Mojave Light Musing

Busy, busy, busy......the past two weekends I have had the privilege of following two different experts around in the desert. One, an ecologist. The other, a photographer as well as friend. So many intriguing things to explore. For now, I will just show you mainly in pictures. This past weekend, a group of 'budding' photographers from the Desert Institute wandered about 2 miles up a very wide wash exploding with wildflowers. There aren't many this year, at least not in the higher elevations, yet. We won't have the profusion of flowers we had a few years back but last Saturday was not a disappointment. I am so glad I do not suffer from allergies........ Here are a few highlights of my day this recent weekend. I wish I had bothered to bring my 100mm macro AND a wide angle lens. The wash was vast and complicated with the rocky canyon walls along the wide wash basin strewn with the remains of the huge flood last fall. The breeze made it difficult to get clear shots up c...

Happy Spring Equinox! Desert Canterbury Bells....one of my favorites out here. This wash was FULL of them - great, big tufts of these lovely violet-blue blossoms on tall stalks with thick, stocky leaves at the base. I find it particularly intriguing how they tend to want sandy washes to make their spectacular debut.  Who would guess there is enough nutrients in those porous granules of rock into sand to sustain such vibrant beauty?  It felt good to lie on my belly on a warm patch of sand as I took this photo. Within the hour, the skies turned dark and it began to snow. Hope your first day of spring was warm and promising of new things to come... 2012 © Diana Shay Diehl / JTNP: Cottonwood Springs wash