Tricolor Monkeyflower from the Vina Plains Preserve near Chico, CA

This tricolor monkeyflower (Mimulus tricolor) grows in seasonal wetlands called vernal pools.  This particular specimen was blooming in a vernal pool in the Vina Plains Preserve of the Nature Conservancy near Chico, California in the northern Sacramento Valley.  We were introduced to vernal pools while we were in college and have had a keen interest in them ever since.  They are unique to California and have been greatly impacted by agricultural and urban development.

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

Upper Graveyard Lake reflection, High Sierra, John Muir Wilderness

This photo shows the upper Graveyard Lake with the surrounding ridge reflected in its still water. Rick explored this area during a backpacking trip to the John Muir Wilderness in California's High Sierra mountain range. He camped at the lower Graveyard Lake the first night and hiked to this lake the next day. The wind was surprisingly calm in the late morning when this image was taken. The area gets the name of Graveyard Lakes and Graveyard Meadow farther down-slope because all the granite boulders that were left behind when the glaciers retreated after the last Ice Age, that the area seems to be filled with "tombstones".

Rick took this image as a vertical in an attempt to get the top of the ridge and its reflection in the water.

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

Snow plant in bloom in the Sierra, south of Yosemite

The snow plant (Sarcodes sanguinea), grows throughout the Sierra Nevada and into the Cascade mountain ranges. Unlike other flowering plants, it grows from digested organic material in the soil, similar to a mushroom, and doesn't make its own food as green plants do. The flowers can emerge while there is still snow on the ground, thus the common name. The species name, sanguinea, refers to its blood-red color. It's in the heath family, which includes cranberries and blueberries, but it is not edible.

These snow plants were blooming south of Yosemite National Park in the Sierra National Forest. We were out looking for plants in the spring of 2013 and found these excellent specimens.

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

Lassen National Park's Cinder Cone in the morning, from the north-east

During the time of the Reading Fire, in August, 2012, we approached the Cinder Cone, Lassen Volcanic National Park's largest cinder cone. We thought we'd try to get a view of Mount Lassen from the top of the cinder cone by looking westward from it's summit. But because of the fire, there was too much smoke in that direction, so we only hiked half-way up before turning around. We had taken pictures of the Cinder Cone as we hiked toward it and as we headed away from it. After we got back to camp, we looked over the images and realized that this feature was dramatic by itself.

This image was made by merging 3 images together and then cropped to a 2 to 1 ratio. It would work well as a 20" by 10" picture.

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

Redwood Sorrel in bloom in in the Sinkyone Wilderness

During a trip to the Redwood Coast of California in August, 2014, the Redwood Sorrel flowers were in bloom. You sometimes see another type of sorrel growing in people's yards which you can recognize by the leaves, but this one is a wild species native to California. It grows in shady places under the big trees and up the coast into Washington state. This flower has 5 petals with purple veins and 10 stamens. Plants in the sorrel family, including Oxalis, have sour sap.

This Redwood Sorrel was blooming in the Sinkyone Wilderness State Park. We saw it during an overnight backpack trip where we camped near a beach. This part of California's coastline is the most remote coast in the state, even though the area used to have a large lumber operation that ceased operating many decades ago. 

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

Point Bonita Lighthouse at sunset, San Francisco, CA

Two views of the Point Bonita Lighthouse at sunset.  This lighthouse is in one of many units in the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in and around the San Francisco Bay area.  This historic lighthouse is perched on a sea stack at the entrance to the Golden Gate and is still in operation.  It requires a hike through a tunnel and over a bridge that looks like a miniature version of the Golden Gate Bridge to get to.  These images show the sun setting over the Pacific Ocean and its light glinting in the lens of the lighthouse.

The lighthouse is only open to visitors this late in the day during Sunset/Full Moon guided tours given by the National Park Service.

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

Coyote near Sentinel Dome in Yosemite National Park in winter

On one of our many cross country ski trips along the Glacier Point Road in Yosemite National Park, we camped near Sentinel Dome late at night and didn't awaken until late the next morning.  As we were lying in our tent, we heard an animal trotting through the snow around us.  We looked outside and saw this coyote approach us as though he was expecting us to give him a handout.  Eventually he moved in closer and laid down in the snow and waited to see what we would do.  He was only about ten feet away.  While he waited, a second coyote bounded in and the two of them chased each other around until they both ran off.

