Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 16 – Fire Wave

One of the better known and most popular geological features in Valley of Fire is The Fire Wave.  The beginning of the hike to this feature is well marked and apparent, but the trail soon becomes not so apparent.  We found a couple of others on the trail in the early morning of our visit , at least one of whom had been there previously, and he was confused about the trail, too.

We headed in opposite directions, wandered around for awhile, found a marker telling us we missed the trail, doubled back and eventually found our way to the Fire Wave.

The two we had separated from earlier had also found their way and another photographer had arrived before any of us.  Those three were occupying the best vantage point for shooting the Fire Wave in the AM, so I shot from other directions, until those arriving first vacated their spots.

Fire Wave 1

The shadow of one photographer and his tripod can be seen in the lower center of this first image.

The Fire Wave, East Side

While waiting for the other photographers to finish their shooting, I wandered around to the east side of the feature to see what it looked like from there, making a couple of images.

Fire Wave, East Side 2
Fire Wave

After the other photographers were satisfied with their shots, I moved into a better spot for shooting this feature.  The Fire Wave is best shot at sunset, rather than sunrise, but then one has to deal with a crowd of folks, since most ordinary visitors do not get out at sunrise.

Fire Wave 2

To be continued,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 15 – Sunset Shoot

This is a continuation of a sunset shoot in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Desert Tilt
Desert Tilt 2
Light Chase
Light Chase 2
Complex Geology
Shadow Remains
The Golden Life
Desert Nooks
Desert Eve

This concludes the sunset shoot on this day.

Until next time,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 14 – Sunset Shoot

This is a continuation of a sunset shoot in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Fragility in a Harsh Place
Serene Desert
Serene Desert 2
Juxtaposition
Golden Arch
Desert Contrast
Desert Variations

To be continued,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 13 – Sunset Shoot

Photos from another sunset shoot in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.  The day after the storm at sunset, we returned to the same area for another photo shoot.  Some of the photos in this post are similar to the evening prior, but with different lighting and sky

The Day After The Storm 1
The Day After The Storm 2
The Day After The Storm 3
Skyward Tilt
Desert Gold
Shadow Ravine

To be continued,

Ken

 

 

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 12 – Sunset Shoot

Desert Gold
Jug Handle Arches
Arch View
Relentless Evolution 1

There was a late day storm on the eastern horizon during this cloudy, sunset shoot.  Such desert storms contribute to the slow, but certain evolution of the rock features found here.  These are a few of those images.

Relentless Evolution 2

I made many images, capturing the changes in the sky as the storm and the late day lighting progressed.

Relentless Evolution 3
Relentless Evolution 4
Relentless Evolution 5
Relentless Evolution 6
Relentless Evolution 7
Evolution Layers

I hope the similarity of these images is not boring to the reader.  It was fascinating to see how the sky changed with the storm’s advanced across the landscape and the subtle changes in the light on the landscape.

Until next time,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 11

After a morning shoot, my son and I decided to take a short hike in another part of the park, before. the crowds of tourists began to get out and about.

Movie Set Remains

It is not surprising that this area is a popular one in which to film portions of western movies.  The image above is of the remains of one of those movie sets.

Where Many Have Trodden

A portion of our early morning hike went through a slot type canyon.  The many footprints in the sand indicates the number of people that have recently hiked this way.

Natural Pathway
Closing In
Rock Features
Through A Rock’s Eye

That’s all for now.

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 10

It was a cloudy, overcast morning for this outing in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Niche

I’m always amazed at how some desert shrubs can survive with very little in the way of actual soil in which to put down roots.

Rocky Life
Scarred Monolith
Will it Rain?
Rock Spine
On The Rocks
Rock Portals
Rocky Little Canyon
Beginning or Ending?

A narrow wash with an apparent dead end, but is it the end of this canyon in the making or is this wash continuing to grow into a canyon?  I suspect erosion will continue at a very slow rate and this short, shallow wash will grow into a deeper and longer canyon over a geologic time interval.

Cholla Sentinel

This was supposed to be a sunrise shoot, but as one can see there was little sunshine early this morning.

Stay tuned for more of Valley of Fire,

Ken

 

 

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 9

More hiking and scouting photos in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Shrub Valley, iPhone Photo
Color Walking, iPhone Photo
Geology Palette, iPhone Photo
Geology Bands, iPhone Photo
Desert Stems, iPhone Photo
Slot Walls, iPhone Photo
Narrow Canyon, iPhone Photo

This simple photo was chosen for Flickr’s Explore page (April 13, 2023) and as of this writing has garnered 6801 views and 237 faves.

Fire Wave, iPhone Photo
Two by Two, iPhone Photo

The rock layers upon which these couples are walking is the feature that forms the well know “Fire Wave” feature in this park.

Crevice Walker, iPhone Photo
Photo Hiker, iPhone Photo
Slot Hiker, iPhone Photo

Stay tuned for even more Valley of Fire and desert photography,

Ken

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 8

More scouting and exploration photos in Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.

Intricate Rock, iPhone Photo
Desert Flower, iPhone Photo
Desert Shadows, iPhone Photo
Natural Imperfections or Non-Photogenic Nature?, iPhone Photo

Nature is messy and cluttered.  Photographers don’t like clutter, even if it is a part of nature.  I cropped this photo to remove some of the natural clutter, mostly on the bottom left.  There remains some clutter on the bottom left and what about that unkempt looking bush and roots on the pond border?  Is it really necessary to clean up a natural scene, to make a more pleasing photo?  It depends upon one’s vies of the world and one’s idea of photography and purpose of the photo.  Sometimes one may want to show the clutter, sometimes not.  Sometimes clutter can’t be avoided.

X Marks the Spot, iPhone Photo
Nodular, iPhone Photo
Petrified Dunes, iPhone Photo
Rock Ribs, iPhone Photo
Droopy Rocks, iPhone Photo

The way my eyes look in the morning.

Ridgy Rocks 1, iPhone Photo
To the Desert Born, iPhone Photo

More desert scenes to come,

Ken

 

Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada – March 2023 – Part 7 – Arches – Inside and Out

More photos from scouting and exploring Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada, March of 2023.

Inside to Outside, iPhone Photo
Multiple Arches, iPhone Photo
Rock of Many Windows, iPhone Photo
Checking the LCD, iPhone Photo
Through an Arch, iPhone Photo
Arch Light, iPhone Photo
Photographic Inclination, iPhone Photo
Shouldering the Load, iPhone Photo
Sky View Arch, iPhone Photo

The number of arches in this area is almost unbelievable.  One could spend much time here just photographing arches from inside, outside and through.  I’m reminded of the Joni Mitchell song “Both Sides Now” about clouds and how it could be adapted to describe having seen arches from many sides and still not having seen all aspects of arches.

More next,

Ken