Menu

Tag: photography

Rain and monsoon photography in Arizona

storm clouds Skull Valley AZTemperatures held in the 80s last week while humidity climbed into rain just about every day providing possibilities for monsoon photography and trying new ideas with multiple cameras.  Predictions for the week went from 30% chance—that often misses me—to 100% when sure enough, the rain came.  I’m a ceraunophilia who loves thunder and lightning.  Those negative ions provide a natural high.

Bunting bird molting Skull Valley AZBeing the trail cam hasn’t caught anything more than me and cows in over a week I figured to move it.  But when I walked around looking for a safe (from cows) place nothing appealed.  So it’s still mounted on the 5th-wheel ladder pointing towards some water bowls.  Food and water should attract wildlife.  I don’t feed animals but have put out some bowls for water.  Of course with all the rain lately they don’t need my water bowls.  Except a cow broke one getting a drink.  I spotted some kind of Bunting bathing in a bowl and managed a photo through the window.

Gaelyn looking out window Skull Valley AZ

stormy view E with rain Skull Valley AZI’d been working on a video when the rain came, and came down with force along with thunder and lightning.  So I set up the tripod and put the rarely used lightning trigger on the Nikon and pointed it towards the storm through the window hoping for some monsoon photography.  Didn’t get a thing and there was definitely lightning in sight.

hummingbird moth Skull Valley AZThe wildlife I’ve seen lately has likely been too small for the trail cam.  I was filling water bowls and saw a lovely White-lined Sphinx moth furiously flitting about.  Probably took 50 photos to get two.

squirrel collageI stacked more rocks around the cheap plastic bowls for camouflage.  And wouldn’t you know it, a squirrel came by and pushed one of the rocks away, with intention, then sniffed it over and seemed to rub and leave its own scent, perhaps to cover mine.

view E clouds Skull Valley AZ

view S sunset clouds moon Skull Valley AZAnother fun day of clouds with some rumbles but few sprinkles that left with a pretty sunset that even included the moon.

Brushy Mt low clouds Skull Valley AZRained over night and the humidity and chances of rain continued to increase.  It felt sticky.  I walked down to the wash to check for moisture there as I had to drive across it early the next morning.  Looked good so I didn’t bother to move the truck.  Just before noon it started to sprinkle and continued with a gentle female rain for about an hour.  That light rain just soaks into the ground unlike the hard rains that saturate, float, and flow.  Mostly the clouds just teased staying over the mountains to my east and west.  Worked on blog posts and finally put the Geogypsy Journey page together.  There’s a tab under the new header shot.

boulders Watson Lake clouds Prescott AZI don’t like early.  But needed to get a blood draw for some routine lab work and that meant fasting for 10 hours.  So I was at the lab shortly after they opened and thankfully had an adept phlebotomist.  In 20 minutes I was out the door to morning coffee already made and waiting for me in the truck.  Then I met Joann for breakfast and she drove us to Watson Lake.

boulders clouds Watson Lake Prescott AZbouders North Shore trl Watson Lake Prescott AZ

We got there before the predicted rain so took a short walk along the North Shore Trail.  The granite boulders are magnificent yet do make walking a challenge.

granite Datura flowers Watson Lake Prescott AZDatura

white Datura flower Watson Lake Prescott AZclosed Datura flowers Watson Lake Prescott AZ

Many crevices offer good conditions for the beautiful Sacred Datura to grow and bloom.  It’s a hallucinogenic poisonous plant so you could get high, or die.

ducks under bench Watson Lake Prescott AZSee the ducks?

Although swimming isn’t allowed in the lake, kayak rentals are available, or bring your own, or a paddle board.  I put together a video about Watson Lake.  We didn’t stay long as the heat, humidity, and mosquitos were brutal.

grass forest Granite Crk Prescott AZ

Granite Crk Prescott AZAlso made a quick stop by Granite Creek.  But once again the mosquitos chased us off.  As much as I love to get out for some monsoon photography, I just can’t tolerate the mosquitos.  Joann went on her way and I spent the afternoon indoors doing chores like laundry and shopping.

Cumulus cloud Skull Valley AZCumulus clouds billowing to the east over the Bradshaw Mountains didn’t bode well for catching full moon rise.  Yet those same clouds sure made for spectacular monsoon photography.

