Ha Ha Tonka State Park, near Camdenton, Missouri

I went to Ha Ha Tonka State Park in the late fall of 1996. I don't remember where I had heard about it, but it looked like it would be quite interesting. As I recall, the drive from Columbia was at least two hours; probably more. But it was well worth it, and I remember the day almost as if it were yesterday. I highly recommend a visit, but if you can't make it, more information is available in the Landmarks I've Visited section.

Need I say it?

A pond filled by natural springs. At the top of the cliff, you can see the remains of the mansion.

Peaceful bench by the lake.

A wooden walkway. There are lots of walkways and trails in the park.

The water tower.

One of the main walls left standing after the mansion was destroyed by fire.

Sunlight coming through the window looks like fire.

An arched entryway.

More ruins, including the archway.

A window through a window.

More mansion.

More from Three Creeks Conservation Area

One autumn day in 1996, I went back to Three Creeks Conservation Area to try to get some good fall color shots.

As I said, if there is one thing you should have learned about me by now is that I love 'tree and sky' shots.

Here's one of the creek beds. This photo includes an unfortunate shadow intrusion, but I included it anyway because I love this part of the park.

More 'tree and sky'.

Now just trees, but I like the colors.

A stretch of trees along the path that hadn't turned much yet. That path, by the way, is a lot steeper than it looks.

A Trip Through A Small Nebraska Town

My Dad and I visited my grandmother in Nebraska one year, and we all went on a road trip through the country. We stopped in a small town for lunch, and I decided to take a few photos.

An unusual octagonal building.

The highway running through town.

A storefront.

Close in on part of that storefront. I wonder if I could overuse that polarizer any more?

Flowers in City Park.

An outdoor stage in City Park.

A Trip to the Denver Zoo

I have been to the Denver Zoo several times, but this was this only time I took any photos. Like Tampa, Denver has a modern zoo with natural looking exhibits. Find out more by following the link in the Landmarks I've Visited section.

A type of deer from Africa.

Humans on exhibit. Note that many have their young with them. Some of them even push the young about in little carts.

Red Kangaroos.

Shamba.

An odd building by the Shamba.

Bighorn Sheep, the State Animal of Colorado.

A bird with a very flexible neck.

I thought this flower was interesting.

A Lion.

I thought the colors were nice here.

A Polar Bear lounges in front of an audience.

Shelter Gardens, Columbia

I used to live in an apartment complex in Columbia that bordered on Shelter Gardens. I was lucky because my apartment was right next to the gardens. You could say that the gardens were my back yard. Here are some photos from a visit there in the late summer of 1996.

An old school house was moved to the grounds of Shelter Gardens. The photo is black and white because I had a few frames left on the roll I shot earlier at Union Covered Bridge.

Black and white shot of a flower.

A brilliant red rose.

Texas does not have claim to all yellow roses.

One of the many paths meandering through the gardens.

These look like marigolds to me, but I'm not a trained horticulturist.

These look like the same type of flower as in the photo above, but they're definitely not marigolds. Maybe they're mums.

Perhaps a type of hibiscus.

More from Union Covered Bridge

The Union Covered Bridge is one of those timeless historical places, making it a perfect subject for black and white photography. Here are some photos I took in late summer of 1996.

Stone walls lead up to the east entrance to the bridge.

Another view of the east entrance.

Missouri Spur-C bypasses the bridge now and crosses the creek, just to our left, over a spillway.

The spillway over which the road crosses. The crossing is just to the south of the bridge.

Missouri State Capitol Building, Jefferson City

I visited the State Capitol Building in Jefferson City one day in August of 1996, and took a few photographs. It was modeled after the United States Capitol Building in Washington, D. C. To get more information about Missouri's Capitol Building, please follow the link in the Landmarks I've Visited section.

The front of the Capitol Building.

A fountain on the front grounds.

A statue of Thomas Jefferson is featured prominently on the front steps of the Capitol Building.

This statue is off to the right side; I do not remember the significance.

The back of the Capitol Building is graced by beautiful terraced gardens and a waterfall leading to a reflecting pool.