One of Grandma's photos

This is an amazing picture!  It was taken by my grandmother about 1900.  Old then, I suspect it's a ruin now.  At the time it was by itself in a field surrounded by sagebrush and with a few willows in the background.     If you're familiar with the desert you can almost color it in!                                                                                  

Cold Weather Sky

     Even in cold weather color like this will tempt me outside!  Usually without a coat.  The sunsets come and go so quickly that I simply don't have time.  It's worth it to get something that is this beautiful.  The Master Painter does not repeat a painting.  Each one is different and gorgeous.

More Sky Fire!

     These always amaze me.  The absolute beauty that fills the sky and how quickly it changes and fades to night.  This is one of those sunsets.  Directly over Blue Mountain.  I'm sure the Master Painter looked at it, nodded, and said, "This is a good one!"

A Blessing

Sometimes the light is so beautiful you just have to go outside and bathe in it.  This is one of those sunsets.  Hopefully when one of these happens, you  remember  to take your camera outside with you.  (And more importantly, snap a few photos.)  Something to look at when the evening isn't so blessed.

Who is she? Northern end of the Black Rock Desert

     This photo is so wonderful as it is.  It'd be even better if we had names and location.  The negatives were given to me by an elderly neighbor before she passed away.   Knowing where she lived as a young girl and where her family worked, I suspect it was the northern end of the Black Rock desert.  A ranching family.   And that sleigh was used! It'd been hitched up and drawn to where mother and son pose so nicely.  I expect the horse was too restive to be included considering the time it took to get a photo was some of those old cameras.  A wonderful image.  If anybody recognizes them, please let me know!

Lilies, Summer 2014

These are brave flowers!  This summer  has been so hot and dry that it has been very difficult to get much of a bloom.  The lilies came through!  Beautiful blooms and lovely colors.  

     I loved this and had to share.  Leave it to the English!

Totem Poles at Wrangle Alaska, 1886

     Every so often I'll dig out another bit of family stuff.  This one I find interesting.  My Great Grandpa picked up this photo while he was chasing the golden dream in Alaska during the 1886 gold rush.  I wonder if they're still there?  Anybody know?  They are amazing and amazingly beautiful.

Total Eclipse from Winnemucca

Getting started

One Third

The closest to totality.


Sadly, my camera wouldn't focus beyond this  point.   So we're left with it at this point.  I'm cold, my fingers won't work and I think I'm nuts.  But it was really amazing to watch.  Maybe by the next few I'll be better with the camera!!!!!!!

Mountains. Snow, and Thunderheads!

It was cold enough that Winnemucca Mountain kept a bit of its snow from last night and this morning.  And warm enough that a thunderhead tried to form.

The next photo is the Sonomas.  They are much higher and caught  more snow.  The shadows across the snow made for a lovely photo.

By now I think we're all hoping there is a spring in the forecast!

More March Fire, March 16, 14

 Sometimes the sky is softer.  Long pink feathers floating above the mountains in this one.

Then the sky, a little more to the west, changes and you get true fire in the sky.

Pretty Mountains!

Spring is coming way too early.  The mountains are barely brushed with snow.  Not a good situation for the desert.  We have a few more storms coming in.  I hope they bring enough water to make the dry more tolerable.  This picture is of the head of Pole Creek, it's on the east side of the Sonomas.

I liked the way the clouds outlined the hills here.  

Another picture of the head of Pole Creek.  This is about fifteen miles or so from Winnemucca.

Explain This!!!!

A group of us are going into the board meeting last night.  I'm trailing behind because I'm old  and I'm gimpy which makes me slow.  Of course I'm looking around! ( Habit from living out so much growing up.)  I see this and manage to get this one clear picture.  (Naturally I  had a point and shoot in my purse.)

I see the contrails but what is this one.  It is definitely heavier than the clouds.  I didn't stay to watch it. I was already a tad late to the meeting.

Explanations please!

Snow Coming in!

     This was the view of the Sonomas from my front porch about noon.  We are promised more snow over the next few days.  A saving grace for the drought we've had here.    And a prayer for all of those back east who've had more snow and ice than they need!

Another One!

     These suckers are getting too close for comfort!  I don't know what it is or where it came from and again, I didn't see it.  The camera saw it, I didn't.  Just like the last one.  But there it is about a hundred feet out or so floating above the ground in front of that sagebrush!  I've some other pictures of these things.  Anybody else see anything like them?  Explanations???

     As an aside, I've taken pictures out here for years, with the camera I'm using as well as a variety of other cameras, never came up with these items until very recently!

My Daytime UFO

There is a longer piece on nevadasdesertlegends.com.  I've put this picture up for comments.  I'd like to know if anyone else saw this one.  As I said in the article on nevadasdesertlegends.com, i took these pictures November 3, 2013.  I look forward to hearing from people!

Blue Mountain and Clouds!

I think of Blue Mountain as the signpost to the Black Rock Desert.  Once you reach it on Jungo Road, you are on your way!  Helen, a good friend, took me out this week to take some pictures.  The clouds are beautiful, amazingly lovely, the mountain as well, the foreground?  It's something else.  It shows how little snow or rain we've gotten for the last several years and this year doesn't look so great either.  Even the Mormon Crickets will have to pack canteens this year!