I set the phone in a window and took time lapse.  Another new to me photography idea.  I’m sharing the first one taken and learned to allow for more space above.

storm clouds Skull Valley AZThe nepholographer in me can’t stop taking pictures of clouds throughout the day.

Roadrunner bird Skull Valley AZ

cow thru window E Skull Valley AZSaw a Roadrunner and some of the neighbors came by.

full moon clouds Skull Valley AZ

full moon clouds Skull Valley AZStayed cloudy for the full moon rise though it peeked through just a bit much later.

storm clouds view E Skull Valley AZTime lapse is fun, and easy.  Just set up the shot and push start.  My phone will take ten minutes of shots spaced 30 seconds apart with a choice of speeds 4x, 8x, 16x, and 32x.  After the first try at 8x I bumped it up to 32x.  I mean who wants to watch ten minutes of cloud video?  Plus when the filming stops I used the remote to start it again, and again, and again.  Then those can be put together in Movie Maker and one hour of shots can become 1.7 minutes of time lapse monsoon photography.  And I think it looks really cool.

camera on tripod from RV storm clouds Skull Valley AZ

camera on tripod Skull Valley AZBecause there were great clouds and lightning but no rain I sat the Nikon on tripod outside with the lightning trigger.  Luckily I also brought it in just as the rain began but never captured any of the lightning that was going on.

storm clouds view E Skull Valley AZ

misty view W Skull Valley AZThe rain fell for a couple of hours and the clouds continued their show so I did more time lapses from inside.

view W storm clouds rain shaft Skull Valley AZMore wonderful clouds and opportunities for monsoon photography the next afternoon.

rainbow view E SKull Valley AZThen just before sunset with a hard rain from the north, the sun came out and I searched hard until I could see a rainbow to the east.

raining Brushy Mt clouds sun setting crepuscular rays Skull Valley AZI tell you, at the end of the day, this pluviophile finds immense joy and peace of mind.

view W sunset clouds Skull Valley AZAnd then, if the mosquitos aren’t too bad, I step outside to breath deep of the petrichor.

Arizona, monsoon, photography, Places I've been, Skull Valley, United States , , , , 14 Comments

Active week of monsoon rain end of July

light & shadow Weaver Mts storm clouds Iron Springs Rd AZThe rumbles of possible monsoon rain brought water to the washes, toad song, puddle reflections, lower temperatures, and high humidity.  But mostly it just teased us with stormy skies that skirted around the valley I live in.

berm trees fog Skull Valley AZBrushy Mt obscured

Aridzona needs monsoon rain, yet there’s a fine line between not enough and too much.  A little over a week ago the rains came, sometimes harder and longer than others.  The ground tends to dry out rapidly.  On the ranch the soil is mostly decomposed granite, the kind of stuff people love for yard landscaping.  It provides for good drainage.  But of course the land isn’t flat around here so there are washes, usually dry, and both natural and human made drainages.

Cattle Skull Valley AZThe berm you see in many of my photos was created long ago when this was an active ranch with more cattle than the current three.  Natural water flow is encouraged to gather in a low spot.  I live opposite that low spot and haven’t yet seen water pool there.  Just cows.

flowers toad pond clouds Skull Valley AZI also hadn’t yet seen water flow in the wash that crosses my driveway.  So when the rain stopped I went to see and was drawn in like the pied-piper by a song I didn’t know, and here’s the video.

flowers pond Spadefoot toad Skull Valley AZ

flowers pond Spadefoot toad Skull Valley AZBack home I started researching the sound of frogs.  I wasn’t sure what they looked like but discovered they were Spadefoot Toads, capable of surviving underground for years until there’s enough rain.  Then they court, mate, lay eggs, and tadpoles grow within about a week to bury themselves digging in with their spade-like rear legs, then they wait.  They are a non-poisonous toad, lacking the parotoid gland that can produce toxins.  Though rarely seen being only 2-3 inches long, they inhabit a large territory in the western US.  There is also a European species of Spadefoot Toad.

spadefoottoad by Bruce TaubertOK, now you know more than you wanted, but I did the research.  And borrowed a photo because I couldn’t get any.  (Photograph by Bruce D. Taubert  https://brucetaubert.smugmug.com/ )

reflections Skull Valley AZSlices of a Cottonwood tree

I went out again later to no sound and discovered other puddles with reflections, not something I see often in the deserts of Arizona.  But bring on that monsoon rain and pretty soon there will be green grass and bugs.  After dark the toad song returned.  And the bugs were out, so hope those toads were hungry.

