2024 – The Year in Pictures. Here is a selection of my favorite images released in the past year. These are not necessarily my best or most popular, but each represents a special moment in time in which the beauty of this amazing world revealed itself before my lens.
Please share and enjoy! I’d love to know your thoughts and if any images resonated with you or conjured up good memories. You can click on any image for a large high quality view, to learn more about it or purchase a fine art print.
I look forward to seeing your favorite images, and most of all I wish everyone a healthy and Happy New Year!
-Russ
Yellow-eyed tree frog, La Paz Waterfall Gardens, Alajuela Province, Costa RicaSunset at Playa Matapalo beach, Puntarenas Province, Costa RicaHiker exploring the Monte Verde Cloud Forest Preserve, Costa RicaRio Celeste Waterfall, Tenorio Volcano National Park, Costa RicaLupine near Lindis Valley, Otago, South Island, New ZealandThe Pororari River, Paparoa National Park, Punakaiki, New ZealandMount Cook above Lake Pukaki, Aoraki Mount Cook National Park, New ZealandMilford Sound, Fiordland National Park, South Island, New ZealandBurney Falls, McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, CaliforniaLower South Falls, Silver Falls State Park, OregonTanner Creek, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, OregonLatourell Falls, Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area, Oregon
Channel Island Fox (Urocyon littoralis), Channel Islands National Park, California
American Galapagos – Channel Islands National Park
The Channel Islands of California are a chain of eight islands located off the coast of Southern California in the Santa Barbara Channel. Five of the islands (San Miguel, Santa Rosa, Santa Cruz, Anacapa, and Santa Barbara) were designated Channel Islands National Park on March 5, 1980 as our 40th national park, and are co-managed by the National Park Service and the Nature Conservancy.
Often referred to as America’s Galapagos, the Channel Islands are home to over 2,000 plant and animal species and 145 of those are found nowhere else on earth! The island fox (shown here) is one example – a dwarf fox native to six of the eight Islands. Due to their geographic isolation these curious creatures have no immunity to disease brought in from the mainland, and as a result their population dwindled to near extinction in the 1990s. Fortunately they were federally protected as an endangered species in 2004, and efforts to rebuild fox populations and restore their ecosystems have been quite successful.
The archeological and cultural resources on the Channel Islands span a period of more than 12,000 years of human habitation. The Chumash Indians lived off the sea for thousands of years followed by Spanish and American cattle ranches that thrived in the nineteenth century. Over the years, archaeologists have unearthed an amazing timeline dating back to the Pleistocene, including the world’s most complete pygmy mammoth specimen discovered on Santa Rosa Island in 1994.
The Islands are also part of one of the richest marine biospheres of the world. The Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary protects the surrounding waters six nautical miles off Anacapa, Santa Cruz, San Miguel, Santa Rosa, and Santa Barbara islands, where a whole new world invites exploration above and below the surface.
Rocky cliff along the Cypress Grove Trail, Point Lobos State Reserve, Carmel, California
Point Lobos State Reserve on the Big Sur Coast south of Carmel is the quintessential California seaside location. Once the haunt of luminary local residents Edward Weston and Ansel Adams, its rocky cliffs, cypress groves, pebbled beaches, and blue lagoons provide an endless variety of photographic opportunities.
As part of the Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary its waters are home to abundant sea life including the endangered sea otter and California’s state fish, the garibaldi making it a favorite with divers. Extensive trails wander through rare groves of Monterey Cypress, which only occur here and in the nearby town of Monterey, and are the classic wind-swept symbol of the central California coast.
Exploring the Big Sur area provides a wealth of natural history opportunities and a visit to Point Lobos is a highlight of any trip.
