Zapata Falls, March 2021

Even though we had reserved our Bandelier campsites for a couple of more days, we decided to journey north to the Great Sand Dunes of Colorado, since we were not satisfied with the photographic opportunities in Bandelier at this time.

The campground in the Great Sand Dunes National Park is not open in the winter, but there is a decommissioned Colorado State Park about 20-30 minutes west of the Great Sand Dunes.  At the time we were here, this decommissioned park was managed by Colorado’s Game and Fishing agency.  To stay in the park, one had to have a Colorado fishing license.  So we each purchased a two day fishing license at a local convenience store, which allowed us to stay two nights.  Other than the cost of the license, which for an out of stater was still less than the typical fee to enter and stay at a Colorado State Park, there was no other fee to stay in this facility and there were still electric hook ups.  Having external electric power was great, since the night time temperatures were in the teens (degF).

The requirement to have a fishing license to stay in these wildlife and fishing areas were already set to change in May.  Now one can purchase an inexpensive yearly pass that will allow one to stay in such places.

Our first outing, the afternoon of our arrival, in this area was to Zapata Falls, which is a few miles outside the National Park.  We had visited these falls last summer, but it was crowded and many visitors were not wearing masks in close proximity to each other in the confined area near the falls.  So we were not able to get close to the falls, which are not visible from a distance.

During the winter, there are still visitors, but many fewer.  The drive from the paved road is rocky and rough and there was construction work along this route, when we were there.

At the end of the access road, one has to hike about 3/4 mile to the falls.  The trail is wide and rocky and slightly uphill most of the way.  It is much more pleasant hiking this trail in cold weather than in the heat of summer.  There were patches of icy snow pack on the trail, so it was occasionally slippery, requiring prudent care while walking.

The falls are contained in a narrow canyon and one has to walk in the stream to view the falls.  The stream is usually shallow, so even in the summer it is not to difficult to walk, but the rocks can be slippery.

In the winter the stream and fall freeze over on the surface, requiring one to walk on very slippery ice.  As it turns out I had ice cleats for my hiking shoes, that I had purchased a couple of years ago for a winter visit to Bandelier National Monument, where I was expecting icy trails; but there was no ice there and I had never used the cleats.  Today I got to use them and they really made it much easier to walk on the ice.  While others were slipping and sliding on the ice, we were nonchalantly walking around on the ice.  My son, being from snowy and icy Colorado, had ice cleats, too.

Setting up.

One can see how narrow the canyon is in the photo above.  The main portion of the falls are actually around the bend.  In the summer one might get a little closer to the falls, getting wet with the spray.  With the ice cover on the stream, it was not possible to safely get much closer and still be able to stand on the ice with a tripod and camera.

Getting the shot. Frozen Zapata Falls and Stream.
A downstream view from Zapata Falls.

A view downstream from near the falls, shows an exaggerated narrowness of the canyon from my point of view.  There were thinner icy covered areas of the stream, requiring care in where one stepped.  Wet feet here would be uncomfortably cold.

Frozen Zapata Falls and Stream
Frozen Zapata Falls

Next stop the Great Sand Dunes.

Until then,

Ken

Bandelier National Monument, Upper Waterfall on the Frijoles River

From the visitor center area there is a trail to a waterfall.  The trail is supposed to go to two waterfalls an upper and a lower on the Frijoles River; but the trail to the lower falls was not open, presumably due to damage to the trail and safety concerns.

The trail is not a long one, but it has some steep portions.  Still it was not overly difficult.  Initially the trail follows beside and crosses the river at one or two places, then climbs out of the river valley, going up the valley wall.

As one nears the waterfall, a deep canyon comes into view.  Geologists will find the canyon wall interesting as many layers of rock and geologic features are exposed.

Frijoles River Canyon, Bandelier National Monument, March 2021

The Frijoles River dumps into the Rio Grande at the end of this canyon.

There is a view point for the falls, after one hikes past the falls and looks back upstream.  The trail here is far above the river and there is not a way to get close to the upper falls.

