Kaibab Forest Sunset

Sunset, Warm Fire burn, Kaibab National Forest, Arizona

August on the Kaibab Plateau, the "mountain lying down" to the Paiute Indians. The high (7,000-9,000) gently curved mountain with no peaks, raised up from the Marble Platform down below by the Earth's ever flexing forces.

Near the edge of the now eight year old burn left by 1996's Warm Fire (an ironic name for such a massive, hot fire, almost 60,000 acres) I took advantage of the opening in the forest to admire some sunset cloud colors. The day had been one of summer monsoon thundershower activity, but all around me rather than on me. The leftover thunderhead and cumulus clouds reflected the setting sun, and the Ponderosa pine trees provided some nice silhouette shapes.

Photo location: North Kaibab Ranger District, Kaibab National Forest, between Jacob Lake and North Rim of Grand Canyon, Coconino County, Arizona. 

Kaibab Plateau: Sunset Rain Colors, Rainbow Rim

[Photo: Sunset rain colors, Rainbow Rim, northern Arizona.]

A summer evening on the Rainbow Rim in northern Arizona. July: the summer monsoon season has begun. Moisture from Baja California flows north into Arizona, and the clouds build quickly in the mornings. Most mornings. 

Thunder in the afternoon. Lightning around, so keep a wary eye out. Make sure you're not too exposed if it gets within about ten miles of you. If you see lightning in the distance but can't hear the associated thunder, it's too far away to be of concern.

Rain blesses the high desert, and the high lush forests of the Kaibab Plateau. At sunset time, a gap in the clouds on the western horizon arrives right on time. The rain and clouds provide the reflector screen, the veil, for the setting sun, warming the colors to yellow, pink, purple against the blue light in the shadows. 

The Rainbow Rim sits on the edge of two giant chunks of federal land: the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park, and the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest. On the cusp. Looking down into Grand Canyon north of the Colorado River. 

Photo location: Rainbow Rim, Kaibab National Forest and Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. Copyright © 2014 Stephen J. Krieg.

Wotan's Throne at Sunset, Grand Canyon

Sunset at the North Rim of Grand Canyon means being at Cape Royal if at all possible.

[Photo: Wotan's Throne at Sunset, Grand Canyon North Rim].

It's the southern tip of the Walhalla Plateau, the end of the scenic drive at the North Rim. It's the climax of the show: the most dramatic view of all (which is saying something!), looking out at the massive sky butte named Wotan's Throne.

At sunset time, unless the clouds on the western horizon cut it off, the low angle of the sun's rays reflect off the cliffs, making them glow yellow to gold.

Copyright © Stephen J. Krieg | Stephen Krieg Photography

Vermilion Cliffs Golden Sunset Shower

Sunset through rain shower, Vermilion Cliffs, Arizona

An April shower on the Marble Platform on the Arizona Strip between Grand Canyon and the Utah state line. Sunset providing the golden light through the rain. The Vermilion Cliffs towering in profile. 

What a day in April 2011 that was. 

April Full Moonrise, Central Arizona Highlands

Moonrise over Bradshaw Mountains, Prescott, Arizona

Moonrise this evening in Arizona was the time to make landscape shots with the Full Moon included in the frame, because the moon rose early enough to be in the scene while the landscape was still light enough for some detail.

The savvy landscape/nature photographer was not fooled by the calendar, which shows the Full Moon as being tomorrow. But that's because it will officially reach 100% illumination just after midnight Pacific Time (and Arizona Standard Time). 

So effectively this evening was the rise of the Full Moon. Here is what it looked like from the southeast edge of Prescott, Arizona, with the Bradshaw Mountains on the horizon. The "starburst" effect was from the small lens aperture, in this case f/18.

Granite Mountain Reflection, Prescott National Forest

Granite Mountain reflection on Granite Basin Lake

Morning light. Mountain light. Clear air after a spring snow storm. Synergy.

I drove west out of Prescott up into Granite Basin Recreation Area on the Prescott National Forest. It can be a very busy area on the weekend, being that close to town, but this wasn't the weekend. Ha.

