Holler Red Tail Hawk 
El Calafate Patagonia (Please click to enlarge photos) 
Barbary Ape Gibraltar 
Antarctica
Banff Alberta
Cinque Terre
Holler Hummingbird 
Holler Rose
My closest neighbors are coyotes (packs and packs of them and they are HUNGRY), rattlers (lots and lots of them and they are MEAN), and free range cows/bulls (the bulls aren’t too friendly either).
Forget cell phones. They don’t work out here. Forget GPS, it misdirects.
It’s best not to wander too much out here, the people (and their dogs) are kinda twitchy.
To reach The Holler turn right at the reeking chicken farm, proceed down a bunch of pot-holed semi-streets/dirt roads, past the abandoned refrigerators and occupied old RV’s and then things get kinda dicey.
My friends usual reaction to the trip to The Holler is, “You’ve got to be kidding!” Or, “Next time let’s meet half way.”
This is our little bit of heavenly Appalachia right here in rural California.
I like to write and if something strikes my fancy, usually something odd or unusual, you will learn about it here. And thankfully, at The Holler, almost everyday is odd and unusual. So “Holler Happenings” including photos of flowers, birds, and wild animal interactions, are included.
I travel three-four months a year so you will find my photos of locales from all over the world. The good, bad, and the better.
So put your feet up and let’s devote our attention to the best things in life, the things we want to do.
To start here are some links:
Pinterest page:
Goodreads page,
http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/5908500-cindy-knoke
And “about me” before I retired and commenced this life of leisure:
http://www.xing.com/profile/Cindy_BartonLCSW
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/cindy-knoke-lcsw/4a/51b/b12
Cheers & Welcome!
Cindy Knoke
(AKA-Cindy Barton LCSW)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. You are welcome to use photos, but please site the source. Thank you!
Hi Cindy, dropped by to take a closer look at your photos. The Holler sounds idyllic and your travels wonderful. May you have many more. So glad to be followin
Welcome! It is a pleasure to meet you. Have a wonderful weekend~
Thank you for following. oh jow beautiful page you got here
Thanks so much & lovely to meet you! დ
Missed off the g!
Followin works for me!
Love the description of the country cottage.. I’m not sure what coyotes are like but if they’re anything like dingoes I’d meet you halfway too
Coyotes are dingos are very similar in terms of behavior, intelligence and ruthless survival skills. They even look somewhat similar. They are even more closely related genetically that scientists used to think. We have tons of coyotes in multiple packs that hunt in a coordinated fashion at night covering lots of territory. It is not a good idea to walk out here at night alone or without protection. So best to stay in your car and meet me halfway. You wouldn’t want to get lost which everyone does out here! We are going back to Oz in March for a month. I can’t wait!
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Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I have nominated your wonderful blog for the Real Neat Blog Award. You can find more information here:
https://culturevultureexpress.wordpress.com/2017/11/08/culture-vulture-express-wins-real-neat-blog-award/
Thank you for your thoughtfulness! I very much appreciate your thinking of me <3
You’re welcome. Very well-deserved.
<3 <3
So glad to have discovered your blog. Your photos are absolutely stunning !
You are very kind & it is lovely to meet you!
Your photos are amazing. I love the hummingbirds. One was stuck in our garage years ago (believe it or not, he’d wedged his beak between two stacked boards and I found him hanging, limp but alive). When I rescued him, he sat on my finger for several minutes before buzzing off. I’d forgotten all about it until I saw those perfectly detailed little feet…the memory of his tiny death-grip on my finger came zipping back! 🙂
Thanks for sharing your creativity. Sometimes I get stuck in “now” (it’s a little hard to see our way past the next five years; even when I can, it’s difficult to imagine being something other than a full-time advocate for my kiddos). Your blog is a great reminder that the future is full of new opportunities.
p.s., I’m no pro, but am curious…do you remember what kind of camera/lens you used for the hummingbirds? I can’t get over those shots. Really beautiful. You’ve inspired me to try to catch them this summer with my Nikon.
Well, this is why I can never lose sight of the fact that blogging is important, because I just got to meet you. And you basically get it. All the best to you and lovely to meet you.
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So nice of you! Honored and humbled by your kindness.
omg – your photos!!! I am in awe!
Your “little bit of heavenly Appalachia right here in rural California” sounds both fascinating and outright scary 🙂
Ahhhh, so kind of you! Thank you. I had nightmares about rattlers, black widows and coyotes, for basically the first year living here. I thought I had made a serious mistake moving here. Now when I see really big rattlers, black widows, or coyotes up close, I reach for my camera quite pleased. I have fully adapted, which is what people usually do, thankfully.
