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The Road to Jasper

The Icefields Parkway up to Jasper from Lake Louise is one of the most beautiful drives you will ever take. It is about 250kms through the deep mountain ranges of the Rockies, along turquoise blue lakes, gorgeous waterfalls, and impressive glaciers. It is nice to do outside of tourist season to avoid the crowds of people. 
CLICK on any image for a larger view.

First, a quick shot of Lake Louise. This has been so excessively photographed, it's virtually impossible to capture a unique shot.

The Columbia Icefields Glacier is as thick as the Eiffel Tower is tall. One used to be able to hike up onto the glacier, but a lake and river have formed under the tongue of the glacier, which makes it too dangerous to walk on. This is because the entire tongue could collapse at any moment, which is what happened in this image below.

This is the river that formed below the tongue, draining into the lower parts of the icefield.

"Sunwapta" means "turbulent waters" in the Stoney Indian language. Sitting on the edge of the 60 feet deep Sunwapta Falls sure lets you appreciate the meaning of the name. The treed island in the center and the mountain peaks in the background make this the most scenic waterfalls I have ever seen.

A short distance away are the Athabasca Falls, which drop 80 feet into the depths of the Athabasca River. The river has carved a gorge into the limestone below the falls, which is also quite picturesque.

I am a pilot!

...not quite :) Not even much of an aerial photographer as it turns out, but I have a feeling this won't be my last flight either, so I hope to improve that technique with time.

Here some photos of my first flight in a recreational airplane. As a side note, I am not sure why photos posted through blogspot are much less vibrant than the original image. CLICK on any image for a crisper and larger view.



 For this last one, artistic credit belongs to my handsome pilot Eric :)

Fall in Ontario

A few photos as a preview, more to come. CLICK ON ANY IMAGE for a larger view.

NEW WEBSITE

I have just given my new website a complete overhaul and I am quite excited about the result. Check it out for yourself!

http://www.gerlindehonsek.com/

I welcome any feedback, so please free to send me an email via the contact form on the website.

Sulphur Mountain

Today, we took the gondola up Sulphur Mountain to enjoy the beautiful vistas from there.

The weather station at the lookout on top of the cafe house.



Fall in Alberta

Here a few catch-up photos from the past couple of weeks.

Day 83 / 365

Day 82 / 365

Day 81 / 365

Day 80 / 365

View from the top of Bear Mountain

Day 79 / 365

Beautiful waterfalls you can only get to by boat. Clumsy me slipped and fell on the rocks at the top of the waterfall - it doesn't look too high but it sure hurt.

Day 78 / 365

Life on the speed boat on Kwagama Lake.

Day 72 / 365

Sunwapta Falls along the Icefields Parkway between Lake Louise and Jasper in the Canadian Rockies.

Day 71 / 365

Glenmore Reservoir Weaslehead area at sunset.

Day 70 / 365

A fallen over old tree in the Bow River Valley south of Calgary.

Converted to sepia for artistic effect.

Day 69 / 365

I love this photo for the sheer timing of it. The tension of the water around the dolphin's nose has not broken the water surface yet, even though it is raised above it. Water splashed into the air from air blown through the dolphin's breathing hole is frozen in motion. The reflection of the surroundings on the water look like an abstract piece of art.

Day 68 / 365

Vancouver Public Library.

Day 67 / 365

Small water rapid in the Elbow River just upstream from Elbow Falls near Bragg Creek.

Day 66 / 365

Wheat field south of Calgary.

Day 65 / 365

A ship in the Vancouver harbour, taken in August 2009.

Day 64 / 365

Some of the most gorgeous sunsets in Calgary are at the Glenmore Reservoir, since you have a nice view west to the Rockies, and colourful sunsets perfectly reflect in the still water.

Day 63 / 365

A woodpecker in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

Day 62 / 365

The hike up Johnston Canyon past the two waterfalls and up to the ink pots is very beautiful, but best done in the spring or fall when it's not jam packed with tourists or the walkways iced over. This is a photo of the mossy landscape that lines the Canyon.

Day 61 / 365

I have been re-assessing my project 365 as of late. My aim for undertaking the project was to improve my technique and further my love for the art. However, I have been struggling lately as I am starting to feel forced in what I do. Taking a good photo, and not just any photo, every single day has the outcome that not every single shot feels inspired because I saw something beautiful, but rather because I HAD to get a shot for my project that day. As a result, I have been not as happy with my photos and it is starting to take away some of the joy of photography for me. Getting a great shot is so immensely satisfying, but HAVING to take a shot and then it not necessarily being all that great it also quite dissatisfying. What I don't want to have happen is to take way the joy and satisfaction I derive from photography by forcing myself to continue with project 365. 

I will not give up the project entirely, but I will make some changes. On days that I do happen to take a good shot, I will post it. This means that there will likely be at least one or two per week from the weekend. In this regard, project 365 is turning more into project 52. Also, I do have some beautiful photos in my archive that I wish to share, and they would otherwise not make it onto this blog. So, on days that I don't take a shot worth posting (or don't take a shot at all), I will be posting a photo I have taken in the past.

This way, I am continuing the project as a fusion of what it started out to be, but it also feels more rewarding for myself.

Day 60 / 365

Marina in Comox Harbour.

The Royston ship wrecks in the Comox Valley were intentionally sunk in the late 1930s to create breakwater to protect the log booming grounds of Comox Harbour. CLICK ON IMAGE for a larger view.

There are several wrecks, and the one above is the only one you can come close to from the shoreline. The other ones you can only get to by boat. When we went kayaking the other day, however, we paddled by the wrecks as well, which is where the shot of the Bald Eagle sitting on the rocks was taken (day 58). The eagles also seem to enjoy hanging out on the wrecks. This photo was taken a few days ago, you can see a Bald Eagle sitting at the very top of the wreck.

Day 59 / 365

There is a country market in Coombs, BC, called Goats on Roof. Well, there are in fact, goats ON THE ROOF of the market, it's quite a bizzare sight.

In this photo, you can see the goat grazing on the roof immediately to the right of the red umbrella tip. The rooftop is overgrown with grass and the goats really do live on there. And the best thing about this market: they have German deserts! mmm mmm mmmmmm :)

We went crayfishing in the Qualicum River in the late afternoon. The only crayfish we found were too small to eat or in water that was too deep, so we went home empty handed. Wading through the crystal clear warm water and turning rocks over in search of cray fish was still a lot of fun. Some of the trees around here remind of the start of a rain forest.

Day 58 / 365

Another day in Comox :) This place is so beautiful and versatile, it's incredible. Today we spent the day kayaking. CLICK ON ANY IMAGE for a larger view.

Seal emerging through the water surface.

We were able to get really close to a baby seal, as it was just floating in the water without moving around much. At first we thought it might be injured, but then it started to move around just fine. Looks like it was sleeping, perhaps.

Golden Eagle soaring above our heads. Their wingspan reaches between 150 and 280cm (60 - 110 inches)!

This is where we stopped for lunch.

My brother chillin' at lunch.

Bald Eagle sitting atop a cliff of rocks. Their wingspan reaches between 183 - 234cm (72 - 96 inches).

Day 57 / 365

A branch full of spider webs in the BC forest. The strings of the web were shimmering in rainbow colours, it unfortunately does not show that too well in this photo.

Day 56 / 365

Campbell River Marina.

View from Patti's, the cute rustic little restaurant where we had lunch.