Sedona - Cascading Rock Formation

This guy reminded me of one of my favorite pics from Palo Duro, posted here.  There was a desire to climb as high as possible up these escarpments, but not this time...

Sedona - First Hike, Rock Formation with Storm Clouds and Sunshine

Storm clouds were brewing, but before it became completely overcast a bit of sunshine peeked through to light up the formation featured in yesterday's post.  A bit of luck...

Sedona - First Hike, Rock Formation

Now that we had our first visit to Phoenix to get the lay of the land (published here), we were eager to return for the birth of our second grandchild, due in mid- to late September of 2025.  Since we were due to be home from our New England cruise on Sept 10th we were worried that we might miss little Kato's entrance, but by the grace of God he was born without complications on September 21st.

Since we'd planned to be there for two months, a couple of side trips were planned.  As a way of expression their appreciation for our help, Allison and DeQuan (our son-in-law) arranged for a two-night stay in Sedona.  From Allison and many others we were encouraged to visit Sedona as one of the top go-to destinations in Arizona.

So off we went, driving through marvelous terrains and elevations new to us Houstonians.  Quite the adventure in and of itself.  Our AirB&B wasn't quite ready when we arrived, so we took a slow drive through a neighborhood on the edge of town, one that was pretty close to the rock formation that you see here.  This is where we embarked on the first "hike" of our time in Sedona, though it was a very short one.

Surprisingly, in post-capture work on these pictures I discovered that there weren't that many keepers.  So this little series will be short, then we'll move on to other adventures of our time in Arizona...

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Twilight Nightscape

As it got darker and nearing twilight, I tried the same thing, using my elbows on the railing to steady the camera.  Managed a pretty sharp photo, realizing that there was enough light outside to make things easier.  What would it be like when it got dark?  After all, a true nighttime cityscape was the goal.

As it happens, it was lousy.  To get a night shot when it's dark, the most important ingredient is stability.  It's imperative to keep the camera - and your subject - absolutely still, preferably on a tripod (for the camera).  But it was just me and my elbows on the railing, which is when I discovered that the ship itself, even though secured to the dock, moved quite a bit.  That movement, which is more pronounced than people realize when they're looking at a docked giant, was a deal-breaker...just could not get a decent pic, and after about ten minutes I hung it up.

But the picture above I think is a good way to tap in and conclude our journey to and through the New England coast.  It was an awesome ten-day trip, one that we're very glad and blessed to have made.

So what do we do next here?  We made a second trip to Phoenix with side trips to Sedona and the Grand Canyon.  What was captured there should easily take us through the remainder of the summer.

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Evening Cityscape

On our second and last evening docked at Québec City I was looking forward to getting some good night shots from the balcony of our room.  Trouble is, I have a pretty slow lens on the Bigger Cahoona.  This was the result when using my elbows to steady the camera and using aperture mode to keep the shutter as wide open as possible.  Not a bad result...I was encouraged.  But it was still pretty light outside.

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Daylight Shot of School Building

Could not resist a few parting shots of the school building and environs as we boarded for our last night of the cruise, including this daylight photo taken with the Bigger Cahoona.

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, House Boats

Saw these houseboats on our way back to the ship after the tour.  Seems like a neat way to live, but not cheap...these guys cost several hundred thousands of dollars apiece.  When I taught at Clear Creek High School back in the day, one of my fellow teachers and his also-teacher wife lived in a boat nearby, which I thought very intriguing.

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Falling Ice Sign

Don't see many of these around Houston...

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Closer Look of Boardwalk Hotel

A closer look at one end of the hotel...

2025 NE Cruise - Québec City, Boardwalk Hotel

Toward the end of our tour we walked down a long boardwalk, where I finally got the view I'd been wanting of this hotel.  What an incredible structure, and if you fork over enough cash it's possible to spend the night inside!  A little above our station in life, but it's pretty to look at.