Big Bend Abstracts

I had enough abstract photos from Big Bend that I thought I'd post them on their own.

As usual, I took a bunch of reflection photos - Santa Elena Canyon was good for this. Cactus are also good subjects. Not to mention, mud, trees, clouds, grass, and seeds. In other words, pretty much anything and everything :-)























For more photos, see all 39 as a slideshow or overview

Big Bend Outer Loop

First stop, visitors center to get our backcountry permits. We barely told the ranger our plan before she had to tell us, sternly, that "people die out there!" It was all I could do not to roll my eyes. In all the 40 years I've been doing trips and registering for them, I've lost count of how many times I've run into that attitude. I realize that part of their job is to prevent people from killing themselves (and then suing!) But if that was the goal then you'd think they'd ask what experience you had. But they rarely do. It's as if they send the rangers to classes on how to be negative and discourage anyone from leaving the pavement. Occasionally we have tackled more extreme adventures that I can see them being sceptical about. But these days? Not so much. We were registering for what is probably the most common backpacking trip on the park. Granted, it's the desert and water and heat are factors. So ask a few questions and make sure we're prepared. Don't just give some canned melodramatic line. Sheesh!

She seemed even more disapproving when I said we planned to do the loop in the opposite direction from most people, although she didn't offer any reason why. In terms of doing the steep sections with less load of water, it made sense to me. And it’s a loop, so the overall vertical is the same. Plus, if you're antisocial like me, going backwards means you only see people briefly as you pass them going in the opposite direction :-)

Originally we had planned to to take the shuttle to the park (like we did on our last trip). But then we discovered that we needed to cache water for the hike, so we ended up renting a car. (That wasn’t all bad since it let us explore more of the park after the hike.) We dropped off our water in the bear proof box near Homer Wilson ranch. (There’s also a potential spot to cache at the intersection of the Juniper and Dobson trails, but it requires a 4wd high clearance vehicle to access.)

It was nice to finally set out from the car after shuffling gear into the pack and hoping not to forget anything important. It only takes a few hundred yards to lose most of the people. Soon after you leave behind the noise of civilization. You don't really notice it till it's gone. There was a roadrunner in the parking lot to see us off.



Then just the slow steady comfortable tread. Even with the pack it's quite pleasant. I took the ability to hike with a backpack for granted for so many years, now I wonder how many more years I'll be able to do it. I walk a little more carefully these days, not from fear but simply in hopes of making my knees and hips and feet last as long as possible. I use hiking poles, although I don’t really like how they get in the way of taking photos.



I like hiking in the desert with the bizarre cactus and the stark desert terrain. But by definition there's little or no water which means carrying it. Luckily on this hike the most you need to haul is two days worth - about 8 litres (= 8 kg = 18 lbs). Since our packs are light to begin with (maybe 25 lbs) it's not too bad. And you drink it so you're not carrying the full weight for long.



Coming back from the outhouse at our first campsite we spotted a skunk. It seemed to be staying in the same area so I went and got my camera and came back. Sure enough it was still there. I made Shelley a little nervous trying to get close enough for photos. I guess she didn't want to share the tent with someone who got sprayed by a skunk! The skunk appeared to be feeding. It was moving around slowly, stopping every few feet to dig shallow holes in the ground. Presumably finding insects of some sort, although I'm not sure how it knew where to dig. Smell? Sound? If I got too close or made too much noise it would stop and look at me and its tail would go up. But if I froze it would soon resume feeding and its tail would drop again. I expect skunks to have a white stripe but this one's back was pretty much all long white fur. It reminded me of a colobus monkey.



There were also a couple of deer wandering around in the area.



We spent a couple of hours at the Dobson ranch avoiding the sun's worst in the shade of the old building. A large wasp had been buzzing around us at lunch and I tried several times to photograph it but it was too skittish. It landed on my foot but as soon as I reached for my camera it flew away. It landed on the wall but when I approached it left. Finally it stopped in the door frame and I got a few shots, but not great. But when I wandered around the building a bit later I found one (maybe the same one) on the grass, a more natural background, where it cooperated for me. The are quite impressive - large yellow abdomen, long legs that hang down when it flies, about an inch long. We saw them throughout the trip.



