Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Billy BU
Billy sent a few more photos (great to hear that he's safe and well) and I thought I'd post them so everyone can have a little BU (Billy Update). He's near the Syrian border now, and our thoughts and best wishes definitely go out to him. I think about him often and try to send "good vibes" his way. We love you Billy!!! Come back safe & sound!! *MUAH!!!*
Here's his letter: i wish i could have been there on your birthday! hope you guys had fun. well i got some new pictures for you. the "retarder" is the actual name of a truck. i thought it was hilarious. the dog is "mitsie", our bomb sniffing dog. the rest are just some pictures of different signs that are up here on the border that i thought were cool. well i can't stay on here for long. talk to you soon! love you!
Here's his letter: i wish i could have been there on your birthday! hope you guys had fun. well i got some new pictures for you. the "retarder" is the actual name of a truck. i thought it was hilarious. the dog is "mitsie", our bomb sniffing dog. the rest are just some pictures of different signs that are up here on the border that i thought were cool. well i can't stay on here for long. talk to you soon! love you!
Monday, February 12, 2007
Cedar Falls - the last stop on my Hocking Hills Tour
The blue photo isn't altered. I was standing near the frozen Cedar Falls waterfall, kind of in a little cave area, and the flash didn't go off. Hence, the blue photo. Most of the ice had a blue cast, in all the Hocking Hills area, but with the sun going down... it really came out at Cedar Falls (the last stop of the day).
Our Winter Hike Continued.... Ash Cave
Ash Cave was fantastic! My favorite ice formation was here (with my second being the Ice Castle). The one at Ash Cave looked like a big sculpture of some funky volcano, and some of the photos actually looked like it was spouting something or other. But it's actually a two part formation. The bottom is where the water from the waterfall has been collecting and freezing, and the top is the waterfall, but it's frozen all around the water... so it looks like a big ice hose or pipe running off the cliff. But it's ALL ICE!
My only hope is that, before winter ends and it starts to thaw, it'll get so close that it'll almost touch and I can photograph it once more.
Below photos:
1. I'm not a big Star Wars fan, but there was this flat blob in one film and I know I'm not spelling this but it was something like Jaba the Hut. (My brother, Scottie, would know. He loved that series.) Anyway, that's what this one looks like. But it's actually the bottom of the ice sculpture. And it's HUGE!
2. This is the back of it. I was standing at the bottom of Ash Cave, somewhat inside it, and shooting out and up
My only hope is that, before winter ends and it starts to thaw, it'll get so close that it'll almost touch and I can photograph it once more.
Below photos:
1. I'm not a big Star Wars fan, but there was this flat blob in one film and I know I'm not spelling this but it was something like Jaba the Hut. (My brother, Scottie, would know. He loved that series.) Anyway, that's what this one looks like. But it's actually the bottom of the ice sculpture. And it's HUGE!
2. This is the back of it. I was standing at the bottom of Ash Cave, somewhat inside it, and shooting out and up
Ash Cave Upclose
It's easier to guage just how big this thing is when you see this photo. At its base are a few folks checking out this majestic masterpiece. Click on the photo so you can see a larger version, and notice how big the cave is, and then just imagine what this thing looked like when you saw it upclose. It was amazing! I can't wait to go back in a few weeks - especially after some more snow/rain and freezing temperatures - to see how it's changed and grown, and what other formations are on and around it.
This photos is really cool. It looks like a volcano or some other weird, natural formation, spouting water into the air.
Here you can see the mouth of the waterfall, and how water froze around the flowing water... creating a long, icy tube that reminded me of a gigantic garden hose. It's falling onto the ever-growing ice formation at the bottom, and its side are beautiful and fascinating.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Wintery Hike in Hocking Hills
OLD MAN'S CAVE and UPPER FALLS
Scott had a tasty treat lined up for my birthday - a winter's hike in Hocking Hills. Now, for those of you unfamiliar with Hocking Hills, you're really missing an amazing natural wonder. Hocking Hills is a maze of deep valley's, beautiful creeks, gushing waterfalls, threatening cliffs and deep, breathtakingly gorgeous caves that curl and wind around the area's hills of stone. It's absolutely amazing in the summer, but in the wintertime, it's mind-blowing. Waterfalls are frozen, though some have water still running through its center, like a gigantic, frozen garden hose. Water that once poured from streams, hillsides, and in between rocks that form massive walls are all frozen over... some formations are taller than my house, and a few were tallen than the trees!
I snapped a butt-load of photos (and Scott shot some too) - and this is just a few of them. That's Scott in the blue hoodie. He's at the end of the tunnel too. I loved that shot.
And that one where he's walking on frozen water... I'll keep my joke about him walking on water to myself.
Much of the steps and trails were covered in ice... and I mean COVERED! It was like walking on an ice skating rink - without the skates or flat surface... and with lots and lots of uneven steps. Luckily, I didn't fall once.. but I did witness a few falls from others. (Yikes!) And it was mighty chilly down in those hollers. I had 2 pair of pants on and my legs were still feeling a'mite nippy! But I saw a few folks head in with nothing but tennis shoes and light jackets... and I really laughed at the city girls who came dressed in these thin two-piece running outfits with sneakers and big sunglasses. I swear, their lips were blue! And they were shivering something terrible. But they looked good (well, before they turned blue).
But the walk was excellent. I don't ever want to miss another winter at the Hocking Hills. I think this might just become a yearly birthday tradition!
Scott had a tasty treat lined up for my birthday - a winter's hike in Hocking Hills. Now, for those of you unfamiliar with Hocking Hills, you're really missing an amazing natural wonder. Hocking Hills is a maze of deep valley's, beautiful creeks, gushing waterfalls, threatening cliffs and deep, breathtakingly gorgeous caves that curl and wind around the area's hills of stone. It's absolutely amazing in the summer, but in the wintertime, it's mind-blowing. Waterfalls are frozen, though some have water still running through its center, like a gigantic, frozen garden hose. Water that once poured from streams, hillsides, and in between rocks that form massive walls are all frozen over... some formations are taller than my house, and a few were tallen than the trees!
I snapped a butt-load of photos (and Scott shot some too) - and this is just a few of them. That's Scott in the blue hoodie. He's at the end of the tunnel too. I loved that shot.
And that one where he's walking on frozen water... I'll keep my joke about him walking on water to myself.
Much of the steps and trails were covered in ice... and I mean COVERED! It was like walking on an ice skating rink - without the skates or flat surface... and with lots and lots of uneven steps. Luckily, I didn't fall once.. but I did witness a few falls from others. (Yikes!) And it was mighty chilly down in those hollers. I had 2 pair of pants on and my legs were still feeling a'mite nippy! But I saw a few folks head in with nothing but tennis shoes and light jackets... and I really laughed at the city girls who came dressed in these thin two-piece running outfits with sneakers and big sunglasses. I swear, their lips were blue! And they were shivering something terrible. But they looked good (well, before they turned blue).But the walk was excellent. I don't ever want to miss another winter at the Hocking Hills. I think this might just become a yearly birthday tradition!
Old Man's Cave Winter Tour (2)
The Frozen Falls in the first photo is actually HUGE! It's the waterfall at Old Man's Cave... and it's about 3 or 4 stories tall.
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