All Time Favorites

I thought it might be interesting to see what you all consider to be your all time favorite places to photograph. Whether it be the sheer beauty of a place, some special memory or emotional connection, a personal challenge, location....whatever places it in your top five. I'll start off with my list:

1) Columbia River Gorge, Oregon (esp. Wahclella Falls)
2) Zion (esp. Left Fork North Creek and The Narrows)
3) Redwoods National and State Parks, California (esp. Damnation Creek Trail)
4) Grand Canyon, Arizona (esp. from the river)
5) San Juan Mountains, Colorado (esp. County Roads 5 and 7)

For me it is:

San Juan Mts., Colorado
Rocky Mountain National Park
Tetons and Yellowstone
Zion Narrows
Bryce Canyon

These are my favorites so far. I've only been shooting seriously for 5 years. My wish list includes Glacier NP, DENALI!!!!!, Redwoods NP and back in my home area of upstate NY and Vt.

1.)South Georgia Island and Antarctica
2.)Torres del Paine NP, Chile
3.)Katmai NP and Denali NP, Alaska
4.)Iceland
5.)Costa Rica
I hate to leave out Colorado locations ---Maroon Bells, and Yankee Boy Basin but you did specify the top 5, not the top 10.

I hate to leave out Colorado locations

No problem, Don! You'll notice there are no New Mexico locations in my list!

No Order in particular:

[EDIT - Per Todd's suggestion of being more specific]

- Italy - Roman Forum in Rome (I could spend months shooting here)
- Banaue/Batad/Sagada/ Mountain Province Philippines - Town of Banu on the road between Bontoc and Mt Data
- Banff/Jasper/Yoho/Kootenay etc (Canadian Rockies) - Sunrise at Mt Edith Cavell
- Page,AZ through Death Valley (a nice wide patch of land that includes Yosemite of the desert - Zion) - Zion Canyon with blazing fall colors
- Pac NW - Jedediah Smith Redwood SP in fog

Honorable mention - Anytime I get to hookup with my friends from RMNP on the road. Always a good time!

We'll need to see if New Zealand makes the cut.


RichieV

In no particular order:

Enchanted Rock State Natural Area (Central Texas): I grew up on the ranch adjoining this park, and as an adult it has been a wonderful periodic escape from the city.

Owl Creek Pass road - you all know where and why!

Vasskalven Island, in the Oslo Fjord: A magical summer fairytale of a place; watching the sun rise as the full moon set at 4am from the top of the island is a memory I'll never forget.

Masai Mara National Park, Kenya: I got my introduction to photography here, thanks to my uncle and professional photographer Peter Davey. Great memories of wildlife and storms.

San Antonio Missions National Historical Park: an incredible bit of history in my backyard. The fact that these 400-year-old buildings are stil active churches is pretty cool as well.

Tough question!!! Here's my list, for the moment:

1) Weminuche Wilderness, Colorado
2) Uncompahgre Wilderness, Colorado
3) Lofoten Islands, Norway
4) Dolomites, Italy
5) Wind River Range, Wyoming

For Wildlife:
Grand Tetons
Yellowstone
Glacier National Park
Snake River Basin, Waterfowl, Sage Grouse, Mule Deer, etc.
Texas Gulf Coast, Whooping Cranes etc.

1) Canadian Rockies
2) Yosemite
3) Kauai
4) San Juans
5) Zion

1) Colorado Plateau

a) Navajo Nation
b) Coyote Buttes Region
c) GS-ENM (Escalante)

2) San Juan Mtns.

1. Kauai,(Yeah, Art!)
2. Glacier National Park
3. Tetons/Yellowstone
4. San Juans
5. RMNP
6. Alaska

1. Beartooths.
2. Wind Rivers, although I really need to get back there now that I acutally sort of know what I'm doing.
3. Glacier.
4. Crazy Mountains.

