Creating memories one image at a time…
What a great year 2025 was! So many blessings, so many great opportunities to grab the camera and shoot a few photos! Thanks for stopping by and taking a look! Gearing up for a exciting 2026 with more adventures ahead! Until Then…..
Wishing you and your family a blessed and prosperous 2026!
Blackwater Images.
A large contingent of avid gravel riders found themselves at the 10th Annual Sizzlin’ Sasquatch ride at the Georgia Veterans Memorial Park near Cordele, Georgia in early November 2025. What follows are a few photos of this epic event!
The tenth annual Sasquatch ride is in the books! Once again Ray Egan and his incredible team put an awesome event together! The weather was cool and clear, perfect for a weekend gravel event! The food was over the top as usual! The large crowd had a blast! Definitely looking forward to next years ride! Until then……
‘Twas a cold early November when a group of friends ventured to the Blackwater River State Park near Holt, Florida for a 2 night/2 day camping and kayaking adventure. What follows are a series of photos of this incredible adventure…..
For several years now a group of friends have made an annual pilgrimage to the Blackwater River State Park near Holt, Florida to camp and to kayak the beautiful river. This time of year is special because with the approach of cooler weather few people visit the river. This also applies to biting insects!
Prior to getting to the river paddlers stopped at the FWC Fish Hatchery. A biologist there took the paddlers on a tour of the “runs” which held several species of fish.
So ends another incredible kayaking journey on the beautiful Blackwater River! Although the temperatures were unseasonably cold the river was low and beautiful. We are truly blessed to enjoy such beauty with such a great group of friends. Until next time…
Made it to Orlando one more time to photograph the 2025 International SWAT Roundup at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office range. What follows are a few photos of that event. Enjoy!
Although these photos were only a small part of the competition, the events will continue throughout the week with the overall champion being declared on Friday. The competition was intense and the athletes well trained and ready. However…the real test will come when these heroes return to their communities and are summoned to compete in the true life and death scenarios in which they will be cast into at moment’s notice. May God Bless these warriors and forever keep them safe……
October 31 is always a hoot on Beard Street as residents decorate for Hallow’s Eve and thousands of visitors fill the street to celebrate this annual event! What follows are a few photos of the scary decorations just prior to the start of the event! Enjoy!!!
Once again the spirits of Hallow’s Eve were somewhat “alive and well” as revelers and candy hunters began to descend upon this quiet north Tallahassee Neighborhood to partake in the spoils of the evening. May the spirits always be with you……………
Anytime the opportunity presents itself to photograph SWAT Training it is a great thing! This training venue was behind locked gates in the small town of Havana, Florida just south of the Georgia State line on a hot August afternoon/evening. What follows are a few photographs taken during this training. The topic of the night….Bus Assaults! Among the vast number of training topics required of tactical units is the responsibility of rescuing children from School buses should they be taken hostage on a bus. Unfortunately this is a reality in today’s crazy world. Many thanks to the dedicated professionals who put their lives on the line and remain ever ready to address situations of this nature!
We remain forever grateful that during a hot August afternoon these dedicated professionals brave the late summer heat to prepare themselves for events such as a hostage situation on a school bus. Hopefully they will never have to use this training in a real life scenario but if they do they will be ready……Thank You gentlemen…
An August morning shoot led to a new concept of target focus. What follows is a series of photographs taken during this day on the range…
Any day on the range is a great day! During this training opportunity shooters learned and then demonstrated proficiency with the new focus system which will be a benefit for years to come. Train Smart….train often.
July 5th on Beautiful Lake Mystic offers another day of fun on the water in the North Florida sunshine! Late afternoon offered a few more photo ops before (and after) the sun set on another incredible day!
The Honorable Mayor of Lake Mystic acquired a few leftover fireworks in which to bid farewell to another July 4th weekend on the lake! Hopefully you were fortunate to have been on the lake Saturday night to enjoy this incredible show! Ka Boom!
Independence day ’25 is in the books! What a blessing it has been to spend it on this beautiful lake! We have so much to be thankful for! Until next year…….
Once again we were blessed to have participated in the Independence Day Celebration at beautiful Lake Mystic! The weather was sketchy at times but as the afternoon went on the clouds began to clear and a great time was had by all. This year marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. On that note take a minute and think about how beautiful Lake Mystic was 250 years ago! What follows are a few photos taken during the celebration. Enjoy!
