Wyoming Territorial Prison State Park

His name was Butch Cassidy and he was a "guest" of the Wyoming State Territorial Prison in Laramie, Wyoming.  Billy "the kid" was also a frequent guest of the less than comfortable establishment.

Today, the prison is one of the best history lessons the State Park system has to offer.  The restoration and conversion into a first class museum, gives visitors a unique glimpse into prison life in the late 1800s. 

This Park is a must-see if you're in the Laramie area.  Admission fee is $5.00.  You can run through quickly or spend a couple of hours, as I did, reading about how the prison offset costs through the manufacture and sale of straw brooms.  The broom factory is still there and you can even buy a broom made there in the gift store. 

Wyoming- Cheyenne Frontier Days

Each year, thousands of rodeo fans from around the country gather in Cheyenne, Wyoming for the largest, longest running rodeo in the world.  114 years to be exact.  Named the "Daddy of 'em all", Cheyenne Frontier Days is a 12 day event complete with an opening day parade, Indian village, museum, crafts fair, and of course the rodeo.  Here are a few photos from this year's event.

Castlewood S.P.

Colorado has 42 State Parks within it's borders, containing just about every type of terrain. From alpine forests to desert sand dunes, wild rivers to rocky canyons, each park has its own personality. A walk through any of these parks is a treat, but for a photographer, the reward is even greater.

Castlewood Canyon S.P. is located about 50 miles south of Denver near the small town of Franktown. As a State Park goes, Castlewood offers a wide range of shooting locations. Rocky canyons dominate the East end of the park with the river bed, the main attraction of the West end. Wherever you look there are new things to see and photograph. Wild life can be seen in the mornings and late afternoons including deer, rabbits, and birds of all types and sizes. If you're in the area, stop in and explore for yourself. Remember, there are two entrances to the park and each one has it's own appeal. Check 'em both out.

Rocky Mountain N.P.

This weekend found me exploring the amazing Rocky Mountains National Park, located approximately two hours northwest of Denver, Colorado. 

The weather was typical for this time of year.  Mornings are clear but the afternoon brings thunderstorms and high winds.  Highs were in the 70s and 80s and the lows were in the 50s.

This shot was taken on the banks of Sprague Lake.  The path around the lake was a half mile and very well used by locals and tourists alike.

The lake is very shallow allowing fly fisherman to wade to the middle to practice their craft. 

Most of the morning was spent shooting around Sprague Lake, Bear Lake, and Bear Lake road just inside the Beaver Meadows entrance to the park.  This Elk and another, took shelter from the mid-morning sun, grazing on grass and watching tourists.  The animals in the park show little fear of humans toting cameras, however, I watched the elk carefully for subtle (and not so subtle) body signs that I had gotten too close. 

Two Days in Utah

On my way back from visiting my hometown of San Diego, my mom and I toured the amazing sights of southern Utah.  It was hot, dry, and dusty but the truck was cool and filled with ice cold water bottles. 

Our first National Park was Bryce Canyon to be followed by Escalante-Grand Staircase and finally Arches. 

These 3 images are from the latter, Arches N.P.

Alamosa, Co. Part 3- The Great Sand Dunes N.P.

The Great Sand Dunes National Park is a very unique place with four distinct ecosystems.  The sand dunes, the tallest in North America, rise 750 feet from the scrub brush covered valley floor. The sand is always moving due to winds in the area and piles up against the Sangre De Cristo mountains.  These mountains rise to over 14,000 feet in elevation and the snow cap found there creates the fourth ecosystem, a riparian zone called the Medano Creek area.

The best times to photograph the dunes is after a major snow storm when the dunes are covered in snow, and in the spring when snow melt from the mountains behind the dunes, fills the Medano Creek area with water at the base of the dunes.  I was there at the wrong time for either of these conditions.  The dark areas on the dunes, as seen above, are what's left of last week's snow storm and the riverbed was nothing but sand and driftwood.

Well, after three days in the San Luis Valley, it's time to head back to my home away from home, Englewood, Co.

