Tag: Desert

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2019 Photography Destinations – A Baker’s Dozen Part 1

Tucson, AZ

As I look back over 2019, I feel fortunate. I had some incredible opportunities to spend time in a few of our country’s most amazing photography destinations. Some were popular places, in danger of being loved to death. Others were just as special, but not as well known, the kinds of places that creep up on you and get under your skin. Forever.

I thought I’d make a Top Ten list, it being close to the New Year and all. But I found  I couldn’t narrow it down to just ten places. So I came up with a baker’s dozen. Then my post was too long. So I broke it into parts 1 and 2,  the Rambling Ranger’s favorite photography destinations of 2019. Here is Part 1.

13) Elkhorn Slough / Moss Landing

This spot is one of those best-kept secrets. It’s a location that skates by under the radar on a coastline filled with destinations that are a bit TOO popular (Big Sur, Point Lobos, Monterey). Although Elkhorn Slough doesn’t have the flashy scenery of those more fashionable destinations, the wildlife watching here is fabulous. Look for a plethora of shorebirds. The main draw, however, is the sea otters. This just may be the best place on the Pacific coast to observe those cute little critters.

Moss Landing State Beach, California
Sea Otter Waving

12) Death Valley National Park

I spent most of March in Death Valley. I had committed myself months earlier to leading a few hikes there,  before I could predict where the best desert wildflowers would be. The flowers were very late in Death Valley, with only a few blooming in March. It drove me a little crazy to be stuck there, as I knew that both Anza-Borrego and Joshua Tree were experiencing exceptional blooms.

But the great thing about Death Valley is that it is an amazing photography destination even if there are no flowers blooming. The austere beauty and diversity of landscapes offer endless opportunities for inspiration and creativity. I saw a few new places and revisited a lot of old favorites, too.

Mesquite Sand Dunes
Death Valley National Park

11) Southern Colorado Rockies

I had a short housesit in Durango over Thanksgiving this year. It’s always a blessing to spend time in southern Colorado. I love that edge environment, where the mountains meet the desert, giving you the best of both worlds. From the Great Sand Dunes to the many hot springs, from the jagged ragged peaks of the Rockies to the mesas and canyons of the Colorado Plateau, there were so many choices, all within a day’s drive of my base in Durango. The southern Colorado Rockies are another place I find myself returning to, again and again.

Million Dollar Highway
Durango is beautiful.

10) Denali Highway

This is one of my favorite places to see the fall colors in Alaska. And Alaska often has some OUTRAGEOUS fall colors! The blueberries are pretty incredible on the Denali Highway, too! Late August to early September is the time frame to aim for if you want to see the tundra put on its fancy dancin’ clothes. Special bonus: You might get lucky and see that visual symphony, the Aurora, too!

The Denali Highway is a great fall photography destination
Fall colors along the Denali Highway

9) Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky has a special place in my heart because I lived in both Estes Park and Grand Lake long ago in my younger days. I was fortunate to land a housesit in Allenspark, at the southwest corner of Rocky Mountain National Park, in October. It was a blast from the past, revisiting the environment that first instilled in me my deep love of the mountains.

Rocky is one of the best places in the country to catch the elk rut. It is also home to superb alpine scenery, wonderful hikes, and brilliant aspens.  One thing to keep in mind – like Arches and Zion, this park is in the process of being loved to death. Be aware of your impact. Choose the trail less traveled. Give the animals their space and leave no trace so that we can all continue to enjoy Rocky for generations to come.

Colorado Rockies
My old stomping grounds

8) Point Pinos

Storm watching. Big waves. That’s why Point Pinos, in Pacific Grove, California, made my list. This is the first place I’ve ever been at all successful at capturing the essence of the power of the ocean. The surf here is awesome, in the original sense of that word.

Pacific Grove was also a place of great sadness for me, where I witnessed the crash of ecosystems, both terrestrial and maritime. The near-extinction of the Monarch Butterfly and the exponential effects of sea star wasting and a warming ocean were only too apparent during my stay here. Although it was heartbreaking, I felt it was important to be a witness.

Big wave, Point Pinos, Monterey Coast, CA
Point Pinos is a great place to watch the big waves.

7) Tucson, Arizona

There’s a reason why Arizona sunsets are famous. I swear they’re the most lurid sunsets I’ve ever seen! I love the cacti, too, stately saguaro and crazy cholla. I spent a few weeks in Tucson on a housesit last February and was surprised at how much I liked it since I’m not much of a city girl.  But national and state parks abound, as well as other great open spaces.

Colorful sunsets make Saguaro National Park an excellent photography destination.
Crazy cholla

These were just a few of my favorite photo destinations for 2019. I’ll let you in on the rest by New Year’s Eve. What were some of yours? Let me know in the comments!

