Lassen Volcanic Park Trip - Part 3

We began the day by driving along the shores of Lake Almanor, pausing for photo ops.  That's Mt. Lassen, with some stripes of snow, in the background.  Below is a panorama shot (you can click to enlarge).

We saw these signs all over the area, sometimes near ranches but also in the deep woods.  Is it possible there are feral cattle, lurking and about to leap out onto the roadway?

Another common sight was logging trucks.  Much of the area is national forest, but there are private timber company lands as well.  A log truck barreling along winding mountain roads with no guard rails is a force to be respected.

Leaving Lassen, we entered the adjacent Plumas National Forest.  After picking up sandwiches in the charming small town of Greenville, and keeping a sharp eye out, we spotted the parking lot for Indian Falls, where a short walk rewarded us with this view of the small falls on the left:

The main falls:

And the view downstream:

It was stunningly gorgeous, and so difficult to capture in photographs, but here's a panorama nonetheless:

A short video of Indian Falls:

After eating lunch while perched on the rocks, I spent some time in that most elusive and rewarding of activities, quiet contemplation:

And was rewarded by spying a coyote trotting along between the trees and the rocks on the other side.  He or she was too quick to photograph, but this bit of wildlife was easier to capture:

I could have happily built a cabin and stayed there forever, but eventually it was time to hit the road again, heading towards the wide open spaces of Nevada.

I enjoyed the interplay of light and shadow over the range lands.

We ended up back in civilization, such as it is.  I enjoyed the next day in Reno--people watching in the casino, exploring the town on foot, buying a pretty pendant in a pawn shop--but I am not of a gambling temperament and rued the $10 I lost on the slots.

All in all, an excellent adventure!

Lassen Volcanic Park Trip - Part 2

Day two of our Lassen Volcanic National Park adventure started with a drive back up the mountain to the trail head for Bumpass Hell , an active hydrothermal area.  The scenery was stunning, and seemed to change with each twist in the trail.

We made a short detour to marvel at Lake Helen, where the early morning light and calm winds provided amazing reflections and a deep indigo color to the water.  (You can click on the panorama shot, and all the pictures, to enlarge them.)

Vegetation got scarcer, and ash/rubble more prevalent, as we hiked higher.

We encountered a chipmunk who was curious about us, and wary but not timid.

We passed through a magical bit of forest and came around a bend to the first view of Bumpass Hell.  It's named for the unfortunate Kendall Bumpass who hoped to make his fortune here, but instead inadvertently stepped through the thin crust of soil into the boiling mud, and lost a leg due to the injury.  I took this parable to heart and adhered to the directives to stay on the path and the boardwalk.

It's a bit like standing on the surface of an alien planet, with bubbling mud pots, eruptions of hissing steam, and the powerful and pervasive aroma of sulfur.

Here's a short video to give you a feel for it:

Apparently, that's just the thing to make me very, very happy!

Off to one side there's an area where a mountain stream merges and mingles with the hydrothermals, and it produces a pond of the most amazing aquamarine color:

The weather was growing increasingly colder, so with a few fond farewell glances we left Bumpass and headed back down the mountain.  A squall blew up, and we hiked back down through a light snow storm that lent a magical air to the whole proceedings.

Back at the car, we headed down out of the mountain in search of warmth and sustenance.  The scenery changed again as the Cascades gave way to the Sierra Nevada mountains.

Down in Chico it was 30 degrees warmer, but the beer was nice and cold.  The Sierra Nevada Brewery is a extremely "green" operation, which made it an added pleasure to dine there.

Refreshed, we embarked on the drive back to Chester through still more amazing scenery, and the end of another very full and astonishing day.

Lassen Volcanic Park Trip - Part 1

Last week I had a fabulous vacation in northern California in the vicinity of Lassen Volcanic National Park.  It's the southernmost peak in the Cascade mountain range--I hiked Mt. Hood and Mt. St. Helens in the northern part of the range last year--where it meets up with the Sierra Nevada range. The quirky geology and the aftermath of the Mt. Lassen eruption in 1915 make for varied and stunning panoramic views.

