Next Day

We spent the afternoon hiking in the Jumbo rock area, looking for angles and images to take. We ended up with the classic iconic image of the balanced circular rock. As we were setting up and waiting for the light two young marines began scrambling up the rock faces. It was obvious they were intent on getting to the top but to our surprise they left off. Later a rather macho looking guy lead his girlfriend up the same area... she was wearing tight jeans and he was in Chucks... not exactly climbing clothing... They managed to make it to the top with him lecturing her the entire way on the proper handholds to look for and so forth. I was convinced we were going to see a very bad accident. The young marines appeared and chatted with us a bit. Apparently they had decided that while they could infact make it up to the top without trouble, it's a different story coming down. They were shocked that the couple had made it up and were also thinking there might be an accident waiting in the wings. After a few slips and wobbly half-hearted attempts to make it down the way they had come the couple went in search of another route. We saw them later making their way to the parking lot... they seemed to be none the worse for wear and still friends so I can only assume they managed to find an easier path down. I was most impressed by the young marines decision NOT to climb... I always think of young guys as being adrenaline junkies and willing to take any risk out there - I assumed based on their age that these two were the type to leap first and regret the decision later... they proved me very wrong and I couldn't be happier about that.

The skies were clear and so we set up to play with star trails that evening. I've never had the opportunity to try, it seems every time I think of it or have a good foreground subject, the weather is against me. As it was I had to give up early when I couldn't feel my feet. Another cold night in the sleeping bag but at least it didn't snow!

Joshua Tree

We've finally made it to Albuquerque, New Mexico for the North American Nature Photography Summit... or as my husband likes to say 'NAMBLA'... to which I always shout back 'NANPA'!!

But first Iain and I spent a few COLD days on the ground in Joshua Tree. I have been to Joshua Tree only once and only for one night as I was passing through to other locals. I've been eager to return to the park since. I have to admit, while I enjoyed the park, I wasn't at all thrilled by the ranger staff. The ranger at the gate was disinterested, wanted to see the park pass and wave me on as quickly as possible. I asked what his favorite camp site was and he paused and thought, I pressed further and asked which was the quietest... the one word answer... Belle. Ok... so we entered the park and started to check out all of the different camping sites. As I was driving down the main road I caught movement out of the corner of my eye... an absolutely beautiful coyote was standing on a rock in the most icon of desert southwest scenes. I slowed and pointed her out to Iain and no sooner had I done so but a ranger swooped in, obsuring the view and demanded to know why I had stopped on the road. I pointed past him, obviously excited and babbled about the beautiful coyote that I had spotted and he stated "Well, you can't stop here." Rather than argue and face expulsion from the park I grumbled and moved along. Aren't parks meant to be enjoyed? What ever happened to slow leisurely driving through a beautiful area? Granted the traffic Jams created in Yosemite and Yellowstone by visitors gauking at the wildlife can get teadious but not allowing people to even pull over to the side of the road to admire nature in a National Park??? I guess this behavior isn't tolorated in Joshua Tree.

We did end up in Belle, camp site #3 which was tucked behind a rock outcrop, shielding us from the worse of the cold wind which was blowing through. By the time we got the car unpacked, the tents pitched and camp set up we had just an hour before sunset. We raced (within the speed limit of course) to the Cholla Cactus garden. We ended up with about 10 minutes of light before the sun disappeared behind the mountain, throwing the valley into darkness. The wind picked up and it was bitterly cold so we decided to make it an early night.

The next morning the storm clouds had rolled in and we were regreting not trying for star trails when we had a clear sky. We headed out to Keys View and in woolen hats, layers of thermals and down jackets we were able to face the wind and work on capturing the spectaular view of Coachella through the Indio Hills. One tourist asked Iain why he was crouching beside the path taking pictures when he had a perfectly good view from the lookout point. Iain pragmatically said "Why don't you come down here and see for yourself". Surprisingly the guy did and he was so pleased with the view of the trees in the foreground that he agreed it was a better angle. Funny that people so often follow the herd and rarely explore beyond what someone else tells them they SHOULD be enjoying.

With the overcast skies we ended up in Hidden Valley working the Yucca spines and cactus that fill the box canyon. Before I knew it I had been working the same plant for 45 minutes! The clouds got darker and darker until they finally opened up and let loose with the snow. As I snuggled in for the night, watching the snow and sleet coat the top of my tent I've never been so appreciative of thermals and flannel lined sleeping bags!

Moving on

We spent this morning at Zabriski Point again finding different angles and enjoying the sunrise. Ran into Photographer, Donald Hall, a lovely gentleman whom I had briefly met at the Art Wolfe International Conservation Photography Awards. He was kind enough to have worn a bright red jacket on his trek up the hills. I worked him into several panoramic shots of the point in a "Where's Waldo" kind of way. I can't wait to get home to stitch these panos together! We chatted for a bit and he gave me several ideas for my next trip to Death Valley. THANK YOU, Don!

