A Stop in Taos, Missouri

Another beautiful spring day in Missouri had me out on the road. This time, I headed south of Columbia to, if memory serves, Taos. Actually, Taos is southeast of Jefferson City. At any rate, I came across a farm that had some awesome redbuds in bloom. The farmer was in his front yard, so I stopped and asked if I could take some photos from his property. He was extremely hospitable, and let me take the shots.

Looking west toward the town.

A nice country setting.

One of those redbuds.

Another view of the town.

Another country view.

And the final photo is again toward the town.

Union Covered Bridge, Revisited

It had been a while since I'd been to Union Covered Bridge - almost two years. Anyway, this was a beautiful day for a country drive.

Missouri Spur-C, the road that leads to Union Covered Bridge.

A view of the east entrance.

The east entrance from a different angle.

Looking across the south side of the bridge. Not that age has started to cause some structural deformities.

Looking up at the southeast corner of the bridge.

A sampling of graffiti inside the bridge.

The western entrance of the bridge.

More from Shelter Gardens

This spring day in 1997 was gorgeous, and called for a visit to one of my favorite places in Columbia. And since it was right next door to where I lived, it only took a couple of minutes to get there.

The main gate to Shelter Gardens.

Not the greatest photo, but I thought the plants looked cool.

A bee searches for nectar.

Another bee about to land. Note the pollen accumlation on the back legs.

A view of part of the grounds.

The old school house.

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.