Rafting down a Rushing River!
I've been fortunate to travel to Alaska twice in the last 3 years. The 2nd trip was filled with excursions to many spots including river rafting at Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve outside of Haines, Alaska.
If you know me, you know I'm not comfortable on water - especially not in a raft rushing down a river. However, I was ready with my camera and gear and hoped all would be well.
The tour guide gave his apologies before we were even in the water - the trip down the river would take…..longer....due to lower than usual water levels...personally, I was relieved.
This meant that not only was I not fearful (we actually had to get out and carry the raft a couple of times LOL) but also that my photo experience would be great - photos in focus "rushing" down a river.
Check my website too for additional images at sharondraeger.com - click SHOP to find your favorite - always free shipping :)
May the PEACE OF NATURE be with you!!
Walk Among the Bears and Live to tell about it!
Here's another great Alaskan adventure. This excursion was at the Alaskan Rainforest Sanctuary-Ketchikan. Teeming with wildlife - the black bears the highlight. Walking the path with guides (armed with rifles) was our group of about 20. We had already sighted a couple of the bears from the wooden boardwalk path. Then the guides took us down to the area (not on the boardwalk) where we had just sighted a bear. Warned us to all stick together to be safe - but within minutes folks started running to get to a spot where someone said they had just seen another bear. My friend's health wouldn't allow running - we were all of a sudden alone on this path - exactly where the bears had been. We looked at each other and she wondered out loud - what will we do if a bear comes up to us - I looked at her smiling big and said - "we'll start singing - that will make them run the other way". We both laughed and then walked as fast as we could to catch up to the group with the guides. It was a great trip and I did get a great shot. Have you ever found yourself in what seemed like imminent danger but all turned out well? Check my website too for additional images at sharondraeger.com - click SHOP to find your favorite - always free shipping :)
May the PEACE OF NATURE be with you!!
It was just a fluke!
It was just a fluke! My next adventure tale is another Alaskan gem. We were on an excursion of about 20 folks - looking for whales. We had four hours and a guarantee that we would definitely see whales. Excited just thinking of whales jumping out of the water, soaring in the air and then their majestic return to the ocean...what great memories and photos - right? Well, we did see many whales, however, none soared out of the water. We were lucky to see a bit of their backs and tails as they slid underwater again. It was still fun but I didn't think I had any images worthy of selling or even sharing. I wasn't even going to check that day's shots when I returned home. BUT so thankful I did. A great surprise - a nature shot that made my day! The water reflections and also dripping from this whale's fluke really makes this a fun shot. What is one unexpected surprise you've experienced? Check out sharondraeger.com for additional wildlife and nature images.
May the PEACE OF NATURE be with you!!
FJORDS, GLACIERS and ICEBERGS - Oh My!
I've been fortunate - have travelled to Alaska twice now. First trip was with my adult children on a cruise. We took small excursions at a couple of our stops - first one was a duck tour boat in Ketchikan - the following tale was our second excursion - really fun!
We loaded onto a much smaller boat than the cruise ship (LOL) with another 40 or so travellers. Our destination was a fjord with icebergs and a glacier.
BAD NEWS? of course. Things are supposed to go awry - when so much planning is involved, right?
The icebergs that we were expecting to encounter were too large for our small boat. But our small boat Captain was persistent - wanted to be sure we had a great outing.
So we headed down a different fjord - Endicott Arm - in the search for not only icebergs (smaller but still exciting to see) but a GLACIER too! Thank goodness for our captain's persistence and then mine.
As you can imagine, most of the passengers would move back and forth, and from side to side on the boat trying to get the best spot to snap a photo of all the great Alaskan scenery. Like our captain, I decided to be a bit persistent in my approach. I picked a spot on the outside - on the right side of the boat - and there I stood.
We travelled the 30 mile long fjord and thoroughly enjoyed the mountains, trees and waterfalls on both sides of the boat. The best was yet to come - a wondrous sight - Dawes Glacier!
I waited patiently while the boat went in circles to give us all a grand view of the glacier. And my persistence and patience paid off.
While the boat was turning and my chosen side started to face the glacier - we heard the white thunder (the sound the glacier makes when calving - losing a big chunk of the glacier into the water - really does sound like thunder). And there it was - me and my camera pointed in the right spot to not only take a beautiful shot of the glacier but of a controversial experience too - capturing the great splash as part of the glacier went into the water. And yes, it really is that blue color :)
I also have two images showing the waterfalls and islands that are included in the ride through the fjord - be sure to check out my page on my site www.sharondraeger.com to see them too!
The other bonus was my children and I had a great time - and many wonderful shared memories. I highly recommend traveling with your grown children - they can be so much fun!
Please check out sharondraeger.com for additional nature and wildlife images.
May the PEACE OF NATURE be with you!!
