Film Favorites: A National Park Roundup

A couple of years ago, I attended a nighttime campfire talk in Mesa Verde National Park. The event was hosted by a veteran park ranger who had married his wife, another fellow park ranger, on the rim of the Grand Canyon. He said they had lived in some of America’s best zip codes because of their work with the National Park Service. He talked through the history of the park, then pulled out his guitar and we all sang “This Land is Your Land” together under the stars.

Visiting new national parks and revisiting old favorites has been such a fun part of my adult life, but it’s moments like that night in Mesa Verde that really stick out to me. Being outside in nature, surrounded by friends and strangers in collective appreciation for the beauty of the earth, has been such a spiritually connecting experience for me.

So in honor of the National Park Service’s 106th birthday today, I rounded up my favorite film photos that I’ve made in America’s best zip codes. I’m grateful today and every day that this land was made for you and me. ♡

Film Favorites: Maine 2022

Maine has been on our bucket list for a long time, and it definitely lived up to its “vacationland” tagline. We did a five day road trip along Maine’s coast, stopping in a bunch of little towns, including Portland, Bar Harbor, and Acadia National Park. Every town was so cute and charming, and the drive was beautiful—Maine is definitely in my top three favorite east coast destinations! Here’s a list of the best things we did on our trip:

Portland: My favorite part of Portland was the Portland Head Light. We went in the afternoon to avoid rainy weather later in the day, but I’d love to go back someday for sunrise or sunset (and hopefully fewer crowds!). We loved climbing down on the rocks to the right of the light house and sitting while listening to the waves come in. We also walked along the cliff path to the left of it, which in my opinion, delivered the best views for photos. We got donuts at The Holy Donut for breakfast and checked out the nearby town of Kennebunkport for lunch.

Acadia National Park: We went to Sand Beach and Thunder Hole, biked the Carriage Roads, got popovers and blueberry lemonade at Jordan Pond House, and hiked Beehive Loop Trail.

Bar Harbor: We rented a room at The Central House, which ended up being the perfect location. It was within walking distance from everything we wanted to do in town. Bar Harbor had my favorite main street of all the towns we visited, with plenty of shops, restaurants and ice cream places. There’s also a beautiful park that overlooks the harbor. We watched sunset from the docks one night, and walked The Shore Path overlooking the water.

Pentax 645n and Nikon F100 on Kodak Portra 400 and Ilford HP5 film.