{shudder!!!} 😳
Dear Cindy,
I keep following your site regularly and enjoy it very much, plus taking regularly the liberty to place some of your magnificent pictures on Pinterest.
For the “likesl I also use some other WordPress login, depending for wich site I am writing at that moment. Please do know if you would not see a like under my personal name, I keep following you and loving yor postings.
I was pleased to find you subscribed to another (religious) webste of mine. Thank you very much.
You are very kind Marcus and I treasure you thoughtful comments and very much enjoy your blog. It is wonderful to have the opportunity to meet you here in cyberspace. Please tell me the name of your second blog, so I will recognize it. Cheers to you my friend & thank you for your kindness.
Next to my personal (civil – political and economic blog) “Marcus Ampe’s Space” I have “Our World” (on blogger) and on WordPress I present my own ecclesia “Belgian Christadelphians” and the Belgian or Flemish Brethren in Christ “Broeders in Christus” (or Christadelphians) (for whom I am the responsible elder in Belgium), whilst by the (little bit different community of) “Belgian Bible Students” I offer studies on the Scriptures.
Biblical Archaeological and historical matters are presented at “Bijbelvorsers”.
With “From Guestwriters” I love to introduce writings and websites from others which could be interesting to read.
More difficult subjects are tackled by “Stepping Toes” and “Unmasking anti Jehovah people”.
For the Jewish and Messianic communities I offer the website “Jeshuaists”
You see, next to the (very demanding) translation work for the “Jewish Orthodox Bible” and for the “Torah” or “Wetboek van God” (“The Book of the Law of God”) I keep myself busy. The religious sites demanding so much work that my own personal site is a little bit neglected. But personally I think my work for God is more important. (Though it often brings me a lot of negative reaction and lots of not such nice mails – me being a Non-Trinitarian,representing the Christadelphians and defending other Bible Students and Unitarians.)
You are always welcome at those mentioned sites, which (I do hope) shall also bring some positiveness and peace in certain people’s mind.
Respectfully yours,
Marcus
Yes. I will check your sites that I haven’t seen. I am very impressed with your scholarship and depth of knowledge, which this short vitae can only briefly summarize. I learn from every post I read, although your knowledge of scripture and theology is light years ahead of mine. My mother taught World Religions and she would be so impressed with you. Thank you for what you do, and for taking the time to explain it to me. I am sad that people would respond in a negative fashion to someone who devotes themselves so sincerely and diligently to good, as you and your students do, but we do live in very strange times. Love to all of you, and blessings too. I am very lucky to meet you here in the blogsphere.
Thank you very much.
<3 <3
Cindy, I’ve nominated you for the Sunshine Award. You can find it at https://blackbutterfly7.wordpress.com/2018/09/29/sunshine-blogger-award/
The blogger who nominated me changed the rules, and I changed them some more so that they are not time consuming. Hope you will accept.
I so admire you, and have, for quite some time. I am so glad to be able to tell you. Thank you.
Ich bin durch Zufall auf dein Blog gestossen und es hat mit dort sehr gut gefallen . Ich möchte auch weiter deine tollen Fotos und Berichte verfolgen .Gerne habe ich deine Seite abonniert. Ich finde es schön , dass auch du meiner Seite folgst.
Liebe Grüße aus Deutschland
Werner.
Es ist schön, dich kennenzulernen, Werner! Vielen Dank für Ihre freundlichen Kommentare. Ich liebe das schöne Deutschland und meine wunderbaren deutschen Freunde. Prost aus Kalifornien.
Hi Cindy, as a nature-lover yourself, I was wondering if you would be interested in reading and reviewing my eBook “Encourage A Child To Watch Birds” on your blog or your social media channels? It provides 10 Non-Screen Ideas that adults can use to inspire a child to discover the natural world. I believe that putting these ideas into practice could help to develop a child’s powers of observation, improve their aural skills, teach them basic nature conservation practices – and increase their enjoyment of the natural world.
If so, I can send you a mobi, ePub or PDF file. It’s not a large book (14k words with a reading time of 30 minutes). Thanks for your consideration.
Denzil
Hello Cindy,
Thank you so much for seeing my nature posts in spite of them being in my native language, Telugu. Every time I see your “👌”s I feel elated being a small part of the big world of nature lovers.
Y.V.R. Srinivas🙏😊
I am grateful also to know you and be a part of a community of people who care about the natural world and the creatures in it. Thank you for what you do & cheers to you!
Super shots…
Honored, thank you & lovely to meet you!
Hi Cindy,
I have just finished commenting on your post featuring those melanistic red tail hawks.
