Beavertail cactus blossom in Arizona

 During our Spring Break 2017 trip through Utah and Arizona, Bob got this photo of a beavertail cactus in bloom.  Notice a little fly on one of the petals.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

California Condor over Horseshoe Bend, Page, Arizona

 Bob was just looking through his folder covering our trip during Rick's spring break in 2017 and came upon this image of a tagged California Condor flying over Horseshoe Bend near Page, Arizona.  Condors have been reintroduced to the Vermilion Cliffs area in northern Arizona and this female is probably from that reintroduction.  You can see the tags on this condor on the front edge of each wing.  Also, on the left wing, on the right as you look at this photo, you can see the antenna of a transmitter. This condor was Number 53, which turned out to be a five-year-old female, according to The Peregrine Fund researcher that we ran into later in the trip.

Not that long ago, only 22 condors were left in the world, but thanks to captive breeding and reintroductions, there are now over 200 in the wild.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

The Eye of Alabama, in the Alabama Hills, west of Lone Pine, California

 

One of the bigger natural arches in the Alabama Hills is the Eye of Alabama (also labeled as the Eye of the Alabama). This arch looks to me like a left side of a face with a very large eye and the left end being the nose. But that's just me. When you're driving up to it, you might not see it, because it's not at the top of the ridge, but part way down. We got to this feature from a small pullout along the Movie Road and a short trail uphill, then off-trail. You can climb right onto it with a little scrambling. 

Photo details: Canon 70D, 55mm, ISO 200, f/11, 1/180 sec., with polarizer

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Mobius Arch moonlit at night with Mount Whitney underneath, and Jupiter

 On our trip to the Alabama Hills, which is east of the Sierra Nevada's highest peak, Mount Whitney, I got this nighttime photo of the world-famous Mobius Arch. Mount Whitney is seen underneath the arch to the far right (it's not the highest-looking peak from this view). Mobius Arch is named for the Mobius strip, a mathematical/topological concept of having a single twist in a strip linked to itself such that it has only one side. The thin portion of the arch must've made someone think it had a twist in it, hence the name. 

This feature is along the Arch Loop Trail, a little over 1.5 miles off of Movie Road, which is off of the Whitney Portal Road heading west out of Lone Pine, California. The trail also passes Lathe Arch, Heart Arch, and Behind the Heart Arch. You can see Heart Arch from the parking area before you even start to hike. Mobius Arch is the largest of these with the largest opening and span. Jupiter is brightest object in the sky.

This photo was taken by moonlight at 30 seconds, ISO 1600, f9.5.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Trinity Arch, Muley Twist Canyon, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

 

This is Trinity Arch in Muley Twist Canyon, Capitol Reef National Park in Utah.  It apparently is called Trinity, because it is a triple arch.  The first two are obvious, but the third is a much smaller arch just visible in the rightmost lower corner of this photo.

Bob saw this and many other arches on the 5th day of the 2021 Arch Rally conducted by the Natural Arch and Bridge Society from September 18th to the 25th.  The trip on this day was to and through Muley Twist Canyon in the middle east portion of Capitol Reef National Park.  We saw more arches on this day than any other trip of the rally.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Salmonback Double Arch, aka Laurel and Hardy Arches, Utah

On  Friday, September 24th. the 7th day  of the 2021 Arch Rally that Bob attended, the group hiked to Salmonback Double Arch.  This feature is also known as Laurel and Hardy Arches with the higher, thinner arch being Laurel and the lower, thicker arch being Hardy.  This is in the Tantalus Flats Area southwest of Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.

Getting to the view of the first photo involved about a one and a half mile bushwhack and a climb up to a huge sandstone outcrop that was very steep on the side we climbed up and a sheer cliff on the other.  Getting to the spot for this first photo, Bob took advantage of hand lines that the trip leaders set up.  The leaders were concerned that slipping on this surface might lead to a slide all the way down to the canyon floor with nothing to grab onto to stop the slide.

The second photo shows our view of these arches from below when we were hiking in the canyon.  Just a sliver of light shows through the lower opening in the center of the picture.  The higher opening shows up more clearly.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

All Seeing Eye Arch, Burr Trail, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah

 On his second day of the 2021 Arch Rally by the Natural Arch and Bridge Society, Bob chose to go on the hike to Laminate Arch.  On the way, while driving the Burr Trail to the trailhead for Laminate Arch, the group got to see this bonus arch called the All Seeing Eye Arch.  The boulder in the opening appears to be the pupil of a giant eye.

