Without a doubt, the year 2020 has been permanently imbedded into our minds. Collectively, our entire planet’s population has experienced an event that has touched all our lives in one way or another – the spread of COVID-19. Personally, I have never seen anything like it in my lifetime (more than six decades). I have never attended so many memorial services for friends and relatives in a single year, and “virtually” at that! And as for myself, although being a fairly healthy sexagenarian, I had to have a cancer spot removed. Yet, at the same time, I have also drawn comfort and found peace from the same sources that are my figurative “north star” so to speak. Of course the foremost source is my faith, spirituality and relationship with my creator. But I have always treasured the beauty and solace of creation itself as well. It renews my inner being and helps me maintain my balance. This blog represents a summation of these experiences over the past year. It chronicles my photographic journeys through 2020 in the midst of a global pandemic. Throughout these times my main focus was on doing my part to help control the pandemic and not just my personal health, and this guided my decision-making to a great extent.

For the last four years I have been posting a blog with my favorite ten images created during the year. In view of the year’s events, I thought I would deviate and make it an even dozen (maybe even a “baker’s dozen” – 13). The year began in a seemingly benign way. There were references here and there to an unusual virus overseas but who would have guessed the consequences. By late February more attention was given to this disease as I made a couple of trips into the southern Missouri Ozarks. In early March, I made two trips into Shawnee National Forest of Illinois, not realizing it would be my last visit into our neighboring state for the year. As the pandemic hit, I took personal responsibility to set an example of sheltering in place, not only for the safety of my household but that of others. In May, I decided to make a trip to Hawn State Park (within an hour’s drive) after heavy rains. It wasn’t until September that I ventured out again, returning to Hawn. Both trips were on weekdays when there were no crowds. Finally, by mid-October, I began to venture into the Ozarks (still close to home) to photograph the fall colors. I was ready… what would await?

I have always recognized the value of photographing familiar areas, close to home. Becoming familiar with a place and making repeated visits affords an opportunity to capture a sense of place through various seasons and weather conditions. The 2020 pandemic gave me further incentive to put this into practice. An added value was that I could choose the timing of my visits to insure the lowest volume of visitors. I rarely even saw anyone on my trips let alone have fleeting contact. Social distancing in some cases could have been measured in miles. I also took advantage of these trips to explore some new places, some planned and some serendipitously. With the exception of the two trips into Shawnee National Forest early in the year, I spent the entire year photographing within a 100 mile radius of my home via day trips. I invite you to share some of my favorite images from this year.

I began the year in February, with a visit to Black Mountain in the St. Francois Mountains, deep in the Missouri Ozarks. After several days of rain, I wanted to explore this place. There is no trail and it is a steep climb. I had never been to the barren glade high up on the mountain. In wet weather, the climb over wet leaves and boulders is slippery and needs to be done with caution. It is truly a place of beauty and solitude. Fog, on this particular day, added to the peace and tranquility. The expansive and barren granite slope channeled streams of water down the mountain as seen above. What a spectacular place! It is with trepidation I share this location as it deserves to be kept in its natural state, but alas social media has made it more well-known. I only hope people will respect its beauty when visiting.

In March, with the threat of COVID looming on the horizon (not yet reaching our area) I made two trips into southern Illinois’ Shawnee National Forest. Hiking among the tall, steep sandstone canyon walls always keeps me humble. I am awed by our seeming insignificance in the stream of time. Standing among boulders that have collapsed into these canyons carved from ancient ocean floors, weathered by time and earth’s forces, resonates with me. The colors and textures in the sandstone layers create a visual beauty that begs to be photographed. The image above captures that sense of place so well.

By May I thought I could safely visit Hawn State Park on a weekday and maintain safe social distancing. We had heavy rains and Pickle Creek was flowing fast, while verdant greens of spring lined the banks. Light, intermittent cloud cover created ideal conditions for photographing the valley. Reddish yellow sand deposits added glowing patches of gold to the slowed movement of the waves in the stream, as seen in the image above. I recorded some of my favorite images ever on this trip. It just shows, you can never visit too often.

I laid low for the summer and worked on home projects that have been long awaiting my attention (with a 130+ year old house there is never an end). By late summer I was ready to venture out again and decided to return to Hawn. Water levels were low but the valley was still lush and green under bright overcast skies. This afforded an opportunity to capture some intimate portraits for a series I have entitled “Summertime on Pickle Creek”. The above image is one of my favorites from the series.

