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Monochrome Madness: MM 197

water, reflection, canyon, Red Rock, Nevada

Water is the planet’s most precious resource, especially here in the desert.  Last month we finally had a day of rain that put an end to a string of 116 days without measurable rain at the official weather gauge in Las Vegas.  The previous rainfall was a trace…..enough to wet the pavement, but not enough for the insects or birds to get a drink.  Go back another five days to when there were numbers on the rain gauge.  That’s 121 days.  One third of a year.  At a time of year that is supposed to be the wettest.  Similar stats have taken place throughout the southwest.

As each month draws to a close, it seems the news people tell us how it was the hottest (January, February, March, etc.) on record, or at least a top five.  In 2017, the temperature never dropped below freezing, which has never happened here before.  The doubters of global warming will tell you it’s because we are adding more concrete, thus raising temperatures where the official readings are taken.  I assure you, no one is building near our airport.  Even more remote places are showing elevated average readings.

The photo above is from a previous winter, and is from a lesser-known part of Red Rock Canyon, west of Las Vegas.  It’s probably a good thing that there is not a marked trail to get here.  This is my contribution to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, please visit Leanne’s website.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-32

Sierra Nevada, California, mountains, gottatakemorepix

As we approach winter in the northern hemisphere, scenes like this should be common.  Instead, the nightly news talks about fires in California, and how the firefighters will be on the job until Christmas, and now perhaps until New Year’s Day.  Here’s hoping for rain and snow soon for our neighbors in California.

This image is from the Mammoth region of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, and is my contribution to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, please visit Leanne’s website.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-28

Ice fog, Cowlitz River, Washington, Steve Bruno

Last week I was back in the Pacific Northwest, although I did not see any conditions like this again.  This was from a couple years ago, when there was fog in very cold conditions.  Ice coated all the vegetation, but not the roads – conditions I could photograph in all the time if it happened that way!

This was my entry in Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness last week.  Running a little late with a lot of travel taking place.

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WPC: Peek

red rock canyon, nevada, sunrise, Steve Bruno, landscape photography

Earlier this year, I headed out to capture the sunrise at nearby Red Rock Canyon.  I knew a storm front was moving in, and after hiking to reach this spot, it looked as though it might be a day without photos.  Right at sunrise, the sun peeked through a tiny slice of an opening in the clouds.  This lasted for about a minute, and the not-so-distant cliffs in the background (which I had hoped to capture that morning) never fully saw the sun.

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WPC: Rounded

Texas Canyon, boulders, abstract, southern Arizona, gottatakemorepix

This week’s Daily Post Challenge of Rounded made me think of a river bottom full of smooth rocks.  Perhaps that’s because many river bottoms in the desert don’t have rivers in them.  Water’s erosive power works on larger boulders, too, and that’s where I searched through my files.  These rounded boulders are in southwestern Arizona, in a place called Texas Canyon.

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WPC: Glow

zion national park, sunrise, reflections, virgin river

When I saw the title for this week’s photo challenge, I immediately thought of some of the canyons I’ve visited.  The canyons of the southwestern US are great places to hike because there is often shade.  Because of the shade, light reaching the bottom is often reflected off higher sunlit walls, resulting in a warm glow.  In those canyons where water is present, the effect is magnified.

My photo comes from Zion National Park, Utah.  As sunrise lit up the high cliffs on a morning with clear blue skies, the North Fork of the Virgin River glowed from the light being cast onto it.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-24

waterfalls, yosemite, national park, california, merced river

Last winter/spring was one of the wettest that California has ever seen, and was declared a drought-buster by several accounts.  Now, about a half year later, we have seen the most devastating fires to ever hit that state.  What happened to all that water?  Did the drought really go away?

Intense, out-of-control fires have occurred in places that you would not normally expect these to take place.  Oregon, Montana, western Canada, and now Portugal have all been in the news for their fires this year.  A reasonable person would have to look at this situation and wonder if there is something we can do for long-term fire prevention.  The White House says global warming and climate change is a hoax.  More FAKE NEWS!

My photo is from several years ago, and is one of my favorites from a springtime trip in what used to be a normal weather year.  I know fires have threatened Yosemite National Park in recent years, and I can’t help but wonder if the next one is the one that leaves the park in ashes.

This is my contribution to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, please visit her website.

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WPC: Scale

hawaii, volcano, eruption, big island, kalapana

On my first trip to the big island of Hawaii, we had lucky timing with the volcanic activity.  The day before I took this photo, a lava tube broke, and all the lava was now running over the hillside instead of underneath it.  I wanted badly to get closer to this spectacle, but the viewing area was roped off, and there was a security patrol to make sure nobody went where they weren’t supposed to go.  Or so I thought.  The viewing area closed at 10 pm, and at 9:55, three men came walking from the other side of the rope and in plain sight of the guards.  None were wearing ranger uniforms, or showing anything indicating authority.  I remember thinking “Who are they, and how the hell were they allowed out there?”  I couldn’t make it back on this trip, so my thoughts of trying to figure out how to get past the rope were not going to make a difference anyway.

What you are looking at is not the source of the eruption.  There was so much lava coming down, that this was where it met the ocean, causing it to shoot up in the air 300-400 feet.  It was really hard to fathom the size of this event, and it wasn’t until I looked at the images blown up on the computer screen, that I saw that those men were in a couple of the frames providing a sense of scale.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-23

autumn, inner basin, san francisco peaks, snow, flagstaff, steve bruno, gottatakemorepix

I love this time of year when the air gets cooler and the leaves change color.  Occasionally, cold fronts come through with a little moisture, and hopefully, not much wind.  That was the case for this photo from the San Francisco Peaks, near Flagstaff, Arizona taken a couple years ago.

This is my contribution to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, please visit her website.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-19

Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, Nevada, Steve Bruno, gottatakemorepix

After having spent most of July in Oregon and Hawaii, I have to admit I’ve been a bit uninspired to head out into the desert.  Last week we had a beautiful day that started out with clouds and rain, and I made a relatively unplanned tour through the desert.  One of my stops was at Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge along the Great Basin Highway.  I probably would have seen more wildlife if this hadn’t been towards the middle of the afternoon, but tall shade-providing trees, roads lined with sunflowers and small lakes were enough to soothe the senses.  The breezes would occasionally find a lull, and the clouds were just enough to provide a little contrast for my photo here.

You can see this photo on Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, please visit her website.

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Monochrome Madness: MM4-11

Bryce Canyon, National Park, Utah, hoodoos, Steve Bruno, gottatakemorepix

For this week’s Monochrome Madness, the theme is wild.  I have been to several places so remote, not even the governing agencies could answer my inquiries as to trail conditions or water reliability.  And although these remote places are seldom seen by people, images captured there may not necessarily reflect the feelings of isolation.

Bryce Canyon, the location of my photo, has spots that you can hike to that will give you a feeling of being in a wilderness, but most of the trails will have you hiking side-by-side with a bunch of strangers.  Despite that, it is still the wildest looking place I have ever been to.  This is my contribution to Leanne Cole’s Monochrome Madness this week.  To see what other photographers have contributed, or instructions to join in, visit her website.

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WPC: Reflecting

Red Rock Canyon, Nevada, reflection, hiking, Steve Bruno, gottatakemorepix

A couple months ago, I returned to a favorite hike in Red Rock Canyon.  This particular canyon has water year-round, and I spent a fair amount of time around where a small channel of water was flowing ever so slowly across the boulders.

This is my image for this week’s Monochrome Madness on Leanne Cole’s website.  Since The Daily Post made the theme reflecting this week, I guess I’ll kill two birds with one stone.

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