This arch was within the boundaries of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Death Valley mud-cicles

 

Death Valley has lots of exposed minerals and rocks throughout the park. Rain is rare, but when it does arrive it can appear torrential. This photo shows the side of the canyon that has the Natural Bridge feature. After getting photos of the bridge, we started looking up the canyon a bit to see what other features we could find and noticed the patterns on the walls. These could be called mud-cicles. Or how about mud chandeliers? They were totally dry, but it's obvious how they formed.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Sheets Gulch Arch, Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

 

Bob just attended an Arch Rally held by the Natural Arch and Bridge Society from September 18th to the 25th in and around Capitol Reef National Park in Utah.  He enjoyed eight days of going on drives and hikes to see arches and bridges.

This image is of Sheets Gulch Arch, which he hiked to on the fourth day of the rally.  The arch is on the east side of the park up against a canyon wall almost looking like it's just leaning against the top of the sandstone formation.  The group could see it from the canyon bottom, but several of the hikers, including Bob, scrambled up the slope to get a closer look and even walk through the opening of the arch.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Balanced Rock, Arches National Park, Utah

 

This image is from 2008 when we were still using film. So this is a slide that was scanned and edited. This feature in Arches National Park is called Balanced Rock. We can speculate as to how long it will be before the huge rock on top falls down, but it will eventually, such is geological forces. You can view this feature right from the road about 9 miles from the visitor center. If  you park and hike the trails, you can completely encircle it. This photo was taken in the afternoon with a westward sun lighting the scene and storm clouds starting to build.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Desert bighorn ram near Arch Rock Campground, Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada

 Bob was looking through video clips from a trip we took back in December 2017 when he found video of a desert bighorn ram walking past the entrance to the Arch Rock Campground in Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada.  He cropped this frame from the video, since it seemed to show the ram the best.

The bighorn sheep in this park seem to be used to visitors enough at least to not mind being seen by humans.  They sometimes hang around the campground area for a long time.

One of their adaptations of living in the desert is that they can go without water for longer times than other bighorn sheep in wetter areas.  Valley of Fire State Park only averages about 4 inches of rain each year.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Arch Rock along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway, Sierra National Forest, California

 This is the rather generically named Arch Rock along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway in the Sierra National Forest.  This byway is east of Oakhurst, California and south of Yosemite National Park.  Rick is crouched behind it in the first photo and we're both in front of the arch in the second to give you an idea of its size.  This arch is made of granodiorite and has a span of 28 feet, a height of 3-1/2 feet, a thickness of 17 inches, and a width of 26 inches.  It made us think of a big, exposed pipe or a big lathe.

We've produced a video about out visit to this arch.  You can see it on our YouTube Channel at:

https://youtu.be/tOcCNc-ZFwo

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

El Capitan and the Big Dipper by moonlight, May 2018

 Bob was looking through his photos when he happened upon this photo that he took of El Capitan by moonlight.  The Big Dipper is in the upper left of the image.  He took this picture in May 2018.

El Capitan is one of the largest granite cliffs in the world and is a draw for rock climbers from around the world.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Swallowtail butterfly and Kelleys Lily, Sierra Vista Scenic Byway, California

 On Sunday,June 13, 2021 we drove the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway out of the town of North Fork, California.  It's in the Sierra National Forest.  We wanted to do the loop, but a bridge had collapsed because it burned during a forest fire, so we had to turn around and go out the way we came in.  By this happy accident, we saw this patch of Kelleys Lilies, which we had missed on our way in.

This photo is a still from video Bob shot of this swallowtail butterfly visiting this lily blossom.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Kelley's lily in bloom along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway

 

While driving along the Sierra Vista Scenic Byway in the Sierra National Forst on June 13, 2021. We came across several spots with blooming flowers along the road. Much of this area was burned last year, so it was nice to see some still lush and green spots. This flower is called Kelley's lily (Lilium kelleyanum)and is related to the tiger lily or leopard lily. It was growing tall out of a seep that flowed into a small creek. It was taller than we were, more than 6 feet or 2 meters in height.

ISO 25, f1.8, 24mm equivalent, 1/685 sec.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Upper Yosemite Falls, moonbow, and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California, April 24, 2021

 Bob was looking through his photos from April 24, 2021 and realized that he captured a moonbow in this photo.  He was trying to capture a moonbow from this perspective, but thought that clouds from a passing storm wouldn't allow enough moonlight through to create a moonbow or that the angle from this perspective was wrong for seeing one.  See our other postings on moonbows for a description of what they are.

