Oh, it was so pretty that day! I’m really appreciating these photos now that I’m glued to my keyboard.
Upper Geyser basin, Yellowstone National Park
We just made most of the reservations for our next road trip. Planning a trip is so fun. Instead of driving 8 hours the first day to Gold Beach Oregon, the grueling segment we had planned, we’re going to drive 4 hours to Trinidad California, then 6 hours to Bandon Oregon. We found really cute places to stay. We spent a lot of time booking Portland, which is super expensive. We finally found a reasonable place and also learned a lot about Portland sights and activities. I really wanted to experience being able to walk around, go to cafes and restaurants, and soak up the atmosphere. Plus we learned they have an amazing and huge Japanese garden right in the middle of the city! I can’t wait to photograph the gardens, parks, and river.
Planning really is half the fun of a trip. Now that I’ve seen where we’ll be staying and have perused the areas and maps in the process of making reservations, I’ve already begun having the next experience.
Hope you’re having a peaceful, happy, and/or exciting (in a good way) weekend.
I’m sorry I have been so silent lately. I am up against a deadline and I have a lot left to go! However, I have a treasure trove of photographs that I saved up for just such an occasion, which after all, I did know was coming. As the clock ticks inexorably on toward my looming deadline, please enjoy some lovely photos from Yellowstone National Park.
Hot mud
I enhanced that. Here is the original. I can’t decide which one I like more. Which do you like more?
I had to get a picture of this artist painting Yellowstone Falls. And then of course, I had to share it.
Artist at Artist’s Point Yellowstone
I figured out how to put all my links for my blog review tour in one place. I call it my V8 moment!
I don’t know why I didn’t think of it sooner! All the links are here and the tour runs 10 more days. Each blog stop that you visit and enter gets you another chance to win the raffle for a signed copy of Love Caters All. Plus you can see all the reviews!
We opened up the pool today because it’s a “Smart Day” meaning we are to use the minimum possible amount of electricity. These Smart Days occur on the hottest days. The combination of heat and not running the air conditioner enticed us to spend the water needed to remove the pool cover and float all day on a raft. Well not me, actually, just my husband. I am here writing this instead of working on one of my manuscripts, which I do not understand. Perhaps my lapse is because this whole scene unfolding outside my window is interesting and making me want to report.
The scene in the yard is full of bird action. The open pool seems to have attracted birds from everywhere. All kinds of species are landing on power lines and tree branches, fences, and the roof, then calling out to each other. I think the first birds discover the water by flying around searching in general then call out the location when water is spotted. The message is understood by other members of his species. Of course some non-species members have worked out the meaning of other species’ bird calls, for survival reasons, and so members of these other species start to arrive as well. I’m not sure if this is how it actually works, but it is my theory, and I did hear this recently about birds understanding other species’ calls.
Waterfall during flush years
The total number of birds is limited, though. The population seems to adjust to the amount of resources available in a region, so I think only birds in about a four-house radius are coming for the water.
Ahh!Robin bathing in a pool (which no longer exists due to not running the waterfall)
I think that California is going through an adjustment like the ones the birds make naturally. California has cut residential water limits to the bare bones. Logically, if the state continues to grow in population, the water managers will have to cut more deeply next time we are in this situation. There is already a lot of development in the pipeline, but once that dries up, I think there will be a hue and cry from voters to put a stop to development. Or perhaps fewer people will be attracted to move here knowing they are moving into tightening water restrictions. Or both. In this sense, the drought is probably not entirely bad. Not that I want to limit California’s population, but I think if we want California to be a sustainable state, growth has to be constrained to the amount of resources available in the area. Birds in nature distribute themselves over an area in numbers appropriate for the resources available. California can manage with the amount of water expected, but only through careful management. I hope that when the rains come back, which they already are starting to do, we remember this lesson and have better informed public policy on development.
Here’s a newsflash. Apparently there is something else we can do to increase the number of people who can live here in California. Eat veggie burgers! Check out this statement from Governor Brown:
When I get together with people, I have all these stories saved up to tell them. The only problem is, they already read all about it on my blog or Facebook! (Somehow, I forget people are reading that stuff.)
Image courtesy of Tina Phillips at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
They’ve read all my stories, saw all the pictures, and are like…so, what else is new? Uh…nothing. That stuff you’re reading is my life lived out loud. You really don’t want to hear about the headaches, the dirty laundry piling up and that annoying person on the road who flipped me off, do you? Yes? Okay, I’ll blog about that then! Oh wait, then we’re back where we started.
Tonight we made two pizzas from the garden. They were amazing, and pretty.
Here is the squash flower pizza before and after baking.
Here’s a close up of those zucchini flowers.
It is an incredible joy to make something so delicious from the garden. We are using most of our water ration on the veggies and fruit trees, which makes indoor water use very challenging. Meals like this make all the water pinching worth it.
Here is the zucchini pizza, unfortunately after eating some! The photographer needed sustenance.
The zucchini pizza has olive oil brushed on it, then a layer of shaved Parmesan cheese, the thinly sliced zucchini, and sauteed onions. The crust is homemade using special pizza flower and adding Italian herbs and garlic powder.
The wildflowers on our hiking adventure near Jackson Lake in Grand Teton National Park were wonderful.
Lupine
I kept pausing to take photos, which really slowed us down!
Mules ear
I tried to work fast, though, so I wouldn’t slow down our progress too much. I managed to capture this bee.
I liked the quaking aspen behind these flowers.
Sulphur buckwheat, I think, the white ones
There was a lot of thunder in the distance, making us hurry to beat the storm. The clouds made a dramatic backdrop for photography, though.
Tree drama
These marshes are around in multiple places providing habitat for many species of plant and animal.
Christian Lake
Now that I’m home, I’m really glad I made the effort to take a lot of pictures. I can remember it so clearly. I hope you enjoy them too. Have a great day!
I talked my hubs into going to the Bear and Wolf Museum in West Yellowstone. I don’t like seeing animals caged, but the museum does a lot of good, and I wanted to see a Grizzly bear in a safe setting.
I love wolves, always have. Look at these cuties.
I invite you to watch this beautiful, inspiring, and educational video about how the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park regenerated the entire ecosystem and even changed the rivers.
There were bald eagles too, but my photos didn’t turn out.
They are building a new area for river otters and beavers, which are once again (thanks to wolves) a big part of the Yellowstone ecosystem. The museum is great for children.
Today was warmer and partly cloudy. We picnicked at the Yellowstone Grand Canyon after taking pictures of the falls.
Yellowstone Falls viewed from Artist’s Point
Then we arrived at our hotel room in the park and discovered we have a view of Yellowstone Lake. We have spent all afternoon and evening gazing at it.
Yellowstone Lake Hotel
Well, I also gazed at my photos and processed these for you (and for myself, I’ll admit…so much fun). I took artistic liberties with Sapphire Pool. It’s more pale in reality, but still beautiful. This is in Biscuit Basin, which is right near Old Faithful.
Sapphire Pool in Biscuit Basin (enhanced)
Here is the reporting photo, so you know exactly what Sapphire Pool looks like on a cloudy day.
Nicci Carrera 