Photography in 3 steps

Wait

Watch

Get ready to shoot

ANACORTES, WA - - A couple of days ago we found  Cap Sante which was perfect lookout point to check out a big marina mainly filled with pleasure craft.  We also had a good view of ships loading from near by refinery docks. 
     An eagle had made a close fly by for the past two days and we were hoping the raptor would do it again today.  We took up two vantage points...but no eagle.   Other birds teased us, but none came close.
     As you can see from the above shots, patience is a main ingredient...that and lots of luck.  Or maybe the eagle didn't like the bright fleece / visor Lydia was wearing.  
   

Always keep a spare handy

Big power boat leads while 'little guy' follows in the wake

ANACORTES, WA - - We probably had the nicest weather of all our trips on our ferry ride out to Friday Harbor.  Lots of boat activity on the Strait of Juan De Fuca makes it fun to stay outside even in the cool 20+ mph winds

See food lunch

Lunch looks yummy

ANACORTES, WA - - We stopped in Coupeville ,WA on our way up the coast.  Lydia had seafood in mind.  If you're on the coast, why not?  Her choice:  mussels with fettuccine in coconut curry sauce.  The only thing she didn't do was lick the bow. when she finished.  I went drab with fish and chips...which were very tasty but not much to photograph.

Water, water everywhere

ANACORDES, WA - -  Driving on water!  Our GPS doesn't have an icon for a ferry so it just shows us driving on water.  Here we are leaving the harbor at Anacortes (above) heading out into the Straight of Juan De Fuca on our way to Friday Harbor.  FH is  one of  many locations dotting the San Juan Islands for day-trippers. 

The problems when everyone dresses alike

BAY CITY, WA - - How do you find your parents when everyone (murre) is dressed alike? 

Into Oregon

BROOKINGS HARBOR, OR - - We're out of Northern California (where the the bears like ice cream cones which checking out the Redwoods and tourists.  Now it's the southern Oregon coast where the sea stacks seem to stretch to the horizon like stepping stones.

Bodega Bay happenings

Coming in for a landing.  Watch out!!

Gray seagull chicks huddle together as a wave breaks.  Other gulls don't seem to notice

BODEGA BAY, CA - - One of our favorite stops, but it was a very overcast morning.

Driving through Yosemite NP

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK - - The iconic Half Dome framed by trees in  a long distance shot while sporting a cloud cover.

Rolling along

Rain coming our way  (Mono lake /Lee Vining, CA)

Parked too long?  (Goldfield, NV)

The only settlement on the Extraterrestrial Highway  (NV)

Sent from McDonald's in Sonora, CA

Heading to Nevada

Things to do with your backyard - - Jerome, AZ

Colorado River seen from Navajo Bridge - - near Page, AZ

Duck Lake; geese; quaking aspen trees - - 

duck Creek, UT

Tucson onward

Fancy flowers decorate a flower pot

Rules of the stools

CEDAR CITY, UT - - We're two days away from Tucson in 'cooler country' in a mountainous area of Utah.  Never thought the mid-50's could feel so good.  We don't miss the high temps in Tucson, but we do miss our four-legged buddies Cooper, the dog and Bud the silver cat.
     The above photos are from a stop in Jerome, AZ...a sort of old-time town with a nice feel.  Last night we camped a a favorite location on our list from past years...Duck Creek...a National Forest Service site.  Getting this close to the Fourth it seemed about 80% of the ites were reserved.

Hot today, hotter tomorrow

Chilli.  Grow your own

Bud 'owned' the house

Until Cooper arrived

TUCSON, AZ - - The next six days are forecast to rise from today's official high of 107 and keep on going. 110 degrees is an easy bet.  And to keep the heat rising the next door neighbor is growing  chilli plants.
     The family we take care of consists of Bud the Cat, a sleek, friendly silver bullet. Bud needs to stay inside but will zip out any open door.  It's pretty easy to see that Bud is not particularly happy sharing what used to be all his with a DOG! 
     Cooper is a Cairn Terrier.  He looks pretty good in the photo, but it seems these dogs have a 'spikey' coat which makes them a bit ugly.  He's very friendly and waits for us to go to bed so he can pick out his spot in the middle of the bed.  