A perfect early April morning in the Central Arizona Highlands. A mountain lake, Granite Lake, slowly undulating the mirror image of Granite Mountain and the clear blue Arizona sky.

Granite Mountain and Granite Basin Lake

Photo location: Granite Basin Recreation Area, Prescott National Forest, just west of Prescott, Arizona.

© Stephen J. Krieg | www.NaturalMoment.com

Local Tourist: Downtown Prescott, Arizona

A beautiful late March day in mile high Prescott, Arizona. 

Gurley Street, looking west toward Thumb Butte

I had most of the day to wander as I felt like, having dropped my vehicle off at a local auto repair shop for some good upgrade work to engine and brakes. I had intended to spend most of my time in the Sharlot Hall Museum, but to my delight some gorgeous, ever changing cumulus clouds had shown up. And the air was crisp and clear. A photographer's playground. Time to play "local tourist", exploring like a rubbernecking newcomer but with the familiarity of a resident. The best of both worlds.

Gurley Street, looking east from Courthouse Plaza ("the Square")

I like downtown Prescott because it has a number of old, historic buildings that are inhabited by local businesses. No chain stores or restaurants here. With the beautiful light and plenty of time on my hands I decided to wander the streets as a tourist would. I had only lived in the area a year, and so it would be a chance to visit some of the shops that I hadn't yet, as well as re-visit those I knew already, to see what had changed.

The beautiful Hassayampa Inn on Gurley Street

The downtown core is centered around the Yavapai County Courthouse, a stately granite building surrounded by the lawns and sidewalks and American elm trees of its plaza, universally called "Courthouse Square" or "the Square" by the locals even though the city maps and signs insist it's officially Courthouse Plaza. 

Whiskey Row (right), Montezuma Street across from the Courthouse Plaza (left).

On the north side of the Square is Gurley Street, which is Prescott's Main Street. Gurley Street comes down the hill from the east at the beautiful red-brick Hassayampa Inn and the Elks Theatre, and points west toward Thumb Butte, the iconic upthrust on the Prescott National Forest just west of downtown.

Gun lovers' signs for sale.

Prescott revels in its "Old West" cowboy, pioneer, and mining history. Also in being a mile high in elevation, making its climate about as perfect as you can get. With the iconic Arizona blue skies, low humidity, and moderate temperatures, Prescott is off the beaten path (Interstate 17) while being not that far from it, either. 

Alongside Courthouse Plaza to the south is Whiskey Row, that block of Montezuma Street with a very colorful (i.e., wild) past and is still the epicenter of downtown's night life. With a number of bars, art galleries, restaurants, and upscale shops, it's a great place to browse and spend an hour or three. And that's during the daylight hours! Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday are long gone from the scene, but downtown lives on as a mixture of historic and modern. 

 

Hotel St. Michael ("St. Mike's") building anchors the north corner of Whiskey Row

Mountain Spirit Co-Op art gallery and healing center on Cortez Street

However, Cortez Street just north of Gurley Street rivals Whiskey Row for having at least as many restaurants, and with even more shops. At any rate, all of historic downtown Prescott is within easy walking distance, and is very pedestrian-friendly.

Cortez Street Emporium (and mirror for lovely Arizona sky).

The Cortez Street Emporium makes it plain when it's open...and where the entrance is!

Visual collage of inside and outside, near and far, courtesy of the Cortez Street Emporium's front windows.

 

Along Cortez Street

North Cortez Street, Prescott, Arizona

Murphy's Restaurant, Cortez Street

Wandering "local tourist" photographer...

The former train station is now an upscale professional building.

Historic photo from the Sharlot Hall Museum archives shows the train station in its day.

Local businesses aren't shy about turning their walls into public art.

Streetside art on The Lone Spur Cafe, Gurley Street

Adams Specialty Automotive Repair shop, my beginning and ending point near historic downtown.

Granite Basin Lake and Granite Peak, on the Prescott National Forest a few miles west of downtown. Gotta take the vehicle for a little drive after being worked on!

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© Copyright 2014 Stephen J. Krieg