Cape Cod National Seashore to Host Dune Shack Arts and Sciences Exhibit in September

Photo by National Parks Service

Cape Cod National Seashore will exhibit works from dune shack visits and residencies as its Perspectives: Seeing Cape Cod National Seashore through Art resumes in September. The exhibition is curated by the Peaked Hill Trust, which offers arts and sciences residencies at dune shacks it operates under its permit with Cape Cod National Seashore.

This residency program encourages a broad sweep of creative projects in the arts and sciences, including architecture, the healing arts, environment and science, performing arts, journalism and cultural history. Selectees spend one to two weeks in a dune shack. The experience provides immersion into this special resource within the national seashore while setting the stage for inspiration and learning. The exhibition includes an eclectic array of work and topics, including erosion studies, nocturnal wildlife, writings on the Gulf Stream, short essays by an entomologist, conservation and landscape architecture, and even work from a puppeteer. Read full story

Source: http://www.nps.gov/care/parknews/capitol-reef-receives-2014-impact-grant-from-the-national-park-foundation.htm

First Road Trip to the Mountains of Colorado

I'm an eastcoast kid from Tennessee, so when I wanted to see the mountains I just drove a couple hours away to the Smokies. Seldom did  people drive nearly 20 hours to the Rockies unless they were hardcore snowboarders. After moving to the Ozarks I realized I was a heck of a lot closer to Colorado and took an opportunity this winter to make a trip there for the first time.

I left in the early afternoon and drove through the Flint Hills on highway 70 in Kansas, which gave us surprisingly pleasant views... then it got dreadfully boring after that. I pulled over to Colby, Kansas to get a little rest, woke up to negative 5 degrees and realized the power steering fluid exploded all over the engine at some point in the night. That was Day 1.

After dealing with that madness we made it to the cabin in Estes Park, 1000's of feet higher than any place I've ever been to. My nose literally bled from that point until 2 weeks after I returned home. The picturesque views was still totally worth the cold and elevation adjustments. We drove through Rocky Mountain National Park and pulled over about 100 times to see the views and snap a few photographs. I attempted to brave the frigged temperatures on a few hiking trails in the park as well.

Below are some of the best photos I took on the trip. More can be seen on our Instagram.

© All photos are protected under copyright law.

"Welcome to Colorful Colorado" sign from Kansas to Colorado.

Coffee and Bison Burger at the famous Sam's No. 3 Diner in downtown Denver.

View of Jeep about to enter Estes Park, Colorado.

View from the cabin's deck overlooking the Rocky Mountains.

View of the cabin fireplace area from the loft.

Great views from the cabin.

Sign entering Rocky Mountain National Park.

The Rocky Mountains within the National Park.

Trails in the Rocky Mountain National Park.

The Rocky Mountains within the National Park.


By: Dave Darr

Festival of the Supermoon and Lost in the Woods

I had been invited to a small festival in celebration of the supermoon. The “festival” was set to be at a small community outside of town, surrounded by mountain and desert. I’d never been invited to something so hippyish in my entire life, so I was very interested and strangely excited to get to be a part of it.

I received some spotty directions and told my friends that as soon as I wrapped up work I would head straight over. My freedom was granted around eightish. I quickly shoved my work things into a backpack, hopped on my motorcycle and after about forty minutes I found myself in a foreign land with dirt roads. I was told that shortly I should see an “unmistakable” pull-out containing my friend's souped-up El Camino. Once there I would find a lone trail and I would follow that trail till I heard the sound of drums.

The directions seemed incredibly iffy to me, especially the bit about following the drums. When I reached the El Camino I took the first trail I saw and followed it for about twenty minutes. Evidently there had been more than just one trail, in fact there were about three trails. The first two I took led me wandering down in the complete wrong direction. Over an hour went by and just as I was giving up hope a wild skunk appeared. I halfway freaked out thinking that I would get sprayed and halfway wanted to approach it. I had never seen a wild skunk before so I wasn't sure how large they were supposed to be, but this guy looked about the size of an average dog! I ended up hopping over some cactus to get away and upon doing so heard the drum beats that almost seemed to be mythic by that point.

I found my friends and the night progressed well. It was far less hippyish and more peaceful than I was expecting. On the way back we didn't take any trail, we just walked through the desert until we reached the road. I’m pretty sure that trail never even existed.

By: Jonathan Terry