 

 

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Abstract = Lens-Artists Challenge #74

Olympic National Park

Abstract! I love looking for abstracts in nature! Thank you, Patti, for making abstract our Lens-Artists Photo Challenge this week. Patti  Moed invites us to break the rules and go beyond the traditional realistic image of an object, scene, or element.

Look close enough and you can find abstract elements in all aspects of the natural world – be it animal

black and white photography
Is it a psychedelic palm tree? Or just… peacock feathers?

mineral

Mystic Hot Springs
Is this just a rock formation – or is it really the Earth Mother giving birth?

or vegetable

Patterns of nature
Whoa! This one makes me dizzy!

Sometimes it’s hard to tell if it’s animal, mineral, or vegetable. When I looked through some of my files, I was struck by the similarities in these 2 images, taken 1,000 miles apart of 2 completely different substances. Can you tell which one is wood and which one is stone?

Cape Disappointment State Park, WA
Stone or wood?
Point Lobos State Park, CA
Wood or stone?

I especially like looking for the abstract in land forms. Sometimes it’s all about the angular with severe sharp lines –

Death Valley National Park
Desolation Canyon

And sometimes it’s all soft, sensuous curves –

Death Valley National Park
Ibex Sand Dunes

Water is a great medium for abstract photography, too.

Abstract of waterfall
Is it just a rainbow in a waterfall? Or is it one of those Hubble spacecraft images of a strange nebula in some far distant galaxy?

The next time you go out to play, try some abstract photography. You never know what worlds you may see if you look past the surface of an object’s everyday appearance!

Abstract photography
Look a little deeper into the everyday!
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One of my favorite ghost towns – Gold Point, Nevada

Abandoned car in Gold Point. NV

I’m walking through another of my favorite ghost towns, Gold Point, Nevada.

There’s a truck with a face here. With headlights for eyes and a grinning grill, it’s a dead ringer for Maynard, the old tow truck in the Pixar movie, Cars. That’s right, Maynard lives here. It’s a vehicle with personality, mostly painted a faded green, a hook and crane in the back, the bald tires frayed and flat.

Abandoned truck with peronality
Maynard lives here.

The entire town of Gold Point has personality. It’s one of the best-preserved ghost towns in the country.

A cold breeze blows tumbleweeds across the street and between the buildings. I feel like I’m stepping back in time 100 years, to the lawless days of claim jumpers and cattle rustlers.

Ghost town cabins and gallows
Gold Point is well preserved but not too touristy.

There’s a soundtrack that reinforces this impression. As I pass by the saloon the faint echo of an old time western drifts on the wind. I circle the building, but there are no other signs of life. The gravelly voiced actors sound like ghosts from days gone by. After all, those ancient horse operas are based on the real-life adventures of towns just like Gold Point.

It’s not completely abandoned. There are 6 full-time residents and 6 part-time residents. But on the day I visited I saw no one.

Derelict tractor shot through window of abandoned truck
Vehicles with personality

Silver, not gold, was the strike that brought people here first. In 1868 a town called Lime Point formed when silver was found nearby. The typical challenges of a mining town in the desert plagued Lime Point, though. Lack of water and the cost of freighting almost killed the settlement, although richer diggings in 1880 kept things going for a bit longer.

Lime Point went bust, but not long after the turn of the century, prospectors located a new silver vein about a half-mile away. There was so much silver all you had to do was shovel it right up off the ground! This type of super-gene enrichment was known as hornsilver, so they named the new town Hornsilver.

Door of old fire engine
Esmeralda County was Mark Twain’s old stomping grounds

By 1905, the camp supported about 1,000 people, with 13 saloons to slake the weary miners’ thirst.

Claim jumping and the ensuing lawsuits closed the mines down in 1909. After re-opening in 1915, miners continued to eke out a living until 1927. Then the town experienced a new boom. Gold was discovered in Hornsilver’s biggest mine, the Great Western.

Mine headframes, Gold Point, NV
Mines at Gold Point, NV

The residents changed the name of the town to Gold Point in 1932. Times were hard in those Depression years and the residents changed the name in a desperate attempt to attract investors.

Mining continued until World War Two when the government banned all mining except for those minerals needed for the war effort After the war, some folks drifted back, but the town was completely abandoned in the 1960s after a bad dynamite charge caused a disastrous cave-in.

Derelict car parked at antique gas pump Gold Point, NV
Gold Point, Nevada

The buildings lay deserted for a decade. A former resident, Ora Mae Wiley, did all she could to keep the town from falling completely apart.