We paused at one of the turnouts driving up the mountain to admire a rainbow colored halo around the sun:

And a particularly picturesque rocky crag:

After a bit of exploring on the mountain, we stopped at Summit Lake:

Which afforded grand views of Mt. Lassen:

Next up was a stop at the devastated area.  It was interesting to contrast it with the devastated area of Mt. St. Helens; here, there had been time for the conifers to make a comeback. 

Next stop was at Subway Cave, an lava tube.  Here's the staircase at the entrance:

The walls inside were remarkably smooth and fantastically colored.  Here I am lit by flashlight.

And the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel at the other end:

On the way back to the hotel in Chester we saw a forest where the incense cedars survived a fire:

We drove past Poison Lake, which looked very dry......I'm guessing it fills up seasonally, but haven't found an explanation of how it functions yet.

We passed a stand of aspens in full fall glory:

At a stop in Westwood to visit a meadery, the engineer blew the whistle and waved:

A full day and a good day.  Stayed tuned for part 2!

Hike at Reed Run and House Rock

We had a great hike in the Reed Run and House Rock preserves this past weekend.  On the trailhead to Reed Run I spotted these milkweed pods, complete with Large Milkweed Bugs.

Above is a portion of the stream; you can see some pawpaw leaves in the lower right.  This setting, with its groves of wild pawpaws growing along the banks, was the inspiration for my Reed Run a few years back:

Here I am, caught in a contemplative moment:

The view from a portion of the Conestoga Trail that skirts the Susquehanna River.  I love the lines of the trees trunks and branches in this shot:

After a dry spell, we've had a deluge of rain, leading to a eruption of fungi:

The view from House Rock over the Susquehanna.  You can see where someone laboriously carved the name into the rock years ago in the lower left.  The rock was crawling with brown marmorated stink bugs--there's no escaping them in PA this year.

Here's the panoramic view of House Rock:

And the small art quilt View from House Rock:





On the way back to the trailhead, we passed a field with an experimental planting of chestnut trees, fenced to keep out deer. 
A great day and a good hike.

Flora and Fauna Opening Reception

 It was a very good opening night for my Flora and Fauna exhibit earlier this month at the PA Arts Experience Gallery in Lancaster.  There I am just before the reception started, with Deer and Mayapple and Prickly Sow Thistle on the left, and Fox and Hackberry on the right.  Below is a shot from later in the evening, when the First Friday crowds were in full swing.  Groundhog and Green Bean is on the left.

 Here's a slightly arty shot, with Wood Poppy underneath the staircase, and Skunk Cabbage and Possum in the back.  It's a lovely gallery, and I'm so delighted to have my work displayed there.  The exhibit is up until the end of the month, so stop by if you are in town.

 And now perhaps my favorite shot of the evening....just before closing time a Power Ranger showed up with an entourage.  I'm not sure what their purpose was, assuming they had one, but at one point the Red Ranger seemed mesmerized by my work!

New Work -- Deer and Mayapple

Today I'm featuring another just-completed work, "Deer and Mayapple".  It's part of my new series, Flora and Fauna, which is also the name of my exhibit running through the month of October at the PA Arts Experience Gallery, 114 N. Prince St., Lancaster, PA.  I'll be at the gallery from 5 -9 tomorrow night for the First Friday opening reception, and again on Saturday for Lancaster Artwalk.  I'm excited about the opportunity to share my new work in such a great venue.

"Deer and Mayapple"  is 42"h x 50" w, and features cyanotype prints of skull and jaw bones that I photographed.  The prints came out very well; you can even see the squiggly lines bisecting the skull on top, which I'm assuming is where the growth plates fused.  It's a smallish skull, with short stubs of antlers, and part of the nose was either worn or nibbled away.  The patchwork is made from high-end silks, and cotton and bamboo fabrics I painted and printed.

It's also got this absolutely fabulous vintage embroidered piece, with a fawn nibbling some possibly forbidden fruit in a fantasy garden. 

Can you tell I am having a lot of fun with this series?