Besides the physical benefits of hiking, the main reason to go hiking is to enjoy the beauty of nature. Without a doubt, the scenery in the mountains of Colorado is absolutely stunning. It is fascinating to see the way that the geological forces have joined with the forces of rain, wind, and time to create such unique features in the landscape. People will often see patterns in everything that they look at as it is a natural way for our minds to make sense of the world. When you look at a trail map, it is not uncommon to see names given to natural landmarks as a way to identify them based upon what people feel it looks like. This is obviously true around the world as well and we enjoy looking at some of them and asking ourselves does it really look like the name that it has been given.
Kissing Camels in Garden of the Gods ParkUp Close, the Kissing Camels Are Not as ObviousHiking Towards Monument RockMonument Rock in ColoradoThese Rocks May or May Not Have a NamePaint Mines Interpretive Park near Colorado Springs
It doesn’t matter where we travel to, but we always like taking photographs of sunsets. As beautiful as they are wherever you may be, there is something extra special when you are in an exotic location. We don’t always take photographs of them and sometimes just sit and relax while watching the sun descend to the horizon. Also, sometimes we don’t have our camera with us, so we take them with our phones, but that doesn’t diminish the beauty of the image. We have put several of our favorite sunset photographs from some of our more unique travels here.
Sunset Over the Amazon Rainforest
When we were in Ecuador, we stayed at an ecolodge that was located deep in the Amazon Rainforest. On our first night there, we climbed up to the observation deck and had the opportunity to see this wonderful sunset. You’ll have to use your imagination to hear the monkeys and birds that were all around us in the treetops.
Sunset Over Halong BayAnother Sunset on Halong Bay
During our three day cruise in Halong Bay in Vietnam, we saw several amazing sunsets. We even saw a few sunrises as well, but the sunsets were much more vivid. It really didn’t matter what time of day it was to enjoy the scenery, but watching the sunset from the deck of the boat was certainly a highlight.
Sunset from Our Hotel in Copacabana Sunset over Lake Titicaca
While we were in Bolivia, we visited Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca. The following day we took a boat out to see Sun Island and Moon Island and our day started with rain showers. The gathering clouds during the evening before added to the sunset.
Sunset Over the Nile RiverClear Sky on the Nile River
Sailing down the Nile River in Egypt from Luxor to Aswan provided some absolutely stunning sunsets. Something about the sand being blown into the air adds to the way that the sun reflects as it descends. It also signaled that the temperatures were about to drop, which was a massive relief considering how hot it was in Egypt.
View of the Sunset Over the Mekong River in Vientiane, LaosSunset from the Rooftop Restaurant in Laos
While in Vientiane, we spent the evening walking along the Mekong River that separates Laos from Thailand. There is a large park along the river and at night people from throughout the city gather to enjoy food and carnival rides.
Beautiful Colors as Sunset Ended in Acapulco, MexicoPeak of a Sunset on a Twilight Cruise in Acapulco
We saw several wonderful sunsets while we were in Acapulco. We took a twilight cruise where we enjoyed drinks on the ship while we cruised along the coast. We also went to see the cliff divers, who perform shortly after the sun goes down, so we ate dinner prior to the show and watched the sunset. It made for a very relaxing evening.
It could be us, but there is something magical about sunsets with palm trees in the foreground. And any time you can capture the sun’s reflection on the water, it makes for a wonderful photograph. Looking back at some of these photographs makes us long to get to someplace exotic once again in the near future.
We have visited many places where the scenery was just absolutely amazing and Iceland was certainly one of those places. We will often take hundreds of photographs, using multiple cameras, and even though we find the photographs stunning, they don’t always capture the moment. Whether it was driving around the Golden Circle or heading along the coast to places like the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, the views are just spectacular. It is such a rugged environment and the fact that we visited in winter made it even more stunning. We stayed in the capital city of Reykjavik and rented a car so that we could drive ourselves around the beautiful island.
Rugged SceneryGeysir Starting to EruptLava Contrasting with the SnowVery Serene
Although we have shared many of the photographs during our time in Iceland such as those of the black beaches, the Gullfoss Waterfalls, and Geysir, there are literally hundreds of images that we haven’t had the chance to share. The contrasts of the scenery from volcanos, the ocean, ice and snow, lava fields, mountains, and glaciers make every image unique. We decided to take this opportunity to share some of the photographs that we took during our trip that we have never previously shared.
Small Town by the BayLava CliffHaunting LandscapeRocky Scenery
We spent several days driving around Iceland, so the conditions were different as it was sometimes sunny and sometimes snowy. Also, because it was winter, the days were very short with the sun not rising until around 10:00 a.m. in the morning and setting in late afternoon. That allowed us to have different views of the places that we visited with many changes in lighting. At times the scenery was almost hauntingly beautiful and other times it was simply awe inspiring. Although we didn’t get a chance to make our way around to some of the more distant destinations in Iceland, like those driving around the Ring Road, the places that we did visit have made for some of our favorite memories.
Steam Rising from the VolcanoGullfoss WaterfallsCoastlineIn the Middle of Nowhere