A gentleman named Herb Robbins and a few of his friends began to purchase the buildings, one by one, in the 1970s. When Herb hit a big jackpot in Las Vegas a few years later, he used the money to purchase most of the buildings in town. He and his friends continued to repair roofs and lovingly refurbish interiors.

Hornsilver Townsite & Telephone building
Gold Point was named Hornsilver until the 1930s.

Some of the cabins are now part of a bed and breakfast. Profits from the B&B help to pay for the restoration and preservation of many of the buildings.

The B&B website says, “When you visit Gold Point you may not see anyone, but rest assured they are watching you.” Sounds kind of creepy, but basically it’s just a neighborhood watch program. The entire town is privately owned, so look but don’t touch. No souvenirs, please. Leave the artifacts where they lay. Neighbors looking out for each other are why Gold Point is so well preserved.

Gas pump & ore car
No artifact collecting allowed

If you’d like to keep the ghosts at bay, visit on a weekend. The museums are usually open then. The town also has a big celebration on Memorial Day, with a chili cook-off, live music and raffle prizes.

As for me, I’ll visit when it’s lonely. I think the town’s apparent abandonment is part of the charm. I can’t wait to go back, and I’ll stay a little longer next time. But if you visit before I do, be sure and tell Maynard I said Hello!

Gold Point is north of Beatty, about 7 miles off Highway 95 on Highway 266.

 

 

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April is Desert Wildflowers

Desert Wildflowers crowd a landscape in Joshua Tree National Park

Thank you, Amy, for this week’s Lens-Artist’s Photo Challenge, Hello April!

Desert Wildflowers Joshua Tree National Park
Poppies and Pincushions

Hello April! April is life bursting out all over, wildflowers as far as the eye can see, all manner of joy and celebration.

April is sweet spring skiing, all the sweeter because the tourists have gone home. Walking around is getting sloppy, though. Mud season is nearly here, and it’s time to go to the desert. It’s the excitement and anticipation as I plan my spring adventure.

Artist's Drive Formation, Death Valley
At least the rock in Death Valley is always amazing!

April is breakup. Think mud season on steroids.

April is when it starts to get HOT in the Valley. As temps climb into the triple digits, it’s time to leave the desert.

April has meant many things in my life. This year I’ll combine them all.

April is time for my spring road trip to Alaska. Time to head back home, after a detour south for one more peek at the desert bloom. I’ll joyfully celebrate life bursting out all over, wildflowers as far as the eye can see. I’m excited as I anticipate my spring adventure.

Joshua Tree National Park
Joshua Tree Flower

I don’t usually escape breakup. It generally catches me in Canada. But this year, I just might. Photos from friends on Facebook show bare ground in Alaska, unprecedented in late March. Spring is already happening there, over a month early.

Agave Bloom, Anza Borrego State Park
This lovely flower is over 10 feet tall!

It’s definitely time for me to escape the Valley. I’ve been a bit restless the past few weeks. Way back in September I made a commitment to stay in Death Valley for most of March. I knew it would be an El Nino year and I was trying to position myself ahead of time for a possible spring bloom.

So, of course, everywhere else in the desert except Death Valley got the December rain that led to an amazing bloom. Death Valley got lots of rain in 2019, over 3 inches, in fact, but spring is very late, over a month late.

Goldfield in Joshua Tree National Park
There was a full-on superbloom in Joshua Tree this spring.

I spent three weeks in March stuck in Death Valley while Joshua Tree had a full on superbloom. Anza Borrego had great wildflowers, too. Death Valley had next to nothing. I should have worked at Ocotillo Wells instead.

Death Valley is always great and the rocks are still incredible, but I’m definitely ready to leave.

Joshua Tree National Park
Yucca Blossoms

So this year April is flowers, flowers and more flowers in Joshua Tree. It’s the cactus and agave blooming in Anza Borrego. It’s finally crossing the California Poppy Reserve off my bucket list on my way to Carrizo Plain, which just might be peaking when I get there.

After that, who knows? I could take the coast, or check out the burn areas in the Sierra foothills. For April this year, I’m following the flowers.

Joshua Tree National Park
Sand Blazing Star

 

 

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Lens-Artists Challenge – Landscapes

Yosemite National Park, California

I usually only answer the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge every other week, but Amy’s theme choice, Landscapes, was irresistible. I LOVE landscape photography!

Water is big in landscapes. Sometimes a landscape includes a bit of the sea…

Seal Rocks, Oregon
Oregon Coast

Recently I’ve been spending my time on the central California Coast.

Big Sur coastline, central California
Garripata State Park

Reflections are always a big hit in landscape photography.

Denali Highway
Talkeetna Mountains

I need vertical topography to charge my soul…

Grand Teton National Park
Fall in the Tetons

Alaska is all about big landscapes. My favorite seasons are summer

Toklat River
Denali National Park

and fall.

