Thirsty Thursday: George Lake Trip

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Jekel Pinot Noir

Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. We headed up to the mountains a few weekends ago for a backpacking trip to George Lake in the Kaiser Wilderness. You may remember this as the intended destination of our snowed-out Memorial Day weekend trip.

The weather was gorgeous, bordering on hot for 8500' elevation. We didn't realize that all of the mosquitos in Sierra were also holding a reunion at George Lake the same weekend. Obscene! But we haven't contracted West Nile or malaria just yet, so I guess we survived. All in all, a fun weekend.

On the trail... Exploring around the lake. Sometimes its tiring. We did a little off-trail cross-country exploring and found a couple more lakes up higher. I think this was College Lake. Back at George Lake it was time to cool off, if only we'd had swimwear. Time for dinner. Then some waiting for the evening light to get nice. Then it was time for bed and a hike out in the morning. Terry loaned me these two images for tonight's post. Pretty nice!

We've got another backpack trip planned in a few weeks, so more mountain fun ahead for us! Yay! Love summer weekends spent in the high country. Get out there and discover a little high country yourself in the coming weeks!

Thirsty Thursday: Colorado Memories

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Yogi Ginger Tea

A little more subdued for this edition of Thirsty Thursday. Our friends in Colorado Springs are heavy on our minds this week. Since either of us left our childhood homes to go the Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs is the place we lived the longest. I don't often get horrified to the point of tears watching the news, but Tuesday night I nearly did.

After we graduated in 2002, we got a little apartment right outside the North Gate, as we were both going to work at the Air Force Academy for the next year. The Hayman Fire happened during the summer of 2002. Before this year's fire season, it was one of the worst fires in Colorado history (made worse by the fact that it was arson). One night the fire was supposed to come over the front slope and head in our direction. Thankfully it did not. This photo was from a hot June night in 2002 from that parking lot of our apartment complex. At that time I couldn't imagine a worse fire scene in Colorado Springs. That opinion changed Tuesday night as I watched photo after photo come across the intrawebs of fires on the front slope...and homes on fire. Horrible. Horrible. Horrible. Terry and I used to go hike at Garden of the Gods. I can't even really call it hiking. It was more like strolling and talking and figuring out who we were. Garden of the Gods always makes me think of "early us". Long, sometimes complicated talks before we were even engaged. I think Garden of the Gods is charred now. Fortunately fire can't do much to rock, so the beauty of that place should still remain. Not so sure about everything around it though. The most horrifying thoughts on Tuesday night (once I figured out that a couple of close friends were safe) were about the Air Force Academy. I expected to wake up Wednesday morning to hear it had burned. That place can't really burn to the ground, per say, as its made of metal and rock, but I guess it was principle. There's something about that place that we just love. Maybe its sentimental because we met there, but the thought of it not being there was crazy. Fortunately, its fine. The fact that I was upset about my silly school burning when people were losing their homes is ridiculous and a little embarrassingly self-centered. So to our friends in Colorado Springs, we're thinking of you. Stay safe.

Thirsty Thursday: Instagrams from the Trail

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: 2007 Alfaro Vineyards Pinot Noir

Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Last weekend Terry and I (and Massey of course!) headed up to the Kaiser Wilderness for a couple of days in the woods. It was pretty warm for the 8500' up in the mountains, incredibly buggy, and absolutely beautiful!

Its always nice to get away from the cubicle and computer and phone and just enjoy the sunlight...and maybe a dip in a refreshingly chilly alpine lake. Even though the iPhones didn't get service (yay!), the camera still worked for Instagrams! As you can see in those last few frames, Massey was wrecked on the drive home. Always a telltale sign of a pretty sweet weekend!

Get out there and get lost in something this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Fingers Crossed

Rambler: BethDrink at Hand: Scheid Reserve Chardonnay (Tied for 1st on my chard list)

Hey Welliver Photography fans! Welcome to another addition of Thirsty Thursday...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. We are headed off to backpack this weekend, or so we hope!

Over Memorial Day weekend we headed up to backpack to George Lake in the Kaiser Wilderness. The in-house meteorologist blew the weekend forecast, and long story short, without a four-season tent, we were snowed out of our first backpacking trip of the season. So much for the unofficial start of summer! So this weekend we'll try again, and hopefully the trail doesn't look like this... But we definitely can't say it wasn't beautiful, even if we didn't camp in it. Get out there and doing something this weekend...and hope you get a good weather report before you go!