Upper Frijoles Falls, Bandelier National Monument, March 2020

A big lens is required for getting a close up of the falls.  We planned to come back here again, but we never got back.  So these images are all I have.

Upper Frijoles Falls, Bandelier National Monument, March 2020

This wraps up this visit to Bandelier National Monument.

Next up:  Zapata Falls and The Great Sand Dunes in Colorado.

Until then,

Ken

Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 4 – Tsankawi 2

This is a continuation of a previous post with photographs from the ancient Native American site, Tsankawi, a part of the Bandelier National Monument, New Mexico.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi Trail Fragment.

Up above the main continuous trail through Tsankawi, I spotted a portion of a trail that was obviously out of place.  This part apparently broke away from its original location and lodged here many years ago.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Contemplation 2.

The depth of this portion of the trail is impressive.  The pathways are narrow, which suggests that the people that made these were not large people.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Deep, Narrow and Steep.

It took a little effort to navigate some portions of these ancient paths, especially when carrying a daypack and DSLR.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Curves and Dead End.

Interestingly, this portion of the trail had dual pathways, but one was a dead end.  Was this two lane path created by having one foot on one side and the other foot on the other side of the trail?  Each side is too narrow for having both feet within the narrow channel.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Evidence of a dwelling, Shelter or storage area.

There were numerous indications of dwellings, shelters or storage areas along the pathways of Tsankawi.  Some areas were off limits for visitors, so we did not get to see everything here.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Photographing the interior of a cave.

The entrance to this cave (above) seems to have a torso with head shape.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi Cave.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi Caves.

There were numerous caves in some areas.  Notice the foot and/or hand holds in the rocks around these caves.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi View.

A desert view from the main trail around the Tsankawi area.

This wraps up the best photos that I managed to get in this amazing place.  Perhaps someday I will get back again, when conditions are more favorable for photography.

Until next time,

Ken

Bandelier National Monument, March 2021, Part 3 – Tsankawi 1

We visited Tsankawi again one afternoon, but we never really got to be here at the very best time of the day for photography.  Although, we did have some cloudy sky, which helped add a little interest at times.

Tsankawi is really an amazing place.  I was most impressed by the paths created by Native Americans many years ago.  Those ancient people walked the same paths so often as to wear deep trenches in the rock.  Sometimes the trenches were only a few inches deep and sometimes several feet deep.  Even though the rock may not be super hard here, it is not soft either, so it must have taken many walkers over many years to create such deep pathways in the stone.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Walking Through the Past 1, monochrome with selective colorization.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.Walking Through the Past 2, monochrome with selective colorization.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi Trail.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Contemplation.  Monochrome with selective colorization.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Old Tree and Fractured Rock with Petroglyphs

One has to look closely to see the old, worn petroglyphs, of which there were many, in some of the rock faces.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021. Lone Tree.
Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Tsankawi Petroglyphs.

Viewing a larger image on Flickr will allow for better resolution of the many petroglyphs on this rock face.

Tsankawi, Bandelier NM, March 2021.  Small Evergreen Tree growing in a crack in the Tsankawi desert area.  Monochrome with selective colorization.

To be continued,

Ken

 

 

Indiana, Fall 2020, Yellowwood State Forest

To find places to get out into nature and find prospective places for outdoor photography, I frequently look at maps, either paper maps or digital maps with satellite views.  Using this method I found that the Yellowwood State Forest was only a few miles from the cabin, where we were staying.  So I had to take time to explore that area.

There is a sizable lake in Yellowwood State Forest with a trail that goes around the lake.  The first part of the trail beginning at a parking lot was not of great interest. It was sandwiched between the lake and a roadway for maybe a half mile before it began to depart from the roadway at the end of the lake.

Near where the trail turned away from the roadway, I found an old dead tree that looked like a good photography subject.

A dead tree in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.

On the opposite side of the lake from the parking area, a branch went away from the lake; but I continued along the trail that followed the lake shoreline.  The trail became more scenic there with the lake on one side and deeper woods on the other side.

