moments from a night out on a 2009 casio exilim.
photo dump: la jolla digicam
in digicam, photography
southern california
fossils
in explore, hiking, weird world, travel
inside one of the circular erosions.
spent an early morning last week climbing around fossil falls off highway 395 in the california desert. I left los angeles at 4 am to beat the heatwave temperatures, but it was still 90+ degrees when I arrived at around 6:30 in the morning.
fossil falls is a fascinating geological feature that contains neither fossils nor waterfalls! tens of thousands of years ago water runoff from nearby glaciers made its way through the valleys of the high desert. there they met with some obstruction from volcanoes! the running water carved volcanic rock into the spectacular tumble that is now fossil falls. the basalt shapes are almost alien looking & feature perfectly circular erosions called potholes where rushing water drove sediment into the rock via rotating eddies.
you might also recognize fossil falls from a short film I shot there a few years ago, finite.
hiking with the devil
the devil’s punchbowl natural area is an LA county park in the transitional zone between the san gabriel mountains & the mojave desert. it surrounds a punchbowl formation, where a millennia of shifts in the plates of the earth along the punchbowl fault have forced a sandstone syncline—where the edges of the earth have been folded upward while the center dropped.
the punchbowl fault connects with the famed san andreas fault only a short distance northward.
the devil’s chair is aptly named!
within the natural area is the devil’s chair, a narrow outcropping of rocks providing panoramic views of the surrounding geology. while the chair & the path immediately to it are lined with a rough metal fence the height, wind, & narrow width had me a bit nervous. the trail itself is frequently about a foot wide & barely cut into the side of the mountain. man-made railings are sporadic & in various states of disrepair. the view is well worth the trek, even though I only sat in the devil’s chair for a few minutes!
my way of reminding myself what I’m taking a photo of.
from several vista points along the trail you can clearly see the line of rock marking faultline activity. after climbing the devil’s chair route, I took the much shorter loop trail down into the canyon to see the sandstone rock formations close up. a stark visible reminder that our planet is always shifting.
the devil’s chair hike is about 7.5 miles out & back, mostly moderate with a couple of steep sections at the beginning & end. limited shade & portions which are not for the faint of heart.
the loop trail is a steep 1 mile circut from the punchbowl natural area’s parking lot down into the canyon where the sandrock creek winds between the stones.
parking is free, but limited.
night lights
in photography
downtown los angeles by night. experiments in long exposure.
blooming
in photography, explore
I spent the morning a few days ago wandering the California Poppy Reserve, despite almost 35 mile per hour winds! The superbloom happening in Southern California right now, however, was more than worth the chapped lips & wind-whipped hair.
Put together a short video (of very wobbly windy footage) of my explorations. Look for more photos & videos from this gorgeous adventure on my instagram in the coming weeks.
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The Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve in Lancaster, California is home to the most consistent blooming of the state's flower, the California poppy. The department of California State Parks does not water or stimulate the flowers in any way, instead leaving the blooms in their strictly natural state. It is against state law to remove flowers from the site & veering off the established paths can result in a hefty ticket. The traditional blooming season for California Poppies is mid-February through mid-May.
The so-called "superbloom" of 2019 was caused by an increase in rainfall during the winter months in Southern California. Parking on-site at the reserve, which is currently open 7:00am-7:00pm, is $10 per passenger vehicle, or you can opt to park on the shoulder of the road for free, provided you are at least 100 feet away from the park's entrance.
Observations
in weird world
Begun as a WPA project in 1933, Griffith Observatory opened to the public in the spring of 1935. in accordance with the will of its benefactor, Griffith J. Griffith—who donated the surrounding 3000 acres of land to the city of Los Angeles in 1896—admission to the observatory is, & always has been free. Upon its completion, Griffith Observatory was only the third planetarium in the United States. Closed for major renovations from 2002 to 2006 the observatory is one of the most recognized landmarks in Los Angeles.
Mr. Griffith donated the funds for both the observatory & Griffith Park’s Greek Theatre. His donation, however, was blocked by the park council after his image as a philanthropist was tarnished when he attempted to murder his wife in 1903. He would eventually spend only 2 years in prison for the crime. A secret alcoholic for much of his life, Griffith died of liver disease in 1919 leaving the bulk of his fortune to the city of Los Angeles.