Thirsty Thursday: Zurich at Night

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: Tazo Awake Tea

Ok, so I'm late posting this tonight. It's also going to be a late night tonight which is why I'm drinking tea with caffeine. I'm going to keep this posting tonight short as I have other (more important) things to work on tonight. I'll let the pictures of Zurich speak for themselves. As it is late, I figured night shots were appropriate. These shots are all mine. I'm sure Beth will post hers at a later date. Although I wasn't a huge fan of Zurich, the architecture was pretty cool...especially at night.

Thirsty Thursday: Tahoe Exploring

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Water...boring, I know. Tough run tonight.

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pouring something yummy (or rehydrating in my case!) and make those weekend plans. A few weeks back I was looking at a weekend home alone while Terry was out of town, so I decided to go somewhere. My original plan was Mt. Shasta, but after a long day of work on Friday, I decided to go somewhere closer. I'd never been to Tahoe, so the dog and I jumped in the car Saturday morning and off we went.

I didn't really have a game plan. I literally woke up Saturday morning and decided that Tahoe was the destination. I usually do a little research to figure out good photo spots (and good places for grub), but this time I was flying blind. Ended up at Zephyr Cove for sunset, above Emerald Bay for sunrise, and took a little snowy stroll in Desolation Wilderness with Massey before heading back home Sunday. Tahoe was beautiful and I can't wait to get up there for a couple of backpacking routes I've picked out for the summer.

Get out there and explore a new place this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: View from the Valley

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2009 Tolosa Edna Ranch Pinot Noir

Like usual from me, not much to say other than we're off to find a view like this. Well, not quite like this, as this shot was taken in Mayflower Gulch in Arapaho National Forest near Frisco, CO. Regardless, enjoy the long weekend and go get lost. I know we'll be out there.

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Thirsty Thursday: Golden Gate Bridge Sunrise

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Ghost Pines Zinfandel

Usually Thirsty Thursday is about pouring something yummy and making those weekend plans. This week I'm changing it up a little bit. Instead of weekend plans, this week's post is about very early morning weekday plans that turned out pretty well.

A few weeks back I had to take Terry to SFO on a Friday morning for a ridiculously early flight. The problem with a flight out of San Francisco at 6:15 means that we have to leave home around 3:15 to get to the airport on time. That's 3:15 with an A.M. after it, or 0315 for my military friends. That's not even early...that's middle of the night. I grudgingly rolled out of bed, fumbled around enough to somehow get coffee in my travel mug (thank goodness for automatic timers on coffee makers!), and put myself and my camera gear in the car to take my darling husband to the airport.

As I dropped T off at the airport, the sky was still dark and traffic was still light...plenty of time to get across the Golden Gate Bridge for sunrise. I could see stars which meant the problematic SF Bay fog wasn't going to get in the way of a good sunrise. As I pulled into the first turnout on the Marin County side of the bridge, I was excited to see some clouds over Angel Island! Given my recent string of shooting sunrises with absolutely nothing in the sky, these clouds made me happy. Of course, as I headed over the little hill to get a good view of the bridge, my excitement quickly dropped...not a cloud in the sky around the bridge. Just clear, blue twilight. Since I was there, and for the first time ever there was no wind, I decided to play around with some different foreground compositions while optimistically hoping that the clouds further north would drift overhead. I gave up on the clouds over the bridge and went back to the clouds. So, yeah, I went to go shoot the Golden Gate Bridge at sunrise and it wasn't everything I wanted it to be. But, I still saw an absolutely beautiful sunrise over the Bay. It was just a beautiful morning in general in every direction. After all that beauty and a quick walk with Massey, I still made it to work just a few minutes late.

Get out there and watch a beautiful sunrise this weekend...or maybe even tomorrow morning!

Thirsty Thursday: Somewhere In Between

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2009 Sonoma Hills Chardonnay

Sometimes you find yourself somewhere in between. In between jobs, in between decisions, in between vacations, in between dreams. And sometimes things seem to be over your head but underneath your feet. Maybe it's a good thing to be in the in between, or maybe it's not, or maybe, just maybe, it's spectacular. Somewhere Switzerland floating in between the mountains below and the mountains above near Schilthorn. If you're ever lucky enough to realize you are in an in between that's spectacular, enjoy it, take it all in...and if you happen to have a camera, take a few shots so that you can share it with the rest of us! I'll always remember this in between.

