Welcome back to the adventure, my friends. The year is winding down to a close and I’m looking back over the year and the photos created on adventures to new and familiar places. This time of year also brings the desire to plan for the coming year. I don’t have any big adventures planned yet, I mostly want to pay off the credit card from the previous adventures, so I will be staying closer to home. My other big goal is to make progress on my state parks project. More about 2024 later - let’s chat about the last quarter of 2023.

If you read last quarter’s newsletter, you might be wondering if I figured out who my father might be. I did. It turns out that the man who raised me, truly was my biological father and that the people who raised him weren’t his biological parents. How he came into their care, we don’t know yet - that investigation is still ongoing. We found grandma, a woman named Charlotte Lockett who was taken from England to Canada by Dr. Barnardo after her father died and the family was plunged into poverty. She was sent to Hazelbrea House in Ontario and then placed in homes to work and “build her character.” We don’t know what happened between Hazelbrea and her first marriage, but she had one son who she abandoned when she left her husband. My father was born after she left her first husband and before she was noted on the census as a tenant in another man’s house (with no mention of dad). The investigation is still ongoing and I’m not feeling so lost anymore. This is a journey I am happy to walk.

My new little car, Sam, is a dream. I’ve been able to go on a few little adventures with him. The first was to the Palouse area of Washington to photograph with my friends Kelly Chung and Chris Phillips on the last leg of their journey to the Rocky Mountains and back. They wanted to make a stop in the Palouse and invited me to hang out with them. It was such a fabulous feeling being with and exploring the countryside with fellow photographers. We photographed barns, wheat fields, and sunsets. At dinner the only restaurant open after sunset in Colfax was Eddy’s Chinese & American. I think all three of us had dietary restrictions, but “Eddy” made sure we had good meals. After we parted ways, I drove to Walla Walla and visited Whitman Mission. I had no idea that Whitman Mission was such a draw for birders. I ran into a group of birders searching for a rare hawk that had been spotted the previous week. One member took me under her wing and we meandered a trail near the creek looking for the Great Horned Owl that had taken up residence at the park. We heard him, but never saw him. We did however see several other birds flitting around.

The next adventure was heading to Montana for Thanksgiving. I spent several days in Conrad on the eastern slopes of the Rockies with Shelba and Tom. Tom had located a couple of old schoolhouses for me to photograph, then he discovered my love of old cars and took me to the shop of a friend of his to photograph a yard filled with old International trucks. As the light dimmed, I giggled with glee ignoring my frozen fingers to photograph the rustic details of his truck collection. That is where the lead photograph, International Kitteh, came from. We also visited a couple of state parks, one at sunset with gorgeous skies and interesting rock formations. The other of historically cultural significance. I recorded a video of the First People’s Buffalo Jump State Park, an area where native peoples ran herds of buffalo off a cliff to harvest. It is a fascinating history and I'm looking forward to sharing it with you. After Thanksgiving, I drove back over the Rockies to visit with Cyndy and her family. On that visit, we drove down to the Bison Refuge managed by the peoples of the Flathead Reservation. I had visited the refuge many years ago but was happy to see it again. I love photographing these big animals. We didn’t see many, but there’s always next time. Refuges are great places to hone your wildlife photography skills.

Am I going to talk about wildlife photography for our quarterly lesson? Nah. I want to talk to you about scouting new locations. I recently “found” a new park close to where I meet a writing group on Sundays. I had been driving by for a few weeks and there was always a bank of fog in the area. Curious, I checked the maps and found the Snohomish River curves near the highway and there’s a park with a walking trail along the river - Lowell Riverside Trail. The next week, I grabbed my camera and drove down to the park after my writing group not knowing what I would find. I did find a lot of wonderful subjects to photograph and made notes for future visits.

See the video here.

My tips for scouting a new location:

Take notes on whatever device or method you find best. I have friends who geotag within their camera to help them ID locations. Others take notes either verbal or typed into their phones. Another still has a little notebook in his back pocket.
Be aware from the start. As I drove into the parking lot, I noted a photo I would have to create. As I started walking to that location, I saw another composition in the other direction. Pull those blinders off.
Take your time. Go slow. Scouting works best when you have time to explore. Although I have quickly stopped by a location and made a few notes then drove on to an appointment. But I do find taking time to explore helps me understand the location better.
Create snapshots. Snapshots help you know what you can find in the location. Make photos even if the light is “poor” and make notes on the type of conditions that will help you create the image you imagine.
Make notes on non-photo essentials: where to park, fees needed, hours of operation, toilets, trail length, type of trail, website (for alerts). All of these will help you plan your return trip better and let others know who might be joining you.

So, what are my plans for the new year? Well, the big news is that I have been invited to show my work at Zeitgeist Coffee in Pioneer Square, Seattle for the month of February. Opening day is February 1st and I’ll be there to talk about my work from 5pm on. Would love to see you there if possible. Get the details from my website. I’m also planning another trip to Utah with friends in April. Mostly a hiking trip, but there will be plenty of time for photos. As for backpacking trips - those are still in the planning stages but you can always keep up to date on my adventures if you follow my socials: Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Have a wonderful New Year and I will see you on the next adventure.