Dwarf Birch near the Denali Highway
Denali Highway

And then there’s the desert. Talk about a diversity of landscapes! Whether it’s dunes…

Death Valley National Park, California
Mesquite Sand Dunes, Death Valley

or flowers….

Desert Gold in Death Valley
Death Valley National Park

or interesting rocks.

TeePee Rocks, Grand Staircase, Utah
Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument

What a beautiful world we live in!

Denali National Park
Rams at Polychrome Pass

 

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Marvelous Moab

La Sal Mountains

I used to hang out around Moab a lot, BMB (before mountain biking). From the mid-eighties through the nineties, I would spend a month every spring hiking on the Colorado Plateau.

Scenic Byway Highway 269
Potash Road

It was just a cow town then, a place to get gas and groceries. We would camp for free along the river, on the River Road, Kane Creek and the Potash Road. In Arches, we’d get up before dawn to get a jump on the masses and have the most popular trails to ourselves. If we felt like sleeping in, we’d find more obscure routes to follow. After all, it’s not wilderness if you can’t find solitude. Once, we spent three weeks straight trippin’ in the Needles District of Canyonlands, seeing ice cream flavors in the colors of the slickrock – fudge swirl and neapolitan.

Arches National Park
Alpenglow on Skyline Arch

It was a free life, both in cost and the freedom to do what you wanted whenever and wherever you wanted.

Things changed. Moab was discovered. It got crowded. We still came to the Colorado Plateau every spring, but we passed through Moab and didn’t linger on our way to points further south. Just gas and groceries.

It’s the first time I’ve been back in quite a while. The old cow town now smacks of the overkill typical of National Park gateways, reminiscent of Estes Park, Glitter Gulch outside of Denali, West Yellowstone.

New Construction in Moab
Changes

New construction is happening everywhere. The Rock Shop used to be WAY on the outskirts of town, but now it’s motel after motel all the way past the river on Hwy. 191. There’s even a tram and a zip line.

It’s been years since you could camp free on the river. Designated fee campgrounds are the way to go now. You can no longer spend three weeks lost in the backcountry of Canyonlands. There’s a two week maximum limit, a $30 fee, permits to be acquired, designated backcountry campsites. And Arches? Ed Abbey would roll over in his grave. Talk about being loved to death.

Arches National Park
Sunset in Arches

I understand. We need to manage the impact on this fragile environment. Rightly so, there’s a lot of impact. Still, I cherish the time I had here when it WAS free, a little known secret paradise.

Of course, it’s mountain bike Mecca now. I don’t mountain bike, so if you want to know more about the Moab biking trails, check out this article on GoNomad. It’s also a hotspot for four-wheeling, with all the old uranium mining roads, rafting, and rock climbing. The hiking is still great. In addition to the national parks, there are the Behind the Rocks, Mill Creek and Negro Bill WSAs among others. The dining options and the nightlife are a lot better than they used to be, I’ll give it that!

Potash Road
Check out the petroglyphs and rock climbing on Highway 279

I have no desire to be here in the peak season of spring anymore, when the crowds are insane, but it’s winter now. Off season, no crowds. I can love this place once again, and I’ve found some deals.

Due to Park Service budget cuts, the visitor center, and the entrance booth, at Island in the Sky in Canyonlands are closed in January and February. There’s nowhere to pay your fee, so the park is free for a little while. Quite a change from the proposed $70 per vehicle fee (up from $30) that may be charged beginning in June.

Kit fox at Island in the Sky, Canyonlands
kit fox napping

Although there are always a lot of visitors in Arches, even in winter, you won’t find any problems with getting a parking space, even at the most popular viewpoints and trailheads. And then there’s still the Potash Road. I may have to do an entire blog on that one. I fell in love with it all over again.

One of the best wintertime deals, though, is lodging at the Lazy Lizard Hostel. It’s cold outside. I don’t really want to camp in the cold. I need a place to stay.

Lazy Lizard Hostel, Moab, UT
Lazy Lizard Hostel

The Lazy Lizard is a great deal year-round, with $12 bunks in the dorms. However, I find in my old age that I’m no longer comfortable sharing my sleeping space with half a dozen other people. The real deal at the Lazy Lizard in winter is private rooms and cabins. You can get a private room or cabin during December, January and February for only $22 a night!

That’s cheaper than rent in Denver. You get privacy, Wi-Fi, kitchen privileges, heat …and good company. There’s a great mellow vibe to this place. I find myself continually coming back. It’s allowed me to fall in love with Moab all over again. So if you’re passing through Moab in the winter, give the Lazy Lizard a try. It may become one of your new favorite places!

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