joshua tree
adjusting to a slower life out in the desert country. feeding the wild birds, putting water out for the coyotes, & peanuts for the ravens. hummingbirds circle my house all day, their wings a low buzz.
almost every night I sit out in the dirt circle that serves as my driveway to watch the sunset. the mountains of the san bernardino national forest swallow the sun every night, sometimes crowned in clouds glowing orange or pink.
took my latest digicam on a drive through joshua tree national park in the late afternoon sun as storm clouds rolled in.
I’ve been having a lot of fun with the ricoh cx3’s “high contrast black & white” setting & I can’t wait to have some bright southern california spring days to play with.
journal:
the heat hung in the air like a weight. when you step out into it a hush surrounds you. the creaking of ancient hills barely registering above the hot breeze brushing through desert shrub & cactus. the roads glisten with warmth & all the creatures slow down to linger in the shade.
the desert is teeming with life, but it is a slow life. a quiet one.
a saturday spent wandering around joshua tree national park & morongo valley california with a 2010 sony bloggie mhs-pm5.
a morning in joshua tree national park.
shot on portra 800 with a vintage lubitel 2 camera.
joshua tree national park straddles both the colorado desert & the mojave desert in eastern california. the park was originally declared a national monument in 1936 & re-designated a national park in 1994 after congress passed the ‘california desert protection act’. taking up nearly 800,000 acres, the park itself is slightly larger than the state of rhode island. joshua tree is named for its trademark vegetation, the yucca brevifolia, which is native to the mojave desert.
