Just want to wish all of you a very happy new year. 2017 was a very eventful and dangerous year and, I fear, 2018 will be even worse. So many things are going wrong around the world and I don't see the political will to fix any of them. Just a lot of puffed up chests and flapping gums with very little comprehension as to the long-term bad effects of all this hot air and ego inflation. How little we learn from history. So this wish is very sincere ... please be safe and try to understand your neighbors and even your enemies. When you get an opportunity, reach out to those who are less fortunate than you and offer them a helping hand. It's called "Pay Forward" and it does work. And those of you who are truly fortunate this year, who have lots of money and power, please remember that your good fortune rests on the shoulders of those below you. Think of all the things you take for granted and how many of them depend on the labor of the working class and the poor. Think what life would be like if you suddenly lost all those things because they were gone. Remember the woman who runs the booth at the local self-serve gas station; the guy who repairs your car and replaces those worn tires; the people who clean the streets and make sure those things you ordered are safely delivered. Believe me, your charmed life would be a whole lot worse if all those people failed to do their part. We all need each other in so many ways.
Snake River - Grand Tetons
I was in Grand Teton NP for 8 days and took over 1000 pictures. There was so much to experience there and every day was an adventure. One day the rangers came through the campgrounds and told us to be very careful because a large grizzly and her cub were nearby and we should be very aware. I'm not usually worried about wild animals because they are, in general, more afraid of me than I am of them but one has to have a lot of respect for a bear and her cub. She is especially aggressive and can attack without warning. It's always the best to be very alert when hiking in the back country and give these creatures wide berth if at all possible. I've certainly been close to bears in the past ... a large female came running out of the trees not 50 yards from me on my last morning in Yellowstone ... and I have a great deal of respect. You should too.
I took this photo from one of the overlooks along the main road that runs north to south through the park. This is a major state highway and is open all year round. There's a secondary road that runs parallel to this road (to the west) but that's only open when there's good weather. That's the "park" road where the visitor's center is and where the campground is located. The tall mountain in the center is "Grand Teton", the park's namesake. It's a beautiful mountain, fairly young by geological standards. There are several glaciers on it's eastern face which are receding as the atmosphere warms. They may be gone soon.
This is a blend of 3 bracketed images. I used HDR this time but want to try doing a true blend to see if I get even more spectacular results. I then used Lightroom to finish off. I really love the colors. The sun is already down and illuminating the clouds from the bottom. What's nice about this area is the mountains create clouds almost every day so there's rarely a dull sunset. There are a lot fewer clouds in the morning so sunset is the best time to get spectacular images. Hope you enjoy.
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| Snake River, Grand Tetons - 35mm,f/18,HDR,ISO 100,license CC BY-NC 4.0 |
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