In this photo, which he shot from the Yosemite Falls Trail, is Upper Yosemite Falls, the moonbow hovering over the Middle Cascade, and Half Dome.

Moonbow in Upper Yosemite Falls as seen from Glacier Point, Yosemite National Park

 This is a moonbow shot that Bob took on the night of May 24, 2021 from Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park.  Looking like some kind of frozen confection, Upper Yosemite Falls shows a moonbow in its mist.  Focusing in the dark is difficult, so Bob didn't get the sharpest focus on this shot, but it showed the most color of all the photos he took that night.

According to Brian Hawkins of Yosemite Moonbow Predicitions (yosemitemoonbow.com) the appearance of the moonbow in Yosemite Falls as seen from Glacier Point only happens for about 15 minutes and is a broader arc thanks to the fact that you're viewing it from so much farther away than the other vantage points that he does predictions for.

The park was conducting prescribed burns the week Bob was there and Yosemite Valley and Half Dome were almost completely obscured by the smoke from Glacier Point, but, fortunately for him, the smoke cleared out just in time for the predicted appearance of the moonbow.

See our previous post for more information about moon bows.

Oh yeah, and while Bob was at Glacier Point, he met Brian Hawkins who predicts the occurrence of moon bows in Yosemite Falls from various vantage points on his website Yosemite Moonbow Predictions (yosemitemoonbow.com).

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Moonbow in Lower Yosemite Falls and Big Dipper, Yosemite National Park, May 25, 2021

 

This is a photo of a moonbow, or lunar rainbow, in the mist of Lower Yosemite Falls in Yosemite National Park.  Bob took this shot on the night of May 25th, 2021.  The park was conducting prescribed burns in Yosemite Valley, so he was concerned that the smoke would diminish the moonlight enough that the moonbow wouldn't show up.  Fortunately the smoke dispersed enough that it didn't interfere.   In fact, Bob thinks this was one of the best moon bows he's ever seen, because it persisted through almost the entire predicted window and was a strong and, for the most part, broad arc of light.  In our previous visits to see the moonbow in Lower Yosemite Falls, the moonbow has appeared and disappeared depending on which way the wind was blowing the mist.

Moonbows occur when moonlight strikes the mist of a waterfall or misty rain during a storm at a 42 degree angle from the observer and creates a rainbow just like sunlight can do.  The difference is moonlight is much dimmer and is only bright enough two days before, the night of, and two days after the full moon to create a moonbow.  Also, because moonlight is so much dimmer, the colors of the rainbow don't usually show up to the naked eye.  The human eye sees color with retinal cells called cones, which require a brighter light intensity than the moon provides, in order to be stimulated enough for you to perceive color.  To the naked eye, the moonbow appears as a ghostly white arc of light.  The colors do show up in photos thanks to the longer exposures that cameras provide.

The Big Dipper and other stars are visible in the sky above Lower Yosemite Falls.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Pacific Dogwood blossom over a lichen-encrusted granite boulder in Yosemite National Park

 Pacific dogwoods (Cornus nuttallii) bloom in Yosemite Valley in April and May.  The actual flowers are in a tight cluster forming almost a dome-like structure in the middle of the "flower," while the showier part of the blossoms are actually bracts that attach under the flower cluster.

This photo is from April 27, 2021.  Because this was a dry year, the dogwood bloom seemed to occur earlier than normal.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Upper Yosemite Falls and Half Dome by moonlight, Yosemite National Park, California

Bob took this photo after hiking part way up Yosemite Falls Trail after dark the night of April 23 going to the 24th 2021.  He was looking for this perspective where he could get the Upper Yosemite Falls and Half Dome in the same shot, all lit up by moonlight.  The 20-second exposure left both the waterfall and the clouds looking fuzzy.  This photo was taken at 1:40 AM, a few days before the full moon.

The Yosemite Falls Trail is a strenuous and rocky rough trail that hikers can take to visit the brink of Yosemite Falls.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Pacific Dogwood blossom and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park, California

 Bob created this postcard from two photographs.  One was with the dogwood blossom in focus and the other was with Half Dome in focus.  We combined the two to make this image and then added the text.  Other than the text, this is how Bob saw this image.  He was standing on the edge of Ahwanhee Meadow next to cabins and bent a branch with this dogwood blossom at the end into the frame.

