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Photo Project: 50 States

More Than Just Bones – Dinosaur National Monument, Utah

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Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah

As we started our eastward return leg from Ogden toward Colorado, we had one more stop to make in Utah.  Dinosaur National Monument straddles the eastern Utah and western Colorado border.  The park’s primary claim to fame is the Fossil Quarry, located on the Utah side near the town of Jensen, UT.  Jensen lies along US-40, roughly halfway between Park City, UT and Steamboat Springs, CO.

Quarry Visitor Center at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah
Quarry Visitor Center at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah

The Quarry Visitor Center contains numerous exhibits about the history of the area, including the quarry wall itself that is now housed within an impressive building.  The building itself was operating at a greatly reduced capacity with reservations required.  We made our reservations several days in advance and had no trouble getting in.  Interestingly no one actually asked us for documentation of our reservations, although I’m certain they are checked randomly.

Quarry Exhibit Hall and the wall of dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah
Quarry Exhibit Hall and the wall of dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah
Quarry Exhibit Hall and the wall of dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah
Quarry Exhibit Hall and the wall of dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah
Quarry Exhibit Hall and the wall of dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah

The dinosaur fossil beds were discovered in 1909 by Earl Douglass, a paleontologist working and collecting for the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.  He and his crews excavated thousands of fossils and shipped them back to the museum in Pittsburgh, PA for study and display.  President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the dinosaur beds as Dinosaur National Monument in 1915. The monument boundaries were expanded in 1938 from the original 80 acres surrounding the dinosaur quarry in Utah, to 210,844 acres in Utah and Colorado, encompassing the river canyons of the Green and Yampa.  It’s hard to believe that the fossils that remain today are the “leftovers,” as it still makes for a very impressive display.

Scenic views from Cub Creek Road in Dinosaur National Monument
Scenic views from Cub Creek Road in Dinosaur National Monument
Scenic views from Cub Creek Road in Dinosaur National Monument

While the quarry is the main attraction, I was in many ways more impressed by the stunning scenery of the area surrounding the visitor center.  We saw only a tiny portion of the 210+ thousand acres, and it would be quite easy to spend a lot more time exploring.  But alas, we were on our way to Colorado and could only devote a few hours to the park.  It’s not the kind of place you just happen to pass by, but we may decide to detour that way the next time we head west.  The drive along US 40 is much more pleasant and scenic than I would expect I-70 or I-80 to be!

Petroglyphs at Dinosaur National Monument near Jensen, Utah

I’ll added a more complete gallery of photographs from Dinosaur on my Adobe Portfolio page.

Photo Project: 50 States

A Layover In Ogden, Utah

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Ogden Utah Temple of JCLDS in downtown Ogden, Utah

While Ogden has a long history as a railroad town, there is more in Ogden than trains.  There’s food!  And churches, shops, baseball and many other things.  We didn’t have a lot of time to explore, having gotten to town late in the day the first day, then spending the following day at Golden Spike.  But we did have time both evenings to walk around and explore the town a bit.

25th Street in downtown Ogden, Utah
Evening in downtown Ogden, Utah
Evening in downtown Ogden, Utah
25th Street in downtown Ogden, Utah
25th Street in downtown Ogden, Utah

25th Street is the epicenter of the historic district and home to many of the restaurants and bars in Ogden.  And 25th street meets Wall Street just across Wall from the historic Ogden depot, so it was a nice destination on a beautiful evening.  The mountain air made for a nice walk before and after dinner.

Rovali’s Italian Restaurant in downtown Ogden, Utah
Rovali’s Italian Restaurant in downtown Ogden, Utah
Motion blur of cars while waiting for dinner in downtown Ogden, Utah
Motion blur of cars while waiting for dinner in downtown Ogden, Utah
Motion blur of cars while waiting for dinner in downtown Ogden, Utah

The second evening we had a bit of a wait for dinner at a highly-recommended Italian restaurant.  I had my camera with me so I made some photos of the passing traffic while we waited.  Between that and time to just chill, it was quite relaxing.  Once our names were called, the owner himself seated us at a window table, sold us a nice bottle of wine and made a couple of recommendations for entrees.  It was a nice dinner and we enjoyed it a lot.