The call of the wild

A coyote, just off the trail

Butterfly photos are much easier then hummingbirds

TUCSON AZ - - The  final photos from our expedition to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum feature a coyote intently watching something other than us.  The butterfly, above, found a colorful landing area.  If you can't find wildlife while wandering around the museum, you aren't paying attention.

Everyone's hungry at Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum

Bobcat with its eyes on an appetizer

Hummingbird Refueling

Butterfly checking out the menu

Yes! Potato chips with my sandwich.  Potatro slice, maybe

A day in the desert

The Grey Fox prefers red

TUCSON, AZ - - Cooler weather (98degrees) got us rolling to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.  Once we finished our battle with the GPS and found the museum in an out of the way location, we saw why the people we are house sitting for recommended we check it out.  
     The emphasis is on animals in outdoor setting or as close as possible.  
This Grey Fox was in an enclosure to curtail roaming.

Weather or not

TUCSON, AZ - - The second day of our month long house sit in Tucson is providing us with information in how to re arrange our normal schedule.  Whatever we want to do we do it early.  And the rest of the day we watch the in-house weather station.  The photo above was taken at 3pm.  (The temperature pick up is in a shady area with plenty of air flow.)  It's now 8pm and a comfortable?? 96 degrees. 
     The house has good air conditioning and a nice wide screen TV with cable so we're not roughing it.  Our companions are a morose dog and an aloof cat who sleeps all day.  It will take a few days for the gang to get over being left behind by  their 'family.'  Until then, we can do aloof and morose real well.

Only 97 degrees, gee whiz.

TUCSON, AZ.  The TV weather talk isn't about today's 97 degrees.  Or about the 7-8 degrees of humidity.  No, it's about when the benchmark 100 degree level will be reached.  The TV talking heads say tomorrow or surely the day after.  And how long will it stay above the 100 degree range.  At least 5 straight days.  This time.
     Wander around outside for long in temperatures/humidity like this and you can feel Mother Nature sucking the moisture from your body.  So suck it up, bro.  Water, that is.  Hydrate your body.  Or turn the air conditioning up.

Gun fights and Indian nights

The feed and seed OK Corral was never famous until the shooting started

Take a stagecoach trip if you don't fancy gun play

The Inn At Castle Rock

Hummmmm

BISBEE, AZ - - From the blah area of Safford we headed off into the wilderness...which you can do in any direction.  Our first destination was Tombstone.  There might have been a famous gun fight here at the OK Corral.  Sure enough. You couldn't wander the historic section without hearing about when a re-enactment of the shoot out would take place and where you could buy your tickets to see it.  Actors wandered the streets in 'period' clothes.  "Hey, was that Wyatt Earp?"
     Down the road in the old mining town of Bisbee we wandered the streets until a hotel with the right amount of class got us to check in.  The Inn At Castle Rock is over 100 years old and started life at a workers hostel.  It has rooms decorated in 'period'  motif.  We stayed in the Geronimo room.  There were a lot of  decorations which, in an area with a stream of tourists, would probably be decorating some man-cave or garage.
     We also had hummingbirds for occasional company.

We're doing BIG out in nowhere

We're listening...to noises made millions of years ago.

The units are transferred to different locations by special rail engines.

I bet you need a map to get around

SAFFORD, NM - - Sometimes we find things, very big things, when we're not looking for them.  Yesterday, Lydia was driving and I was catching up on a few zzzzz.  She stopped and suggested we ought to go back to see these radio antenna stretched out to the area east of us.  Wow!  Unlike Area 51 or the facilities around Roswell, NM, the folks with the huge antenna welcome visitors.
     In short, the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array of astronomic radio antenna spreads out over a dry lake bed in western NM.  The 27 units form a vast "Y" pattern to listen to the sounds of space.  Check Google for more info.
     Today, after a nearly 100 mile serpentine drive on AZ191 through the White Mountains we came to a large hole in the ground.  Photos can't do it justice.  The Morenci (copper) Mine even has a company town listed on the Arizona map.  The mine does not show up even though it is the largest pit mine in North America.  Again, Google for more info.

Slush or mush, this is our e-z up covering the fire pit

 

SPRINGERVILLE, AZ - - On our last day in Santa Fe, the weather began to look grim as we headed the 2,000' up to our campsite at 8,500'.  On parking, we looked at our e-z-up.  The edges had a white looking slush covering the area - - like cottonwood fluff.  All you had to do was scoop the goop up and realize that our area had been hit with sleet.  Not much, but enough.