Pacific dogwoods (Cornus nuttallii) bloom in Yosemite Valley in April and May.  The actual flowers are in a tight cluster forming almost a dome-like structure in the middle of the "flower," while the showier part of the blossoms are actually bracts that attach under the flower cluster.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Burney Falls, after midnight, light painting

 

Burney Falls is a waterfall famous for its unique geology. The stream, Burney Creek, flows over the brink after being split into two streams that fall to the pool below. The rest of the cliff face has springs gushing from it that make it look like a very wide waterfall. The estimated amount of water flowing from this cliff is 100 million gallons per day. We visited McArthur-Burney Falls State Park during spring break 2021. 

In a way, Burney Falls is challenging to photograph in that it is north-facing and doesn't receive direct sunlight. We managed to get a better image of the falls than usual by taking this picture after midnight and using a flashlight combined with a long exposure time to light the scene in a way that couldn't happen during the daytime. This image was actually taken around 12:43am with a 30-second exposure, ISO 800, f5.6, and a focal length of 18mm. It needed a wide-angle setting on the lens to get all of the falls in the frame, plus we wanted to be physically closer so the flashlight could be more effective. This process of using a flashlight (or torch as the British call it) to light the scene is called light painting. It appears to bring out the colors of the ferns better than a daytime photo when the cliff is in shadow.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Mount Lassen and our tent by moonlight

 We did an overnight ski camping trip in Lassen Volcanic National Park in March 2021 during Rick's spring break.  After skiing in about 8 miles along the Lassen Park Road, we skied off the road's course and set up our camp at this spot overlooking the frozen-over Lake Helen and Mount Lassen.  During the night we got up and realized that the moon was up and illuminating the scene around us.  We didn't bring tripods with us, so Bob had to take this photo by propping up his camera with some of our camp gear.  Because this was a 30 second exposure, he couldn't take it by hand holding the camera.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

McArthur-Burney Falls State Park, Bob contemplating the flame

 

Bob decided to have a campfire on our spring break trip. We normally don't bother getting a fire going because we're usually out hiking or working on night photography and don't want to be tied to the responsibility. We were camped at the Rim Campground in McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park, in California.

Taken with a Motorola z4, 1/10sec, f1.7, 4.7mm, ISO 2480, Camera app using Night Vision feature. March 29, 2021, 9:35 pm

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

McArthur Burney Falls and double rainbow

The centrerpiece of McArthur Burney Falls Memorial State Park in Northern California is Burney Falls.  The two main streams you see in the center of the photo is from Burney Creek, while the rest of the waterfalls you see here are from springs emerging from the cliff face.  Some 100 million gallons of water flow from this waterfall every day.  It creates quite a spectacle.

Since this cliff face is pretty much north-facing, it almost never gets direct sunlight, but the mist from the waterfall can catch the rays and produce rainbows during special times of the day.  Here Bob was able to capture a double rainbow in the mist.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Chapel of the Transfiguration and Grand Teton, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming

 The Chapel of the Transfiguration is in Moose Village at the southern entrance to Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming.  For this photo, Bob lined up the cross on the top of the church with the peak of Grand Teton.  The Chapel was built as a log cabin structure in 1925 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Teton panorama - Cathedral Group to Mount Moran

 During a visit to Grand Teton National Park in 2016, we stopped along the Teton Park Road to enjoy this view of the Teton Range.  This is a panorama of six images stitched together to show the range from the Cathedral Group on the left (Grand Teton, Mount Owen, and Teewinot) to Mount Moran on the right.

Click on the image to see the whole panorama.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Rick Robinson, Indian Rock Arch, and Half Dome, Yosemite National Park

 

Yosemite isn't known for its natural rock spans, but it does have a few.  This is Indian Rock, a granite flake of an arch, reached by a side trail from the trail that goes to North Dome starting from the Tioga Pass Road.  The iconic Half Dome is visible from beneath the arch from this position.  Rick's presence in the photo gives you an idea of the size of the arch.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Bob, Photographer at Work Doing Night Photography Under the Big Dipper

 Here's Bob working to get night-time photography shots in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada. Rick noticed the Big Dipper over his head and asked him to pose for this shot. It was accomplished by making a long exposure to get the stars and briefly flashing a flashlight on Bob's position. We were camped at the Arch Rock Campground.

Focal length 25.0 mm, ISO 1600, shutter speed 1 second, f8

Remember it's not just a picture, it's a story!

The real Zabriskie Point, a pet peeve

It's a pet peeve of ours that we often see photos of the Zabriskie Badlands and Manly Beacon labeled as Zabriskie Point, which is the viewpoint that the photographer is standing on, not what the viewer is seeing in the photo.  In a way, we can understand why it happens.  You look out across the maze of ridges and gullies of these badlands with no apparent named peak and it can be hard to name what you're seeing.  Also, the general store in Furnace Creek sells souvenirs with images of Manly Beacon on them and they're labeled "Zabriskie Point," so, again, it's understandable.

