Near the Lower Geyser Basin in Yellowstone National Park is a stand of fire-scorched trees, or “fire trees” as our younger daughter named them during her first visit to the park five years ago. The ground surrounding a section of these trees is often steaming, hinting at the subterranean warmth and runoff from springs on Firehole Lake Drive nearby. Following a snow fall this phenomenon was illustrated nicely with a sharp delineation between cool and hot ground. This is another 16×9 photograph taken with our cool little Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2.
|
Burned trees in grass meadow in Lower Geyser Basin. Grass on the left has hot runoff from nearby thermal springs, keeping it free of snow. Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA.
Image: 19789
Location: Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
|
We spent time checking out the travertine terraces at Mammoth Hot Springs, in the northwestern corner of Yellowstone National Park. Several thousand pounds of calcium carbonate, carried in solution from the hot springs that bubble up through thick limestone, are deposited onto the enormous terraces each day. As the terrace complex spreads and grows, surrounding vegetation is overtaken. In this photo several dead trees are seen embedded in calcium carbonate, with steaming water flowing around them, a ghostly scene. This was photographed with our tiny Panasonic Lumix DMC-LX2. While probably considered a simple point-and-shoot camera by most people, it produces surprisingly high quality images (when used properly, including low ISO). Among other features, the camera allows full manual exposure (f-stop, shutter speed, ISO), auto-bracketing and RAW file format, all of which are uncommon in the point-and-shoot market. A number of the photos we shot with this fun camera while in Yellowstone are sufficiently sharp and clean to be posted for hopeful stock sales.
|
Dead trees embedded in calcium carbonate deposits in the travertine terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs, near Minerva terrace . Over two tons of calcium carbonate (in solution) is deposited each day on the terraces, gradually killing any vegetation that had managed to be growing. Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA.
Image: 19796
Location: Mammoth Hot Springs, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, USA
 View this Image in Google Earth!
|
Shortly before my visit to Yellowstone National Park this fall to photograph elk, I learned that not one but two female grizzly bears had been killed, presumably by other bears. Fratricide among adult grizzlies is not particularly unusual, but two killings within days of one another is strange. Since both females were killed in the same part of the park, it is natural to presume they met their demise from the same cause: a male grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis). When I arrived in the Lamar Valley, I spoke with a few photographers and animal watchers who told me that indeed the conventional wisdom, based as it was on circumstancial evidence in the absence of any witnesses to the killings, was that a single large male grizzly was probably responsible for the killings. I was fortunate to spot the bear as I was passing through Little America near the distinctive stand of aspens on the north side of the road, not far from the river. By the time the bear had made his way up from the river to cross the road near me quite a crowd had formed. I was told that a “bear researcher” was among those watching, and that this researcher had confirmed the bear as being the one suspected of the killings in the preceding weeks. The bear was bending his nose, perhaps to get a better scent of the people watching him.
“Grizzly bears” and brown bears are one and the same species. Perhaps they are best thought of as distinct races of the same species, differing in size primarily due to diet. Some refer to grizzlies as Ursus horribilis or Ursus arctos horribilis but that is a distinction without a difference and I suspect would be discounted by modern taxonomists. The scientific name is Ursus arctos and I only include the horribilis on my web site to help distinguish between the two races. “Coastal” brown bears, which inhabit coastal regions in Alaska and Canada and include the famous Kodiak Island, Katmai and Kenai populations of brown bear, have access to vast amounts of fat rich salmon and thus grow considerably larger than interior grizzlies. Indeed, coastal brown bears are the largest bears found in the world. Grizzlies are found further inland in Alaska through Canada and into the northern United States and are often seen in Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Glacier and Waterton Lakes National Parks.
Never went to finishing school:
Because its there.
A lick in time saves nine.
A boog in hand is worth two in the nose.
Another interesting shot of the smoke plumes viewed from space. Look, there’s Guadalupe Island down there too!
No, I didn’t take this photo. NASA did. They have better cameras than me.
The Witch Creek fire has now eaten 200,000 acres and at least 500 homes. It is the largest plume visible from space at the moment, dwarfing the fires in other parts of California. Temperatures have dropped noticably today, humidity has risen and the fire seems to have lost some of its strength, but I don’t want to jinx things by feeling too optimistic.