By October I was ready to get out and explore. Towards the end of the first full week I made trips to Johnson’s Shut Ins on two consecutive days and I was surprised to see the fall foliage so far along. On the first trip I spent my time along the Black River above and below the shut-ins as a small crowd was beginning to gather by afternoon around the shut-ins area. The river was low as I hiked through the valley and I enjoyed solitude photographing the riparian corridor along with fall reflections in the pools among the boulders. The image above is from that day’s activities. Returning the following day, I found crowds of people and decided to find a secluded hike in the park and return home early. However, the return home had a surprise. It was late in the day and, on a whim, I stopped at St. Francois State Park. Although I have visited the park several times, I have not found it to be full of photographic opportunities. I decided to set out on the Mooner’s Hollow Trail and, as the sun dipped behind the hills, suddenly the fall foliage along Coonville Creek came alive. I photographed until the light had faded into near darkness and came HOME with some lovely autumn scenes from the creek valley. Below is among my favorites.

The following week I returned to the St. Francois Mountains, a little undecided as to my itinerary. I was hoping for fog in the mountains, only to find a clear, bright sky upon arrival. It was mid-morning when I arrived, but I noticed the sun was still behind the hills in Royal Gorge, a narrow strip of designated natural area below Taum Sauk Mountain. Knowing the light would not last I scrambled down the hillside into the gorge. I tend to forget that, as I get older, I am not as sure footed as I once was. I slipped on the smooth rocks, slid down the hillside, bumping my head and tearing the seat out of my pants as I descended (not to mention scraping my backside which took a week and a half to heal). Once down in the gorge I became enthralled with the fall foliage lining the nearly dry creek bed. The ancient bedrock in the gorge varies from pink to blue in color. The bluish cast set against the golden autumn leaves was stunning, as seen in the image below. With clear blue skies, I spent midday scouting new locations.

One of the new locations was a place I had been wanting to visit for quite some time, Lee Bluff. The rough dirt road leading back to the trail gives a hint as to the solitude of this remote place. With some simplistic directions I found what I thought to be the spot. Leaving my car, I hiked up and up the trail I thought to be correct. As I neared the top of the hill, trails split off and I followed my instinct. Admittedly I was a bit concerned since I was alone and had not informed anyone I was going there (I do carry a GPS locator for emergencies though). Sure enough, my instincts led me to the spot. What a view! The bluff overlooks the St. Francois River valley and is spectacular. The image below captures the view from my perch as I refreshed myself with some trail mix and water.

Before returning home (the same day) I decided to visit an old familiar place, Amidon Conservation Area. The Castor River Shut Ins have often provided many opportunities to photograph the beauty of this region. I worried, would this be crowded. When I arrived there were a few cars but it didn’t look like it would be a problem working around the visitors. I am used to solitude in these places, but COVID restrictions have sent more people into these natural beauty spots. For the most part I worked around them and captured some beautiful reflections in the Castor River as the sun began setting behind the hills (like the one below). By the time evening had set in, a party crowd began to filter in and it was time to go. Although this has always been a local hangout spot, I rarely encounter them (it was pleasantly warm that evening and made for a cold swim). What has happened to these once quiet places? I am hoping that they will perhaps return to a somewhat former state once COVID restrictions are lifted.

The following week I returned to Taum Sauk Mountain and spent a day hiking as fog came and went, transforming the landscape into an ethereal place, as can be seen in the image below. Taum Sauk is the highest elevation in Missouri at 1,772 feet and it seems to create its own climate at times, especially when the air is moist. I love being up there in the fog.

A hike down to Mina Sauk Falls, the highest waterfall in Missouri, found it flowing a little. This waterfall is rain dependent and I have seen it flowing at different stages over the years. It is difficult to photograph as the approach is tight, filled with boulders and tangled tree branches. However, I think the flow, light fog and sparse autumn leaves created the right mix in the image below.

As October closed, I made a final trip to the Ozark Mountains. We had a very dry autumn and I hoped to catch water in the falls on Black Mountain, along with some fall color. I did indeed find a low flow and sparse color in the trees. The below image was photographed while being buffeted by wind and rain. I had to constantly wipe my lens, but was able to capture a few images on this raw day.

My year was rounded out with one last visit to Hawn State Park. It was the second week of November and I thought I would take a stab at one last opportunity to capture fall foliage. I hoped there might be some trees with lingering fall color to punctuate the landscape… but alas, none to be found. Yet, the scenes were unique. The browns of autumn were still dominated by the fallen leaves and a tinge of yellowish red in the grasses and ferns interspersed among the rocks, which had yet to die off completely. As winter rains arrive, the ground and stones are washed clear of leaves and the stands of grass and ferns disappear along the creek. I particularly like the image below. (I said it might be a baker’s dozen – 13)

As I reflect back on the year, to my surprise, it has produced a large volume of images. Some of the images are among my all-time favorites. It has been a tough year for everyone. The threat of a pandemic has governed my decisions in so many ways, including my travel plans and photography. Although I do not live in fear, I accept my responsibility as a resident on this beautiful planet to interact with my fellow humans in a safe and responsible way. I look forward to the day when this threat will be gone and hopefully I will enjoy many more years photographing earth’s wonders and beauty. May each of you stay safe and healthy. Please be sure to visit the nature galleries on this site, specific to each location, to see more images.