We left Zabriski and headed toward Badwater with the intent of shooting macros of the salt. Along the way we found another coorporative raven and spent about an hour parked on the side of the road on our bellies photographing him as he hopped from rock to rock. I'm sure people wondered what in the world we were doing laying in the dirt on the side of the road while they were rushing by to see the next big view. We finally made it to Badwater and worked the salt for a while. We had to be certain to be back at the hotel to get the remainder of our gear from our rooms before check out time.

After lunch we headed West out of the park and turned South on Trona-Wildrose Road. We stopped at the Ballarat Ghost Town. A small collection of mud houses in disrepair. The mood of a ghost town was completely absent from this place... there were RV's parked nearby, signs for the showers, a large gift shop... So we headed back onto the road after a quick look.

We reached the Trona Pinnacles around 3pm and the light was flat and ugly. I could see images everywhere I looked but nothing that would work without the light. We explored the area, waiting for the storm clouds to break just a little bit to give us a hint of light. From time to time we got a 30 second window, just quick enough to set up the tripod and snap one image before another cloud moved in. There was a film crew there, setting up to shoot something so we steered well clear. Only two oher vehicles showed up in the time we were there.

Finally, about 20 minutes before the sun would be hidden by the horizon the clouds broke and we were treated to light on the Pinnacles. The difference the light made was amazing. The entire landscape came to life and all of the potential images I had been frustrated in not capturing properly, came to life.

The Trona Pinnacles are a National Natural Landmark managed by the BLM. Comprised of over 500 Tufa spires (calcium carbonate), some as high as 140 feet, the Trona Pinnacles are a spectacular sight to see. The spires were formed between 10,000 and 100,000 years ago when Searles Lake formed a link in a chain of Pleistocene lakes that ranged between Mono Lake and Death Valley. The Pinnacles have been used as a filming location for episodes of Lost in Space and Star Trek and movies like "Planet of the Apes".

Tomorrow we reach Joshua Tree. We'll finally get out the camping gear and stay a few nights on the ground which I can't wait for! Unfortunately... or fotunately depending on your view point, there won't be internet acess from there so you will all have to wait to see what comes out of the next few days! Be safe everyone and get outside and enjoy nature!! =0))

Weather Cursed or Charmed?

I seem to be a weather magnet... In Zion I started the hike to Angels Landing with several friends on a beautiful warm day boasting of a clear blue sky... by the time we reached the top black angry clouds had rolled in, lightning was striking and it looked like Armageddon!

This was not an isolated incident... tornadoes in upstate New York and Texas, a week of camping in the rain in Maine, the tail end of a hurricane on Midway Atoll... Weather seems to follow me.

So is this a curse or a blessing? For the photographer I tend to think blessing. Death Valley is a wonderful place to photograph but throw a couple of storm clouds up and WOW does it pop! Add pools of water in an area that hardly ever sees rain and you have something special. So while we didn't get to visit all of the iconic spots, we definitely came away with some some unique images.

The road crews are working tirelessly to get all of the roads back open and so by Tuesday morning we had an entirely new stretch of road to explore. We shot Zabriski Point at sunrise which turned out to also be moonset. We weren't in the prime position to take full advantage of the moonset but we managed to come up with some nice compositions which included the moon and the unique features of the landscape.

From there we started scouting our sunset location. We drove to Badwater and hiked out onto the salt flats looking for the wide, flat, white, salt rings for which the area is famous. No such luck - the rain has made the ground swell. Badwater looked more like the Devil's Golfcourse with thick high ridges of broken ground. So after a nice walk we headed out to scout other locations. A quick hike in Golden Canyon where we met a wonderfully cooporative raven and then we explored West Side Drive. At the lowest point in the road we found a wonderful mud area and decided this would be our sunset spot. Walking the gravel edge we had to be very careful not to sink into the deep mud... I had a few moments when my tripod slowly stopped being level... after checking the legs were infact locked I had to laugh at myself when I realized the offending leg had actually sunk into the mud. I'm looking forward to heading back to Death Valley to explore some of the side canyons off West Side Drive. We only saw one other vehicle down there, all the other cars stuck to the main highway. In other locations tourists poured off buses and milled around the parking areas.... lining up outside the bathrooms, venturing a few feet out into the desert before retreating to the safety of their metal shell. No thank you! Right now my shoes are covered with a thick mixture of salt and orange clay mud, my jeans are spattered with mud, the knees are thick with salt, I have cactus scratches on the backs of my hands and dirt under my nails. I couldn't be more happy.