Cadillac Mountain This is a surreal feeling after hiking up the mountain From October 7th through March 6th this is the first place to see the sun rise in the United States. Cadillac Mountain is within Acadia National Park along the coast of Maine. The summit of Cadillac Mountain reaches 1,530 feet. You can hike or drive to […]
California Aglaja – IUCN Conservation Status: Insufficient Data Although it looks like a nudibranch, it is actually a headshield slug We are looking at a marine sea slug called a California aglaja. Its scientific name is Navanax inermis. I took this photograph in about fifty feet of water in the Channel Islands National Park. This particular sea […]
Florida Box Turtle – IUCN Conservation Status: Vulnerable As the name suggests, the California two-spot octopus has two false eye spots This month we are showcasing photographs with the theme of “Light”. This California two-spot octopus was hiding in the dark canopy of the kelp forest. This photograph is from Catalina Island, off the coast of California. We […]
IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern In my time exploring the kelp forests of the Channel Islands, I saw sharks, snails, seals, nudibranchs, and many fish species. This interesting fish is appropriately named the “crevice kelpfish”. I took this photograph in the Channel Islands, amongst the kelp forests it is named for. Where are the Channel Islands? The Channel […]
IUCN Conservation Status: Least Concern Not only are the kelp forests protection for the garibaldi, they are also a source of food. This fish is named after a 19th century Italian leader, Giuseppe Garibaldi. Why? Garibaldi took up a fashion for wearing orange/red shirts. Later this orange/red shirt became his army’s uniform. This vibrant colored fish was photographed at […]
This slot canyon hike is located in the southern California desert This might be one of the best “short” hikes out there. It is only a 0.8-mile hike. You can hike the trail in 15 minutes, but you won’t want to. There are too many amazing views. Besides being a short hike, this is also a relatively easy hike, […]
WHIMBREL – No Conservation Status: LEAST CONCERN These rocks had been smoothed out by years and years of being battered by the Pacific Ocean Del Mar sunsets are some of the prettiest in the country. With the seemingly never-ending Pacific Ocean as the backdrop for the setting sun, the world becomes blanketed in an array […]
This sitka spruce was in Redwood National Park I took this photo while standing in a field of sitka spruce. The trees towered above me. I was overwhelmed by the sheer vastness of the trees that I saw. Being from the Midwest, I was shocked by the immensity of the trees in the Redwood National […]
Black rain beetles are typically found in California, Oregon, and Washington Just before the CV19 lockdown, I found myself chasing beetles around the southern Californian desert, trying to get photos. So perhaps I was a bit crazy before the lockdown. These black rain beetles are generally associated with the western part of North America (California, […]
I was on a liveaboard dive board off the coast of Catalina Island This was my first “west coast” sunrise photo. This photo was taken from the top deck of the boat I was on. I was on a liveaboard dive boat out in the Channel Islands National Park, off the coast of southern California. […]