Cascade Falls, Utah

 

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Cascade Falls is a unique waterfall. It is located near Navajo Lake in Southern Utah up Cedar Canyon from Cedar City. The water comes from Navajo Lake through a lava tube. It is located about 3/4 of a mile from the trailhead at the end of Forest Road 54. 

Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah

 

Cedar Breaks is always compared to Bryce Canyon National Park but the scenery in both is spectacular. Cedar Breaks is quite a bit smaller and far less crowded. This day was cold and windy with the last patches of snow. This is the optimal time to visit all the Utah parks and monuments because just a few weeks later there are mobs of tourists. 

Water in motion

Is this a photo or an AI image? It is a photo, but it has been altered in a number of ways. The obvious way is the blurring of the water. This is a common photographic effect caused by a long exposure. However, there are several other changes to the image that have been done by AI. These changes are not obvious because they reworked parts of image to sharpen the focus and remove some elements that were a distraction. 

 

The last of the Winter Snow

 A short visit to Cedar Breaks National Monument was surprising for the middle of June. There were still snow drifts up to ten feet high. The day was cold and windy. This small pond on the cliff overlooking Cedar Breaks had a fantastic reflection. 

Usually Dry Rock Creek, Rock Creek Canyon, Provo, Utah

 After a winter of record snowfalls, our usually dry Rock Creek is a torrent. It drains into a huge retention basin to prevent flooding and has attracted the out-of-school children to play in its cold water. We enjoyed a hike up Rock Canyon and enjoyed the roar of the creek. 

Time for Tulips Part One

One tulip is beautiful, but how beautiful are thousands of tulips? Here is a series of photos of some of the thousands of tulips at the Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival in Lehi, Utah 2023. I will be publishing them from time to time. 

Box Turtle

 A short trip to Florida put us back in the Southern forests where there is a lot of water and the opportunity to see a lot of animals. Quoting from Wikipedia: Box Turtle:

Box turtle is the common name for several species of turtle. It may refer to those of the genus Cuora or Pyxidea, which are the Asian box turtles, or more commonly to species of the genus Terrapene, the North American box turtles. They are largely characterized by having a shell shaped like a dome, which is hinged at the bottom, allowing the animal to close its shell tightly to escape predators. Furthermore, the two genera are very different in habitat, behavior and appearance, and are not even classified in the same family. Even though box turtles became very popular pets, their needs in captivity are complex and the capture of turtles can have serious detrimental effects on the wild population.

The box turtle commonly lives over twenty years, with verified cases of lifespans exceeding 40 to 50 years. There have been unverified cases of box turtles living for a hundred years and more.