The next section was a bit more unpleasant - uphill with two day’s water, in +33c, full sun with no shade. When we reached the junction of the Dobson and Juniper trails we were excited there was a truck at the end of the road - shade! We sat and ate our lunch leaning against the tires.



The last day the weight of my pack fell back below the magic threshold where it ceases to be a painful burden and goes back to being a reasonable load. (I have to admit that threshold has dropped over the years!) I've never been much for big loads, for me 65 lbs is half my body weight!



One of the rules for backcountry camping in Big Bend is that you have to be 100 yards off the trail. That's a standard rule and I'm all for it. I have no desire to camp beside the trail. A volunteer ranger we ran into stressed several times not to use the obvious cleared campsites right beside the trail. But the terrain doesn't agree. Everything here has needles and thorns. 100 yards of bushwhacking off trail is going to leave you bleeding and impaled. And the ground is hilly, with few level spots. And even if you find a spot where it's feasible, then what? Rip up all the cactus and bushes? We searched for spots off the trail, but in the end we disobeyed the rules and camped on one of the already cleared, level spots beside the trail. In terms of our impact it seemed the better choice.





The climb up the Juniper trail is quite long and steep, but the trail is good with well designed switchbacks, and with light packs at the end of the trip it went easily. Once we reached the top it was an easy downhill couple of hours back to the Chisos Lodge where we left our car.



For more photos see all 26 as a slideshow or overview

Kayaking Austin

Our second (and last) morning in Austin we rented kayaks and paddled on the river/lake. It was another beautiful sunny day, not as hot as yesterday, but still nice. I took photos of the birds and turtles. There are lots of turtles here!









I think these are the first Wood Ducks that I've seen outside of zoos. So colorful!





For more photos, see all 13 as a slideshow or overview

Austin Texas

Our train arrived slightly late, but still in time to get a taxi to the hotel and get some supper in the hotel restaurant overlooking the river. Normally we try to find non-chain hotels with something different about them - historic or artsy or whatever. But this time we had trouble finding anything interesting so we chose the Radisson since it was by the river. Hotels aren't cheap in Austin, and that's before taking the punishing hit of exchange. I console myself with the knowledge that my company is making lots on the exchange when we sell into the USA.

Our first day was beautiful warm (+27c) sunny weather - quite a contrast from Chicago. We had nothing planned so after coffee at Austin Java we wandered along the paths by the river. Like Saskatoon, they've done a nice job of the riverbank. Although it was a weekday, there were lots of people out walking, running, and bicycling. (Away from the river, Austin is the usual car-centric pedestrian unfriendly North American city.) We discovered Austin is famous for its bats.



More reflections, in the buildings and in the water.



Curious squirrels



And a wind blown egret with a couple of small turtles for company. (I didn't notice the turtles till I looked at the photo on the computer)



We eventually found the botanical gardens, where not much was growing this time of year, but there were a few flowers and butterflies and a lizard, and the grounds were nice.





It was my kind of day, just wandering around with my camera looking at the world and recording bits and pieces of its beauty and wonder to share.






We had a late lunch at Z'Tejas Mexican Restaurant. Stopped in at a photography gallery that was showing photographs from Big Bend National Park where we're headed next. And then to REI to buy supplies for our upcoming backpacking trip in Big Bend. Supper was tapas style at Cru Wine bar. (Don't miss the goat cheese beignets!)

For more photos, see all 26 as a slideshow or overview

Chicago to Austin

Another overnight train ride took us from wintery Chicago to warm Austin, Texas.

A brief stop in Dallas yielded some reflection photos of a shiny office tower across from the station.









Another stop in Fort Worth was long enough to find a nearby Starbucks and grab a decent coffee. And later, a glass of wine on the train kept us going until we got to Austin.

Chicago Too

Our last morning in Chicago we headed to the Field Museum. I prefer live animals, but I'd read about it in City Creatures: Animal Encounters in the Chicago Wilderness and thought it was worth checking out.