Big Leaf. Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana
Hiking Trail in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana

It was a little early in the afternoon for the best light for outdoor photography, so including any portion of the sky produced unpleasant results and I did not try to use any filters, while shooting handheld.  I posted a cropped version of the hiking trail image (above) on Flickr.  I think you will agree that taking out the sky improved this image.

Four Left Turns. Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.

I found the growth pattern of the vine in the above photo interesting.  Why did it make those right angle turns?  It eventually went up the tree in the normal direction.  Maybe it got its directions from Apple Maps.

I began to look for ways to exclude the sky from my compositions.  Sometimes portions of the sky were necessary to get the desired parts of the landscape into my compositions with my lens of choice, then I cropped the sky out in post processing.

Fall in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana

There is also a cropped version, isolating the back lit leaves on the forest floor, of the image above on Flickr.

Fall in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana
A red leaf in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.
A Toadstool in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.

The toadstool image here is a cropped version of one that is posted to Flickr.  I thought that there were distracting parts of the original image, so I severely cropped it; but I actually still prefer the original version.

Fall in Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana

Back lighted leaf and shadows, Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.
Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana.
Pink leaves of fall, Yellowwood State Forest, Indiana

The portions of my images from this trip that include the upper parts of the larger, more mature trees, show the lack of foliage on them.  This would have been a much more successful visit for outdoor fall photography had I been here a few days earlier; but that is the gamble one makes, with long range planning.  One has to adapt and being outdoors in natural surroundings is always a joy.

Thanks for following,

Ken

Indiana, Fall 2020, Brown County State Park Part 3

I left Ogle Lake and drove back towards the main roadway.  I stopped at a pull out before getting to the main route and walked along the roadway to shoot more just off the road.  As I walked beside the road I came to a trail, so I decided to take a short walk along the trail.

Hiking Trail in Brown County State Park, Indiana

The trail was covered with fallen leaves along much of the route that I walked.  The trail is just barely discernible in the lower left of the image above.

Fall in Brown County State Park, Indiana
Yellow Leaf and Moss on an old log, Brown County State Park, Indiana
Leaf and Fungi on an old log, Brown County State Park, Indiana
Brown County State Park, Indiana

It was mostly overcast on this day.  The dullness of the sky in the background gives the images too much of a fuzzy look for my taste; but it was what I was given today.

Brown County State Park, Indiana
Brown County State Park, Indiana

My short walk along the trail turned into a longer hike than I had planned.  The trail meandered through the forest with frequent changes in direction, eventually following high above a ravine.  The trail followed the ravine for quite a way, then crossed the ravine, then went along side the ravine in the opposite direction.  I eventually came to a junction in the trail near a park roadway.  I walked out of the woods to the road.  I did not know which road I was on, but I knew the direction I needed to go to find my vehicle.  I walked the roadway to a junction, which turned out to be the route to Ogle Lake.  I only had to walk a short distance along the road towards Ogle Lake to my vehicle.

On my way out of the park I stopped to shoot at an overlook.

Brown County State Park, Indiana
Brown County State Park, Indiana

That’s it for this shoot,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 23, 2020, Part 5

Continued from part 4:

In an opening in the forest on a steep slope, I photographed the distant mountainsides below clouds that provided shadows and moving spotlights on the massive forest.

Aspen Mountain. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 42mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 400.

Much of the mountainsides were covered with beetle killed evergreens.  A scattering of color within the mass of dead, grey trees caught my eye as they were highlighted by light breaking through the cloud cover.

Hope. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 56mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 400.

There are a few green evergreens and a scattering of Aspens within the mass of dead trees.  I wonder how this will evolve with time.  Will Aspens replace the evergreens or will the evergreens somehow evolve to resist the beetles?

It was getting late in the day, there would be no golden hour light here due to mountains blocking the late day light and in any case I did not want to try to find my way through the forest in the dark, hiking back to my campsite.  So I began to work my way back up the slope.  Taking my time and stopping whenever I thought I might get an interest photo.

Skeleton Tree. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1250.

The late day sunlight filtered through the forest creating narrow, subtle, streaks of highlights in the grassy floor of the forest.

