Let the games begin...

To celebrate the start of the Olympic Games next week, here is an image of the statue that sits outside the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs.

Collegiate Peaks

Collegiate Peaks in Central Colorado.

Colorful creatures

I saw a number of these lizards while I was in Nigeria. The color is very intense. I didn't know they had Denver Bronco fans in Africa :-)

Big Cat

Captive tiger at the Denver Zoo.

Spring Storm

Spring storms in Colorado can be beautiful but fierce. This system spawned a tornado later in the evening.

School kids in Nigeria

These school children in Nigeria loved having their picture made. What beautiful faces and beautiful smiles.

Nigerian School Girl

This image was made during a recent mission trip to Abakaliki, Nigeria. This young school girl was taking a break from her cleaning work.

Climbing the Needle's Eye

This guy is climbing a rock formation just outside of Mount Rushmore called the "Needle's Eye." 

Grand Staircase

This great lamp post and staircase in in the middle of Mantou Springs, Colorado. I loved how old it all seemed.

Garden of the Gods

These images were taken at the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. It was late in the day and the light was great!

Grey Heron

Caught this large Grey Heron fishing along the side of the Platte River.

What a beautiful creature.

My first panorama image

This is my first attempt at a panorama image. It was taken last month at a Colorado Rockies game against the New York Mets. It is 4 images "stitched" together.

2000 year old tree...

This tree is a Bristle Cone Pine. It is estimated (key being estimated) to be over 2000 years old. It sits just below the tree line on the side of Pike's Peak outside Colorado Springs, Colorado. 

The Thriving Metropolis of Scenic, South Dakota

This image was taken in the town of Scenic, South Dakota (population 87). This little town is a bit off the beaten path between Rapid City, SD and the Badlands. This saloon sign, covered in cattle skull and barbed wire, sits atop the Long Horn Saloon that opened in 1906.

Here is a shot of the old saloon. Notice the sign states "Indians Allowed." Very progressive for 1906 I would imagine.

This old rusty wheel was chained to the outside of the general store which started as a trading post over 100 years ago.

Living above 11,000 feet

I shot this Yellow-bellied Marmot above 11,000 feet on Pike's Peak in Colorado Springs, CO last week. Amazingly, these creatures general live above tree line (11,500 feet).

Devil's Tower, Wyoming

Just after we visited the Badlands we traveled to Northern Wyoming to see Devil's Tower. All I could hear in my head were the notes from Close Encounters of the Third Kind...

Badlands, South Dakota

This shot was taken in the Badlands during our recent trip to South Dakota. The wind was howling the day we drove through the area, but it was great!

Fort Laramie Bridge

This bridge was built in 1877 and was the main crossing of the North Platte River for Fort Laramie. 

Fort Laramie Cannons

I had the chance to travel to South Dakota on a short vacation last week. On the way we stopped at Fort Laramie. This fort was at its peak in the 1870's and was a major stop for the Pony Express.

These two smooth bore cannons were outside a field office.

Red Tail Hawk

This hawk was sitting on a fence near my home looking out over a field hunting for food. He was more than comfortable with having his picture made. It was amazing to get so close to such a beautiful animal.