Lindquist Field, home of the Raptors minor league baseball team in Ogden, Utah
Hilton Garden Inn in downtown Ogden, Utah
Evening in downtown Ogden, Utah
Evening in downtown Ogden, Utah

Ogden is a vibrant town, plenty to do but not overwhelming like a lot of larger towns.  That’s why we decided to stay there rather than in or closer to Salt Lake City.  We had to navigate our way through SLC on our way to Colorado, and other than a wrong turn and eventually a stop at a neighborhood restaurant for breakfast, it was pretty uneventful.

I would like to return someday and actually visit Salt Lake City once the Tabernacle is open for tours and their daily organ recital.  But for this time we made do with trains and traffic in Ogden.

Photo Project: 50 States

More Trains? Union Station in Ogden, Utah

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Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah

We spent two nights in Ogden, UT in order to have plenty of time to visit Golden Spike National Monument.  Ogden is just north of Salt Lake City, a good-sized town but not as huge as Salt Lake City.  Ogden has a rich railroad heritage, once known as a major passenger railroad junction due to its location along major east–west and north–south routes, prompting the local chamber of commerce to adopt the motto, “You can’t get anywhere without coming to Ogden.”

Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah

Ogden’s Union Station houses a large collection of historical locomotives in an outdoor display area, plus a museum full of historical artifacts in a space inside the museum.  Located within the museum is one of the original “Golden Spikes” complete with its own Diebold vault.

Retired Union Pacific locomotives on display at Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Retired Union Pacific locomotives on display at Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Pacific Super Turbine Locomotive #26 “The World’s Most Powerful Locomotive at Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Pacific Steam Locomotive #833 at Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Snow removal engine at Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah

I wasn’t tired of trains yet.  But Kathy….? 🙂

Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Union Station train depot and museum in downtown Ogden, Utah
Photo Project: 50 States

A Historic Meeting Place

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Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah

Another one of those historical place I learned about when I was a child was the story of The Transcontinental Railroad and The Golden Spike.  The meeting of the railroad lines from the east coast and the west coast met at Promontory, UT on May 10, 1869.

Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah

As is often the case with history, the actual events leading up to and surrounding the eventual joining of the eastern and western routes is a lot more dramatic than we learned in grade school.  Although the two railroads had agreed to meet somewhere in the western US, it literally took an act of Congress to actually get the tracks to meet.  Instead, the two companies laid miles of track in opposite directions through the area, sometimes within sight of each other!  Wikipedia has a pretty good summary and pretty much agrees with what we were told when we visited.

Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Demonstration runs of locomotives Jupiter and Number 119 at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah

At the visitor center, replicas of the two original trains make demonstration runs.  These runs often occur daily but the schedule varies seasonally.  We planned our visit to coincide with the runs, since seeing the trains in operation was one of the highlights of being there.  The trains don’t actually run at the same time, as the same engineer and fireman operate both trains.  At the end of the second run, the trains are parked nose-to-nose in front the observation area, making for a scene that is reminiscent of the original, albeit with people wearing much more modern clothes today!

Auto tour on the Transcontinental Railroad National Back Country Byway at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
The Subie earns her next car wash. Auto tour on the Transcontinental Railroad National Back Country Byway at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Auto tour on the Transcontinental Railroad National Back Country Byway at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah
Auto tour on the Transcontinental Railroad National Back Country Byway at Golden Spike National Historical Park near Corinne, Utah

In addition to the trains, there is an auto tour route that traces a portion of the original railroad bed.  The tracks are long gone, but there are places where the road travels through cuts made in the terrain to accommodate the tracks.  In some areas it is easy to see both sets of parallel rail beds within sight of each other.  Especially noteworthy is an area where 10 miles of track were laid in one day, in response to an unofficial challenge between the two crews to see who could reach the meeting place first.

Promontory is practically in the middle of nowhere in Utah, which makes it really out there!  It was worth the time and effort, however.  And it gave us a great way to document our visit to the state of Utah for our quest toward all 50 states!

For anyone wishing to see more photos, I have created a photo gallery on my Adobe Portfolio website.

Photography

Practicing My Scales

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Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

Kirk Tuck recently posted about how  (paraphrasing) walking around town with a camera taking random pictures of interesting things is “almost like playing scales on the piano.”  As a reformed musician that’s a reference I understand.  Practicing technique is what allows us to nail the performance.

Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

One of my recurring dreams involves being invited – and accepting – to perform some kind of solo concert.  I haven’t touched my trombones – although I still have them – in nearly 30 years but when the day comes for me to play the dream ends.  There’s probably some important symbolism there but I won’t try to analyze.

Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

“Winter” or what we know as winter took this past weekend off, so Kathy & I took advantage of the 70 degree temperatures to enjoy the day at Latta Nature Preserve.  I took my camera, of course, and took a few photos.  To make it a little harder I took only my widest prime lens – the 14mm f2.8 (21mm full-frame equivalent).  I don’t shoot a lot with wide angle lenses and it tends to show.  While I didn’t come back with anything truly exceptional the idea of practice was my intention.  Kathy helps me by seeing things she sees and giving me an “assignment” like the photos of purple leaves and the fallen branches with pine cones below.  Now I have a name for the concept – practicing my scales.

Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Late fall afternoon at Latta Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
Photo Project: 50 States

Otherworldly: Craters of the Moon National Monument

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Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho

I wasn’t sure what to expect from our visit to Craters of the Moon National Monument in southern Idaho, but I could never have imagined what we saw there.  The landscape is covered with fields of lava, from smooth lava domes to fields covered with huge chunks of lava rocks.  We didn’t venture too far from the road, but there was plenty to see from just the overlooks.

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho

From Wikipedia:

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve is a U.S. national monument and national preserve in the Snake River Plain in central Idaho. It is along US 20 (concurrent with US 93 and US 26), between the small towns of Arco and Carey, at an average elevation of 5,900 feet (1,800 m) above sea level. The protected area’s features are volcanic and represent one of the best-preserved flood basalt areas in the continental United States.

The Monument was established on May 2, 1924.  In November 2000, a presidential proclamation by President Clinton greatly expanded the Monument area. The 410,000-acre National Park Service portions of the expanded Monument were designated as Craters of the Moon National Preserve in August 2002.  It spreads across Blaine, Butte, Lincoln, Minidoka, and Power counties. The area is managed cooperatively by the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

The Monument and Preserve encompass three major lava fields and about 400 square miles of sagebrush steppe grasslands to cover a total area of 1,117 square miles. The Monument alone covers 343,000 acres.  All three lava fields lie along the Great Rift of Idaho, with some of the best examples of open rift cracks in the world, including the deepest known on Earth at 800 feet.  There are excellent examples of almost every variety of basaltic lava, as well as tree molds (cavities left by lava-incinerated trees), lava tubes (a type of cave), and many other volcanic features.

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho

We had a crystal-clear blue sky on the day of our visit, with very little of the haze and smoke that we encountered in Oregon.  It made for some challenging photography, although the blue sky is an interested contrast to the dark and mostly colorless lava.

There were several places where there was little or no vegetation, and other places where the ground was covered with various plants growing up from holes and cracks in the lava that had captured more fertile soil over time.  Many of the trees are dead, starved of moisture from the overall arid conditions and the inability of the porous lava to hold water.  A number of fields were covered in what appeared to be small white flowers, which are in fact small clusters of a form of lichen that grows there.

Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho
Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve near Arco, Idaho

One point of interest is that when I went out to the NPS website for the park, the Current Conditions indicates that the loop road is currently “closed due to snow and ice!”  We actually saw some ice in the bottom of some of the lava holes, but up on the surface it was very warm.

I’d heartily recommend Craters of the Moon to anyone looking for an interesting diversion from the usual.  It isn’t far from Yellowstone and other western parks, and while it was pretty busy on the day of our visit, we encountered very few people up close.

As I’ve been doing, I have added a photo gallery on my Adobe Portfolio website with more photos for anyone who is interested.

Photo Project: 50 States

A Goose Made of Spruce – That Is Actually Birch

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Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon

Ever since I was a kid interested in airplanes, I remember reading about and seeing photos of Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose.”  Officially known as the Hughes H-4 Hercules, the Spruce Goose was – at the time and for a while after – the largest aircraft to ever fly.  The Wikipedia Page  for the plane is a rabbit hole of more information for anyone wishing to delve deeper.  After many stops on a long journey, the current home for the plane is the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon.

Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon

I didn’t realize that the Spruce Goose was in Oregon when we started making plans, but I came across a reference to it during our research.  When I found out that we would be very close to McMinnville, a town in the heart of Oregon’s Willamette Valley wine region, stopping there was a no-brainer.  Except…the museum had been closed during Oregon’s response to the Covid virus.  Fortunately the conditions had improved enough for Oregon to allow museums to re-open shortly before we left home on our trip.  Good timing – the state has recently re-entered a lockdown phase the the museum has closed again.

