With the Temperatures in the Nineties and after All the Rain,
Out at Nine Mile Prairie lots of Species are Bursting Forth in Glory…
Reproduction is Nature’s Imperative &
Occupies Our Minds & Bodies
In these Warm, Moist Times…
Tag: Water
After a Big Rain in June
An Early Morning Thunderstorm brought Hail and about Four Inches of Rain to the Prairie. I went out just as the Storm was ending. The delicate Prairie Rose Blossoms were Pretty Beat Up. But the Milkweed were just Shy of Blooming. One of the Lakes was Full Up. It continued to Thunder and Lightning East and West of the Prairie. So I skedaddled after a Few Dark and Damp Hours…
A Visit to Grandmother Cottonwood
On yet another Damp Gray May Afternoon I walked across the Uplands noticing a Few New Flowers and Big Clouds Rolling over the Cold War Nuclear Bomb Bunkers and the Newish LES Power Poles, then Down into the Middle Draw past the Grove of Slender Middle-aged Cottonwoods where the Springs and Streams were Really Flowing. Nearby, over in the Big South Draw, is the Home of Old Grandmother Cottonwood. I first made Photographs of this Magnificent Tree in the 1980s. She and I are probably about the Same Age. And we Both have a Bit of Damage to Show for it. But this Wet Spring and all the Lush Green Foliage is Good for the Spirit and the Flesh…
April in the West Draw
On a very Cool and Overcast late April Day at the Mouth of the West Draw I visited my Old Friend, the Goner Cottonwood. Then by following the Water Upstream the Afternoon revealed bright New Blooms, some more recent Wind Damage & a few faded Remnants of the Old Year.
Rain Day
On a Rainy March Afternoon I put the Rain Gear on the Camera, suited up and wandered out. Rain Days are the Worst and the Best. Shooting in the Steady Rain is a challenge not only just to Keep the Gear Dry, Lenses free of Water Spots and to see the Viewfinder through Foggy Glasses – but at this Time of Year it can get Cold and Unpleasant fast when Wind picks up, Rain comes Sideways and Clothes get Wet as they eventually always do. Everything just takes a Lot Longer. On this Day I lasted Five Hours.
But on these Magical Days all the Colors are Richer and More Vibrant. When Everything is Wet the Prairie looks Very Different than at Any Other Time. Sometimes One can See it once again with Beginner’s Eyes. And that makes it All Worthwhile. It is my Favorite Time to be Out There…
A Light Snow Day
A little Walk across the Prairie to the Second Draw after a Light Snow. There was Good Water down in the Draw and the Wet Snow coated the Trees. Over in the Big South Draw there is a Blow Down from a few years ago that makes for some Hard Going. And back to the East, the Grandmother Cottonwood is still standing but She’s losing Limbs fast these Days…
A March Afternoon Down in the West Draw
On a breezy March Afternoon with whispery thin High Clouds making for a Beautiful Soft Light I walked across the Prairie to the Head of the West Draw. There the Seeps and Springs were flowing even though the Winter had not been very wet. Last year’s Grasses lay like a Golden Blanket covering the wet Cleft. I followed the Water downstream North until the Sun started to sink low. Then back up a Game Trail into the Prairie and Wind…
The Chronology of a March Afternoon
On the Second of March I entered the Prairie under scooting White Puffster Clouds tracking in from the Northwest on a brisk Breeze & punctuating the Sunshine with periods of Gray Soft Light. I crossed the East Field & around to the Mouth of the Little Spike Draw & then Upstream past Clusters of Cottonwoods to the Hidden Seep which was this Day only a bit wet & oozing. From there I climbed up & out onto the Second Field & through Golden Grasses bearing Southwest to the Park-like Copse near the Confluence of the muddy Second Draw & the freely flowing Big South Draw. Here I visited Grandfather Cottonwood & ventured to the Edge of the Wetlands to the South.  Then on the walk back to my truck in Late Afternoon Light I came upon a Tree just shy of Flowering.
What a Difference a Day Makes…
Here are two slides shows of images made on February 23 & 24, 2017. I almost never go to the prairie two days in a row and also never take the same route twice. But on these two days, waiting for a winter storm to blow in and then during the storm, I thought it would be interesting to see how the prairie changes from day to day… sometimes dramatically.
A February Love Song
Wandering down into and back out of the moist West Draw
seeking images of impermanence and renewal &
visiting an old friend, the big fallen cottonwood…
on an unseasonably warm February afternoon.