Light on the Rhody

This is our native rhododendron, Rhododendron macrophyllum. The photo was taken in Fort Townsend State Park. As the actual name of the plant is a mouthful, most of us just call them rhodys. The week marks the 77th annual Rhododendron Festival, Port Townsend’s biggest Spring event.

The Pacific Rhododendron grows native on the west coast from B.C. to California. It’s the Washington state flower and the flower after which the festival was named.

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Nature's candles

I don’t apologize for the visual pun. When I saw the evening light shine on this bundle of pine candles, the photo title popped into my head, even before I took the shot. According to the article Wikipedia on pines:

The new spring shoots are sometimes called “candles”; they are covered in brown or whitish bud scales and point upward at first, then later turn green and spread outward. These “candles” offer foresters a means to evaluate fertility of the soil and vigour of the trees.

Early morning at Kah Tai

Dawn comes at about 5:30 this time of year. Sometimes I wake up with the light and can’t get back to sleep. This time I decided to just go with the flow. I  grabbed the camera and headed down to Kah Tai Nature Lagoon to catch the first light of the sun as it popped up over Morgan Hill.

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Herd of elk?

Just east of Sequim, WA, about 30 miles from Port Townsend there is a sign: Elk X-ing. In the 20 + years I’ve lived here I’ve never seen any elk near the sign, that is until today.

I noticed what I first thought was a herd of deer, then did a double take. Roosevelt elk were grazing in a field. These animals are much larger than our local deer. They are the largest North American sub-species of elk.

I pointed the animals out to K.  She said, “go back.” I made the first possible turn around on US 101 to return for a photo. I couldn’t get close and the camera was pointing into the sun, so the shot isn’t what I’d have liked. No matter.

If you look at the elk closest on the right, you’ll notice that it’s wearing a blue collar. There were at least three elk wearing collars. Apparently, that is a radio transmitter that activates the flashing lights on the Elk X-ing road sign.

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Whoa! A little closer than I thought.

This little guy has full brakes on. He’s is a male Rufous hummingbird.

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It's not all red rock

Buttes and mesas cover much of the Utah and Arizona deserts. Mesas are bigger. Either way the flat topped mountains provide dramatic scenery.

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A hidden treasure

With all the stunning locations around Southern Utah it’s easy to not notice some absolutely lovely spots. This is Quail Creek in the Red Rock Recreation Area of the Red Cliffs National Conservation Area.

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