Fins are thin slabs of sandstone weathered into parallel lines. Many of the arches in Arches National Park are formed when erosion makes a hole through the fin and leaves the surrounding rock intact. This image does not show an arch, but the rock formations are impressive enough. I also like the juniper tree that makes its own arch. I have lived with juniper trees (we called them salt cedars) for as long as I can remember. In parts of Arizona, they were considered to be invasive and treated like weeds. The ranchers dragged chains across the desert with bulldozers and destroyed the juniper trees under the mistaken notion that removing the trees would improve the rangeland for cattle. It didn't and the juniper trees are still growing back. But the use of chains and bulldozers hasn't stopped. See "Watch This 25,000-Pound Battleship Anchor Chain Rip Through Juniper in Nevada." The justification for this procedure is to improve the rangeland for species that already live in the area. Here is a link to the counter-argument, See "Old Chaining Page: Chaining in the American West,"
This photo was taken from Grand Viewpoint Overlook in the Dead Horse Point State Park looking down into Canyonlands National Park. Visible in the near distance is the White Rim. The view here is the equal of any in the Grand Canyon National Park and most other places in the high Colorado Plateau region of the huge area around the Four Corners where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona meet. Access to almost all of Canyonlands National Park is only by well-equipped four-wheel drive Jeeps or the equivalent or by foot. From this photo, you can see why that might be the case.
Sometimes I have to rush outside with my camera to take a photo before the light changes. In this case, the light only stayed like this for a few minutes. This is not an edited photo except for a speck of clarity. It is nice living with this kind of view.
There are places in Southern Utah that are examples of a real desert with rainfall below six inches a year. The Great Salt Lake desert is actually the driest part of the state with some areas that average less than five inches of rainfall every year. But this area near Green River is probably close to that low average.
Montezuma II, also spelled Moctezuma, (born 1466—died c. June 30, 1520, Tenochtitlán, within modern Mexico City), ninth Aztec emperor of Mexico, famous for his dramatic confrontation with the Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés. See https://www.britannica.com/biography/Montezuma-II
We have visited Mesa Verde National Park several times. This was a whirlwind camping trip where we drove down from Provo, Utah and on the same day toured Cliff Palace. It was a beautiful day and the afternoon light on the overhanging cliffs. Here is a quote from the National Park Service about Cliff Palace.
Recent studies reveal that Cliff Palace contained 150 rooms and 23 kivas and had a population of approximately 100 people. Out of the nearly 600 cliff dwellings concentrated within the boundaries of the park, 75% contain only 1-5 rooms each, and many are single room storage units. If you visit Cliff Palace, you will enter an exceptionally large dwelling which may have had special significance to the original occupants. It is thought that Cliff Palace was a social, administrative site with high ceremonial usage.
When you are there, you are reminded that you are at about 7000 feet above sea level and temperatures in late October are variable and colder than you might expect.
If Rock Canyon was situated in any other state, it would be a national park or at least a wilderness protected area but it is literally in our backyard. We had a walk up the canyon to see the Fall leaves and were treated with the early morning sun on the high cliffs also.
We have enjoyed the Utah peaches this year but sometimes we can't eat them fast enough. This one got away with a topknot of mold. We enjoyed the rest of them.
We finally broke away from all our work responsibilities to take a drive up a dusty dirt road to see the Fall leaves. The late afternoon sun highlighted the colors. The mountain is called Cascade Mountain and is the one that is above Bridal Veil Falls. The dusty road goes to the Rock Canyon Campground. The road begins off of U.S. Highway 189 and is heavily traveled on nice days like today.
Most of Yellowstone National Park has views such as this one. Not all of the park is covered with geysers and hot pools. This is the Madison River that runs along the highway into the park from West Yellowstone, Montana.
To escape the hot early Fall weather in the valleys, we drive deep into the mountains to find a beautiful spot with running water and late summer foliage. This clear spring is a destination spot in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, but you can't drink the water due to a risk of parasites. I love the mountains, but I miss the desert.
Many years ago, when I was starting to be seriously involved in photography, I was fascinated with macrophotography and photomicrography. At that time, one way to do was to use a bellows unit for microphotography and a microscope for photomicrography. I purchased bellows for my Pentax camera and got some really nice shots. But a macrophotography bellows in really not suited for spontaneous outdoor subjects. You have to have the entire bellows mechanism mounted on your camera and then have both on a sturdy tripod. Here is a link to an article on Wikipedia that explains macrophotography. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macro_photography
I was always going to buy a macro lens but never got around to it. Now, I have a macro lens in my pocket on my iPhone 13 Pro Max. I am just starting to see the possibilities.
I am fascinated by the details of the world. As John Foster Dulles, an American Diplomat is quoted as saying "A man's accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail."
