How to visit Mexico’s Monarch Butterfly Reserves
Tips for making the most of your visit to see Monarch Butterflies in their winter homes in Mexico’s El Rosario, and Pedro Herrada Reserves.
Category: UNESCO World Heritage Site
The Marvelous Monarchs of Mexico
We just got back from witnessing one of nature’s most breathtaking spectacles. High in the Sierra Madre Mountains west of Mexico City is the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, a UNESCO World Heritage Site where migrating Monarchs from east of the Rockies throughout North America overwinter in a mountaintop forest of oyamel fir trees. Arriving around late November and staying until March, they number in the… Read moreThe Marvelous Monarchs of Mexico
Exploring the Columbia Icefields
The massive Columbia Icefield is the highlight of the spectacular Icefields Parkway, a driving route of 230 kilometres between Lake Louise and Jasper in the Canadian Rockies. Encompassing parts of Banff and Jasper National Parks, you can see seven major glaciers and around 25 smaller ones along the way. Things really get interesting about half way along where glacier tongues extending from the Columbia Icefield… Read moreExploring the Columbia Icefields
Hoodoo Hunting in Dinosaur Provincial Park
Approaching Dinosaur Provincial Park in southeast Alberta, we come to a valley rim where the land suddenly drops into a vast expanse of spectacular badlands, the largest anywhere in Canada. The park was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in part because of the landscape, but also because it has the world’s largest deposits of dinosaur fossils from the Late Cretaceous period – about… Read moreHoodoo Hunting in Dinosaur Provincial Park
Elk Rut at Jasper National Park
One of our favourite things to do in the Rockies, and in Jasper National Park in particular, is photograph the elk rut in the fall, with late September and early October being prime time. Ear-piercing bugling echoes through the forest and valleys, as bull elk try to attract females and announce their presence. The bulls are busily rounding up their harems, while keeping an eye… Read moreElk Rut at Jasper National Park
Photographing Yellowstone – Part 4 Planning
As we discussed in the past three postings, Yellowstone National Park excels as a photography destination. If there is a downside to visiting Yellowstone, it’s the sheer number of people that also find it a great place to visit. Over three million people come every year, the vast majority between June and September. Our preferred style of travel is having the maximum amount of… Read morePhotographing Yellowstone – Part 4 Planning