Tag: waterfall

New Zealand – Marlborough Sound

A daylong visit to the strait between south and north New Zealand, steeped in history.

We woke to a beautiful morning as we sailed into Cook Strait, the passage between south and north New Zealand. The Heritage Adventurer nestled into the archipelago on the northern tip of New Zealand’s South Island, a region known as Marlborough Sound. This anchorage gave us an opportunity to spend the day visiting the tiny island of Motuara Island – now a pest-free nature sanctuary – and the nearby Meretoto / Ship Cove, best known as the location where Captain Cook had encamped during his three circumnavigations of the globe. This visit gave us an opportunity to delve deeper into the historic encounters between Europeans and the Māori, and to enjoy the birds, a waterfall, and the beautiful landscape.

North Brother Island Lighthouse at sunrise, in Cook Strait, Marlborough Sound.
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South Carolina mountain weekend

Three short outings in three days.

After spending a week in a photography workshop centered on the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and a weekend in Cherokee North Carolina – gateway to the Smoky Mountains – I had the opportunity to spend another weekend near the Blue Ridge Mountains in South Carolina. Although our activities were focused on a family wedding – a Hallowedding hosted on Halloween on the shores of Lake Keowee, SC – I took the opportunity to visit some nearby summits and waterfalls.

Lake Keowee, from The Reserve at Lake Keowee, SC.
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Smoky Mountains

Three days in Smoky Mountains National Park, and Cherokee NC.

After wrapping up a week-long photography workshop in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, I headed southwest for a solo weekend in the foothills of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Based in the town of Cherokee – in the heart of the Eastern Band of the Cherokee Nation – I had more time to explore waterfalls, fall foliage, ridgetop overlooks, and beautiful hiking trails.

Mingo Falls, in Cherokee NC.

I have hundreds of photos to sift through; for now I’ll share just a few. Read on!

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Blue Ridge waterfalls

A week in the Blue Ridge, photographing waterfalls at the peak of fall foliage.

I had the pleasure of spending a week in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, with five other aspiring photographers attending a Muench Photography Workshop led by the incomparable Talor Stone. We had gorgeous fall foliage, incredible waterfalls, and fantastic weather. It was pure joy to share a week with a group of other people thoroughly focused on photography, all happy to spend hours standing in the shallows below a waterfall exploring every angle, every exposure, refining our technique and learning new skills. Folks who are happy to rise every day before sunrise, driving up dark, windy roads and hiking to mountaintop outlooks to capture the special light at ‘blue hour’ before sunrise and ‘golden hour’ just after. My kind of people!

…at Little Bradley Falls. (Photograph by Raymond Sassoon.)
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Iceland wrap-up

With a link to a complete gallery.

Ok, that’s the end of a series of posts about my week in Iceland, including visits to Diamond Beach and its two nearby glaciers, and eleven waterfalls:

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Iceland – Brúarárfoss

The bluest river in Iceland!

Part of a series of posts about my travel in Iceland, including visits to eleven waterfalls.

On my final day in Iceland I decided to stop by Brúarárfoss, even though it was out of my way, because it was a beautiful day and these cascades appeared to be different than any I’d seen before.  Although they are reached only by driving to the end of a long and rough gravel road,  Brúarárfoss has clearly been ‘discovered’.  A new gravel carpark had been hacked out of the brush, and a food truck anchored one corner.  A short stroll on a bridle path brings visitors to a bridge across the stream, with upstream views of a multi-layer cascade.  Perhaps most notably, the water in the central flow (where the water is deepest) is a bright turquoise color, presumably a result of its glacial source. 

close-up photo of the Brúarárfoss waterfall
Brúarárfoss waterfalls, southern Iceland.
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Iceland – Seljalandsfoss sunset

Nailed it! Incredible sunset light.

Part of a series of posts about my travel in Iceland, including visits to eleven waterfalls.

I was determined to visit Seljalandsfoss again at sunset, based on a tip from my guidebook.   Because sunset was after 8:30pm, I assumed that most tourists (especially those from Reykjavik) would have gone home and I might have the opportunity to photograph these falls in golden-hour light with nobody else around.  Boy, was I wrong.  Everyone, and I mean everyone, seems to know that Seljalandsfoss is the place to be at sunset.  As I staked out my place behind the falls, a dozen tour buses disgorged their loads; a stream of people was flowing up the trail and around the falls in anticipation of sunset. 

People hike around Seljalandsfoss just before sunset.
People hike around Seljalandsfoss just before sunset; southern Iceland.
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Iceland – Kvernufoss

Another spectacular waterfall – backdrop for a romantic engagement!

Part of a series of posts about my travel in Iceland, including visits to eleven waterfalls.

As my sixth waterfall of the day I visited Kvernufoss, a short walk from Skógafoss.   As I followed its brook up into a ravine, I encountered only a few other visitors.  At one point, at a particularly nice viewpoint, I took a mental snapshot of a young couple – the man smiling, the woman holding her left hand upright, a shining diamond ring on her finger – while an older woman with a professional camera took photos.  An engagement!  How heartwarming.  I did not disturb them, and traveled onward.   Kvernufoss falls from a high cliff above, and has eroded a massive bowl in the tuff… enabling visitors to walk behind the waterfall and look through the cascading water to the ravine and the lowlands beyond.  Spectactular! Read on…

Kvernufoss waterfall, southeast Iceland.
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Iceland – Skógafoss

One of the tallest free-falling waterfalls I visited in Iceland.

Part of a series of posts about my travel in Iceland, including visits to eleven waterfalls.

Skógafoss is one of the tallest waterfalls I visited – free-falling more than 60m from the top of the cliff into a spray-filled bowl below.  Read on…

photo of Skógafoss, with some people at the base
People visiting Skógafoss waterfall, southern Iceland.
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Iceland – Gluggafoss

A waterfall with windows…

Part of a series of posts about my travel in Iceland, including visits to eleven waterfalls.

I like the name of this waterfall – Gluggafoss.  The sound of the name, alone, makes it seem like an interesting place to visit!   The name means window waterfall, because the waterfall has eroded deep into the cliffside, visible at parts through ‘windows’ in the rock face.  As with some other Icelandic waterfalls, the upper section cuts easily through a layer of tuff, before landing on a harder layer of basalt; the lower cascades flow over this basalt layer. This two-tier foss emerges out of those windows, high on the rock face, then falls free into a pool below, then cascades over a lower set of falls, before calmly turning into a brook that bubbles past the nearby carpark.  Few people were present when I came by, and I had plenty of opportunity to explore different angles for capturing the beauty of this unusual waterfall. Read on…

Gluggafoss waterfall, southern Iceland.
Gluggafoss waterfall (upper part).
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