Sarah and I went down to check the surf at Ponto tonight. It was strange. The water was glass, with small shapely waves. It looked at once fun and depressing. I wish I had had time to get in the water. There were a handful of surfers out. The sky was bizarrely red and it was hard to distinguish the horizon due to the haze. A layer of soot and ash lay over the beach and was pooled thickly in some of the depressions in the sand where the breeze could not pick it up. Groups of helicopters were passing by just offshore every few minutes, some going north and some south, busy with their firefighting efforts. A gal that my daughter spoke with had come from Jamul earlier in the day, trying to help a friend of hers save property and horses, but I sensed from her mood that they did not have much success. The sky and sun were so super saturated red/orange/yellow that they practically fried the electronics in our little point and shoot pocket mini micro digicam.
Some links:
The best page for info about the perimeter of the fires, but it is getting very heavy traffic: San Diego Fires - Information.
SD Union-Tribune blog, updated frequently. Traffic was so heavy they had to move this page to Blogspot, the U-T servers couldn’t deal with the demand.
SD Union-Tribune main website (often down due to heavy traffic)
Local TV news coverage: NBC, ABC, CBS.
Area Traffic: SigAlert, Dept of Transportation
An interesting, animated look at the smoke plumes from space: Satellite Animated View.
We’ve received many phone calls and emails about the wildfires that are raging throughout Southern California. Immediate danger to our house appears minimal, although the air quality is unbelievably bad with ash raining down. The fire that was going yesterday (Monday) in San Marcos (due east of us) was a real concern as the Santa Ana winds would have blown it right through us. It appears that particular fire is now 100% contained and mostly under control. The major tragedies are the Witch Creek, Harris and Rice fires. About 6-12 miles to the south of us, the huge Witch Creek fire has mowed down a broad swatch of open space, rural and residential communities from Ramona, through Rancho Bernardo and Escondido, touching Rancho Santa Fe and Fairbanks Ranch and continuing on towards the coast. It currently threatens areas near Del Mar near the ocean. Many of our friends in Encinitas, Olivenhain, Leucadia and La Costa have evacuated, either voluntarily or at the request of authorities. We are packed to leave but so far do not feel seriously threatened, and consider ourselves very lucky. At the moment.
Some links:
The best page for info about the perimeter of the fires, but it is getting very heavy traffic: San Diego Fires - Information.
SD Union-Tribune blog, updated frequently. Traffic was so heavy they had to move this page to Blogspot, the U-T servers couldn’t deal with the demand.
SD Union-Tribune main website (often down due to heavy traffic)
Local TV news coverage: NBC, ABC, CBS.
Area Traffic: SigAlert, Dept of Transportation
An interesting, animated look at the smoke plumes from space: Satellite Animated View.
Santa Anas whipped up strong yesterday, sending offshores out to meet the clean swells coming ashore. Every wave had a rainbow trailing it. Just as each wave was poised to break, the wind would rip the lip off with impressive sound, sending spray aloft only to fall back around me after the swell had passed. It was great, the most fun I have had in the water all year. But …
|
Breaking wave, tube, hollow barrel, morning surf.
Image: 19534
View this Image in Google Earth!
|
|
Breaking wave, tube, hollow barrel, morning surf.
Image: 19535
View this Image in Google Earth!
|
|
Breaking wave, tube, hollow barrel, morning surf.
Image: 19532
View this Image in Google Earth!
|
|
Breaking wave, tube, hollow barrel, morning surf.
Image: 19533
View this Image in Google Earth!
|
Today those winds are whipping up fierce fires that are burning houses and causing massive evacuations throughout San Diego. I heard on the news that 1000+ fire engines are on their way from surrounding states to assist. Some people, civilians and firefighters, have already been critically injured or killed. We are packed and ready to go if our part of town gets the call to evacuate.
Today things lined up in North County for some great surf. I got out shortly after the sun hit the water this morning in Cardiff. The sun was bright, the swell we’ve had for a few days was peaking, and we got the offshore winds that had the TV weatherman so excited. (Half of San Diego is now burning, courtesy of those winds.) After three hours in the water I had shot 1200 photos — the camera was firing hard. It was quite a workout as there was a steady south longshore current running all morning against which I had to kick the entire time. My legs were wasted when I stopped for lunch today. Here is one sequence that turned out pretty good:
The rest of the shots from this morning can be seen here.
I haven’t posted anything from my Yellowstone trip since I have been tied up with work and kid stuff. I’m almost done editing those shots and will have them posted in the next week or so.
