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Death Valley (California) is known for its extremes; it is America's driest and hottest terrain (with a record of of 134°F, or 56°C). With fewer than 2 inches (5 centimeters) of rainfall annually, I happened to be there when over 1 inch of rain fell (some of the roads were washed out). It too is home to the lowest point in the US (at Badwater Basin), at 282 feet below sea level, yet 75 miles away, Mt. Whitney is the highest point in the lower 48 states, at 14,505 feet. I intentionally composed this photo to make you ( the viewer) question, "What is that?”. It's a barren mountainside, as seen from Zabriskie Point. From here the point offers a stunning and impressive panoramic views of the badlands; it’s various metals have oxidized the clay creating eye-popping reds, yellows, greens, blues, and even purples. I LOVED the patterns in the Death Valley landscape, they were almost moon like! Abstract compositions were everywhere but I chose this on because of the hiking trail (it leads your eye through the image). This is only one, of many photographs that I took in Death Valley. That said, the unique photographic views and scenes everywhere! What a sight to see, and experience too!
I refrained from getting a dog but now, after an exhausting year of training, I feel so blessed. His love, willingness to please and companionship are deeply appreciated and valued. My RV lifestyle has given Arlo a varied life, and thanks to my motor-home, he can (generally) travel with me, so no matter what the weather conditions are he's by my side. When I’m out on a photo-shoot, he knows that the camera means he has to sit still, and stay, even when I walk away from him (he’s so good). That said however, given the opportunity, I’m sure he’d chase a squirrel, want to play with a coyote, or think a rattle snake was a toy…. yikes! So, sometimes he's left behind because I find it difficult to mind him, and be creative at the same time. Although Arlo adds to my worries and responsibilities, he fills my heart ....every day. Having said that, being loved, appreciated, adored and valued are everyone's core needs. Romi :-)
There’s usually story behind most of my images, and this one is no exception; and a lesson was learned! Recently, I decided to drive down a well groomed 18 mile gravel road in my RV; after all, that’s often where I find the most interesting scenes. At the mile 9 mark there was a sign posted “Next 9 miles not maintained”. I stopped for a moment to ponder my next move and while doing so a car drove towards me so I waved it down and asked the man driving what the road conditions were like, to which he replied, “They’re fine, you won’t have any problems”. So, with that I carried on. Yikes, wrong decision!! After a couple miles it became a single lane logging road and then it climbed up the side a steep mountainside. There were hair pin corners and ruts to maneuver and at one point I had to keep my tires on the worn tracks of the the previous vehicles. That said, my eyes were on the road and I prayed that I wouldn’t meet another vehicle going in the opposite direction. Once I reached to top however the road leveled off and I drove across beautiful golden plains (phew). Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a hawk not more than 50 feet away from me, dive to the ground. With my camera at the ready and preset, I managed to get this shot of a Red Tailed Hawk. All of this happened within 30 seconds! SO…. lesson learned, NEVER ask someone driving a car what the roads conditions are like when you’re driving a RV! Ha Ha! The Red Tailed Hawk is a bird of prey that lives throughout most of North America (Alaska, Canada to as far south as Panama). They prefer the open country, woodlands, prairie groves, mountains, plains, roadsides but are found in any kind of terrain that provides both some open ground for hunting with some high perches. Their eyesight is eight times better than a human's and in flight, they can spot a mouse on the ground from 100 feet in the air. The males and females basically look alike (though the females are slightly larger), and they often mate for life.