Thirsty Thursday: View From the Top

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2010 Handcraft Petite Sirah

I know I haven't written a blog post in a while, but Beth has been carrying it. I still haven't been through all my Switzerland photos and now I have about 1600 more photos to go through. But, after a little convincing from Beth, here are a few photos from the "Top of Europe".

The views from the top are spectacular and I'm not sure the pictures do the view justice. And as for the buildings, who thinks to build structures in those places...only the Swiss.

Thirsty Thursday: Sunshine and Mountains

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Hammond Grenache

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Terry is headed off to Colorado this weekend, so I figured a few mountain scenes containing Terry were in order.

Have I mentioned on this blog that Switzerland was abso-freakin-lutely beautiful?! Even without the cute boy the scene is nice to look at. Get out there and find your own pretty mountain scene this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday: Luzern Night Bikes

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: 2010 Longhand Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

Good evening and welcome to another Thirsty Thursday...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. Since its getting a little late, I figured a few night photos were in order.

We spent our second night in Switzerland in the beautiful medieval town of Luzern. Absolutely beautiful during the day, and thanks to our jet lag, we had plenty of time to explore at night, too. Thanks to a random (and apparently not so gentle) TSA baggage inspection, we were down to one tripod between the two of us. I let Terry have the tripod to take some photos of the city reflecting in the the river and I headed over to the car-free area.

Bikes were whizzing through the car-free area at a steady rate. I love visiting other countries where bicycles are the predominate mode of travel through the city. It was a cold night, the sky trying to spit rain, yet these hardy Swiss folks were simply going from Point A to Point B under pedal power. I bumped up the ISO of my new 5D Mark II to 3200, knowing that the increased noise would look good in black and white. So I played around panning and stalking the night riders. Here's what I came away with...

I think Thirsty Thursday is having a good influence on me tonight...I might actually go ride my bike this weekend, perhaps with camera in hand. We hope you can get out and have your own little adventure this weekend, too!

Thirsty Thursday: Insta-Swiss

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Sangria...actually, no, but it would be nice to have a good Sangria recipe (hint hint Terry G.)

Thirsty Thursday again! Its been a busy week, so not much work on the Swiss vacation photos got accomplished yet. But with Instagram making some pretty big headlines this week, I figured I steal a few photos out of our Instagram photostream from our trip. I promise, one day, you'll get to see our actual photos and hear our stories.

Here are a few travel photos...you know, planes, food. Especially the food. And the chocolate. And the coffee! A few random views from here and there... Now for my favorites...the mountains! The Alps were more amazing than I could have ever imagined! And we got to play like crazy in that snowy wonderland. Hope you get out there this weekend and take some photos of your world...with whatever camera you have in your hand!

Thirsty Thursday: Off to Interlaken

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: Tolosa Rose de Grenache

Thirsty Thursday here again...time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans! We are still sorting through the Switzerland photos, but we are making progress. This week we share a few more.

Our first two days in Switzerland were spent in cities--Zurich, then Luzern. Both beautiful in their own right, especially Luzern, but I was ready to get on to the Alps! So in true Euro fashion, or perhaps true Welliver foreign travel fashion (we love public transportation in every country except the US...how can the rest of the world get it right?!), we hopped on a train and headed to Interlaken. Interlaken was our home base at the foot of the Alps for the next four days. I was incredibly excited for my first glimpses of the Alps, but of course it was a snowy, dreary day as our train lumbered down the tracks. Yet, still beautiful. When we arrived in Interlaken my outdoor fever got the best of me, so we quickly dropped the luggage at the hotel and started exploring the town. We found ourselves on a road headed out of town, and just kept walking down it, wanting to see what was around the next bend. Soon we found ourselves on a quiet country road leading up into the hills. A hiking trail popped up on our right...we took it. We climbed up a hill along a lovely, well-marked trail. Then again, I think every hiking trail in Switzerland is well-marked. Daylight was fading, a light mist was falling, but we didn't care. About a mile and a half later we came out at the top. Turns out a cog railway comes up the other side of the hill in summer. Tonight we had the hill top overlooking Interlaken all to ourselves. A great little afternoon adventure in the foothills before our big adventures in the Alps started the next day. Hope you can get out and enjoy a little adventure this weekend, too!