wash RV Skull Valley AZMy 5th-wheel (center), truck parked behind me

The next morning under sunny skies the ground was dry and hard so I figured it was a good time to move my truck and park on the uphill side of the driveway and currently dry-wash.  Nothing happening at the new to me toad pond.

grass bush low clouds Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZ

Just before 11am, the monsoon rain began, gentle at first with lots of rumbles all around.  Soon the tempo increased as the temperature dropped.  I could feel excitement building as I circled the windows to watch the show.  Suddenly lightning cracked right overhead and wind blown rain raced by sideways. I love the exhilaration!

Prickly Poppy flowers in pond Skull Valley AZBy 2:00pm when I walked to the toad pond the ground was dry and the air steamy.  No song, and only a wee bloated toad being pushed around by water beetles.

clouds over Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZSuch is life on the ranch.  Another day of clouds in motion, mostly teasing and grumbling but bringing very little monsoon rain.

Thunderhead over Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZYet heavy rain warnings continued for the week.

Bradshaw Mts low clouds Iron Springs Rd AZRain overnight left the surface ground moist and the 64° felt cool on my skin.  I had a morning doctor’s appointment, just routine checkup if I actually went routinely.  With a 90% chance of heavy rain I took my rubber goulashes along in case I had to ford the wash to get back home.

dead rattlesnake Ferguson Valley Rd Skull Valley AZrattle snake bones Ferguson Valley Rd Skull Valley AZ

Saw this dead rattlesnake (about 3 feet long) on my road on the way out and only bones on the way in later.

creek trees reflections redrock Prescott AZ

grass & creek Prescott AZAfter the doctor proclaimed me healthy, Joann met me and drove to the Granite Dells with Watson Lake.  Because monsoon rain began in buckets we didn’t hike.  But it stopped by the time we made another stop along a sweet little creek.  More reflections and flowing water.

Gaelyn in tophatBefore heading home I stopped at the thrift store and just couldn’t resist yet another hat.

Bradshaw Mts light on Thumb Butte storm clouds Prescott AZThe drive home was as cloudy beautiful as the morning drive in.

RV reverse sunset clouds rainbow Skull Valley AZAnd the day ended with a most colorful sight.

boulders low clouds Brushy Mt Skull Valley AZBack to life on the ranch and another day of afternoon monsoon rain with clouds dancing around the feet of Brushy Mountain.

mushrooms Skull Valley AZI can’t believe all the mushrooms popping everywhere.

shrinking pond Skull Valley AZNo toad action at the slowly shrinking pond, just well watered prickly flowers.

rainy Bradshaw Mts storm clouds Iron Springs Rd Prescott NF AZ

Prescott valley storm clouds Iron Springs Rd Prescott NF AZSadly I had to return to Prescott the next day, but for good reasons.  I picked up my new glasses, actually just replaced lenses, and had a bone density test.  I also grocery shopped and spent a lot of time in the truck waiting out the monsoon rain in between.

water in wash Ferguson Valley Rd Skull Valley AZFortunately, my wash didn’t look like this.  So I drove across to home for easier unpacking.  Besides, I didn’t figure to go out again for a while.  I took my chances.

storm clouds Skull Valley AZSo, once again, back to life on the ranch and more monsoon rain clouds.

last light cliffs Bradshaw Mts Skull Valley AZI took almost all day to create a 20 second video that will lead most all new YouTube videos.  It’s an intro of sorts.  Please let me know what you think.  I used it at the beginning of another video that took three days to create.  More later, but you can watch it here.   And PLEASE, Share, Like, and Subscribe.

Brushy Mt sunset clouds Skull Valley AZ

trees boulders sunset clouds Skull Valley AZ

trees sunset clouds rainbow Skull Valley AZThat night the sunset colors were 360° with a rainbow thrown in to the south.

storm clouds Skull Valley AZSuddenly it’s the last day of July. Where has this summer gone?

Kestrel bird metate Skull Valley AZI tried unsuccessfully to get shots of a Gray-breasted Jay bathing in the metate water and then a Kestrel flew in and I got lucky with that. WOW! My first closeup of this beautiful bird.

storm clouds Skull Valley AZThe month finished off with more monsoon rain that came down hard but didn’t usually last too long.  That’s a good thing.  That hard monsoon rain is what causes flooding which means I can’t drive across the wash.  The gentle female rain is just enough to make the grass weeds green.

boat Skull Valley AZBTW, This is on my side of wash.  Wonder if it floats?

