Every year, as the calendar approaches July, people across America start to feel excitement and anticipation. Why? Because it's almost time for their annual trip North of the Tension Line. Pretty soon they're humming familiar songs that make them think…
Ever since Thomas Jefferson sent Lewis and Clark out there, Americans have been making their way to the Pacific Northwest. This corner of the country evokes images of rugged rocky beaches, lush rain-soaked forests, and snow-covered mountains. But the landscape…
Twenty-twenty-four was a rather slow year for me photographically. I haven’t taken so few photos in a year since 2008, the year after we sold a house, moved 2000 miles, bought a new house and started readjusting to life in the…
Mt. Etna was located due west of our hotel. We knew it was there, but we'd not yet seen it. It was always hidden in the clouds. Finally, one morning as I walked out of the hotel to check out…
We're heading to the theater today, a Greek one. Before that, however, we had to try our first Sicilian breakfast. I read that Sicilians, like other Italians, prefer to have a sweet rather than a savory breakfast. Our breakfasts were…
When I woke up this morning I thought it was Sunday, but actually, it's National Lighthouse Day! Yes, this event occurs every year on August 7. That's the day when many lighthouses will be open to the public. So, if…
My wife and I lived in Portland, Oregon, for twenty-five years and often made day trips to Timberline Lodge. The Lodge is about 60 miles southeast of Portland and sits at an elevation of 5,960 feet on the south side…
From the Mackinac Bridge we headed south through the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. Staying close to the Lake Michigan shore we eventually reached Empire, Michigan, near the entrance to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. One of only three National Lakeshores,…
St. Ignace, Michigan, sits on the north side of the Straits of Mackinac. On the south side of the Straits, across the Mackinac Bridge, is a town named Mackinaw City. I'm sure I'm not the first tourist to ponder pronunciation,…