But consider this.  As a photographer, would you go to Glacier Point in Yosemite National Park, take a photo of Half Dome and label that photo "Glacier Point."  You would likely name it Half Dome after the distinctive feature in the picture.  The Zabriskie Badlands have a distinctive feature, though admittedly not as distinctive as Half Dome, and it's Manly Beacon.  But if your photo from Zabriskie Point doesn't include Manly Beacon, then it's probably of Gower Gulch and the Zabriskie Badlands and should say so.

The above two photos show the actual Zabriskie Point.  Zabriskie Point is in the upper left atop a steeply sloped hill.  And then Gower Gulch and part of the Zabriskie Badlands make up the rest of the photos.

The panorama below is of the Zabriskie Badlands taken from Zabriskie Point.

 The final photo is a 30 second nighttime exposure showing Manly Beacon, the only widely-known named feature in the Zabriskie Badlands.  Many photos labeled Zabriskie Point feature Manly Beacon, named after William Manly, an early Death Valley guide.  This feature is the high point just left of center.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Red-eared slider, turtle basking on a log in the American River

 

In the Sacramento area, we love visiting the American River that flows right through the city and joins the Sacramento River just north of the historic Old Sacramento. It's amazing how much wildlife we see inside the city limits. Here we saw turtles that are not native to California, the red-eared slider. A group of the turtles were basking on a log as we were canoeing nearby. The turtles noticed us and were acting a little more alert as we got the cameras out.

Canon PowerShot 530HS, ISO 400, 215mm focal length, 1/250 sec, f8

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

El Capitan just after sunset, Yosemite National Park, California

El Capitan reflected in the Merced River in Yosemite Valley, Yosemite National Park. This picture was taken just after sunset with calm winds. We spent the afternoon cross-country skiing out of Badger Pass and went through part of the valley on our way out of the park. Right now, everyone has to leave the park by 5PM.

Settings were f1.7, 1/33 sec, ISO 244, 4.74mm, in a Motorola z4 smartphone.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

 

Desert Bighorn Sheep on the "throne" at Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada

 

During our December 2020 visit to Valley of Fire State Park, in Nevada, we got nice long looks at desert bighorn sheep. This ram was resting on this red sandstone slope by itself. The other three rams were resting below the slope on the ground. The ram sometimes chewed a little bit and seemed content with his position. After we were there for over 10 minutes, the other rams and the main one got together and ambled off to the west in the direction of the local herd of females.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story!

Mobius Arch, Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, California

This is Mobius Arch from the Alabama Hills near Lone Pine, California.  Bob took this photo after sunset and Lone Pine Peak is the highest peak visible through the opening of the arch.  Bob hiked along the Arch Loop Trail to visit the arch, but didn't get to finish the loop since the sun was setting.  This was during a trip during the week of Thanksgiving 2020.  He'll just have to go back.

We've known about and seen photos of this arch for a long time, but for Bob to see it in the lithos, so to speak, was quite stunning.  We haven't found any specific details about its dimensions, but a couple of web sites indicated that the opening is about 6 and a half feet tall and spans 7 feet.  We'll have to double check that next time we're there.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Desert bighorn ram at Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada

 During our recent visit to Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, we saw a small group of desert bighorn rams hanging out in the Beehives Area of the park.  This ram was lounging on top of one of the rock formations chewing his cud.  This photo caught him in mid-chew.  Three other rams were lying low near the base of this rock formation.  Eventually after their cud had been sufficiently masticated, they got up and headed out into the brush to graze on what grasses they could find.

After this ram went back out to graze, Bob examined this formation for arches and found a very unusual sliver of an arch, which you can see in the second photo.  The opening is barely a few inches high.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.

Is this arch a "Thing?"

 

On our last day of visiting Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada, we hiked the Natural Arch Trail looking for a fallen arch and for an arch that a map that we bought in the park's visitor center called Thing Arch.  The park staff told us that they only name two of the park's arches, Arch Rock in the campground area and Natural Arch, which gave this trail its name, but which collapsed in 2010.  In any case, the map that we referred to showed a Thing Arch across the wash from where the collapsed arch was and we looked for it during our hike.  We think this is the Thing.  It's a fragile looking rock span in Aztec Sandstone.

Remember, it's not just a picture, it's a story.