Grassy Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 1250.

Many fallen trees, partially supported by living trees, created mazes that might have proven dangerous to navigate through after dark.

Head Knockers. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 42mm, 1/13s, f/11, ISO 200.
Chaotic Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/13s, f/11, ISO 200. (Flickr Explore, December 28, 2020).

Near the top of the grassy, forested slope, I stopped to get this shot through the mass of Aspen trunks.

Aspen Hill. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 31mm, 1/10s, f/11, ISO 200.

That’s all for now,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, September 23, 2020, Part 4

I continued my stroll through the Rio Grande National Forest just off of US 380, hoping to get interesting photographs within the forest.

Near and Far. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 40mm, 1/500s, f/11, ISO 640.

I shot the image above with the near trees on one side of FSR 380 and the far trees on the far side of the roadway.  There was increasing cloudiness, which I hoped did not indicate a late day rain storm.

Aspen Trunks and Evergreens. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/3s, f/11, ISO 64.

One can find an infinite number of ways to shoot the Aspen trunks, which is both good and bad.  When is enough, enough?  And when do these images become so repetitive as to be boring?  Is there really anything unique in these images?

Falling. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 1000.

A few recently fallen trees broke up the vertical pattern of the tree trunks.

Bent and Broken. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 28mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 500.
Diverse Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 31mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 500.
Trunk Line. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1600.

Even within a dense forest, I noted that sometimes by standing in the right place, I could see an almost linear line of tree trunks.  Of course, I had to crop the wide angle view to show what caught my eye.

Early Fall Aspen Forest. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 1600.

As I worked my way around the edge of a high ridge in the forest, I began to find more fallen trees, which made various geometric patterns on or near the forest floor.

Standing and Fallen. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-24mm @ 70mm, 1/160s, f/11, ISO 1600.
Forest Floor. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/125s, f/11, ISO 2000.

After few more minutes of walking from the end of the ridge I came to an opening in the forest along a steep slope with good views of forested mountainsides.  I could tell that the sun would drop below a mountain side before the golden hour, but the moving clouds resulted in highlights of the distant fall color as the shadows moved across the mountainsides.

Aspen Mountain Spotlight.  Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 29mm, 1/200s, f/11, ISO 400.

More later,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 22, 2020, Part 1

I arose early in the morning, still not sure that I wanted to tackle the creek hike with my heavy camera gear.  I peeked outside to see what the weather and sky looked like, before deciding to prepare for the day.

The sky appeared to be mostly clear, so I had an herbal tea and a light snack, then gathered my gear for a morning shoot, having decided to have a go at getting to those two waterfalls.

I knew that I would need to be careful with the gear and with my footing and balance during this trek, so I brought along my hiking stick as an aid in balance and control.  I usually do not use the hiking stick, since it is just another item to keep up with and easily left somewhere.  I also tend to use my tripod as a hiking stick, whenever I carry it in my hands.

I also wanted to have both hands free when walking, so I fastened the tripod to the back of my Camelbak, slung a filter pouch over my head and shoulder and clipped the DSLR to the front of the Camelbak via carabiners and an old camera strap that I had cut and sewn to the pack years ago.  The camera can still swing away from my body, when I have to stoop over, so I still have to hold onto it sometimes to prevent it from bumping into something.

Thus I began the hike up the steep slope along the ridge above the creek.  I knew that I should have gotten out a little earlier, but my hesitation to even try this, resulted in a late start this morning. I also did not want to start this hike in the dark and I knew that the mountain to the south would shield the very early morning light until later, so the sun would already be fairly high in the sky before I saw it.

Waterfall and Stream. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 70mm, 1/6s, f/20, ISO 800.

I was glad to have the hiking stick this morning as it was a safety aid in going down and across steep slopes and helping my balance, when crossing the stream.

The photo set up procedure was a bit slow and awkward, whenever I stopped for a photograph.  I first released the carabiners holding the DSLR onto my backpack and put the camera in a secure place, then I removed the filter case from around my neck, then I removed the Camelbak, then I unstrapped the tripod from the Camelbak.  After shooting at a location, I reversed this procedure to put all items back into place before moving on to the next location.