And so ends another wonderful Fourth on beautiful Lake Mystic! Kudos to those folks behind the scenes who made this event possible for all who attended! Unfortunately this year’s event was not without incident. Please keep those affected in your thoughts and prayers for a speedy and full recovery. Until Next Year……..
In June of 2025 five friends continued their trek on the Appalachian Trail. This time the group began fifty miles north of the town of Damascus, Virginia at Dickey Gap and walked southbound on the Appalachian Trail back to Damascus. The plan was to walk about 10 miles a day and camp around designated trail shelters mostly because they are near good water sources and in Virginia Bear Boxes are near these shelters which are highly recommended. What follows is a photo blog detailing the trek. It was a tough venture…
Our first night in town was spent at the River Trail Inn which is a new Air BnB type motel on the outskirts of Damascus. This motel was new and backs up to the Virginia Creeper Trail and a rushing river. The motel was new and equipped with a modern kitchen and bathroom. Very clean and nice. If you are heading to Damascus and need a place to stay we highly recommend the River Trail Inn!
We enjoyed three meals at the Damascus Diner in the center of town. The meals are hearty, plentiful and good! Our first night in town we had dinner here and met the Mayor of Damascus who was having supper with a friend. We enjoyed a casual conversation with them however unbeknownst to us they paid our dinner bill. Small Town America! If you are in Damascus and looking for a great place to eat head over to the Damascus Diner. You won’t be disappointed with the meal you will get there!
We hired a shuttle (which turned out to be two women in two separate vehicles) who for $120 gave us a ride into the hills 50 miles north of Damascus to a place called “Dickey Gap”.
The ride from Damascus to Dickey Gap was entertaining as the two shuttle drivers had a lot of stories to tell. As we were driven up the mountain road we were surprised to see the enormous amounts of damage from Hurricane Helene in 2024. Millions of beautiful trees were on the ground and the river alongside the highway had been ravaged by flood waters. Our shuttle driver explained that just after the storm she had to use a horse to go up into the mountains to rescue a woman she had taken up there just prior to the storm. The damage was extensive and in the following days we had to crawl over and under many large trees which had fallen across the trail.
Having hiked through Georgia, North Carolina, Tenessee and now Virginia we thought that Virginia would be similar to the other states. We were in for a surprise as Virginia offered some very difficult trails but plenty of open and rocky country. If you didn’t know it you would swear you were in Idaho or Colorado. It is a beautiful state!
Meals consisted of a protein bar with coffee or water in the morning. Lunch was a trail mix along with Beef Jerkey and plenty of water. Supper consisted of a dehydrated meal (Mountain House) which is re-hydrated with boiling water. Surprisingly this diet kept us energized and healthy throughout the trip. The pot on top of the burner in the above photo has made many a backpacking and kayaking trip and has turned out to be a very valued part of the trip equipment. I would recommend this pot to anyone looking for a cooking pot. A plastic bowl with lid fits inside of this pot and it makes a great system. When you are carrying your equipment on your back you look to cut weight anyway possible.
On day 2 the team entered the Grayson Highlands State Park. This is a beautiful and very large park. Horses, ponies and cows have been placed in the park to keep the plant growth in check. We encountered multiple animals throughout the park. They were not the friendliest of animals but they didn’t run either. We kept our distance because no one wanted to be bitten or kicked. We also had to watch where we stepped! As we hiked thru the park we encountered multiple gates that we closed behind us. (That’s the rule!)
Water is the most important concern on the trail. Fortunately water was plentiful on this trip. Most of the water is filtered prior to drinking or boiled prior to re-hydrating meals. Water coming out of the ground via a pipe is generally considered clean unless there is a dead bullfrog floating nearby…
With rain in the forecast the team decided to push thru and turn the 5 day trip into a 4 day trip which led to a 16 mile last day! The final night found the team staying at the Dancing Bear Inn in downtown Damascus. What a wonderful place that was to stay!
Of all the backpacking trips we have been on the team’s consensus was that this was the best one. It was arduous but beautiful. We are planning on returning to Damascus in the spring of 2026 to pack the south side of Damascus. Until then…Happy Trails!
Blackwater Images 