R. Doug Wicker's Blog, page 151

Fall Foliage Tour — Beginning the Enchanted Circle of New Mexico

Early last October Ursula and I took a little road trip. It began with a stop at Trinity Site, location of the first atomic bomb detonation. You can see links to my articles on that adventure below following today’s post. As for the rest of the trip — a fall foliage tour along the famous Enchanted Circle through Taos, Questa, Red River, the Carson National Forest, Eagle’s Nest, and Angel Fire — I saved that for now.

Enchanted Circle Byway

The reason for that delay is simple: I wanted to time...

Fun Photo Friday — Todos Santos Favorites

Pink Flamingo in Red

All around here in the desert you’ll see a cactus that appears very much to be the saguaro associated with the Sonoran Desert up around Tucson, Arizona. Tucson is rather dear to me, as it’s where I met and married the love of my life, whom you’ve met in many of my travel articles. But I digress. We were talking cactii here. These cactii at the southern tip of the Baja are not saguaro. They’re the world’s largest, however — the towering cardón cactus (pachycereus pringlei,...

Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Pilar

Mission Bells heard from The Hotel California?

As I said Monday, in my article on the Hotel California, there’s a mission right around the bend. This is the Iglesia de Nuestra Señora del Pilar (Church of Our Lady of the Pillar) for theMisión Santa Rosa de las Palmas. The mission was founded in 1733, and the first structure established for this mission was built in 1747. This adobe building was erected in 19th Century, although it does retain some of the original walls from 1747, most notably...

Welcome to the Hotel California — Such a Lovely Place

You can check out any time you like;
But you can never leave!

After a little shopping our group next stopped at Misión Nuestra del Senora de Pilar (Mission of Our Lady of the Pillar). I’ll show you more on this church on Wednesday, but it was important to mention it now because of these lyrics:

There she stood in the doorway
I heard the mission bell
And I was thinking to myself
‘This could be heaven or this could be Hell’

Mission bell? Mission? Right around the corner from, with within hearing...

Fun Photo Friday — Todos Santos Architectural Details

Study in Color and Depth-of-Field

If you come out of Todos Santos without some really great shots then you must have really worked at it. There’s just a lot going on here image-wise. Below is today’s photo gallery. Click on any image to enlarge and bring up today’s slide show:

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: Fun Photo Friday, photography, R. Doug Wicker, Todos Santos, travel, travel photography, vacation

Todos Santos

Todos Santos

The town is Todos los Santos, although most people shorten that to just “Todos Santos“. While some people consider this a “beach” town, it’s actually about a half mile/.8 kilometer direct line from town central to the coast. I measured that distance using Google Maps, anchoring off the most famous feature of Todos Santos, which we’ll explore next Monday. But here’s a hint: The Eagles.

Pretty Rustic — Dirt Streets (they were under repair at the time)

We started our excursion into...

Chile-to-L.A. — Cabo San Lucas, last port before home

Ultima piedra Peninsula Baja (“Last Stone of the Baja Peninsula)

The Golden Princess made one more port before our long journey from Chile to Los Angeles would come to an end. That would be one of my favorite ports, Cabo San Lucas, at the very tip of the Baja Peninsula. We arrived on March 25, 2015, four days after our departure from Nicaragua. Cabo doesn’t have a harbor and dock suitable for a cruise ship, so once again we found ourselves anchored offshore and tendering into town after some...

Fun Photo Friday — Favorites of Lake Nicaragua and Masaya Volcano

Volcano

Today’s Fun Photo Friday is one last look at Nicaragua before we head up the coast to Cabo San Lucas and a nifty side trip to Todos Santos and The Hotel California, where we had no difficulties checking in for lunch, but a lot of problems leaving (that’s a joke for Eagles fans).

Filed under: Fun Photo Friday, Photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, vacation Tagged: Fun Photo Friday, Lake Nicaragua, Masaya Volcano, Nicaragua, photography, R. Doug Wicker, travel, travel photography, v...

Masaya Volcano and a Whiff of Brimstone

Heaven and Hell

Our group of intrepid explorers left behind Lake Nicaragua and headed west, past the city of Masaya and into Parque Nacional Volcan Masaya (Masaya Volcano National Park). Our tour bus made the uphill trek to the active Santiago Crater of the Masaya Volcano. The highest point here is 2,083 feet/635 meters, and that is marked with a large cross which may to reached via a staired walkway..

Masaya Volcano

Arising from Santiago Crater are enormous clouds of sulfur dioxide, which ou...

Among the Islets of Granada, Lake Nicaragua

Chillin’ in the shade

I really enjoyed our excursion onto Lake Nicaragua. I wouldn’t hesitate to do it again. I wouldn’t even minds staying on one of these beautiful islets for a few days. Indeed, I wonder if this image is a home or a resort:

Grand Estate

But even the more modest accommodations look inviting . . . if I had an invitation:

Nice bungalow

Islet home

The remainder of today’s images are dedicated to the islets, the jungle, and the wildlife. Enjoy today’s photo gallery below, becaus...