Dusk

A couple more from the amazing little Grizzly Ridge Yurt... These are from my Pentax K1000 on our last night in the woods, and still, the beautiful light continued. I had planned on posting these clouds tonight, and then I saw Vanessa's cloudscapes on her blog today and loved the serendipity. Hi friend!

The Yurt

"Stay in a yurt" was on my list of things to do this summer, and in mid-July, that's just what we did. On July 15, we drove to the bustling metropolis of Vernal, Utah, then headed north on Highway 191 to the Ashley National Forest. After a very bumpy two miles where there were times we had to get out of the car and move rocks out of the way, we decided we'd gone far enough up the jeep trail and parked the car and backpacked in another 1.5 miles. Our original plan was to pack all the way in, but we got a late start and were afraid we wouldn't reach the yurt before dark. It's a good thing we drove in half way because we walked up to the yurt just as the sun went down. Perfect timing.

As we unpacked our backpacks, stored the food and water away (we had to pack in five gallons of water - no source up at the yurt), and familiarized ourselves with the very cool Grizzly Ridge Yurt, the moon rose full and bright over the nearby ridge, and made us even more excited to be there. We stayed two nights in pure solitude and saw only four other people all weekend. And one deer. It was heaven and we are pretty much counting down the days till next summer so we can make this a tradition.

In the next week, I'll be posting most of my yurt photos on Flickr and if I've got time, a few more here. There are so many. Stay tuned!

PS: I hope you got to cross something fun off your summer to-do list!

36 Miles

Today I headed out into the field for my second day of my new contract with the US Forest Service, and I went to Bountiful Peak Campground, a place closer to my home than most, but also very, very far away. Once the road turned to dirt, I traveled only 36 miles roundtrip, but it took me two full hours. It wasn't the worst road I've ever been on - far from it, actually - but it was indeed the scariest. For long traverses across the top of the Wasatch Front, the road hugged the mountainside thousands of feet above the valley floor. In some places, I bet the road was only 12 feet across and it sure made for some sketchy corners and the occasional passing of another vehicle. It was the first time in my two years and 22,000+ miles of driving for the Forest Service that I felt compelled to turn down my music so I could concentrate. And that's saying a lot.


According to Google Maps, this is the road as it climbs almost 3,000 feet in elevation and snakes over 18 miles of mountain. Below, that's what it looked like on the ground. The tiny white ribbon is the road, and the peaks above are pushing 9,500 feet, while just off the edge of the road is 3,500 feet of nothing but air. It was a little unnerving for a time, but I made it out safe and sound. I even saw a ptarmigan. And words can't describe how happy I am to be back on the road to finish up my work.

Camp 18

I finish writing all about my June trip to Seattle and breathe a sigh of relief. That was a lot of photos to cover! And now, here we are in August and I'm about to barrage you with images from my July trip to Portland, where I probably shot double the photographs. I made 53 Polaroids (felt so good!) and cruised through three rolls of film (two of which are over on Doubles). It was a trip for the record books, full of awesome friends, good food, good beer, a plethora film, and a whole lot of wandering. It was right up my alley!

All of these Polaroids are from Camp 18 on Highway 26 on the way out to the coast. We didn't stop for food, just a little exploring. There were so many cool things to photograph there. I walked up the river a bit, climbed on top of a log taller than me, and for the first time ever, I trespassed. We had no choice. When there's a cool old truck covered in weeds and wildflowers along an old forest road, you just trespass. (Truth be told, I was really hesitant but Vanessa convinced me. It was worth it. Really worth it. I'll post those photos later on...) Once we'd taken our photo opportunities, we ran back out past the sign and went on our way to Cannon Beach.

Seattle - Day 4, the iPhone

Last day in Seattle. I was extremely happy to head home to my husband, but bummed to leave such a great town. I didn't shoot any 35mm this day, instead I burned through a pack of PX600 Poor Pod (love that stuff!) and snapped a few iPhone images in Pike Place and Post Alley, and one cliche but always necessary out-the-airplane-window shot. It was so nice to be home, but the next day, I wished I had grabbed some dried strawberries and chocolate-covered cherries from Chukar in Pike Place. I hope you've enjoyed the very delayed appearance of all my Seattle images. What a great week!