Cargo bay of Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Cargo bay of Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Cargo bay of Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon

As you can see from the photos, the plane is simply enormous, dwarfing all of the other aircraft in the museum.  For even more geekery, check out this article discussing the various calculations of “largest aircraft” along with a size comparison.

Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon
Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon

Seeing the Spruce Goose in person was a real treat.  In fact the entire museum is really well done, with two separate buildings – one for aircraft and the other for space related displays.  It was especially nice to have a good indoor thing to do, since all that haze you see in the outdoor photos is smoke. 🙁

Photos of the flight deck of Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” at the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum in McMinnville, Oregon

For even more photos from the museum, I’ve created an Adobe Portfolio Page.  Check it out!

Photo Project: 50 States

Cruising The Oregon Coast (In Smoke & Fog)

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Barview Jetty Park near Rockaway Beach, Oregon

When we left Cannon Beach we headed down the coast, hoping to catch some views of the Pacific Ocean scenery before turning east toward McMinnville, a town in the heart of Oregon’s Willamette Valley wine region.  We didn’t get many long-distance views, but we did manage to see some interesting things along the way, including the ferocious prehistoric creature I posted about previously. 🙂

Barview Jetty Park near Rockaway Beach, Oregon
Rock formation known as “The Three Graces” along US-101/Oregon Coast Highway near Garibaldi, Oregon

What looks like fog in these photos is a combination of actual fog and smoke from the wildfires farther inland and some drifting north from northern California.  Thanks to the magic of white balance adjustment, these look mostly like fog, while the original files have more of an orangey-brown cast to them.

Views of the Port of Garibaldi and Garibaldi Marina in Garibaldi, Oregon
Views of the Port of Garibaldi and Garibaldi Marina in Garibaldi, Oregon
Views of the Port of Garibaldi and Garibaldi Marina in Garibaldi, Oregon
Views of the Port of Garibaldi and Garibaldi Marina in Garibaldi, Oregon
Views of the Port of Garibaldi and Garibaldi Marina in Garibaldi, Oregon

We spent a bit of time exploring the marina in Garibaldi, a small town of 800~ on Tillamook Bay along US 101. The marina provided us with some visual stimulation, and the addition of the smoke/fog allowed for some interesting photographs.  Garibaldi is home to a scenic railway – which was not operating – a maritime history museum, also closed and a US Coast Guard station.  It might make for a good destination on a return trip, as there appear to be a number of quaint looking inns nearby!

Cape Mears Lighthouse on Cape Mears, Oregon
Foggy views from Cape Mears, Oregon

We had hoped to visit the Tillamook Creamery, but it had closed just prior to our arrival due to a combination of the virus and the heavy smoke.  So we moved on to Cape Lookout (home of the dinosaur) and Cape Mears to check out the lighthouse before making our way to McMinnville.

Tillamook Cheese Visitor Center (closed) in Tillamook, Oregon

 

Photography

A Quiet Afternoon

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A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

It was almost like I had heard Jeff Curto’s words in my head, although I didn’t actually hear them until we got home.  Jeff’s most recent podcast talks about it isn’t necessary to travel long distances or to exotic locations to make interesting photographs.  Give it a listen if you don’t already subscribe.  And you know you should. 😉

A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina
A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

Kathy and I decided to spend a nice late-fall Sunday afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve, a county park near Huntersville, North Carolina and about 8 miles from our house.  We packed a picnic lunch, laced up our hiking shoes and spent a couple of hours wandering the trails along Mountain Island Lake, the lake that we live close to, but not at.  It’s not Lake Superior, but it’s what we’ve got. 🙂

A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

We’ve been to Latta a number of times over the years, and I’ve made lots of photographs there.  But it had been a while.  There are things to see and photograph at all times of the year, but I have often sold it short since it is – as Jeff alluded to – in our “back yard.”

A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina

Kathy & I had already decided that we’re going to stick close to home for the next few months, and are planning to get out and explore our own area.  I’ve said for years that I like to be a “tourist in my own town” but have never sat still long enough to give it a chance.  Sounds like now is as good a time as any!

A fall afternoon at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve near Huntersville, North Carolina