In April my wife Cynthia and I were able to visit Salt Lake City where she was attending a workshop on advanced quilting techniques. We arrived two days early so we could explore attractions in Salt Lake City, which included a Tulip Festival, an Aviary, and a Butterfly Biosphere. All of them were enjoyable and memorable.

I was able to explore two other venues on my own while she was attending class.  The most impressive was the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge near Brigham City, UT.

The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge is a world-renowned oasis for water birds in northern Utah. Birds come to this refuge annually by the millions to rest, feed, and breed, making it a vital sanctuary for countless species.

Unfortunately, it rained the entire day I visited, so taking photos was challenging. My equipment tolerated the wet weather better than I did, and some birds were indifferent to the cold, wet conditions.   I saw many more species that I was able to photograph, and overall it was a rewarding experience.

Below are some of the images I captured. For any given gallery you can click on an image to enlarge it, then use the right arrow and left arrow to scroll through the images at full screen. Click ESC to exit the gallery.

Charleston UT Area

Deer Creek Resevoir

Deer Creek Reservoir

Bridal Veil Falls

Aviary

American White Pelican

Baikal Teal

White-faced Ibis

Black-faced Ibis

Caspian Tern

Northern Shoveler

Black-crowned Night Heron

North American Ruddy Duck

American White Pelican

American White Pelican

Southern Ground-hornbill

Scarlet Ibis

Great Horned Owl

Burrowing Owl

Scarlet-faced Liocichia

Black-naped Fruit Dove

Hooded Pitta

Bear River Bird Refuge

Bear River Bird Refuge

Bear River Bird Refuge

Bear River Bird Refuge

Cinnamon Teal

White-faced Ibis

American Avocet

Black-necked Stilt

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Tree Swallows

Ruddy Duck

Western Grebe

Butterfly Bisophere

Tulip Festival

Last night the Northern Lights were extremely active. There were reports of them being visible in Florida, but the main event was most pronounced in the upper tier of the Lower 48.

The view from my backyard in Western Wisconsin was impressive.

Here are a few of the images I took –

Click on image to enlarge…

I was fortunate to spend 4 days in Rome in 1985. The Eternal City is quite impressive. I walked much of the city with my film camera (a Minolta X-700 loaded with Kodak Ektachrome slide film), taking photos of what interested me. Weather was cloudy/rainy for much of the time I was there. Here a a few of the images that I scanned into digital format. They all evoke good memories for me.

Click on an image to begin slide show. Hover on slideshow image to pause slide show.

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My wife and I were fortunate to be able to visit Florida this last Thanksgiving. The warm weather in Cocoa Beach was very welcome. It was a nice respite from the cold in Wisconsin.

While there we visited the Port of Canaveral, where many of the largest passenger ships in the world launch for cruises in the Caribbean. The house we stayed at was just south of the many Launch Complexes associated with the Cape Canaveral area. One late night a Space X rocket launched a few miles from where we were staying and the noise and vibration rattled the glassware in the cabinets.

We were also able to visit the Ulumay Wildlife Sanctuary on Merritt Island as well as some lesser known spots where birds congregate. The many birds were a joy to photograph. Here are a few of the images and one video that I like. Click on an image to start the slide show – you can pause the slideshow by hovering over an image with your mouse or trackpad.

We are looking forward to visiting the area again.

White Ibis

Wood Stork

Anhinga

Snowy Egret and White Ibis

Wood Stork

Muscovy Duck

White Ibis

Osprey

Tricolored Heron

Brown Pelican

Double-crested Cormorant

Double-crested Cormorant

Reddish Egret

Laughing Gull

Great Egret

Double-crested Cormorant

Osprey

White Ibis

Rock Pigeon

Great Blue Heron

Great Blue Heron

Common Gallinule

Great Blue Heron

Great Egret

Birds of Florida

I was able to capture an image of the latest comet to grace our sky. Took this about 75 minutes after the sun set on October 16, 2024. I had hoped to photograph it on subsequent nights but there were too many clouds.

Click on image to enlarge…

Comet Tsuchinshan–ATLAS

The next promising comet arrives in January 2025. Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) will get closest to the Sun that month and might reach naked-eye visibility. As always, forecasting how bright it will be is unreliable.

Last week we drove to Idaho to visit our son. We traversed the eastern region of The Palouse. a distinct geographic region of the northwestern United States that encompasses parts of north central Idaho and southeastern Washington state. I took a few of photos that captured the tranquility of the area. They grow primarily wheat and legumes in the fertile soil.

Click on image to enlarge…

A G5 geomagnetic storm, the largest in 20 years, caused a ruckus in the earth’s magnetic field last night (and maybe tonight as well). It is rare that we can see the aurora where we live in rural River Falls, Wisconsin. Here a a few of the pictures I took.

Click on an image to enlarge..

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

From rural River Falls WI

My wife and I drove down to Missouri to visit our youngest daughter in Columbia. We decided to drive to Fredericktown, MO to see the total eclipse. Weather was good, sky was mostly clear. Was able to take a few images of this unforgettable experience. Here are a few of them —

click on an image to enlarge

I was able to photograph some juvenile and adult Bald Eagles near Red Wing, Minnesota yesterday. They were not as close as I would like but was able to get a few images that I kept. What a majestic animal.

Images of various churches I have visited are now in a new gallery.

JLouis