Tag Archives: travel

Highland Trees and Fog

Highland Trees and Fog
“Highland Trees and Fog” — Small trees and mountain fog in the highlands along the Great Glen Way near the “View Catcher.”

We began our spring walk along Scotland’s Great Glen Way in distinctly lowland country. We started a sea level in Fort William, then headed north along the Caledonian Canal, passing by agricultural country and eventually a large loch. But eventually the route took is into higher terrain, most dramatically on this day when we climbed steeply out of the town of Invermoriston, eventually crossing a high ridge before a long descent to the final miles of the day along the canal once again.

Much of this part of Scotland is thickly forested, but there’s often a distinct and sudden division between trees and barren highlands. We had passed through some highland country on the train to Fort William, but this was the first time we walked into it. It was a dramatic change! The day was cloudy and damp, and even though it momentarily cleared at this point, fog clouds drifted in and out of the scene, alternately revealing and blocking views of higher ridges.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Borough Market Entrance

Borough Market Entrance
“Borough Market Entrance” — People at one of the entrances to London’s Borough Market.

On many mornings London’s Borough Market can be a happening place. There are lots of visitors — people looking for a coffee or a quick bite, tourists wandering through just to see the place or pick up a souvenir, locals who actually shop for products from the vendors. We were there to grab a cup of coffee and maybe a pastry — though in the end we settled for just the coffee before moving on.

The physical layout of the place is fascinating — maybe almost the antithesis of a neatly laid-out market like the one in Porto, where the vendor stalls are arranged in straight aisles on a grid. Because odd angles intersect at Borough Market — where things align with small streets, major avenues, approaches to bridges, and odd spaces between buildings — the layout feels rather haphazard. Not that this is a problem, especially if you are happy to simply wander a bit.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Telford Bridge

Telford Bridge
“Telford Bridge” — The historic Telford Bridge at Invermoriston, Scotland.

The last bit of this day’s walk on the Great Glen Way was full of surprises. One of them was that as we approached the town of Invermoristen it seemed that we were only a very short distance from our destination, but then the path took a long sideways detour to finally cross the river. such a detour is not what you want at the end of a long day of hiking! On the other hand, this detour took is right past this historic Telford Bridge, where we paused for a moment before continuing toward our destination in town.

The first version of the bridge was completed approximately two centuries ago. (It was replaced by a more “modern” structure in the early 20th century.) It was devised by the great Scottish engineer, Thomas Telford, who is also responsible for all sorts of projects in Scotland, including the Caledonia Canal connecting Fort William and Inverness. We take structures like bridges for granted today, but when this was constructed it improved transportation and trade in the area. (Imagine trying to get across the river without the bridge!)


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

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Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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Souvenir Store, Lisbon

Souvenir Store, Lisbon
“Souvenir Store, Lisbon” — The entrance to a small souvenir store on a backstreet in Lisbon.

I am realizing that I have lots of photographs of these shops in Lisbon — perhaps a series of photographs is in order at some point. We saw many of them on walks from our lodgings in the city. We weren’t too far from the train station, which meant that we were in an area where a lot of things come together — main streets, transportation, business and shopping areas, tourist stuff, neighborhoods, restaurants, with narrow streets packed with people, and these little shops.

If I can generalize, there’s a kind of continuum (and not just in Portugal) that runs form fancy, upscale shopping areas to tiny, improvised, shops like this one. We didn’t go inside, as we were passing by on our way somewhere else, but this distinctly non-fancy shop seemed to sell a little bit of everything, with the tourist-attracting knick-knacks out front.


G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.

Blog | About | Instagram | Flickr | Facebook | Threads | PostEmail

Links: Articles, Sales and Licensing, my Sierra Nevada Fall Color book, Contact Info.

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