Wispy Waterfall. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 42mm, 1/6s, f/22, ISO 800.
Mountain Stream. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/6s, f/18, ISO 500.
Cascade and Mossy Rocks. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 24mm, 1/8s, f/11, ISO 800.

To get the shot above, I had to get into a tight place and crouch on my knees, being very careful not to drop something into the creek.  As I was preparing to get out of this uncomfortable position, I could not find the metal plate lens cover for the Progrey filter holder and I was afraid that it might have slide behind me into the creek.  I looked into the creek and did not see the cover from my vantage point.   A closer examination of the filter holder case revealed the cover hidden between the individual filter cases, where I tend to habitually put it, when it is not in use.

No Name Waterfall. Nikon D850, Nikon 24-70mm @ 42mm, 1/8s, f/11, ISO 40.

When I arrived at the second waterfall, I stood below an undercut cliff on the south side of the creek, where the 24-70mm lens let me isolate the waterfall, excluding all the unattractive and distracting clutter around it.

The last image here was selected for Flickr’s Explore page, where as of the date of this writing, it has received 4,213 views and 103 favorites.  This is not a record for me and far short of the number of views and favorites that others on Flickr have, but still nice for my level of activity on Flickr.  I’m pleased with these photos and glad that I made the effort to get them.  I might never have such an opportunity again.

Thanks for following,

Ken

Rio Grande National Forest, September 20, 2020, Part 3 – Hiking and Scouting

After exploring along a portion of Treasure Creek on the north side of FSR 243, I was having a lunch sandwich, standing on a rock in the creek, leaning against a log bridge on the official trail to the south of FSR 243, when a young couple approached from down the trail.  I briefly chatted with them and they told me there were more waterfalls along the trail to the southwest.

I decided that I should check out that trail.  So I put on my Camelbak and headed out.  The young couple had told me that I would come to a metal gate and just after that I would see a waterfall.  The trail was easy at the start, going through an open meadow before entering a thinly wooded area and beginning to gain in elevation.  I soon came to the gate and shortly afterwards I could see the creek far down below.  There was a waterfall that was much too far down in the drainage to photograph from the trail.

About this time, I encountered a couple of youngish women with a dog hiking back towards the trailhead.  They told me that their husbands were hunting in the mountains and the dog had been found, surviving alone after the big storm that blew through early in September.  The dog had a leg or foot injury and walked with a limp.  They surmised that the dog had been abandoned by a shepherd, since there were many sheep in the higher elevations.  The dog did look like one that a shepherd might use.

I inquired about waterfalls along the trail, but the two hikers said there were no more waterfalls, but that the trail became flat farther up the trail.  I continued up the trail for a little longer, but encountered no great scenery and decided that I was not prepared for a really long hike, so I turned back.

When I got back to the meadow, I came to a fork in the trail that I had missed on the way in.  I was not really sure which to take, but the left fork appeared to go more directly to the northeast, so I took that one and soon reached the log bridge.

A little later the two women with the dog came up the roadway.  I was surprised that I had arrived back at the parking area before they did.  Then I realized that they must have taken the right fork of the trail in the meadow to get to the road at a different point.  They told me that they did not want to have the limping dog try to walk over the log bridge, so they took the longer route to avoid the bridge.  They were soon on their way to Del Norte, where they would take the dog to a vet.

After some thought, I decided that maybe I should head into Del Norte, where I knew I would have a cell signal, and call home, since I had only been able to send short messages via my satellite GPS device so far.  While in Del Norte, I could also top off my fuel tank just to be sure I had plenty of fuel for the rest of the week in the forest.

Driving FSR 380 into Del Norte would also let me check out potential campsites along the route, maybe finding one for tonight and maybe finding a suitable one for my son and DIL to use, when they returned on Friday.

I’ve made a mental note of the wilderness trail here and maybe I’ll explore it seriously at some other time.

More later,

Ken