 Actually we were a little concerned that the coyote might run off with a piece of our gear.  The night before as we were skiing in we encountered a couple of skiers heading out at about 3 A.M.  They told us that they had encountered a coyote a couple of hours earlier when they had stopped for a rest break.  The coyote was trying to get some food from them and they responded by throwing snowballs at him to shoo him away.  Eventually the coyote gave up, but not before grabbing one of their ski poles and running off with it.  The two skiers who told us this story asked us to keep an eye out for their friend who was trailing behind them.  As we continued skiing in, we encountered the other skier, who was using a roadside marker as a not-very-effective replacement ski pole, about twenty minutes later.  We let him know how far behind his friends he was and he thanked us and then said that he would do that coyote in, if he ever caught him.

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

Salt Creek pupfish, an endangered species in Death Valley National Park, Spring 2012

During the spring, the endangered Salt Creek pupfish males set up territories in Salt Creek as if flows from a spring south to the below sea level section of Death Valley National Park. The pupfish are considered the remnants of fish that once inhabited Lake Manly which filled what is now Death Valley during the last ice age. As the water level receded as the ice age ended, the water became saltier and now only a few springs persist and provide the only habitat for this species. Besides the saltiness, this creek experiences flash floods, nearly drying out, and temperatures from near freezing to over 40°C. (104°F.)

This image was taken by hiking along the boardwalk of the Salt Creek Interpretive Trail, a short turnoff from Highway 190, between Stovepipe Wells and Furnace Creek, the two main developed areas within Death Valley. Rick got down on his belly and waited for a male to swim near the shore to get this shot. You can tell it's a male because of how colorful the front is and by the bluish dorsal fin. Females are better camoflouged and blend in with the grainy creek bottom.

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

Bull elk in velvet along the trail in the Sinkyone Wilderness State Park, California. 2014-08-08

We encountered this bull elk along the trail in the Sinkyone Wilderness State Park, California, while heading back to the trailhead during a backpacking trip. In early August, the elk's antlers would still be growing with the furry-skinned velvet covering them as they're growing. Later, when the antlers are finished growing, the velvet will die and slough off. Sometimes, the elk will get an itchy feeling from the whithering velvet and feel the need to rub the antlers against a tree or shrub to get the velvet to come off faster.

This particular elk didn't seem to have any problem with our presence and was actually lying down when we first came across him. Another bull elk headed downslope off the trail at a leisurely pace and got his antlers caught in grape vines.

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

Skiing near Mount Lassen, Lassen Volcanic National Park, CA

Richard Robinson poses in front of Mount Lassen in Lassen Volcanic National Park at the end of a two-night ski-packing trip.  The Lassen National Park Highway is closed through the park during the winter making it available for cross country skiers and snowshoers.

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

Sagebrush Mariposa Lily with a small insect inside from Lava Beds National Monument, CA

This is a Sagebrush Mariposa Lily (Calochortus macrocarpus) with a small insect inside.  It was blooming in Lava Beds National Monument in northeastern California.  This park is famous for its numerous lava flows that have produced hundreds of lava caves, some of which are easy to explore.

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

Honey Bee in Blackberry flowers along the California north coast

During a trip to the north coast of California to see the Redwoods National Park, Rick and his wife spent some time enjoying the blackberries. For a couple of hours, they turned into grazers and kept finding one good patch after another. The blackberry bushes had ripe fruit, but were also flowering. This honey bee was busily flitting from one flower to another. Rick had to use a fast shutter speed and multiple shots to get one where the bee had settled onto a flower and the wings were still. The honey bee isn't native to North America, but was brought from Europe and has spread across the entire continent. But something is threatening these highly important pollinators with a condition called Colony Collapse Disorder. Losing the pollination services of bees would be a huge disaster for us humans.

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

Cape Mendocino and the Sugarloaf Island on an overcast day

Cape Mendocino with the Sugarloaf Island just off the coast of California during an overcast day.This is perhaps California's most remote coastal area to which you can drive. The drive here involves winding 2-lane roads that often look in dire need of maintenance. The area is also mainly private land, so there are only a few places where you can stop and take in the scenery. The Sugarloaf Island really stood out because of how white it appears, even on this overcast day it appeared bright.

This image is the result of two images merged together to create a wider final product. I made sure not to include the breaking waves in the right image, so that only the left image had the waves, so that merging the two images wouldn't end up with blurred waves in the final image.

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