And here I found myself being greeted by another beautiful specimen in the first photo here. Thank you!
May you have a lovely weekend! Moreover, I would like to wish you and your family a wonderful festive season with a special post at https://soundeagle.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/season-greetings-from-soundeagle-merry-christmas-happy-new-year-and-joyful-holiday/
Happy New Year to all of you!
May you realize all of your visions and achieve whatever goals you have set yourself in 2019!
What lovely sentiments! Thank you very much & it is a pleasure to meet you. Happy & Healthy New Year to you and yours <3
You are very welcome, Cindy! 🙂
I’ll appreciate it if you could kindly give me some feedback at the comment section of my post. 🙂
Please be informed that you might need to use a desktop or laptop computer with a large screen to view the rich multimedia contents available for heightening your multisensory enjoyment at my websites, some of which could be too powerful and feature-rich for iPad, iPhone, tablet or other portable devices to handle properly or adequately. A fast broadband connection is also helpful. 🙂
Thank you very much for following!
My pleasure.
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You are the kindest person. Thank you Sally and Bless you my friend <3 <3
Dear Madam, Thank you for your visit to my latest post. Encouraged by your “👌” I have attempted a humble translation of my thoughts into English. Just in case you like to know what I wrote in my mother tongue. However, feel no obligation to read it please.🙏😊
I was just at your blog and read the post about the nature of freedom with the quote by HL Mencken. I found the post fascinating and commented on it. Is this what are referring to as translated? If not, please provide me the link, as I would very much like to read further translations from you as I find them thought provoking. I am sorry I do not read Telugu, but the script is beyond beautiful in and of itself. Thank you & lovely to meet you.
Thank you for passing by. Can imagine having the balance of travelling for 3-4 months and then returning to your your own oasis in semi wilderness must be wonderful.
Thank you & lovely to meet you. I look forward to following you and your blog. <3
Thank you
<3 <3
very nice!
Thank you & lovely to meet you!
same, i look forward to keeping up with your blog. thanks for finding us as well. have an epic adventure day.
<3 <3
Hi Cindy,
Thanks for the fabulous photographs, and for reading my post.. You are certainly made of sturdy stuff, lady!! I’ve just faced a couple of outbreaks of cockroaches and burglars in my time, although I half-expected.to meet a bear in Canada once, but just missed it. Happy travelling and snapping! xx
It is lovely to meet you Joy. And thank you <3
i’ve never seen this page before. And I didn’t know that you also used to be a psychotherapist!
Your photos are always amazing but these are particularly stunning. What a gift to the world they are!
Meeting thoughtful people like you is why blogging is something I love. Thank you & lovely to meet you.
I keep thinking of these photos. I thought I would use the Antartica one on the front page of the newsletter. I will put the place under it but we never put credits on the first page. Is that okay? If it isn’t maybe I could fit in a note on your Sequoia page.
I didn’t mean to make my last two comments anonymous. They were from Karuna.
You can do anything with my photos and you never need to ask. They are yours for the wonderful use you make of them. And I just couldn’t be happier that they aid you in the work you do which has so much soul and gravitas. I am going back to Antarctica with my husband and son. It is the most spiritual place in the world to me, the place where I see God in all the thousand year drifts of untouched snow. Love to you my friend and be well.
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I am blessed with the best of friends, especially you Sally ♡´･ᴗ･`♡
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Grateful and appreciate you. Be well.
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Grazie mille Frank~
I like the new gravatar!
You noticed! Thank you <3
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Excellent pics. I like your work and your collection. Very professional.
Thank you & lovely to meet you Roland~
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I am honored by your thoughtfulness. Thank you & be well!
I’ve not seen any coyotes here. However, there are foxes, sanglier (wild boar), rabbits… If I didn’t live where I do, I might wish to be there? In a really cold winter, we are more inclined to get visitors from the Pyrennes which are not far away…
There are wolves in France again now too which is pretty wonderful! დ
Absolutely. Fortunately, I haven’t encountered one on a walk, yet. As it gets colder, the chances increase. It is 4 degrees celsius this morning… 💜
So cold. Stay safe and warm my friend დ
It is rather chilly… please take care. mon amie. 💜
დ დ
I’m all bundled up and shall most likely make a bowl of steaming oats for breakfast… x
Sounds ideal დ
💜
“I blog therefore I am”: well, I just love that!
Awww, so glad you do & lovely to meet you Benjamin დ
Would the Latin translation be “Blogire ergo sum”?
