Monthly Favorites 2024

Change of season in Arizona's White Mountains

Yep, here I am again with gratitude and awe, looking back at the year’s work and experiences.  Thank you all for riding along!

January

Winter fog in Peeples Valley, just up the road from my home in Yarnell was irresistible.  The moody black and white image shows Hidden Spring Ranch’s thoroughbred horses and cottonwoods. As if that weren’t enough, when I turned around there was a fog-bow across the highway in Maughan Ranch land.

February

A cold solo trip to the Mojave Preserve and Death Valley turned up some photographic opportunities.  There was a nice storm over the first night.  Driving over a mountain pass to my next camp I came upon snow on Joshua trees, a rare treat.  

March

I like to get away on my own to the Harquahala Mountains, one of my favorite places to find solitude nearby. I was on a zoom meeting in the camper van when this light came up and I ran out with my gear and shot it.

April

The point of the trip to central Texas was the eclipse.  I had fun shooting it from a friend’s driveway, but the real attraction was wildflowers.  I loved the backlighted glow here in Muleshoe Bend Recreation Area.

May

This somewhat silly composite came about during a workshop with Colleen Miniuk called, “In the Footsteps of Georgia O’Keeffe.”  Perhaps I was inspired to be daring like Ms. O’Keeffe.  Here’s the road to Ghost Ranch, Cerro Pedernal (a favorite subject for her, though I couldn’t say why), the moon, and a skull she collected which is on display at her Abiquiu.

June

My husband was teaching scouts at Flyfishing Camp, so Gypsy and I ran off to the North Rim Forest, our happy place.  I shot this from a camp just off the Arizona Trail which offers lovely hikes in both directions.  The light took me by surprise.  Pro tip: black pets look great with backlight.

July

Fish Lake National Forest (Utah), on the way to our habitual summer trip to Park City.  Flowers, sweeping views, quiet.  This area has become a favorite.

August

This time I tagged along on the fishing trip, collaborating with Marco on the planning while combing through Google Earth for camp sites near rivers.  This one didn’t pan out so well for fish, but the morning light was worth the stop, to me at least.

September

Perhaps the best part of the rare opportunity to camp at RC Scout Ranch was access to Box Canyon, just downstream. I relish the opportunity to shoot here again, in different light and with clear water.  In the meantime, I’ll relish the memory of shooting this one, hanging off a ledge.

October

Hell’s Backbone has long been on my list of places to explore.  During the autumn Utah trip, we decided to see what was there, taking the long way from Boulder to Escalante. I put the drone up to show some of the drama we experienced.  Here’s sunrise looking down at Sand Creek Canyon, on the left in the aerial. Aspens are doing their thing on the far slope.

November

Morocco.  I’d envisioned this image in the Sahara, and am so pleased that it worked out. There are so many memories in this album of photos, and it was tough to choose just one.

December

The highlight of December was an 8-day solstice trip through the desert. The brightest spot of that trip was the quest to find and photograph this striped tinaja in Nevada.

Again, thanks for riding along this year.  With any kind of luck, there are great things coming in the new year.  Cheers.

On a Mission

Sunset glow on the petrified sand dunes, Gold Butte National Monument

I started this journey with a quest.  My husband, with the patience of a saint and his own share of adventurous spirit, seemed happy to participate.

I saw a picture of a geologic feature deep in a part of Nevada known as Hidden Valley.  It is a rather large orange and white striped rock with three tinajas, the largest of which is about 50 feet in diameter. Who could resist, right?  I’ll get back to this part of the story in a bit.

A tinaja is a depression in bedrock that fills with water, creating a microhabitat and providing water for wildlife. The word "tinaja" is Spanish for "large, earthen jar". 

If you’ve been following along for a while, you know that we’ve been overlanding in California’s Mojave Desert each winter solstice for years.  This time our itinerary  was mostly in Nevada, and mostly exploring new places.

Falling Man Petroglyph in Context, Gold Butte National Monument

Falling man Petroglyph Detail, Gold Butte National Monument

First stop was our favorite spot in Gold Butte National Monument, a petroglyph and petrified sand dune site often called The Falling Man Site because of a particularly provocative glyph.  We pretty much never see anyone there, and we like that just fine.

Gold Butte Sand Dunes, aerial

We also camped near the orange sand dunes in GBNM for the first time.  There were petroglyphs here too, and a striking sunrise sky.