Alamosa, Co. Part 2- Sandhill Cranes of the San Luis Valley

 Sandhill Cranes stopover in the San Luis Valley of southwestern Colorado twice each year, once in the spring on their trip north to Yellowstone N.P. and again in the fall, as they head south to Bosque Del Apache Wildlife Refuge in central New Mexico. These amazing birds can grow to over four feet tall with a wingspan of nearly six feet.

The first thing that identifies these magnificent birds is their deep, sharp chortle filling the valley and it's something that you simply must hear to appreciate. As 20,000+ cranes fill a relatively small area of approximately 1/4 mile square, communication between flocks is essential and is usually left to the leader/navigator of the flock.

Mating, for the Sandhill Crane, is quite a spectacle, where the female Sandhill drops her head but keeps her eyes on the male as he flaps his wings and jumps repeatedly, at times as high as six feet off the ground.  Showing off like this usually works and the couple stay together for life.

After feeding for the better part of the day, the Sandhill Cranes take off for local marshes and a chance to socialize.  The Cranes will continue this pattern of feeding and socializing until mid April when, without notice, the skies over the entire valley seems to be filled with Sandhill Cranes heading north.

Tomorrow, I'm off to the Great Sand Dunes N.P.

Alamosa, Co. Part 1- Landscapes

The San Luis Valley is located in southwestern Colorado and is surrounded by mountains, some of which rise over 14,000 feet above the valley floor.  My center of operations was the city of Alamosa, almost an equal distance between the Great Sand Dunes NP and the Monte Vista Wildlife Refuge, stopover for 20,000+ Sandhill Cranes on their way north to Yellowstone NP. 

This post is part one of a three post series and contains landscape images taken near or inside the refuge.

The marshes were frozen solid and therefore of little interest to the Sandhill Cranes and other birds within the refuge. That said, this frozen ecosystem made for one of my favorite landscape images of the trip.

The image above is of Mont Blanca, just one of many mountains that surround the San Luis Valley.  It's peak rests at more than 14,000 feet and is covered in its snowy cap year round.

Tomorrow's post- Sandhill Cranes of the San Luis Valley

Garden Of The Gods

Today, I took a drive south on I-25 to Colorado Springs (about an hour away) to visit a truly unique place.  Garden Of The Gods rises up out of the Front Range with color and character to spare.  The image above was taken from the Visitor's Center and clearly shows Pike's Peak framed by the entrance rocks to the park.

It was our first 70 degree day and I wanted to make the most of it.  I wasn't alone.  Bus after bus loaded with school kids, van tours for older folks and walkers, runners, and climbers filled the small valley.

There are over 15 miles of trails that wind through the 1385 acres of the park.  These include hiking trails, horse trails, and mountain biking trails.  You can even join a Segway tour.  After 8 hrs hiking and shooting in the park, that last mode of transport sounded great.

Pretty self-explanatory here.  Several people ate lunch under the rock.  I, however, was not one of them.  Like Balancing Rock, most of the park is visible from the roads that circle the park.  This guy was in a hurry.

This shot is of the Central Garden and is iconic for Garden Of The Gods.  I couldn't help myself.  Admit it, with a view like that, you'd shoot it too.

Rock climbing is a very popular sport in Colorado (what sports aren't) and the park has several areas dedicated to this crazy endeavor.  If you look closely, you can see two climbers on this, the tallest rock in the Garden.

One last stroll into the sunset and it's time to get my tired bones back in the truck for the drive home.  This will not be my last visit to Garden Of The Gods.  Fall should be lovely. 

That's it for this week.  Next week, I head down south to Alamosa, Co. for the migration of the Sanhill Cranes and a side visit to the Great Sand Dunes National Park, the largest sand dunes in North America.

Roxborough Park

Jagged rock formations of Roxborough Park, near Denver, Co.  The State Park was snowed in so I took this shot from a hill overlooking  the golf course adjacent to it.  It was very windy and overcast as another weather system is moving in from the west.  More snow expected tonight :(

A White Christmas

These photos were taken near the Grand Canyon Visitor's Center. I only had a few minutes to get a few pics but the weather was amazing.