Adventures Pending

Every story you hear about a climber, a cross-country hiker, an outdoor enthusiast, they all begin with one life changing moment; one that opened up their mind so wide that it let life in, and changed them. Maybe it was the view atop El Capitan after a long overnight climb, or the first light of a spring morning painting over the Wind River Range. Whatever it may have been, it was unforgettable. I've had these moments, too. Some here at home, others amongst the open space of Yellowstone, and South Dakota. Nights under the milky way, with best friends. Bonfires and ice cold beers in the middle of January. Even those long walks through any old stand of trees without telephone wires running through them. Those are adventures. They are what you make them.

Maybe it was the time you saw your first Blackburnian warbler, or watched an eagle fishing from your boat. Your first Adirondack high peak, or overnight hike. It was a moment that changed you, something you'll never forget. As I open up this next chapter in my book of life, I take these memories with me; for they have made me the person I am today.

This chapter begins far from home. Far from a warm shower and a cozy bed at night. It starts in the mountains and valleys of Montana; places where no one goes. It starts with my roots, and that drive to connect with natural places. And most importantly, it starts with adventure. I've been craving an escape, and I've finally gotten my chance. Stay tuned for a story, because I assure you, you won't want to miss this one.

My home is with the hills and trees around me. 

My ceiling holds the moon and stars above. 

So I'll never be a lonely man walking. 

And I'll never live one day without love.

- t.b.t.

Kyle

Siskin

A rainy, April morning. An unmistakable buzzing between the rain drops. Could it be? Why, yes. A pair of pine siskins. A familiar face, perhaps not, but a surprise and a smile for certain. One truly never knows what waits in the woods. Maybe the same stand of trees, yet on a different day. The same bright sun, filtered by a new sky. The same local birds, singing new songs.  

Something new around each corner. Another memory up for the taking. Go out and grab it.

Kyle 

Finding My Niche

In the last few weeks, I've taken a break of sorts from photography and gone back to nature strictly for what it is. I've taken walks in the woods, along streams and powercuts. I hiked a Catskill peak with friends and watched the sun set almost every night. I bumped into a porcupine in a tree trunk one day, and shared some laughs over the funny little creature. Most importantly, I've enjoyed every minute of my time outside. Not everything was meant to be captured in a picture, or shared with the world. Perhaps those moments in nature that slip away from the camera are the best ones. The ones you keep to yourself. 

It's becoming more and more difficult to be different these days; to make "original" images, things people haven't seen before, new angles, light, subjects. It's tough. It's even more difficult when you live here in the northeast. At times it feels as though there are more cameras than there are wildlife. And unlike others, I don't necessarily enjoy the crowd mentality. I'd rather be off on my own, seeing things as they were meant to be - wild. I've lost the urge to compete with others for likes and followers. Instead, I've found a drive to make memories. Memories with friends; with myself; with Earth. I'm beginning to find my niche in the places away from the beaten path. There's so much to see out there. So much to explore. Time to get out and find it.

Kyle

Thank You Winter

Winter on the beach.

When the beach chairs are folded away, and the cold moves in, magic happens. Green in the dunes soon fades to gold. Winter visitors begin making their way to the beach, the bay, the islands of sedge. The ducks in the breakers, the owls of the dunes, the gulls of the air. The ocean grows angrier, the winds stronger. The ever dynamic outer beach lives up to its full potential; changing the landscape with each passing minute. Never is there a greater time to see the beach in its natural state.

The wide eyes of a snowy owl at dawn. The cold winter winds welcoming a new day. It's all so perfect, as if it were written. Winter coastlines have this way of drawing me back time and time again. They are simply addicting. And for that, I say thank you. 

Kyle   

Home

"This grand show is eternal. It is always sunrise somewhere; the dew is never all dried at once; a shower is forever falling; vapor ever rising. Eternal sunrise, eternal sunset, eternal dawn and gloaming, on seas and continents and islands, each in its turn, as the round earth rolls" 

- John Muir

This week I got my turn. My sunrise, my sunset; my dawn and gloaming. All of these things right here at home. Make it a point this holiday season to get yours. And maybe I'll see you up there...

Kyle