Cherish is my favorite word, and I cherish the ability of turning the routine into a beautiful moment.
Nature creates in me, a spiritual and meditative time to bring peace, harmony and balance, into an otherwise ordinary day~
Mary Howell Cromer







Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Heading Home Through Wyoming and South Dakota~




This will be my final entry from our vacation journey last month, and I must admit, I am very thankful that we went, that we stayed with the plan, even with government Shutdown...
We had a wonderful time, even with all of the many obstacles and saw great beauty everywhere that we went. 
Thank you each and everyone, who has stuck this out with me, for I know these have been long shares, but I just had so much I wanted to show you.
I am just guessing that the birds flying above are possibly more of the White-winged Scoters, but I am fine with being corrected~

Remember to double click on the image, to view a larger slide show of the images shared
 

I am linking up with Mary for:
"Mosaic Monday"


at:
 

 

 
and

 

I am linking up with Stewart at:

 
   Wild Bird Wednesday

        (http://paying-ready-attention-gallery.blogspot.com.au/)

 

I will also be linking up with Sylvia at:
SkyWatch Friday

 
I invite you to check out more 'Skywatch Friday' posts from around the world at:
 
http://skyley.blogspot.com/
 

 


We drove from Southeastern Montana down into Wyoming and then South Dakota, on our last big leg, before returning home.
There were large Raptor nests like this everywhere out West...some are manmade, some are natural and some are built on platforms that man has placed in certain places~
 
 


Me with my puppy, oh my not such a puppy any longer. 
Silveit already weighs more than Meaka~
 
 
 
 
 


The land, the scenes everywhere you looked, were just stunning~
 
 


This was really sudden, taken through the closed car window and very far away, and yet...there it was a Golden Eagle. 
I had not seen any the entire journey, but when I saw this one, I knew what it was right away~
 


Blackbirds raiding plowed fields~
 
 
 


The land is so wide open, so pure in many ways...so much untouched by man's hand and I loved the sky touching earth feel that we got.
Some of the old homesteads and barns were relics and we also saw signs of other kinds of relics too, like this old caboose~
 

The sky in Wyoming just minutes before sunset and a small herd of Mule Deer, bidding us farewell, before we turned in for the evening~
 
 

Back in South Dakota again...and it was not as cold as when we had come through only 3 weeks before~



More Western Red-tailed Hawks along our route home...soon we would cross over into Eastern Red-tailed Hawk country~




I found the fields of spent Sunflowers absolutely glorious...the textures that I was able to capture, reminded me of beautiful Herringbone/Harris tweed~




 
 
We have now crossed over into Eastern Red-tailed Hawk country and that means we are closer to being home~
 
 
 
 

Fields of Indian Corn, reminded me of my beloved mother who always received a fresh bouquet from her cousin once a year~

 

Eastern Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk~

 


 
I have edited this Classic Diner with a touch of HDRish and it just seemed to shout out to me~
 
 
 
Loved this old church building and also edited a touch of HDR to it as well...
just for the fun of it~
 
 
This single image below...I have no idea why...but I just really liked it~
 
 
 
This barn was actually photographed in Iowa and that meant we had only 3 more states to cross through before being home again.
Thank you again for coming along~
 
 
 
 

 



37 comments:

  1. really pretty prairieland. i'd hate to be there in the frigid cold of winter, though. :)

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  2. Proof that there are many beautiful places to visit in the United States!

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  3. Stunningly beautiful scenery! Wow. What a wonderful trip you had. I love that barn in the field. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, Mary.

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  4. What a wonderful post. I don't know what I like best, those pristine, snow clad mountains and the open sky, the old farm buildings, the landscapes or that wide open sky. There is just so much to see. What a wonderful trip you had Mary and your puppy certainly is growing up. How is travelling with a dog in the States? Here it is hard to find accommodation if you have a pet.
    I really miss travelling since peter went. It is just not safe for me on my own, I could get stuck in the middle of nowhere with a simple puncture! One of the drawbacks of age . . .

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  5. So many beautiful shots! I've got to get back up there for a visit. Maybe in the summer though.

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  6. Such gorgeous country! I absolutely love the snow-capped mountains! Love the rural farm scenes, too! Have a great Thanksgiving!

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  7. What a journey and such superb photos I feel so evious of the places and sights you have seen. I'm glad I started following your blog.
    PS I love the fluffy Puppies

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  8. I loved the White -tailed Deer Mary, and the church, standing alone. The old feeling of all decaying, and you with your puppy, I love them.

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  9. Beautiful photography. I really like your Panoramic shots. Such beautiful country and views that you're sharing!

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  10. J'aime les grands espaces, les animaux, la Nature et je trouve tout ça ici. C'est un vrai plaisir que de découvrir ton très beau blog.

    Merci

    Bien amicalement, depuis la France.

    Roger

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  11. I loved your roadtrip almost as much as I loved my own -- and I loved your photos better!!! I love that you saw the beauty in the spent sunflowers. And the golden eagle is wonderful. Everything is. Happy Thanksgiving (now that it's almost over).

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  12. Such incredibly beautiful country, as you said, so pure and open. You have some real award-winner shots here!

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  13. Your blog makes me glad I followed you, great photos and worth skywatch ones

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  14. I'm struggling to pick a winner out of those landscapes Mary, simply because they are all so awesome. As you say, the sky meets the land in every shot, the wide open spaces, the mountains, the barns and the fields of crops - all fabulous. So many raptors too in those wide open spaces and it's so good to hear that safe nest sites are constructed for the birds.

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  15. Fabulous collection of photos all packed with pretty moments and views of nature at play.

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  16. Mary, these are beautiful! I love the open land, and the rustic buildings, the birds and deer, but best of all, you and your puppy.
    Thanks for the hawk ID. I knew you'd be able to tell me what it was. Hope you had a nice Thanksgiving.

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  17. Great pictures - the landscapes do have a lot of punch!

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne.

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  18. Mary, this is a beautiful end for your trip photos. The mountain scenery is stunning. And I love all the critters and hawk shots. Wonderful series, have a happy week!

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  19. Sky touching the Earth indeed. It reminds me of the hymn "America the Beautiful" . And you have captured it all so wonderfully! :)

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  20. Wow Mary, these are breathtakingly beautiful, and such a variety. What as shout to God's creative nature in His design of our world. I don't know which I like the best. Those barns are amazing and the church … thanks for all the work of sharing your trip.

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  21. Hey, I've been there too! Lovely photos. :)

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  22. I've visited both states and found them both to be amazingly beautiful! Your camera captured them well, Mary.

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  23. what can I say - except beautiful beautiful beautiful. Thank you for sharing your amazing country with us. I have really enjoyed the tour Mary. Thank you. Fabulous images.

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  24. Mary, another incredible journey through your lens, simply stunning.

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  25. Fantastic landscape,so much more expansive than I'm used to. Thank you for sharing the beauty!

    Ruby

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  26. I really enjoyed your vacation shares....Living in Colorado as I did for over 40 years, Wyoming was just next door...this was like going home for me.

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  27. Beautiful photos and the scenery is just wonderful. I love the look of those snowy mountains!

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  28. So many photos to study, - nice!

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  29. Wonderful photos! I love the mountains.

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  30. Well, I know the truth of it because I see it when I get outdoors. But your splendid series of images leave no doubt about it. We are blessed to live in such a beautiful world. Thank you so much for sharing part of it with all of us!

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  31. So beautiful nature with the mountains! Great post! :))

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  32. That old church looks like the background of the American Gothic painting!

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