Menu

Tag: sunrise

Sunrise Sunset Nepholography

Sunrise, sunset.  Sunrise, sunset.  Swiftly go the days, weeks, months…    And I’m practicing nepholography even though I am not a nephologist.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West over Weaver Mountains 12-12-17

OK, so it’s mostly sunsets I see.  I’m still working on that getting up early thing.  Honestly, my ideal sleeping time is 11pm to 7am, followed by a slow two hour wake-up over coffee and the computer.  Have to see what’s happening in the world.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 12-26-17

I’ve been sitting around more than usual with plenty of time on my hands.  Just haven’t felt motivated to get out much.  I usually go to town with Berta once a week, could be Wickenburg or Prescott.  My needs are simple.

fence trees sunrise Yarnell Arizonasunrise Southeast 12-31-17

pre-sunset boulders Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-1-18

Sunrise, sunset.  That’s about all I’ve been photographing lately.  Not every day is awesome.  Takes clouds to really make it good.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West with contrails 1-2-18

If you’ve followed me very long you’ve seen lots of photos of sunsets over the Weaver Mountains from ten winters in Yarnell, Arizona.  I never tire of this western view, the overall shape of the ridge-line and the rock figures that adorn it.

trees sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset South 1-2-18

boulder fence sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset North 1-4-18

boulders sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset Northwest 1-4-18

Yet I also like the burnt twisted trees and giant boulders.

Weaver Mountains sunrise moon Yarnell Arizonasunrise West 1-5-18

Sunrise, sunset.  Same scene different picture, no two alike.  Add a bit of moon.

East trees Rich Hill sunrise Yarnell Arizonasunrise East 1-5-18

I frequently spend the entire day in the camper, on the computer, and enjoying my marvelous view.  Spend way too much time on Facebook.  Not enough time reading and keeping caught up on blogs with no excuse.  Most of the rest of the time is labeling photos.  I’m so anal about that.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-8-18

I gained weight.  Probably too much sitting.  From Berta who has struggled with weight for years, I get no sympathy.  But it’s a new concept for me.  If I still owned them, I could have been wearing clothes from high school, almost 50 years ago.  And although I know I’m not over weight, it’s a whole pant size, from 6 to 8, my max 140 pounds.  I’m only 5’5”, and shrinking.  I had to buy new pants.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-8-18

Several people told me to expect weight gain after I quit smoking in June.  Not sure why it’s taken six months to catch up to me.  Eating habits didn’t change so I’m blaming this on lack of exercise.  And I’m sticking to that story.  If you see me this winter, please encourage me to get out and walk and please come along.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-10-18

Sunrise, sunset.  I love to watch the cloudy changing sky.  It’s like a dance and I don’t know the steps.  Never know what to expect which is part of the magic.  Brings the nepholographer (person who photographs clouds) out in me.

Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-10-18

But not very far out.  All these shots were taken within sight of my camper.  Sometimes I jump in and out taking some shots in between.  It is chilly for the best sunrise and sunset photos so I am content not to have to go far from the warmth of my tiny rolling home.

trees Weaver Mountains sunset Yarnell Arizonasunset West 1-14-18

I’m just rambling on.  But maybe that’s because I haven’t been out much.  Sometimes I’m an introverted hermit and other times my extrovert won’t shut up.  Really, just ask anybody who’s met me.

trees sunrise Yarnell Arizonasunrise East 1-15-18

But I really am beginning to feel like a slug and it just might be time to ramble on.  It does seem that plans made during the last couple of months have mostly gone astray.  So I’m almost afraid to say…     I’m going to Quartzsite this week.

life, photography , , , , , 20 Comments

A brief and windy visit to Death Valley National Park

November 16-18, 2017

Artists Palette Death Valley National Park CaliforniaArtists Drive Death Valley National Park

As the weather deteriorated at Alabama Hills, in other words snow on the Sierras, it was time to get to warmer climate like Death Valley at or below sea level.  But their is that matter of CA190 east climbing not one but two mountain ranges to get there.

double rainbow low clouds Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine CaliforniaThe clouds hung low obscuring the Eastern Sierras from view but right before leaving I was gifted with a double rainbow.