Arizona, monsoon, Places I've been, Prescott, Skull Valley, United States , , , , 18 Comments

Grand Canyon Ponderosa petrichor and views too

late light canyon birds storm clouds sun rays Desert View South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaA much needed mini-vacation to escape the heat found me breathing deep of the Grand Canyon Ponderosa petrichor while exploring the lesser visited eastern end of the South Rim under monsoon skies and boondocking in the adjacent Kaibab National Forest.

plateaus sunset clouds sunrays Desert View South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

canyon sunrays sunset clouds Desert View South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaOK, I left you hanging last week, but I wasn’t sure what would happen. After shooting sunset over Grand Canyon, I decided not to drive back into the forest in the dark and chanced staying in the Desert View parking lot.  Turned out I was undisturbed through the night*.

sunrise Desert View Watchtower South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

sunrise Desert View Watchtower South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

sunrise Desert View Watchtower South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaWoke up 30 minutes before the alarm set at a ridiculous 4:30am, made and drank only a little coffee as the sky was brightening.  I grabbed water and gear, including the tripod, and headed directly to Desert View Watchtower.  I was the only person there and moved all around the 180° possible without having wings.

canyon Colorado River sunrise Desert View Watchtower South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

Cedar Mt sunrise clouds Desert View Watchtower South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaIt was a pretty sunrise, but I’ve seen better, and this was a difficult place to shoot.  Now I know.

Watchtower from Navajo Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaLooking east back at the Watchtower

After an early breakfast I headed back west, first stop Navajo Point and again had the place to myself.

light & shadow inner canyon Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

three Ravens Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaFollowed by a quick stop at Lipan Point where I was entertained by a trio of over-friendly Ravens.  It was just them and me.

I was exhausted from a restless night and too early morning so headed back to the national forest to find a new camp that I wouldn’t have to share.  Got settled under the pines and after lunch took a nap.  Awoke to soft rain on the roof and the delightful smell of Ponderosa petrichor pouring in my open door and windows.

Abert squirrels Kaibab National Forest ArizonaMovement caught my eye about 50 feet into the forest as two Abert squirrels chased each other in unabandoned delight, for them and me.  They came pretty close to the camper but I dared not open the door so grabbed the camera and shot through the screen.  The first of these tassel-eared squirrels I’d seen this visit.  Used to see their cousins, Kaibab squirrels, on the North Rim all the time with the main visual difference being Abert has a white belly and only underside of tail is white.  Both delightfully entertaining.

The next morning I woke way too early and don’t plan to make a habit of it.  Rained lightly on and off for a good part of the day so I sat inside working on a blog post and goofing around online.  So amazing, I can be sitting in a forest deep and get a darn good signal.

Abert squirrel camp2 FR310 Kaibab National Forest ArizonaLook closely at the bottom center

I sat outside soaking up the afternoon, listening to distant rumbles, watching the clouds drift away to the northwest, and just before dusk the Abert squirrels came back.

Abert Squirrel Kaibab National Forest ArizonaPonderosa petrichor and squirrels were the next days entertainment as well.  Wish I could bottle the essence of petrichor in the forest, and the desert too.  Geosmin is the chemical that produces that unmistakable aroma of petrichor, which loosely translates as earth odor.  I think the scent helps keep me calm because after working all day on the Rambling Road Trip to Grand Canyon video, it scrambled, lost audio, and partly disappeared from Movie Maker.  Instead of screaming, I went to bed.

canyon river West Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaWith a weekend approaching I decided to get to the rim once again before the crowds.  So, after coffee and checking emails I rolled off this delightful forest camp and returned to my favorite eastern overlook, Lipan Point.  Much better than another day at the computer.

canyon West clouds LIpan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaWhen I pulled in to park a car in front of me parked in the middle of the parallel over-sized vehicle parking when there was plenty of car parking available.  I rolled down my window and asked her to move mentioning this being for big rigs like mine.  She did and I thanked her.  Then I parked there most of the day.

canyon river Walhalla Plateau storm cloud Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park Arizona

canyon river West & North clouds Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaEnjoyed time out along the rim watching a storm build over the Walhalla Plateau on the North Rim.  After lunch I continued to enjoy the view from the camper while working on the next blog post.

pair Ravens Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaThe Lipan Raven trio begged from every person who got out of their car, and frequently got fed.  What amazes me is how briefly people stay at the overlook, two minutes tops for a quick oh-ah, selfie, and gone.  Unless it’s a van full of Asians because they all have to take an individual selfie, in the exact same place and line up to do it.  I was tempted to set up camera on tripod to watch people and cars come and go so quickly. I’d laugh if it wasn’t so sad.

