Last Stop Lodi

I went to Lodi to see the Greater Sandhill Cranes at their winter habitat. They were shy and difficult to approach, both from car and on foot. So I'm happy with what I got, considering it was just a one night stop. The first shot is from the wetlands at the Woodbridge Ecological Reserve where they gather to spend the night. The next morning I was up before sunrise and saw them leave in one direction, so I followed and got some more shots while they were still hungry for breakfast.

This was the last stop on my trip.

Point Lobos

Big Sur

Some flyers

Observed at Ragged Point, still along the Pacific Coast on HWY 1.

Elephant Seals

From the Elephant Seal Rookery at San Simeon, CA.

Valley of Fire

Virgin River Canyon, AZ

The Interstate 15 (I-15) highway between Utah and Los Angeles goes through a canyon dug out by Virgin River. At 85 mph it's hard to get good images with a camera, and through the canyon there are no good places to pull over for a quick snap. But even the drive-through was quite an interesting experience. I would love to come back to this area some time and photograph the way the road winds down through the canyon. This time around, I got a few pics from the North end of the formation, where there is a public campground and day-use area.

Utah SR-9

Another light-trails shot, from the Canyon Overlook.

It took a four minutes' exposure to get enough light for this one.

A nod to mr. Rowell

While in Bishop, California, I stopped by Galen Rowell's gallery. Many of his pictures feature natural light from a rising or setting sun, and he seemed to have a particular fondness for mountains brushed by the first light of morning. After seeing the Sierras, I must say the mountains of Western USA lend themselves particularly well to this sort of motif.

To capture this in a way comparable to Galen Rowell's work would take a lot longer than my brief visit to his realm. I would like to show this anyway as a tribute and acknowledgement to his way of seeing the world through the camera. Here is one morning in Zion National Park:

First Night in Zion

By mistake I drove to Kolob Canyon first. The first three pics are from Kolob. Then I turned South, drove to Springdale and into the Virgin River Canyon, where I arrived a few hours after sunset. There was still enough moonlight for a couple of long exposures, though.

At Dante's Viewpoint

Dante's Viewpoint is named after a nearby peak, and conveniently placed about 1600 meters above the lowest point at Badwater. At this point I was very happy to have brought my 500mm lens, but also glad it was not the only lens I had.

Minerals exposed

Ores enriched in the sedimentary rocks of Death Valley, along the "Artist's Drive". Colours not beefed up, just a polarizing filter to deepen the sky blue and take away some haze.

Badwater Basin

A few images from the lowest altitude landpoint on the Western hemisphere.

Old Root

From the Mesquite Dunes in Death Valley.

Entering the Deserts

After Bristlecone Pines, I drove East and reached Death Valley after sundown. I stopped to make this shot, a 14 minutes exposure of traffic through the national park. The light on the horizon is from Furnace Creek, the tourist centre of the park where there are campsites, motels and restaurants.

Bristlecone Pines

Bubbly Hot

At the Hot Creek Geological Site, Mammoth Lakes, CA.

Tufa garden

Tufas are limestone formations once built up under water.