View from Miller Point, Cathedral Gorge State Park

We spent one night in a campground.  Part of me feels like that’s a bit of a cop-out on an overlanding trip but I wanted to check out Cathedral Gorge, a 90-year-old Nevada State Park.  It’s a fascinating place, with interesting erosion and small slot canyons.  I found it difficult to photograph but was glad for the chance to see it.  The hot shower was nice, too.

Buffington Pockets eroded canyon

Next was Buffington Pockets, not far from (and with similar geology to) Valley of Fire State Park. This is where the road started to get a little dicey.  I’m sure it would be more easily done in a side-by-side, but in our 4WD Sprinter, we averaged 3 MPH.

Old Dam, Buffington Pockets

Aerial of the old dam, Buffington Pockets

There’s an odd dam, complete with a mural of a barn owl in flight, which was apparently put up ca 1930-50 and which has long since backfilled with gravel.  The entire area features petrified sand dunes in impressive colors, but my favorite was the canyon above the dam.  We found petroglyphs there, too.

 Hidden Valley is another 5 miles or so down the road (The Bitter Springs Backcountry Byway which, for the brave, ends at to Lake Mead).  The 10-mile trek took about 2 ½ hours and a great deal of patience.  I did have a passing question about who would help us if we broke an axel. We landed at the boundary of the Muddy Mountains BLM Wilderness Area, where we camped.  It’s a tiny clearing, and perhaps as out-of-level as we’ve ever camped.  Awkward.

From there, we hiked over a 700-foot ridge into the valley itself and about 2 miles cross-country without a trail. This is a quest, after all, so some inconvenience is expected.

Striped Tinaja, worth the trouble

Striped Tinaja, husband for scale

The tinaja was spectacular, and well worth the effort.

In case you’re wondering about our judgement, we do have our limits. We backed off the next spot we planned to check out in the Buffington Pockets area, called the Color Rock Quarry.  The road was too much for the Raven.  Maybe another day with a shorter wheelbase.

Kelso Dunes pre-dawn

We pivoted and headed for California.  A Trader Joe’s stop in Las Vegas was great for fresh food, but the culture shock of hoards doing their Christmas shopping (it was December 23) was fingernails on a chalkboard.  We were within a couple of hours of our destination, our favorite sand dunes, and decided we’d stop off at another spot and finish the drive in the morning.  We were pooped. Kelso Dunes is not my favorite photo spot, but was quiet and a welcome rest.

Mojave desert dune sunrise

We reached our last destination in the morning, rested and enjoyed being blissfully alone in the quiet. We finished off the trip with the incomparable experience of first light on the dunes. 

Thanks for riding along.  I’m looking forward to sharing next year’s beauty with you all.

Gold Butte National Monument

There are more images in the Winter 2024-25 Gallery on the Website.

The Soundtrack; Morocco

 

The first obnoxious earworm was Graham Nash’s Marrakech Express: 

Take the train from Casablanca going south
Blowing smoke rings from the corners of my mouth my mouth, my mouth
Colored cottons hang in the air
Charming cobras in the square
Striped jallabas we can wear at home
Well, let me hear ya now

Would you know we're riding on the Marrakesh Express?
Would you know we're riding on the Marrakesh Express?
They're taking me to Marrakesh

Snake Charmer, Marrakech Souk

We jumped right in, under the haze of jet lag. Essentially the first thing we saw was the Souk (Market) and one of its snake charmers.  Ismael, our guide, gave him a tip on our behalf as we took pictures. 

 

Herbals, Marrakech Souk

There are colors and the enticing odor of spices everywhere.  I’ve been to several international street markets, and this is the first one that smells good. 

 

Friendly Chef, Marrakech Souk

Street portraits here and in the Medina (old city) are difficult, as most folks either don’t want their photos taken, or demand cash.  I don’t mind paying, but the aggression is intimidating, and the best street portraits are more candid than posed.  In the end, with 12 days to try, I ended up with a few portraits I’m happy with.

We had our first of many Moroccan teas that day.  The tea is served with mint and sugar in a small tumbler. The joke is that Moroccans like some tea with their sugar.

On the road we passed through Ouarzazate, a surreal desert outpost with movie studios and businesses to support them.  "Ouallywood" movie studios have built quite a resume providing convincing backdrops for movies supposedly set in Tibet, ancient Rome, Somalia and Egypt. You might recognize it from Lawrence of Arabia, The Man Who Would Be King, The Mummy, and Gladiator.  The liquor section in the huge grocery was gargantuan.

