I'm Ready for Spring...

McCall, Idaho... photos taken a couple of weeks ago when I had my Friday off adventure. I first visited McCall when I was just 16 years old. I decided then, I wanted to live there some day. Boise is just two hours south of McCall, along a very scenic highway. Being from California, ending up in Boise is perfect, just a hop, skip and a jump away from McCall. Below is the south end of Payette Lake, in McCall, where it flows into the Payette River.

Back in Boise... We are in a bit of a drought this winter. We have had little, if any, snow this year. I think we even broke a record of the lowest rainfall ever recorded for a January. We have had our share of deary, foggy days though, and I'm ready for Spring!

This past Saturday, I went with my guy to unload a 53' trailer full of new trees and shrubs at a wholesale nursery. Everyone's starting to get excited about the coming of Spring. It was fun and interesting to watch these guys zip around in these little tractor like things, flipping around like a carnival ride!

My Baby Girl...

She's all grown up and on her own. She's traveled all over the North American continent, from show to show. She's seen the sights from coast to coast. She's crossed borders to the north and south of us. She's never home anymore. Her picture is on billboards in Los Angeles and the band's hometown of London, Ontario, Canada. At book stores, I can see her in Metal magazines. Often on MTV2, I can see her play her guitar. I'm her biggest fan. I'm so proud of her. I miss her lots. I love her so.

Busy, Busy...

It's been a busy week, not much time for journaling. No new photos to add this wee, I just didn't get the chance to get out, or I didn't think I would need my camera when I was out.

Yesterday, I came upon some awesome looking cattails, dried up and crispy looking with the light feathery tops, in a ditch along the road where my guy parks his truck when he's home. I thought I'd get back to the cattails and get some shots of them. I did have my camera with me but we had errands that had to be run and I just didn't get back before the sun went down. I'll get the cattails another time.

Today, if I had only had my camera with me... I really need to carry it with me at all times! So today, I'm waiting in the car at our local grocery store parking lot while my son runs in to get a few things for his Valentine. The parking lot is full of empty vehicles of all the busy shoppers and we had to park pretty far from the store entrance. A couple of parking spots over from us, at the edge of the parking lot, was our town's Fire Engine No. 303.

I sat there for quite awhile. The store must have been packed. Finally, Engine No. 303's guys came out. Oh! I wish I had my camera... They were dressed in their casual uniforms and they all had flowers and heart shaped boxes of chocolates for their special ladies. I'm sure, if I had asked, they would have posed for a photograph in front of their Engine No. 303. It really was a Kodak moment! And, I missed it! Dang!

(Note to self: always take camera!)

My Friday Off

I took Friday off work... My plan was to get my son off to school, grab the dogs, my camera bags, and make my way, 100 miles north of Boise, to McCall, Idaho. My destination, the McCall Winter Carnival. I took the Garden Valley turn about 45 miles into my trip, and found these photos along the South Fork of the Payette River. In the photo above, the water was crystal clear and this incredible emerald green.

I love the zoom on this camera... This photo, and the photo below, are basically the same shots. If you look closely in the photo below, you can see the ripples in the water, just above the rocks that spill out into the river on the right. I love this zoom feature, 10x Optical!

No snow... I zoomed out on this photo, the mountains are so striking, so tall, so steep. But, did you notice? There's no snow! The groundhog saw his shadow here the other day, so we're supposed to have six more weeks of winter. Boy, do we need it! Storms keep passing us by.

Lucy... She was not a happy camper! The whole time I was taking photos along the river above, (ten minutes, tops!), she was hanging out the passenger window of my truck, almost howling at me. Not quite barking, not quite crying. Her ears would stay back and she would just "ya-owl" at me!

Photo Credit: Katherine Jones / The Idaho Statesman

The tub, set up for photos and called "Relax in McCall," was awarded the Most Photogenic award. It's by Indulgence Day Spa.

I didn't capture half of the sculptures to be had. The air was warming and many of the sculptures were melting away. This was the 40th Anniversary of the McCall Winter Carnival.

"Heroes of McCall"... The title of this scupture, featuring an airplane on top of the sculpture which honors smokejumpers who train in McCall.

Whitetail Club, McCall, Idaho... One of the most beautiful hotels I've ever stayed at. I was here for a conference with my job a couple of years ago. We watched a thunder storm cross the lake from the windows of the conference room, at the bottom left in the photo above. I stayed in an upstairs room, facing the front of the hotel.

The view... from the back of the hotel. I was standing about 1/4 a mile to the right of the hotel when taking this photo. The lake, Payette Lake, is frozen over.

Cracking Ice... You can't see this spot in the photo above this photo, but this was about 20 feet out from where I was standing. (Remember, I like to zoom. lol) While I was facing the hotel, taking the backside of the hotel photos, I could hear the ice cracking and moaning, just short spurts of sounds. At first, it startled me. I couldn't remember if I was on land or ice! I found some boulders showing through the snow and realized I was fine. This end of the frozen lake is starting to melt. The lake pours into the Payette River just to the left of this photo.

Heading home... This is just above my favorite photo opp bridge, heading south on Idaho Hwy 55 along the Payette River. I took a photo of the bridge last weekend, of the south facing side. We had turned around then and headed back to Boise.

So on Friday, I got out of town, drove a very scenic 100 miles to McCall, Idaho, and back. I found some snow, ice sculptures, a frozen lake, and some much needed "me time." This highway, as you can see, is very narrow and windy. I saw so many things I would have liked to have taken a photo of, but there was no where to stop. I had a wonderful day.