With little prep work, we went on the recommendation of a friend to Dunsmuir, CA, just 20 mins south of Mt. Shasta. There was so much to see and hike to, I had to share some pictures of the beauty of the area - just 3 hours from our house! As always...my favs...no photoshop.
And then settled into our campsite for a weekend of hiking to some of the regions most spectular waterfalls.
Then we moved onto the big one...the reason we came to Dunsmuir - Mossbrea Falls. This was a 45 min flat hike in on the railroad tracks. Luckily for us, we didn't see any trains.
I did a pretty panorama stitch of the falls - but it was too big for blogger to handle, and low-res it looked hideous...so sorry his is all you get!
Yes - that is Ben on top of the bridge there - whenever there is an exposed ladder, Ben will climb it!
GREAT end to a beautiful trip and a great way to celebrate our country's birthday by visiting all of these National and State Parks! Makes me so grateful to live in a land full of freedom, natural beauty, and well protected natural treasures. Hope you enjoyed the peak into our weekend!
As we continued up to the Colca Canyon, we went through many cities that date back to before the Incas. In this particular city, gold and copper were found in the hills about 5 years ago, and prospectors came out to purchase the lands and turn the city into a mining town. They offered the villagers a good sum of money for their lands, enough to get them out of living in poverty.
When I tried to take a picture of this woman from the front, she hit behind her skirt. These women wear 6-12 skirts, for warmth and to enhance their "womanly" figure.
A night and a day later, we made it up to the viewing point for the Condors. The valley was spectacular, but because of the narrowness and depth of the canyon, I couldn't get a good picture showing the entire thing. But here's an idea of the beauty of the area.
And at the canyon, a ways up into the Andes. We're at an elevation of about 12,000 feet.
So we perched up on a ledge, and watched for about 1 hour, and finally were rewarded with a condor sighting. Look close - you can see it in the middle flying away from me - try to zoom in...it's hard to imagine, but it has a wing span of up to 10 feet, and it's head looks like a vulture.
Sorry they're not all prettied and adjusted...just for you to enjoy in their raw form!
The white church built on the mountain summit is at 3,200 meters and dominates the cityscape. Every Sunday Pilgrims (and tourists like us) take the cable cars straight up the side of the mountain to pay their respects to Senor Caido, the Fallen Christ, inside the church.
Yes, that is 4 different types of blood sausage...hungry?
The Ordinary Princess by M.M. Kaye