With a storm moving in and summer growth beginning to die and change color, we had a beautiful walk around the Cascade Springs, high in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. The rain held off for a while and we enjoyed the cool temperatures and the sound of rushing water.
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Castilleja, commonly known as Indian paintbrush or prairie-fire, is a genus of about 200 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants native to the west of the Americas from Alaska south to the Andes, northern Asia, and one species as far west as the Kola Peninsula in northwestern Russia. These plants are classified in the broomrape family Orobanchaceae (following major rearrangements of the order Lamiales starting around 2001; sources which do not follow these reclassifications may place them in the Scrophulariaceae). They are hemiparasitic on the roots of grasses and forbs. The generic name honors Spanish botanist Domingo Castillejo.
By the way, it is against the law in most states to pick wildflowers.
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This photo was taken from high up on one of the smaller peaks of the Wasatch Mountains. In the distance is Heber City and the large lake is Deer Creek Reservoir. The reservoir looks almost full despite the drought but it is only about 74% full at the time of this photo.
When you get high up in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, you get some spectacular views. The is the east side of Mount Timpanogos show the huge glacier cirque with the remnants of the glacier. It is much more impressive in person.
This is downtown Provo, Utah looking east towards the Y Mountain. The photo was taken from the new City and Police Building on Center and 5th West. It was a lovely, sunny day and we enjoyed the tour of the new building.
The Wieskirche is one of the most famous works from the Rococo period of art and architecture and its position close to the Romantic Road, the religious attraction of Oberammergau and the Passion Play and the historic buildings of Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau ensure that it is popular place to visit. We have been there twice now.
Here is the description of Locomotive 119 from the Wikipedia article. Union Pacific No. 119.
Union Pacific No. 119 was a 4-4-0 steam locomotive made famous for meeting the Central Pacific Railroad's Jupiter at Promontory Summit, Utah, during the Golden Spike ceremony commemorating the completion of the First Transcontinental Railroad in 1869. The locomotive was built by Rogers Locomotive and Machine Works of Paterson, New Jersey in 1868, along with numbers 116, 117, 118 and 120. The original was scrapped in 1903, but a replica now operates at the Golden Spike National Historical Park.
I certainly did not know what to expect when we recently visited the Golden Spike National Historic Park in Northern Utah. I had no idea that there would be working replicas of the original railroad locomotives. As it turns out, some of Utah's most unique surprises are waiting out in the huge west desert. If you don't know, this is site of the completion of the first transcontinental railroad which was officially celebrated on May 10th, 1869. The Park includes these full-scale reprical locomotives and an interesting visitors center that has a nice museum.
It was a warm day with little shade. We visited the huge Nymphenburg Palace in Munich, Germany. Our own tour was limited to the outside of the palace and the lovely surrounding park. Here is a short explanation of the palace from Wikipedia: Nymphenburg Palace.
The Nymphenburg Palace (German: Schloss Nymphenburg, Palace of the Nymphs) is a Baroque palace situated in Munich's western district Neuhausen-Nymphenburg, in Bavaria, southern Germany. Combined with the adjacent Nymphenburg Palace Park it constitutes one of the premier royal palaces of Europe. Its frontal width of 632 m (2,073 ft) (north–south axis) even surpasses Versailles Palace. The Nymphenburg served as the main summer residence for the former rulers of Bavaria of the House of Wittelsbach.
This is probably one of the more dramatic views in Europe. Although Hohenschwangau Castle is not as well-known as it close neighbor, Neuschwanstein Castle, the surrounding mountains are a dramatic background to the "High Swan Castle" when viewed from the high mountain overlook. Quoting the Hohenschwangau website:
Hohenschwangau Castle was mentioned the first time in records of the 12th century.
Until the 16th century its owners were the knights of Schwangau. During the following time it changed hands a couple of times and was partially destroyed during different wars.
In 1832 the later King Maximilian II., father of King Ludwig II., acquired the ruin and had the castle rebuilt according to original plans. After its completion it used to be the summer and hunting residence of the Bavarian royal family. In his whole life, the famous Bavarian King Ludwig II. spent a few weeks each summer in Hohenschwangau.
Since 1923 the Wilttelsbacher Ausgleichsfonds owns Hohenschwangau Castle.
Quoting from Wikipedia: St Coloman (Schwangau):
The baroque Colomanskirche is located near Schwangau in Bavaria. It was created in its current form in the 17th century on a previous building that was built in honor of Saint Koloman. The Irish pilgrim is said to have rested here in the summer of 1012 on his pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Due to its location at the foot of the Schwangau mountains and its proximity to the world-famous Neuschwanstein Castle, the church is one of the most famous sights in Bavaria.
