The Return of Fall

With fall finally approaching, I've been getting back out to some of my favorite spots. Out at the Battle Creek Wildlife Area, the ponds have finally been flooded again. With the water comes an amazing variety of insects, plants, and other wildlife.

Places I Want To Go

For something a little different I thought I'd share some of the destinations that I hope to some day visit. After returning from the Galapagos, I have been very eager to travel the world. There's only the small problem of money. Oh well, enjoy browsing through these awesome places and who knows, maybe you may find your dream destination as well. (None of the pictures where taken by me)

1. Manu National Park, Peru

A vast region of unspoiled rainforest, Manu has a staggering diversity of plants and animals. The park contains an estimated 20,000 species of plants as well as 1000 species of birds, 159 species of mammals, 99 species of reptiles, 140 species of amphibians and 1307 species of butterflies!

2. Iguazu Falls, Brazil/Argentina

Listed as a possibility for one of the new seven wonders of the world, Iguazu Falls is rather impressive. Iguazu Falls is not just one fall, but is instead a series of 275 different waterfalls on a 1.67 mile stretch of the Iguazu River.

3. Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

Fiordland National Park, located in the southern part of New Zealand, is wet. Very wet. On average, parts of the park recieves almost 257 inches of rain per year! With all that rain comes an amazing diversity of plants.

September Sunset

The other evening was kinda cloudy so I decided to go to a spot I knew would be a good spot to watch the sunset. I was hoping it was going to be a good one and I wasn't disappointed!

More Panoramas

Lately I've been very interested in panorama photography. I just find it very cool. Here are a couple panoramas taken near where I live. Enjoy!

Battle Creek

Sunset

Ecuador Trip Panoramas

I just found some new software that I used to put together some panorama shots I took while on the trip. Enjoy!

Crater on Santa Cruz Island

Cayambe Volcano

View From Bartolome Island

Ecuador Trip Part 5: Mindo

The day after flying back to Quito, I had the opportunity to visit the Mindo Cloud Forest about 1 1/2 hours NW of Quito. The Cloud Forest is similar to a rain forest, but a little cooler. On the trip, we hiked to a waterfall, visited an orchid farm, and visited a butterfly garden. The huge variety of plants was amazing! We also got to see dozens of beautiful hummingbirds and hundreds of butterflies.

Ecuador Trip Part 4: bartolome Island

The next day we got up at 4:30 a.m., got back on the same boat and took a three hour boat ride to Bartolome Island. On Bartolome Island, I saw more frigate birds, Sally Lightfoot Crabs, and marine iguanas. My group to a hike of about 360 stairs to the very top of the island. The view from there was absolutely stunning! After our hike we went down to one of the beaches and went snorkeling. While snorkeling, I got to swim with a white-tipped reef shark, a penguin, and thousands of tropical fish. It was one of the coolest things I have ever done! The underwater pictures where taken with an underwater disposable camera so the picture quality is not great, but it's better than nothing.

Tropical Fish

White-Tipped Reef Shark

Penguin

Colorful Fish

More Penguins

View From Bartolome

Pinnacle Rock


Sally-Lightfoot Crab

Volcanic Island


Galapagos Sunrise