CA190 East CaliforniaFollowed by a desert wind on the nose with sandy salts flowing across the road from Lake Owens.  The first pass over the Inyo Mountains helped reduce the wind.  Sure glad I didn’t need fuel in Panamint Springs at $4.99/gal for diesel.

wind blown sand Panamint Valley CaliforniaThen a wicked south wind in Panamint Valley nearly knocked me off the road with a sand blasting strong enough to obliterate much of the view.  Remember this is blowing on the side of the camper like a billboard going down the road and on the fridge side so the pilot blew out.

Panamint Mountains CA190 East Death Valley National Park CaliforniaThis followed by another climb into clearer air in the Panamint Range and back down into Death Valley with a little less wind.

Artists Drive Death Valley National Park California

Artists Drive Death Valley National Park CaliforniaStayed the first night at Texas Springs, my favorite of all the parking lot campgrounds in the park.  After snagging my campsite I took the Artists Drive which was closed last winter and is now newly paved with maybe some more parking areas along the one way road.

sunrise Texas Spring campground Death Valley National Park CaliforniaAfter sunrise I moved to the Stovepipe Wells campground where I would meet friend and fellow Ranger Jeremy late in the afternoon.

motorbikes tents sand storm mountains Stovepipe Wells campground Death Valley National Park CaliforniaThe tent area was filling fast along the northern edge of this parking lot camp.  Because I’m considered a RV I can’t park along that side but can be nearby along a curb.  So I paid for a tent site, hung the receipt and hunkered in watching the dust and sand fly up the valley to the east.  It appeared to be moving north away from me but then turned and headed towards camp.  I closed the door and windows and hung on tight.  Even inside the camper felt like a sand storm.  People were grabbing and abandoning tents for their cars.  Like a haboob I guess.  Not a great day to take photos.

sandstorm sunset Stovepipe Wells campground Death Valley National Park CaliforniaDusty sunset

Jeremy got in after dark, took me to dinner, stayed up most of the night watching meteors—saw 11 of them—and in the morning slept in his car instead of fighting the wind to set up his tent.

Keane Wonder Mine Death Valley National Park California

aerial tramway Keane Wonder Mine Death Valley National Park CaliforniaThe next day we visited the recently reopened Keane Wonder Mine with it’s unique mile-long aerial tramway.      https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/historyculture/keane-wonder-mine.htm

Jeremy Visitor Center Death Valley National Park CaliforniaWhile Jeremy worked on his Junior Ranger book I watched a volunteer demonstrate flint knapping in the visitor center courtyard.  I earned my Death Valley Junior Ranger badge a few years ago.

Mesquite dunes sunset mountains Death Valley National Park CaliforniaMade a quick stop by the Mesquite Sand Dunes but it was getting late and Jeremy planned to BBQ dinner, which he is very good at, so we returned to camp.

Daylight Pass Road CA NV borderAnd in the morning we both took off our separate ways, me to drive up Mud Canyon on the Daylight Pass Road to explore the ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada.

California, Death Valley National Park, Places I've been, United States , , , , , , , , 14 Comments

Chasing the light at Alabama Hills Lone Pine California

November 12-16, 2017

fall tree boulders Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine California
My last visit to Alabama Hills during late winter, the Sierras wore a blanket of white providing a stark backdrop to the ever changing light and colors of the sculptural granite boulders below.  This fall visit to meet a friend and make photos brought the first snow on the Eastern Sierras for the coming winter.