GREAT idea! My only complaint is that the locations listed so far are so broad. San Juans of Colorado has so many facets, as does RMNP, or Glacier, or Alaska. How's this?:
1. Rampart Range Road above the clouds
2. Garden of the Gods at sunrise
3. Kebler Pass road in autumn
4. Cottonwood Pass anytime
5. Hermit Pass & Peak in summer

1. Schwabachers Landing, Grand Tetons
2. Great Fountain Drive, Yellowstone
3. Going to the Sun Road, Glacier
4. Beartooth Highway, MT and WY
5. Hilgard Basin, Lee Metcalf Wilderness, MT

In no particular order...

Arches National Park & vicinity
San Juan Mountains
Torres del Paine National Park, Chile
Big Island, Hawaii
Page, AZ & vicinity

1. Na Pali
2. RMNP
3. Great Sand Dunes
4. Arches
5. Botswana

Hmmm tough to choose. You guys list a bunch of my top 5 to visit!

1. San Juan Mountain Range (Ridgway, Ouray, Telluride, Silverton)
2. Page, Az
3. Canyonlands/Arches/Moab
4. Tetons
5. Oregon coast

Cool topic.
1. Anyplace new - I like returning to some locations, but I'm an explorer at heart and love going places I've never been before.
2. New Zealand
3. Italy
4. Alaska
5. Colorado Plateau
6. Wind River Mountains

1) Everywhere in Grand Tetons NP
2) The geyser basins in Yellowstone NP
3) Sunrise from Deadhorse Point SP
4) The east side of Mt. Rainier NP in the morning
5) Crested Butte and Kebler Pass area in summer and autumn

I have to take two approaches to the question. First, where do I photograph a lot, and expect to keep revisiting?

1. Dinosaur National Monument
2. Grand Canyon from the river
3. Socorro/Catron County backcountry, NM
4. West Elk Range, CO
5. Pecos Wilderness, NM

But, more interestingly I think, where have a photographed a bit that I'd love to revisit with my current skills, knowledge and equipment?

1. Frank Church Wilderness, ID
2. Gros Ventre Range, WY
3. Eastern Black Sea Range, Turkey (Was just there, but the photo-centric agenda wasn't happening. Next time I'll know how to do it!)
4. Gila Wilderness, NM
5. Various Central Nevada mountain ranges

What a great topic.

1. Corkscrew and Hurricane Pass on the way to Gray Copper Gulch.
2. Above Moraine Lake in Banff NP
3. Dead Horse State Park
4. Many Glacier Area, Glacier NP
5. Sunrise on the Silver Forest Trail in Rainier NP

1. Iceland
2. Page, AZ area
3. Moab, UT area
4. Wind River Range
5. San Juan Mountains, CO

Na' Pali Coast - Kauai (The most beautiful seascapes I've ever hiked)


Teahupoo, Tahiti (One of the most beautiful big waves spots in the world)

The San Juan Mountains especially near Potosi Peak (Imagine that )

Big Sur, CA (Along the Julia Pfeiffer burns state park especially)

Yosemite National Park (For those two people in the world who have never heard of it LOL)

Big Bend National Park, TX

1. San Juan Mountains, CO - (esp. for summer wildflowers or fall foliage)
2. Oregon/Washington Coast
3. Southern Utah (Everything from Zion to Arches )
4. Elk Mountains and Rocky Mountain National Park, CO (tie)
5. Caribbean (esp. the Virgin Islands)

1. Sagarmatha NP, Nepal (Khumbu region)
2. Greater Yellowstone, esp. Gros Ventre, Upper Green and Wind Rivers
3. Weminuche Wilderness
4. Canyonlands NP
5. Denali NP

Not in order and five isn't enough!

1. Road Canyon/Grand Gulch in the Colorado Plateau
2. Indian Peaks Wilderness, Colorado
3. Abaco Island in the Bahamas
4. Old Detroit Michigan Urban Decay
5. T5N R66W S20

1) Dunes
2) N Cascades--Cascade Pass region
3) Olympics (Mt Olympus-Hoh)
4) Canadian Rockies (Berg Lake-RObson)
5) Alaska--Wrangells (even tho it rained last time i was there! )

-Ice Lakes Basin near Silverton, CO
-Wilson Mesa area near Telluride, CO
-Pacific Rim National Park, Tofino, British Columbia
-Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
-Anywhere in Death Valley, especially the salt flats and playas

But, really, any day spent photographing the natural world is better than a day at the office…