Category Archives: Nature

LA en noir et blanc (in black and white)

Below are a few images from mighty Los Angeles taken over the past holiday weekend. They are presented in beautifully subtle black and white monochrome.

Posted in air travel, airports, architecture, art, Cities, culture, downtown, entertainment, fun, geography, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, movies, Nature, new urbanism, pictures, placemaking, planning, skylines, skyscrapers, spatial design, topography, tourism, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, urban design, urban planning, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ten planning lessons from the elegant oasis of Palm Springs

Below are ten (10) planning lessons from the beautiful desert city of Palm Springs, California. Peace! Few places have such a dramatic elevation change in such a short distance (up to 9,000 feet in four miles). This makes Palm Springs’ … Continue reading

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Alternative transportation, architecture, art, bicycling, branding, Cities, civics, climate, commerce, culture, deserts, diversity, downtown, economic development, entertainment, Environment, fun, geography, Geology, health, hiking, historic preservation, history, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, marketing, mountains, natural history, Nature, pictures, place names, placemaking, planning, poverty, recreation, skylines, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, third places, topography, tourism, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, urban design, Urban Gondolas, urban planning, visual pollution, walking, weather, xeriscaping, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Collegiate carport solar energy production in the USA

Below are more than 75 colleges and universities in the United States that have installed solar carports on campus, along with information available on them via the internet. Data includes the school, location, megawatts, year completed, and number of spaces/acreage … Continue reading

Posted in adaptive reuse, colleges, economic development, energy, Environment, geography, history, infrastructure, land use, Nature, pictures, planning, product design, Renewable Energy, Science, solar, Statistics, technology, Transportation, Uncategorized, urban planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Hiking New Mexico’s 4th of July Canyon/Cerro Blanco Loop

We spent a lovely autumn Sunday afternoon trekking 4.7 miles at elevation in Cibola National Forest, southeast of Albuquerque. Our hike began at approximately 7,500 foot elevation and included 936 feet of change over the entire trail route. The loop … Continue reading

Posted in entertainment, Environment, fun, geography, health, hiking, Maps, Nature, recreation, spatial design, Statistics, topography, tourism, trails, Travel, Uncategorized, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

World’s largest “mouth” cities and towns

The following is a list of the largest cities and towns that contain the word “mouth” in their name. Most often, these places are situated at the mouth of a river, but a number of them are simply named for … Continue reading

Posted in cities, civics, environment, geography, history, Nature, place names, placemaking, rivers/watersheds, Statistics, topography, toponymy | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

My feet were ice blocks, but seeing Zapata Falls is so worth it!

While visiting Great Sand Dunes National Park in south-central Colorado we learned about a unique nearby waterfall that is largely hidden from view by solid rock. The catch is you have to drive three miles up a rugged mountain road … Continue reading

Posted in Environment, fun, geography, Geology, hiking, Nature, pictures, rivers/watersheds, topography, tourism, Travel, Uncategorized, walking, waterfalls | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Marquette acts to protect migrating blue-spotted salamanders

Most of us are familiar with lengthy bird migrations that take place each spring and fall, as well as the impressive migration of Monarch butterflies from the United States and Canada to central Mexico and back each year. There is … Continue reading

Posted in Animals, Cars, Cities, colleges, ecosystems, Environment, geography, land use, Maps, Nature, pictures, placemaking, planning, recreation, rivers/watersheds, Science, Statistics, sustainability, topography, tourism, traffic, Travel, Uncategorized, urban planning, weather, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Possibly Michigan’s most beautiful inland secret

Having lived in Michigan for more than 27 years, I thought I knew of and was familiar with all the beautiful spots here. Certainly, the Great Lakes coastlines are noted for their distinctive landscapes and vast scenic beauty. Otherwise, Lake … Continue reading

Posted in ecosystems, fun, geography, Geology, hiking, history, land use, Nature, peace, recreation, seasons, topography, tourism, trails, Travel, Uncategorized, walking, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Scenic views from Michigan’s U.P.

These images are from in and around Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. More to come.

Posted in archaeology, architecture, Cities, culture, Environment, fun, geography, Geology, Great Lakes, hiking, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Nature, placemaking, planning, recreation, shipwrecks, topography, tourism, Transportation, Travel, underwater preserves | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ten Planning Lessons from Bisbee, AZ

Current and former mining towns (as well as all declining post-industrial cities) can learn valuable lessons from Bisbee on how to survive and later begin to reverse the decline after its founding industry falters. Architectural gems from previous eras are … Continue reading

Posted in architecture, art, Cities, civics, culture, economic development, Environment, geography, health, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, Nature, placemaking, planning, pollution, revitalization, sustainability, third places, topography, tourism, Transportation, Travel, Uncategorized, urban planning, visual pollution, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Ten Planning Lessons from Bisbee, AZ