August 22, 2023
Having time to kill, some of the glorious old neon still lurking about Las Vegas. And finally, the Art-o-Mats at the Cosmopolitan Hotel.
Ok, so part of the reason I was so psyched about St. George, Utah was the vegan options. Starting with a good breakfast that hits all the notes from Gaia’s Garden Cafe… The Buddha Toast with avocado, curried chickpeas, radish, cilantro & house-made tahini dressing on Organic artisan sourdough. Just Read more…
Having been to the original and much better Meow Wolf in Santa Fe, New Mexico, this one was fun but not as immersive and clever as the original. Still, however, there was a lot of interesting discoveries to fill the hours before my flight back to New York.
August 21, 2023
Though the St. George area of Utah is a busy gateway city to some of Utah’s mind-blowing national parks, there is plenty off the beaten trail and free of the summer mobs, like Snow Canyon State Park, which I happen to drive through trying to get some vegan breakfast at Read more…
August 20, 2023
Despite the all-day of trickling rain and a sky full of gray, I knew I’d see the stars in the evening. It’s not because I checked the weather, though I did. I just kind of knew. The stars had satisfied every evening I wanted to shoot them. Though I don’t Read more…
I wanted to differentiate this section of Cathedral Gorge State Park as it offers adventurers a chance to enter the beautiful land formations I showed in my previous post. Though wet and slippery, I could not help myself from entering the Moon Slot canyons. I imagine that the maze of Read more…
Plenty to see at the beautiful Cathedral Gorge State Park. This is the first installment.
After a wet ride of downpours in the desert accredited to Hurricane Hilary, I arrived at Panaca, Nevada. Here I would enjoy a charming bed and breakfast along with a pretty amazing state park, a warm spring, some muddy trails and, fantastically, a slither of time with the stars. But Read more…
August 19, 2023
With many headstones containing the cause of death, the Old Tonopah Cemetery makes for a gripping meander. Adjacent to The Clown Motel, the souls of the interred are rumored to haunt its rooms. And it is no wonder… some of the causes of death include suicide by dynamite, suicide by Read more…
The last time I was at Tonopah’s Clown Motel, it was being used for a movie shoot. This time I was able to book a room and stay for the night. It was all fun and games and pictures until nightfall when the allegedly haunted hotel started to scare me. Read more…
Do you sometimes wind up crawling under barbed wire to an abandoned hot springs resort on your vacations? If yes, then we may be able to travel well together. To follow, a very brief stop because: fear of a lone gunman on a horse in the distance. It may be Read more…
The best abandoned places are the ones you find along the way, the ones you seize the opportunity to visit–in a split second from 70 mph to 0 to out of the car. Currant, Nevada is one such place: a motel, restaurant and bar sitting still waiting for me. Here Read more…
August 18, 2023
I’m finally in a new International Dark Sky Park… my 19th!! Great Basin National Park. Despite some clouds, I got some great astrophotography done as I laid in my tent. I have come to find the clicking of my intervalometer comforting as I am camping. The clouds then returned to Read more…
And onward to the second national park during this short trip: Nevada’s Great Basin National Park. This park, which is also an International Dark Sky-certified park, has such a diversity of offerings… the chance to step into a glacier, an emerald-hued alpine lake, caves, tremendous conifers, towering cliffs and rock Read more…
Utah has the imprint of many native cultures on its rocks. The Parowan Gap Petroglyphs are a compact and busy space for these ancient communications. Whatever these people intended to communicate I cannot help but fixate on just how much more peaceful now would be if it took patience, time Read more…
August 17, 2023
I learned about this hike from some signage at Cedar Breaks National Monument and I was very glad I did. Not only did I have the hike to myself, but there were spectacular views every step of the way, including Zion National Park in the distance. The waterfall is fed Read more…
August 16, 2023
And night came at Cedar Breaks National Monument… along with its billions of stars. I spent most of the time of my night shoot in an empty parking lot near my campsite where it was a bit darker than my campsite. That’s my rental car up there. And a gorgeous Read more…
As with any of my summer trips west, the goal was star shoots. Camping ensures easy access to an International Dark Sky park’s starry skies. But first you have to fill your day with the park’s beauty as the sun beats strong. On my last visit to Cedar Breaks National Read more…
Pete Karns is an Olympian athlete and resident of Mesquite, Nevada. He has created a miniature replica of South Dakota’s Mount Rushmore in the sandstone lining Lower Flat Top Drive in town. Staying just a few miles away, I of course had to check it out. He has made over Read more…
August 15, 2023
For the last 4 years I have spent some time in the off-season in the desert. “Off-season” as in going to the desert in August is not the most popular choice, though plenty still do. To follow, a few tips and guidelines I have learned throughout the years. 1) Fly Read more…
August 14, 2023
I never made fruit pops before and now I understand… spring for the mold set that is not at a discount store. I mean, if you want them to come out easily. Either way, fruit pops are a great way to use the fruits up that have been laying around… Read more…
August 13, 2023
It was a gorgeous night with crisp stars… but some wispy clouds persisted to enter the landscape. Still, the night shoot went better than I expected, with the most beautiful Milky Way right outside the door pretty early on. It makes a case for how a gorgeous galactic core can Read more…
With the peak Perseids nearby, a stay at the cottage came to fruition. But we’d first have to get through the day on the bay. Luckily there is always a lot to do. Still waking up after a mad dash to quickly pack up for the stay. There were many Read more…
August 12, 2023
Hitting up the local AM Vets Thrift Shop, I noticed that the road was bordered by the prettiest flowers and weeds, wild and free. So I had a little parking lot photoshoot, enchanted by their messy beauty! I love how painting-like these shots look. And I have an idea for Read more…