After a few days camping at Kelso Dunes I spent one night near Fossil Falls, a convenient place to disperse camp for free on the way to Alabama Hills.  In the morning I continued to Lone Pine, California which took me past the almost dried up Owens Lake, basically a salt flat.  Met a friend at the Eastern Sierras multi-agency visitor center.  Then we headed to a camp at Alabama Hills in a different location than where I’ve stayed before.

Eastern Sierras Mount Whitney sundog Alabama Hills CaliforniaSaw a sundog over the mountains indicating ice crystals in the clouds and telling me cold weather would be coming soon.

Gaelyn boulder Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine CaliforniaYet I found a sun warmed rock to sit on, looking for shapes and faces in the boulders.  (Thanks for the photo Tom.)

rock dragon Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine CaliforniaI see a dragon in this one.  What do you see?

Sunset wasn’t very exciting so we retreated to Tom’s RV where he made dinner and we chatted the evening away.

morning light Lone Peak Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaWoke up early for sunrise but wasn’t all that impressed.  I’d been hoping for first light to brilliantly glow on the Sierras but there was too much cloud on the eastern horizon.

sunset rays Lone Pine Peak Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine CaliforniaAnd by sunset not a cloud in the sky as the sun sank behind Lone Pine Peak.  Oh well.  Ya’ get what you get.

sunrise Alabama Hills Lone Pine California

early light Mount Whitney Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaThe next morning a cloudy and colorful sunrise brought some light to the new day causing Mount Whitney to glow a bit.

early light Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaAs the shadows receded toward me lightening the landscape I began to warm up and removed a layer.

trees Eastern Sierras Whitney Portal Road Inyo National Forest CaliforniaAfter breakfast Tom took off for his coastal California home and I drove up the Whitney Portal Road.

creek Mount Whitney Lone Pine campground Inyo National Forest CaliforniaOnce in the Inyo National Forest camping is allowed only in campgrounds like the Lone Pine which I drove through and was open for free during winter with about 35 medium-sized sites and maybe open bathrooms.

View North Owens Valley Whitney Portal Road Inyo National Forest CaliforniaI continued up the curvy Portal Road a few more miles to a nice wide pull off right before the pavement turned to gravel.  Lucky me even found a signal so I took care of some business and had lunch with a view of the valley below.  I love when that happens.

boulders Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaWhen returning to the bouldery BLM of Alabama Hills I stayed a little closer to the highway and found a nice camp with a signal and some views too.  There are many options for parking either near the boulders or in the open where I prefer and none are usually very level.

sun setting & sundog Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaAs the sun dropped to the mountainous horizon another sundog appeared in swift and wispy clouds but the sunset proved uneventful.  Me thinks there is a change in weather coming.

morning light Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine California

boulders morning light Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaYet morning clouds to the east limited the direct sun on the Sierras to the west.

boulders morning light Eastern Sierras lenticular clouds Alabama Hills Lone Pine California

17b trees boulders morning light Mount Whitney Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaMountains have a mind of their own sometimes creating lenticular clouds almost in imitation of their shape.

morning light Mount Whitney Eastern Sierras Alabama Hills Lone Pine California

boulders clouds Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaRolling and moving clouds put on quite a morning show that continued to build all day.

trees boulders Eastern Sierras low clouds sunset Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaEventually the clouds dropped over the mountain peaks until Whitney was out of sight.  I watched the weather online and saw that possible wind and wet was on it’s way which meant I would be leaving soon too.

double rainbow Alabama Hills BLM Lone Pine CaliforniaIt rained softly in the night and the morning was gray with low clouds.  Definitely time for me to head to warmer weather.  Thank goodness I hung around long enough for the double rainbow show.

Eastern Sierras snow low clouds Alabama Hills Lone Pine CaliforniaAfter some minimal shopping in Lone Pine the clouds lifted enough to expose the first dusting of white on those rugged Sierras and I headed east with a strong side wind on the way to Death Valley.

Alabama Hills, California, Places I've been, United States , , , , 15 Comments

Lijit

© Copyright 2008-2024. Geogypsytraveler.com