I’m not sure if it was colder or if it was just the wind direction blowing into shore but there was more ice on the lake. There was a flock of Canada Geese on the way to the aquarium and museum (they’re near each other). You could see their footprints in the fresh snow and see the oval depressions where they’d been lying.

I take some photos of a pair of ducks, the icicles along the shore, and the patterns of the ice in the half frozen lake.







The Field Museum is interesting, but as expected it contains a lot of stuffed animals, something I’m not really excited about. But they have a huge collection and I was struck by the sheer diversity of animal life on our planet. But also struck by how many are marked as endangered. The stuffed tiger (endangered) not far from the stuffed passenger pigeons (extinct). I fear stuffed animals are the future of much of our wildlife.

Chicago

It's cold and snowy in Chicago and living up to its nickname of the windy city. The train trip from Minot was uneventful and we were ahead of schedule most of the way. There doesn't seem to be a big selection of nice restaurants with vegetarian options but we enjoyed going back to Trattoria No. 10 (despite getting lost on the way!).

This morning we walked over to the Shedd Aquarium. It's quite a nice walk along the lake in warmer weather. We got to the aquarium early to beat the crowds. I was a little disappointed with the dolphin show when they brought out a dog for part of it. I know everyone loves dogs these days, but what do they have to do with an aquarium!







After the aquarium we had lunch at Terzo Piano in the Art Institute. And we couldn't miss a visit to the nearby Cloud Gate (aka the bean) where I had fun with finding abstract reflections.







Next stop was the Museum of Contemporary Photography for their 40th anniversary exhibit. Unfortunately, their taste in photography is quite different from mine. Still, it was interesting.

By then it was time for coffee and we stopped at Intelligentsia. Last time we were here they didn't have much in the way of tea, but this time they had a steamed chai that Shelley said was quite good. The coffee, of course, was excellent.

For more photos, see all 19 as a slideshow or overview

On Our Way

Three moose beside the highway. One looks up as we pass. What funny faces they have

A snowy owl in the half dark, on the ground, watching us go by.

Yikes, a car driving towards us on the wrong side of the divided highway.

A bald eagle on the ground, pulling morsels off some carcass. A raven looking tiny beside it, scrounging for leftovers.

Clouds screaming by overhead, their shadows racing our car at 100 km/hr.

Traveling again.

Photo of the Day

The weather outside might be crazy with freezing rain in January, but the sun is getting a little higher, and we do have some wonderful greenery inside Innovation Place. I'm sure the people in their offices were wondering what I was taking photos of, but I couldn't resist the backlit leaves.

Print of the Week

The camera is an instrument that teaches people how to see without a camera.
- Dorothea Lange

I have my Flickr photos as the screen saver on my Apple TV and this photo happened to come up. As it slid onto the screen I couldn't figure out what it was at first. I like photos like that, where it's something real and natural, but still somewhat abstract, where it puzzles you for a moment. In this case it's also a matter of camouflage. I wonder what slow reptilian thoughts pass through its brain as it waits motionless but alert.



The large print (15" x 20") shows off the texture and detail well, a good example of why I like to print my photos. I cringe when I think that a lot of people see photos mostly on tiny phone screens or as a small image in their Facebook feed.

This was one from the Santa Barabara zoo in the fall. 

Land of the Living Skies

Beautiful sunset on the walk home from work yesterday. I'm not sure what made it so colorful.





I also did panorama versions - click on them to view larger.





Now that Lightroom has a panorama merge built-in I find I'm doing more than when I had to switch to Photoshop for it. (The panorama feature built into cameras isn't usually available if you're shooting Raw.)

Photos of the Day

I had an appointment downtown so I was walking along the river a little later than my usual walk to work, which meant I got to catch the sunrise. It was -20c, not much wind, with some fog on the river. A little cold for photography, and I didn't have much time to spare, but I couldn't resist a few shots.





There were Common Goldeneyes on the river and a Downy Woodpecker in a tree. I could hear more chickadees than I could see, always a cheery sound. On the way home, at noon, in broad daylight I encountered a coyote on the paved Meewasin trail. It looked at me, and the people approaching from the other direction, and then wandered away from the path and down to the riverbank.