A Glimpse of the Lunar Eclipse

The last week has been glorious. The sky has been a deep blue with almost no clouds in it. The aspens have become more and more brilliant, looking gorgeous against the sky.

Shyla and I have enjoyed beautiful bike rides together, soaking up the fleeting autumn colors.

Then, yesterday about an hour before sunset, a bank of clouds moved in. Oh no, I thought... I'd been looking forward to my first attempt at photographing a total lunar eclipse. I'd been out around our area with a compass and the projected path of the moon, figuring out the best vantage point.

The whole pack walked to my chosen vantage point together just before moonrise. Neither of us humans dared to voice the opinion that we weren't going to see the moonrise. Finally, the Runner saw a glimmer behind the clouds, approximately 30 minutes after moonrise and even longer after the eclipse had begun. Still, I didn't have a clear view of the moon.

However, we both spotted a gap in the layers of clouds where we thought the moon just might appear, ever so briefly. And it did.

The gap was substantial enough that I could spend the time to figure out the best camera settings to get a wide view of the ridge to the east and a good exposure of the moon. Moreover, during the time that the moon was visible, the color of the clouds morphed from the post-sunset orange (in the previous photo) to the later-after-sunset pink that I love so much.

Then, after about 15 minutes of enjoying the moon view, the clouds covered it again. The rest of the pack headed for home. I, the ever hopeful photographer, lay in the grass, watching for another glimmer of the moon.

It was so peaceful lying there, gazing at the sky. I suddenly realized that a city-person would think I was crazy feeling so safe lying in my little spot in the meadow. But, I did. I trusted that the coyotes, bobcats, mountain lions, elk, deer, bears, and moose would catch my scent and go around me. And they did.

I didn't glimpse the moon again. However, I was happy with what I'd managed to capture in the brief moments that the moon graced us with its face.

Happy Sunday

Shyla and I are reveling in our morning rides. It's cool, and we're having a blast. She's getting good at "heeling" next to my bike, so I can take her more places than I used to be able to take her.
It truly feels as if every flower in our neck of the woods is blooming right now. The wild roses are going... wild!

Shyla and I are continuing to work on her agility, and she is doing so fabulously. I still need to be right next to her as she negotiates most obstacles, like the teeter-totter and the weave so I can't get photos yet.

Last evening, we saw the "super moon" which is closest to the Earth that it will be all year. The super moon was unfortunately obscured by clouds until well after it rose last evening. However, it was gorgeous as it emerged from the orange clouds

In honor of Black and White Sunday, I am sharing one more attempt at star trails. These trails are from one night on our desert camping trip in May. It's cool how placing the North Star off-center in the photo makes the "circles" look almost eliptical. The part of my star trails that I'm not satisfied with is the obvious gaps within the trails. I plan to try some more soon, with shorter gaps between exposures. However, I still like this one from one of our favorite campsites in Utah.

I captured more very fun bear action the other day - this time involving a cub with big aspirations... I'll share it soon. Happy Sunday!

Wordless Wednesday: Springtime

In the desert...

In the mountains...