January 2017 – What’s Coming!
Is it too late to wish everyone a Happy 2017? I hope not, so consider yourself “wished!”
2017 will be a full and exciting year for Mountaineer Photo Excursions, as well as for all our “Workshoppers” who join us in our travels. Our first photo workshop of the year will be our “Buffalo and The General” Winter Workshop. We’ll travel to a new location in Carrollton, KY, to the General Butler State Resort Park. It will be our center of activities, as well as one of our photography venues. The Lodge is a beautiful structure, and faces sunrise on winter mornings, providing a unique view both indoors and out! We’ll also be visiting the Bison herd at Big Bone Lick Historical Site, at Union, KY.
In addition, we’ll be making a “run for the border,” but not for tacos! We’ll cross into Indiana to the Clifty Falls State Park, and will photograph along some trails, overlooks, and of course, the Falls! We’ll also be offering some instruction on black & white photography, including some infrared (IR) if there is any interest.
On a different turn, Ron will be teaching a Digital Photography Class through West Virginia University at Parkersburg. The class will actually be a three-night series, covering composition, exposure, camera handling techniques, lens selection, and some basic post-processing skills. Scheduled for February, it filled quickly. Due to the overwhelming interest in the class, a second set of classes was also scheduled for March, which also filled in a short time. If any other classes are scheduled, we will post them on our website, as well as on our Facebook page.
For our Spring Workshop, we have offered our “Return To The Outer Banks,” to be held in early April! We first visited the island in 2015, and stayed on the beach, eight miles beyond the end of the paved road. This year, we’ll be a little closer to the action, renting a beach house in Corolla. We’ll pay a second visit to some venues, such as the Corolla Lighthouse, the Currituck Heritage Park, and others.
We’ll also be visiting some new sites, such as the Wright Brothers Memorial, Jockey’s Ridge, more lighthouses, wildlife preserves and more. Our mornings, days, and evenings will be full…as is this workshop. We were full before the end of January!
Our Summer will be hot and exciting, and Ron and Amanda have scouted a new location with lots to offer…wildlife, nature, history and stunning locations! The “Southern Shores of Maryland” is bordered on three sides by the Chesapeake Bay, and is also home to St. Mary’s City, home to Maryland’s historic first Capitol City, and St. Mary’s College, where we will enjoy our lodging for the weekend.
We’ll visit Historic St. Mary’s City, where restored structures and costumes reenactors tell the story of early settlers, who placed their lives and faith in a small sailing ship to cross an ocean. Other venues will include State Parks, lighthouses, and miles of coastline, where osprey and pelicans soar and nest.
As Summer turns to Fall, our travels will bring us back to where we started…Jenny Wiley State Resort Park in Prestonsburg, KY! Our first workshop was here in 2012, planned in just a few short weeks after we met Park Naturalist, Trinity Shepherd. Trinity has now become our good friend, and this will be our seventh event at the Park.
Plans are still being made, but we are sure to include our Elk Tour and our Eagle Cruise on Dewey Lake. So, 2017 will be a full year, and we are continuing to work on some possible additions, as well as scouting trips for next year’s workshops. We currently have plans for events into 2020, so keep us in mind when you make your plans!
Ron Gaskins
January 27, 2017