napa river.
napa river
i visited napa and for the first time spent the majority of my time in downtown napa. it’s a vibrant place and one you should consider adding to your radar next time you head there.
snail in paradise
while walking out to fetch the morning papers, i spied a baby snail atop a newly opened bird of paradise.
view from high
driving down the mountain from idyllwild, i pulled over to shoot the view of the temecula valley from above. it couldn’t have been a prettier day.
passionflower
i don’t see too many of these, but when i do they’re spectacular. it looks like three more are getting ready to open behind this one.
mantis!
i walked out this morning and saw a praying mantis on the walkway in frontof the house. the shadows made him (her?) look quite fierce.
mountain angel
i visited the diamond d ranch in the mountains of idaho earlier this year. there’s a tiny chapel on the property with an angel right outside.
electric sky
late summer weather has been unusual in southern california. Lightning and thunder and humidity has created a few spectacular sunsets.
praying mantis
i walked outside this morning and saw this praying mantis in a type of wild dance. i thought at first she was stuck, so i freed her. she went right back to her dance.
cacti
deluz is just a few miles from the heart of temecula, to the west in the foothills. i took this shot of prickly pear cactus yesterday.
little cowgirl
late sunday afternoon, we stopped by mt. palomar winery in temecula and this adorable little girl walked right up to the stage and soaked up the music. she later sang “itsy bitsy spider.” precious.
up in the air
i went to temecula wine country this morning to watch pinot gris grapes being picked and it wound up being a perfect morning to spy hot air balloons. such a pretty sight.
purple bloom
on a tour of old town temecula, we sipped wine on the patio of villa di calabro. these gorgeous purple flowers caught my eye.
through a glass softly
i visited heitz cellars in the napa valley yesterday. i thought looking through my wine glass at the bottles behind it made for an interesting effect.
water forest
there’s a water forest at tacoma’s museum of glass, several cylindrical tubes with moving water. they’re fascinating to watch, and i liked getting close up.
old glory
temecula’s monte de oro winery flew a huge american flag on the outside of their tasting room to celebrate america’s birthday. here’s a look from inside the tasting room.
dusk at wilson creek
i love the light at dusk. i took this shot at wilson creek winery thursday evening while folks were gathered to enjoy the release of two new sparkling wines.
rain on window
as we left juneau and headed for hubbard glacier, rain began to fall. i took this shot looking out the window of the observation deck of holland america’s m/s westerdam.
museum of glass
at the end of a 10 day journey through washington and alaska, we stopped in tacoma and paid a visit to the museum of glass. the works of dale chihuly are breathtaking.
oh canada day
the last night of a cruise on alaska’s inside passage we stopped in victoria, b.c. july 1st is canada day and they celebrated with a magnificent fireworks display that i viewed from the deck.
big wood green
the big wood river runs through sun valley and ketchum, idaho. i followed a trail along the river and paused when i saw the light through this tree.
idaho june
staying at the diamond d ranch near bonanza,idaho. the 20 mile dirt/rock road going into the ranch zigzags through the mountains. the scenery is indescribable.
ketchum
we landed in boise and drove to ketchum, idaho for a family reunion. the sun sets late here. I shot this a little after 9:00 pm.
anders
anders osborne was born in sweden but has called new orleans his home for the past several decades. he is an incredibly talented singer/songwriter and guitarist. george porter jr. from the funky meters is in the background.