Raven on rock Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaThose Ravens came right up to the step below my open camper door with Sierra almost ready to pounce if they came any closer.  I did get a little video that will be shared when I get to it.  Later when back out at the rim, I saw where the Ravens stashed some of their begged treats in holes in a rock.  They are too smart for their own health.

North Rim rain clouds Lipan Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaStorm clouds danced over the canyon all day but by late afternoon the sky was a dense gray that didn’t forebode well for any sunset colors so I returned to the forest to find another camp.

pine pollen puddle Kaibab National Forest ArizonaPonderosa Pine pollen puddle

puddle cloud reflection quins Kaibab National Forest ArizonaPuddlequins

The entire next day it rained on and off, sometimes soft and gentle female rain, but also hard and long enough to create puddles.  Sure was glad I didn’t have to go anywhere.

Ponderosa Pine clouds camp3 Kaibab National Forest ArizonaFelt like the Ponderosa Pine Symphony complete with light show and heavy percussion.  I love to feel the rumble, hear the birds, taste the rain, smell the Ponderosa petrichor, and see sun light patches on the forest floor. 

bird tree last light glow Kaibab National Forest ArizonaI was able to recover the messed up video after much searching for answers but there were more problems to come.

Saturday dawned sunny and bright which dried most of the puddles and solar charged the camper battery.  I uploaded the repaired video.  Yet it seems nothing is easy in YouTube. I must have searched for well over an hour how to add music and then it got stuck so I didn’t know if I added enough or any at all.  I’m not knowledgeable about music but figured anything would be an improvement over the engine noise that isn’t reduced by the external microphone with wind ball. I know it should get easier eventually, but some of this really isn’t fun.  Sorry, there’s no music.

The scent is described as vanilla or butterscotch, to me it’s cookies

Stayed sunny most of the day with just enough sprinkles to enhance the Ponderosa petrichor.

fading view East to Watchtower Grandview Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaI rolled out of camp Sunday morning and headed to the rim and west to Grandview Point.  I planned to hang out there enjoying the view for several hours then meet a friend for lunch in the Village near the Market.

Horseshoe Mesa Grandview Point South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaFrom this overlook, the Grandview trail drops 2500 feet in 3 miles to Horseshoe Mesa then splits east and west to other backcountry options (permits needed).  The original trail was built in 1890 by Pete Berry and fellow miners to the Last Chance Mine.  It’s said the copper ore was rich but the amount was small.  So Berry built the Grandview Hotel in 1897, first hotel along the rim, and offered mule rides into the canyon.  Tourism was born.  Then the railroad arrived to the south rim in 1901, 14 miles away, copper prices crashed six years later, and by 1908 the hotel shut down and was later dismantled.

tree tops dark clouds South Rim Grand Canyon National Park ArizonaAfter lunch it poured and I left the park heading south into a different area of the Kaibab National Forest in search of another camp before driving home Monday.  And so enjoyed a little more Ponderosa petrichor.

*Disclaimer:  I am in no way advocating or recommending “camping” in national park parking lots.  However, if you are self contained, respectful, and plan to photograph at night, it’s really the only option.  Just be prepared for the late night knock.  In the future, I would consider putting a sign on the dash and camper door, “Photographing night sky”, and just hope for the best.

Sierra cat Kaibab National Forest ArizonaStill seeking kitty sitter for a stayCATion for a week in mid-September.  Could be either stationary in the big 5th-wheel Skull Valley, Arizona.  OR,  Consider travel in the truckcamper at your own expense.  Sierra is a wonderful glamper and companion once she gets to know you.

Arizona, Grand Canyon National Park South Rim, monsoon, Places I've been, United States , , , , 19 Comments

Lijit

© Copyright 2008-2024. Geogypsytraveler.com