Thirsty Thursday: Just a Mountain View

Rambler: Terry

Drink in Hand: 2004 Parrot Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon

Life has been pretty busy since we returned from the land of many mountains. Beth has managed to get further along with her photographs, but I'm still struggling to get through them all. So, today, here's just a little tasting of the mountains. More to follow....someday. Enjoy the view and enjoy your glass.

Thirsty Thursday: What a View

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: 2007 Lockwood Reserve Red Blend

Its Thirsty Thursday once again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I was pretty excited to share one of our adventures from our recent trip to Switzerland, but a busy week and work topped off with a dog who made friends with a skunk on the trail run tonight means I haven't had time to put together a good photo story from our adventures in the Alps just yet.

So tonight I share just one photo. Its one of my favorites from the Alps. It makes me happy. We'd just hiked to the top of Faulhorn above Grindelwald. The view was great, as was the company. Terry. Eiger. Mönch. Jungfrau. Awesome.

Stay tuned for more photos from the Alps. And in the mean time, get out there and do something this weekend...and if you're in California, try to stay dry.

Thirsty Thursday: We Were Here

Rambler: Beth (photo from Terry)
Drink at Hand: Brazin Old Vine Zin

An abbreviated version of Thirsty Thursday tonight because, let's face it, we're ridiculously jet lagged from our ridiculously awesome trip to Switzerland. You'll see a lot of Switzerland in the coming weeks, but tonight I'll just share one image.

On our last day in the Bernese Oberland region, we did a hike from Grindelwald First to Faulhorn via Winterwanderroute 50. Yes, the Swiss actually groom their hiking trails in winter (more on that in a later post), making the incredibly amazing beauty of the Alps accessible to a wide range of winter activity seekers. Pretty cool! On our hike back down from Faulhorn, I found this fun little bump to scramble up, and speed hiker Terry turned around to snap the photo. Look for the little yellow speck in the middle of the photo...that's me! The peak on the left in the frame is Rötihorn.

So while we recover from our Euro adventure, we hope all of you get out there and do something awesome this weekend!

Thirsty Thursday Bonus Edition: Snowy Tree

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: 2010 Hallauer Blauburgunder (no idea, but we had to buy a screw top since Terry decided to leave the corkscrew in his carry-on luggage)

That's right, a bonus Thirsty Thursday...and we've gone international. I thought I'd share a quick snap I took from the train between Luzern und Interlaken...the windows on the train opened! Pretty sweet, and well, just plain pretty. Pretty, as in, absolutely freakin' beautiful!

Thirsty Thursday: The Bluest Blue Water You'll Ever See

Rambler: Terry
Drink in Hand: 2007 Scheid Reserve Chardonnay (take a moment and appreciate this one) 

A short post this week, but the drink in hand is amazing. If you ever want to see the blue water, I mean really blue, head down to New Zealand and find yourself a glacier lake. We found this one on the south island while driving to whatever was making the clouds blue (yes, the water was so blue it was turning the clouds blue).

Thirsty Thursday: Winter Trees

Rambler: Beth
Drink at Hand: 2010 Tolosa Grenache Rosé

Thirsty Thursday here again! Time to pour something yummy and make those weekend plans. I dug into the archives for this week's edition, focusing on a subject that is so easy to overlook.

We were lucky enough to go home to Iowa for this past Christmas. Despite the freezing temperatures, yes, I did say lucky to go. I don't often get home to visit the family, so its always nice to see everyone. Besides visiting family, however, Iowa does have some beautiful scenes. That's right, I said Iowa is beautiful. Maybe its not the obvious beauty of wildflower-filled meadows with snow-capped mountains in the background or a frenetic scene of crashing waves and rugged rocks of an ocean shoreline, but still beautiful. I think since I don't get back that often I appreciate the beauty of the rural landscape more now than I did growing up.

While living in the mild coastal climate here in California is great, I do miss seasons. One of the things I miss most from the Midwest is the amazing dawn and dusk color gradient of the sky during winter. The lack of humidity brings out an amazing palate of pinks and purples and indigo at sunrise and sunset. The colors are so intensely vibrant on a crystal clear morning or evening. Frigidly cold, but vibrantly beautiful. I don't see those colors here at home. I also love the shape of the naked trees during winter. The trees look so different in winter, stripped of leaves, twigs twitching in the lightest breezes.

Enjoy some images snapped on a very cold day at my parent's house. My fingers may have suffered some minor frostbite, but I didn't mind. I couldn't resist the stark skeletons and brilliant colors.

Get out there and find something beautiful this weekend!