 

Kasbahs, old and new, Skoura

Next stop was among the ruins of and restored Kasbahs (fortresses) in Skoura.  We stayed in one of the former, with lovely grounds and opportunities for shooting from the roof.

Berber weaver, Tinghir

On the road we stopped at a Berber rug store in Tinghir, met some lovely folks, and shopped.  At this writing, we’re waiting for the rug we had shipped to arrive.

Dromedary Train, Erb Chebbi

The Dunes were not exactly what I had expected.  I’m accustomed to having little or no company at our dunes in the American Southwest.  The Erg Chebbi at the edge of the Sahara is not that.  There are hotels and encampments, and many, many dromedaries (one hump) and the sand is rife with tracks of them, people, and vehicles.  Our silver lining, sort of, was a windstorm on our second day.  In the morning the tracks were covered.

Delicious sunset light, Erg Chebbi

The blowing sand made for astonishing light as well, and I was so pleased to have something landscape-y to shoot.  I felt back in my element.

Marco in out glamping tent, Erg Chebbi

Lest I complain too much, we had our first glamping experience.  Our tent had electricity and hot & cold running water.  We were astonished that the blowing sand didn’t penetrate.

Hassan, Erg Chebbi

One of my favorite portraits, admittedly not candid, was of our driver Hassan.  He’s 29, wants to be in the movies, and has eyelashes for miles.  He was very gracious about posing.

Here’s earworm number two:

Midnight at the oasis
Send your camel to bed
Shadows painting our faces
Traces of romance in our heads
Heaven's holding a half moon
Shining just for us
Let's slip off to
A sand dune, real soon
And kick up a little dust

 

On the road we saw macaques in the forest as we crossed the Middle Atlas Mountains.

Locals negotiating the Medina in Fes

Fes is distinct in visuals and flavors. I have a pretty good sense of direction, but I’m sure our guide was correct – I could easily have gotten lost in its narrow, meandering alleys.  I was grateful for his help.  I was also grateful that, unlike Marrakech, motorbikes are not allowed, which was much less harrowing.

Chouara Tannery, Fes

The Chouara Tannery in Fes has likely been operating in the same way since the 9th century. I expect it smelled as bad then, too. Shopkeepers hand out fresh mint to hold under your nose. It’s a big help.

 

Riad Myrna, Fes

Mosaics are everywhere and the food somehow manages to be both lavish and subtly seasoned. Our Riad was incredible, with mosaic art and a retractable roof.

The name of the city has nothing to do with the hat, but I couldn’t escape earworm number 3:

No I'm never gonna do it without the fez on Oh no
No I'm never gonna do it without the fez on Oh no
That's what I am
Please understand
I wanna be your holy man

Mosaic (zellige) Artist at Naji, Fes

Speaking of mosaics, our highlight on the road was Naji Pottery, where we learned about the process of constructing the art.  Incredibly it’s done face-down!  I couldn’t justify shipping a mosaic-topped table home, but I did find a Moroccan Furniture store in West Hollywood.  Stay tuned

 

Chefchaouen, "The Blue Pearl"

I’d seen so many photographs of Chefchaouen, the “Blue City,” but was still surprised at the subtle spectacle of the hillside hamlet.  We just had one night there but made the best of the time with long walks and lots of images.

 

Roadside olive processing center

Our photo guide wanted olive oil to take home, so we stopped on the road at the roadside press.  What a spectacle!  Locals were having their own oil pressed or buying the owner’s product in multiple four-liter jugs. There were huge piles of fruit.

Finally, we landed in Casablanca.  The largest city in Morocco, it is comprised of about 4 million people.  From all over the city center, you can see the 700-foot minaret of Hassan II Mosque, for which “ornate” is not a sufficient descriptor.  Including outdoor space, 100,000 people can worship there at once. 

Rainbow at Hassan II Mosque, Casablanca

As if all that were not enough, there was a rainbow conveniently lurking behind the structure on our arrival.

I was surprised to enjoy the fish market in Casablanca just as much.  There were no smells and no flies, and it was oddly photogenic.

The fundamental things apply as time goes by.

In the end we covered 2000km of varied, culturally diverse, beautiful Morocco.

A joke on Ishmael. IYKYK

I’m grateful to Strabo Tours, our Local Guide Ishmael, driver Meadhe, and Photo Guide Ron Rosenstock for an unforgettable experience.

There’s more on the website.