And this is Kodi, our Pomeranian, hiding in a corner until my wife comes home. Sometimes he howls when Heather is gone.
A Mississippi Kite on a powerline behind in the greenspace behind our house. They look fierce but what I read is that they eat mainly insects that they catch in the air.
And composite of videos from out camera feeder, featuring a starling, mourning dove, sparrow and a squirrel.
We got home from vacation in early July. We had a great time and saw a lot but it was nice to be home.
That was before the big heat dome. We had big fluffy clouds in the sky and rain! I’m into rain.
Cockeyed neighborhood skywatch shot looking east.
And another one looking west. I miss the rain. We haven’t had any for weeks now.
This is a jigsaw puzzle I did on my ipad a few months ago. It’s the Goosenecks in the Colorado River in northern Arizona. I’ve never seen it with my own eyes. Accounts I’ve read say that some days its a zoo there with everyone elbowing and jostling trying to get the perfect shot. Anybody been there and can give us the straight scoop. Leave a comment and tell us about it.
On our vacation in July. One of the places we went to was Chimney Rock National Monument near Pagosa Springs, Colorado. We didn’t know what was there but off we went.
The heart of the monument are these two rocks. I am thinking the one on the right is, Chimney Rock (I think), and the one on the left is Monument Rock. The rocks themselves are very impressive but their claim to fame is that they were an important part of an ancient lunar observatory that monitored the 18.6 year cycle of the Major Lunar Standstill. The lunar cycle is a lot more complex than the solar cycle for various reasons. When the moon reached is maximum height every 18.6 years, you could see it nestled in between the two rocks.
The last time this happened was in 2025. Rather than steal a photo to show you, here is a link by Rocky Mountain Public Broadcasting Service showing a photo of the event. Below is a short video by the US Forest Service describing what the event is, how it occurs, and its importance to the various Tribes who are the descendants of the original residents.
The thinking is that Chimney Rock was originally built by Ancestral Puebloan people and then was later an outlier for Chacoan people who used the observatory for agricultural and religious purposes.
Heather getting ready.
After checking in at the Visitor Center and showing our pass we drove the road up to the parking lot at the ridge and then grabbed out hiking sticks, water, and laced out hiking shoes on.
Son Logan is ready to go.
It is a short but steep hike from the parking lot.
And then it got very steep and rocky. Watch your step. It was also hot that day.
A view back down the trail and off to one side. Beautiful vistas.
The partially reconstructed observatory. They used about two million stones to build it. All of them had to be hauled up from the valley floor by hand along with food and water for the work force. The guides said that there was some agriculture and some water from rainfall up on the ridge that they impounded by a series of dams.
Here’s the closest that we could get. Those flat rocks above the step once supported a Forest Service Fire Lookout tower that was removed in 2010. The site was opened to the public a couple years later.
So I moved off to the side and used my telephoto lens to get this view.
You can see why this would be a great place for a fire lookout tower. You can see everywhere.
We went back down the steep rocky trail to the car and drove down into the valley.
They have a small but very nice visitor center. The Forest Service partners with 26 tribes who trace ancestors to the area. They help govern the area and make sure their ancestors are honored and that their treaty rights to the area are preserved to the full extent of the law. I found the whole arrangement fascinating.
I am also fascinated by the amount of information now available. The Ancient Puebloan and Chacoan Cultures did not have a written language so the information we have is from archeological research including reinterpretation of data from past excavations. The modern ethic seems to be to limit new excavations and use old data to the maximum extent possible. They also seem to give much weight to the stories and history as told by the elders in Tribes today.
Here’s the biggest shadow I have ever photographed. The lunar eclipse earlier this week. I made the image small because otherwise it is just kind of big and blobby. (Blobby is a word here in Oklahoma, just so you know.) Did you get to see the eclipse. Did you get a non-blobby photo of it!
Here is a Lost and Found shadow. Somebody at the Turkey Mountain Urban Wilderness Area here in Tulsa had the good idea put a lost and found basket at the base of map stand at the park. I think the drilled hole shadows are cool.
And here is a trailcam photo of our backyard. That is Sadie the rescue terrier in the sun and I am in the shade behind her. Both our dogs are sun dogs. They love laying out in the heat of the day. Note the temperature, note the burnt grass. Here in Tulsa we average eleven 100+ days a year, so far we have had 22 and we have a solid 7 day forecast for over 100F temperatures coming up this week.
The mornings are cooler though so I have been taking Sadie for a walk. I love dog walking shadows.
Here’s a variation on a dog walking shadow, a picket fence shadow overlaid on a dog walking shadow. Who says I cannot do two things at the same time?
You can tell it was early. Here’s a long morning shadow of a tree in our neighborhood greenbelt.
A deer I found while hiking on Turkey Mountain. The deer is kind of fuzzy but the shrub in front of it is in perfect focus. That is why I call myself a picture and not a photographer.
Kodi the Pomeranian and Sadie the rescue Terrier resting together.
Earlier this month I found this rabbit on our front walk. It was very hot and I think it was thirsty so we added a water bowl in the front yard. We already a couple bowls in the backyard.
Lizzie the cat has such beautiful expressive eyes.
And a Merlin collage from a hike I took earlier this month.
We have a power line running through the greenbelt in the neighborhood. All sorts of hawks like this red tailed hawk perch up there and look for their next meal. Sorry for the fuzzy photo. It was at the far range of my camera and lens.
The second phase of our vacation last month, after visiting Santa Fe was going to Pagosa Springs, Colorado. We had never been there and didn’t know what to expect except it seemed to be family friendly type town in the mountains.
The San Juan River runs right through the middle of town and they have made the most of it. There is a deluxe pedestrian trail along the river, the full length of town. They have quite a business most of the summer renting out innertubes to people to float on the river.
As you can see, the river was way down and there was not a whole lot of floating going on. The few souls that tried it, just paddled around the few places the river pooled up. So we didn’t even try. But hey we had a good time anyway.
We found a nice craft beer place just up the river from our motel.
We walked a ways and found a place where the water pooled up enough for some good reflection shots.
We walked the city streets. There were lots of tshirt shops and other places for visitors. We did find a couple of restaurants that were very good.
And there were some Forest Service guys staying at our hotel. Hard workers, they were long gone by 7 am when I woke up and were checking things out. I kind of miss the old green color they used to paint their trucks. But hey things change right?
Do you have a messy corner in your backyard. Surely not, it’s only us. Where we have utility boxes, stumps of cut down trees, and wheelbarrow. We have that and it has a whirlygig so here is video shadow, a fence shadow, and shadow shadows. Don’t mind the pipeline signs. They are from past employers of mine before I retired.
And a combination dog and fence shadow. Sadie likes to give the yard a good sniffing when she’s back there.
Also from the backyard. Earlier this month we had the deal we get once in a while at almost sunset and the light takes on a reddish hue. So I thought it was cool and took a photo looking up into the tree. No filter used. I use filters a lot so if I did use I would tell you, maybe.
You have heard about the miracle weight loss drug GLP 1, right? Well I am on a clinical trial for GLP 1HX. An experimental variation that makes you lose weight and get taller. It is working fabulously. I hear that is a variation of that called GLP 1HXYX. You lose weight, get taller, and younger. Let me know if you are interested. I will hook you up.
