2018 Yellowstone Nights

During visits to Yellowstone I usually try to stay on the west side for a few nights. Madison campground makes a good base for getting around to the geysers and thermals.  This year was no exception. The Milky Way in the SW sky made a wonderful backdrop for some of the features in the park.

One night I was very fortunate to be able to photograph Great Fountain geyser as it went off. The breeze was blowing the wrong way for trying to capture the Milky Way behind it but it worked out OK. Usually night photography is a solo experience, but at times having at least one other person around  is handy. In this case the people happened to be lighting the geyser in just the right way so my photographs were enhanced beyond what I could have done alone. This geyser is unpredictable, the sign said it might go off between 9 pm and 1 am. Fortunately it went off between 10 and 10:30 pm.

When I’m traveling up this way I regularly check out the website, http://www.spaceweather.com. It gives great info about the sun’s activity and possible Aurora sightings. As it turned out there was a faint bit of the aurora visible one night. Not much compared to some I’ve captures but fun to see.

Sunsets, while technically not night photography, can be quite spectacular in Wyoming. With the foregrounds in Yellowstone they are truly fun to photograph.

 

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2018 City of Rocks SP, NM

Earlier this  month I had the chance to stop for a few nights at City of Rocks SP north of Deming, NM. Several friends have stayed there and their reports have always been good ones so I wanted to experience the place. What a nice state park, sites are good sized, generally not close together and best of all they are close to or set in among the rocks.

I took a few images during the day then got out the evening of the full moon to capture the

Moonlight on the rocks

moonlight on the rocks. I don’t often get such interesting foreground lit by the moon so it was fun.

 

The last night I was there there was enough time before the moon rose to capture the glory of the stars in a really dark sky. I used a light to paint the rocks just a bit.  The zodiacal light was visible, too, and since it is a rare thing it was really nice to capture it with the rocks.

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2017 Grand Canyon

From Utah I traveled the Grand Canyon. I got to the Desert View campground(a new one for me) before noon on a Wednesday and was able to get a very nice site. This campground is small, 50 sites, all paved with a nice bathroom and plenty of water spigots. It’s also quiet and sort of out of the way compared to the much larger campgrounds in the park. I’ve spent time at the Grand Canyon before, so I didn’t take a lot of images here. Tried to get some night images, though. When I first got here the moon was full and lit up the canyon.

One of the great things about this campground is that it is away from the central/busy part of the park. I can stand outside my trailer after dark and see the Milky Way from one end to the other in the sky above me, a fantastic sight.

As time went on the moon came up later and I was able to get a few images with the Milky Way over the canyon. Needless to say the canyon doesn’t make much of a foreground, being a big black hole so one night I took my high power spotlight with me and tried lighting up the nearby canyon walls at a couple of overlooks.

I did take a few daytime images, but except for one day the skies where totally cloudless which makes for pretty harsh light.

 

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2017 Goblin Valley SP

Goblin Valley SP is a unique place and since it was on the way to my next destination I decided to head there, hoping to snag a campsite for the night. I got there mid morning and was able to get a very nice site. That afternoon I drove around checking the park out.

The night was very clear and it was a lot of fun to go down into the Goblins’ Playground and do some photography. I didn’t wander around too much because I didn’t want to get lost! The waxing moon gave enough light so the goblins were visible but not so much that it prevented the Milky Way from being visible. That made for a very special opportunity for me.

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2017 Moab

When I left the Tetons I headed south to Moab, figuring it had to be warmer there. When I got to Moab late on Thursday afternoon, all the BLM campgrounds were full so I decided to go to the bare bones place just off 191 where I’ve seen lots of rigs with ATVs/ORVs parked. Turns out the land owner has realized he has a good spot there so it is now set up as a basic campground. Pros, large sites, level, small gravel, neat and clean, $15/night. Cons, if you need any amenities don’t bother. No water, shade or dump, 1 portapotty. Since the Casita is self contained, I use solar and it wasn’t an extremely hot time of the year the site worked fine for me. It is also very close to the entrance to Arches and to Moab so instead of traveling several miles in windy roads it was very convenient, worth it to me. The site is backed by grand high red cliffs and a nice spot for the sunset and early morning images.

I’ve been to Arches and posted images from those visits so this time I decided to concentrate on other places. Also, the park is open only Friday and Saturdays nights now because of road work and both nights were cloudy. Anyhow, I drove out 128 along the Colorado River one morning and made several stops. Not only was I enjoying the day time drive I was scouting for night images, too. I’d been through Castle Valley once several years ago and wanted to check it out, too.

Back near the campground I was able to find a good spot for some Milky Way images, too. 

 

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2017, Tetons, short visit

On my way to Yellowstone I stopped in the Tetons for only 4 nights. Got another great site at Gros Ventre CG. There is a lot of smoke around, sometimes you could be at the south end of the Tetons and couldn’t even see the north end of the range. Last year the fires were raging in both Yellowstone and GTNP, this year they are not in the parks but still affecting them.

The second night I was there it was wonderfully clear so I went out to see what I could photograph. First stop was one of the old Mormon barns. There were a couple of guys there already and they were using some LED flashlights to light the barn. Not the best light since it tends to be a very cold white but I warmed it up a bit in the processing.

 

The night was so clear I wanted to take advantage of it so I headed down to Schwabacher’s Landing unsure if the setting would work or not. Yes!  Just the spot to capture the Milky Way over the calm waters.

2017 Utah

Monument Valley from the roadside

From NM I headed to a familiar campground, Goosenecks SP, about 25 miles north of Monument Valley.  It is sort of barren, you pick a spot which may or may not have a table, but a one-of-a-kind view is guaranteed if you walk a few steps to the rim of the canyon. I tend to use this place as a base and visit Monument Valley to the south or Valley of the Gods to the north. This trip the weather was pretty overcast and each late afternoon I could watch the storm clouds pass by, sometimes with a rumble of thunder or flash of lightning, but no rain. A drive to view some of Monument Valley from the road was a must but mostly I just relaxed and caught up on stuff.

 

From there I headed north to another familiar place, Horse Thief CG. This is a BLM site, dry camping without

Twisted tree on a cloudy day, Canyonlands NP

even water available located just outside Moab, UT. It is convenient for Canyonlands NP, Arches NP and Moab. Sites are large with plenty of room and often some screening between them. One of the delights of this stop was that I was able to meet up with some friends from various parts of the country and to meet some new folks. The weather started out sunny each day, but with enough breeze so it stayed pleasant, not too hot.

Turret Arch lit by the moon, Arches NP

Arches NP is undergoing some extensive road work, prohibiting access 5 nights of the week and some sections of the park are closed completely. The closures will change as the work locations change. Fortunately I was able to get in on Friday night and the places I wanted to visit were accessible.

There was a full moon during my stay so instead capturing the Milky Way I decided to see how some familiar places looked in the moonlight.

Double Arch in the moonlight, Arches NP

Turned out the moon does a much better job of lighting things up than any artificial light.

 

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