Smiling. Works for me! Check out: https://marcusapollo.wordpress.com/2008/02/17/whats-latin-for-%E2%80%98blog-a-proposal/
He he, living in a remote place like in your description, you probably don’t appreciate too many vfistors? I get a feeling that one would be best off armed to the teeth in addition to have 10 years of army experience within ‘Special Forces’? (So you do not get many? 🙂 )
And no, I don’t planning on visiting California any more in my lifetime, allthough I have been there quite a number of times. Remembered as a ‘Sunshine State’, – but things change!
Now I guess it is more a ‘forrest fire stat’, but – I truely appreciated your bird shots!
Don’t I photograph birds? Yes, indeed! But after some time ( 2-3 years) our garden was no longer a garden. More like a pig sty! So – now they have to find their food elsewhere, and I have to look for different motives to birds!
But – if you insert the word ‘bird’ into my little text-widget and hit the ‘enter-button’, I’m pretty sure that a couple of hundred photos would appear? (If you are interested?) 🙂
So smiling, Of course I am interested. It’s birds you are talking about! California does seem doomed to burn. And re: the pig sty, I relate. Birds are messy, amazing creatures. Your photos are stunning დ
Quite amazing! I’m so impressed with your work. I love California, especially L.A. and Hollywood. I love nature. But I am most intrigued by urban scenes. I love NYC, of course. But, really good work, that manages to be transcendent, gets me everything time–and you’ve got that going on here.
NYC is simply one of a kind and so special. I love it too. You make me happy I posted Henry. Thank you very much & be well დ
Had the same profession as you had, only I started grad. school when I was 36, so I have a shorter history, also we moved to the boonies, but no regrets, the forest is the best place next to heaven:)
Love to meet a fellow colleague! The boonies rock!! დ
You are the first one, which is fun:)
Dear Cindy,
thank you very much for sharing your beautiful photo’s with the world and daring to go from the outer limits of no-wheres-ville to a home you call “The Holler” which looks like the earthly paradise.
I am also grateful you wanted to follow several of my sites showing other aspects of the world (which is not such a paradise, but also has its good and bad sides), its evolvement and handling of politics and religions.
You are most welcome Marcus. I always read your posts with sincere interest. Thank you for caring and sharing დ
Congratulations Cindy on how many views your blog gets!
People who come to admire your wonderful photographs.
Best Wishes
Kevin
Thank you Kevin. I am a serious admirer of your culinary creations and your oh so creative presentations. A joy to see! All the best to you in 2022! დ
I just found this page!!! Glad I did.
Thank you for always sharing beautiful nature photos.
Kawela from Hawaii 😊🌈
Hola, pasaba para agradecerte tu visita a mi Bloger. Me ha encantado las fotos, la naturaleza y esos bellos ejemplares. Haces un gran trabajo impresiona la calidad de todas las fotos. Abrazos
Tan amable de su parte. Gracias por pasarte y me alegra que te hayan gustado las fotos. ¡Cuídate bien! დ
So wonderful and amazing photos.
Best wishes from Austria.
Maria 🙂
Cheers and thank you flying to you Maria in gorgeous Austria დ
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Such an amazing tribute to the powerful contributions of positive women. I am humbled to be included, and so full of sorrow that WP continues to unfollow people from each other without our knowledge or consent. They acknowledge they do this, but will not change it. Still your focus on positve, intelligent women is so beautiful and so much more important. Thank you sincerely. And please keep on doing what you do დდ
It’s a lovely place you have here…such a keen eye and lovely images
Awww…. Thank you. Much appreciated. Happy you dropped by & cheers დ
Quite amazing! I’m so impressed with your work. I love California, especially L.A. and Hollywood. I love nature. But I am most intrigued by urban scenes.
I am honored Max. Thank you very much & wonderful to meet you დ
Cindy, congratulations on your blog’s popularity!
Visitors who come to view your beautiful images.
https://www.intellectfolks.com/epic-books-top-quality-childrens-literature/
Thank you very much. Sincerely appreciated დ
I love your beautiful blog. Your lines are words and pictures are relaxing. Appreciate your travel experience.
Hey Cindy, I noticed you were on LinkedIn so I thought it would be neat to connect there as well. I sent a request to connect today. Have a good one! Bruce B.
Great! I rarely visit there but I will check it out. Take good care ღ
Hi Cindy! This is Fae. Please don’t publish this message.
I saw your ‘Like’ on my blog and got a notification for it too.
I have an email address which I am not sure if it is yours.
When you get a chance, please write me at faeinternational@yahoo.com and let’s get updated!
I cannot remember when was the last we were in contact.
Looking forward to hearing back form you! <3
I was so seriously happy to see you again Fae. I will delete your message and email you as soon as I know you did hear back from me.