More Fun in Anza-Borrego

More Fun Four Wheeling in Anza-Borrego Desert State Park

I had another opportunity to explore the desert with http://frankbaiamonte.blogspot.com/ and some of our mutual friends. We always have a good time. I was treated to seeing new places I'd never been and I always love that! I like that we stop at the turn out on the way down into the desert. This time I zoomed in to a small property at the base of the hill.

There are some folks that think that the desert is bland and boring...all the same and not much of anything. I don't see the desert that way at all. I am amazed at the different formations of sand, rock and terrain. Often in our travels in the desert we are treated to views of very different geology almost layered on top of each other. 

Getting in the narrow areas with the four wheel drives is always fun and exciting too. Now, just think of what happens when we get to a spot we can travel no further on this narrow trail. Yep, it can get a bit tight to turn around. At least there was only three vehicles on this trip, but it still proved to be a bit of a challenge.

Here is a shot of my friend Robert in his jeep. You can see his wheels flexing every which way on the bumps. Keep in mind, I am using a wide angle lens here, so it looks like there is more room around the vehicle than there really is. Hey, where is his co-pilot Rae? She's next to me shooting too. :-)

We were treated to beautiful skies as you can see in this next photo.

Boys and their toys....

They are a very generous bunch of guys and they share. Here is my take.

Here is the tight spot we came to in our travels. We had to turn around as we couldn't travel further. Actually I think we had already traveled further than most on this leg of trail. There was a bit of burning transmission etc. before we were facing in the direction we needed to be. 

In one of my first posts on this blog I shared some photos of the metal sculptures of Anza-Borrego by artist Richardo A. Breceda. You can read more about Richardo and his sculptures here This next photo is one of his latest additions to Anza. There is a scorpion it is fighting, but you'll just have to visit the gallery I put up to see the scorpion.

The link to the gallery of photos from this outing in the desert are here 

We also had an opportunity to witness a migration of Swainson's Hawks. It was one of the most amazing things I'd ever seen. Hundreds of hawks were soaring high on the air currents over the desert and slowly descended to some trees in a field behind where a group of birders had gathered to witness the scene. The group that caught our attention on the side of the road was called the Borrego Hawk Watch. They had counters working on a count of the migrating hawks and the count was close to 300. I have no idea how they manage to do a count of birds like this, but I know they do and they are experienced at being accurate too. I didn't have a good long lens with me so the photos I took just don't do the event justice but I can tell you it was quite an experience to witness. It is something that I feel very fortunate to have witnessed and I will never forget it.

St. Patrick's Day Parade 2012

It is undoubtedly true that the modern day celebration of St. Patrick's Day has little to do with the real man, St. Patrick. You can read more facts on St. Patrick's Day in this article: National Geographic Facts on St. Patrick's Day I do very much enjoy the parade that is put on to celebrate the day in our city of San Diego each year though. This year was different from years past because it rained! It rained in sunny San Diego and the show still went on. I was grateful and proud of each person who braved the weather to both walk in the parade and attend it too. Despite the rain, it was a lot of fun!

This pup was ready for the chilly day, and looks downright cool in his sweater and spectacles! 

Green, Green, Green, the color of the day!

They were getting wet, but most had a very good attitude, along with rain protection for their hats at least! 

The Irish Setters seemed quite happy and comfortable in the rain of the day.

One thing is for sure, many folks did not let a little bit of wet spoil their fun!

To see more parade photos along with a few from my walk to and from the parade location, here is the LINK

Leo Carrillo Ranch

The SDDSLR group had the January shoot at Leo Carrillo Ranch. The ranch was built and once owned by actor Leo Carrillo. There are rustic old adobe buildings, antique windmills, a reflecting pool and much more. The ranch is full of native flora and fauna. One of the first things that visitors are treated to seeing are many peafowl on the property. To find out a little of the history of the ranch click here Leo Carrillo History

The Peacocks put on a great show strutting their stuff.

The reflecting pool had to be redesigned to be 18 inches deep to avoid having to install an ugly fence around it.

The paths are lined with beautiful plants and the birds they attract.

The back side of a peacock strutting is just as impressive as the front view!

The Leo Carrillo Ranch is a fun place to visit. The link to more images Leo Carrillo

The link to the slideshow

   

Four Wheeling in the Desert

I had the pleasure of riding along with a group of friends in their four wheel drives in the desert this past weekend. It was just what the doctor ordered. I had such an amazing time and the desert had incredible weather and skies. It really was an rejuvenating experience. Great people and lots of fun! 

When we came over the top of the mountains to this view, I knew it was going to be a grand day!



Rae in the slot



A Supacat 400 HMT Jackal, used by the militaries of the United Kingdom. Taken through Frank's windshield.



I fell in love with Frank's Xterra. What an awesome ride! Frank is an excellent driver too.

The sunset was beautiful. While the guys added air to the tires, I got to enjoy the sunset. Doesn't seem fair does it?

A special thanks to Robert for the identification of the military vehicles. Thanks to Frank for letting me ride along and showing me places I'd never seen. Here is where we traveled quoted by Frank, "We started out driving south on the road from the dump towards the Borrego Sink. Right before the Borrego Sink we turned east into Borrego Sink and San Felipe Wash. We turned south into Borrego Mountain Wash and followed that to our lunch spot at the north end of The Slot.  We then backtracked to San Felipe Wash, continued east to Blow Sand Canyon, and took that sort of south to where it intersects with the Goat Trail. We took Goat Trail west to where it ends at Buttes Pass Road (where the orienteer finish line was set up), then went north on Buttes Pass back to San Felipe Wash. Most of us then took San Felipe Wash east to the south end of Military Wash, and turned north (running head on into a Jeep after a bit). We all then continued north in Military Wash (although not all of us were actually pointed in the same direction for part of that drive).  The place that we stopped to check out the old spent bullets on the ground was in Military Wash.  Military Wash ends at Cut Across Trail, which we then followed to the east for a shot bit until we got to Fault Wash, where we turned north again. Fault Wash ends at Arroyo Salado Wash, which we took east to Ella Wash, turning north.

 Ella Wash is one mile long, and ends at S-22 at the north end."

Have I said how amazing it is to me that Frank knows the desert like he does!?! What an excellent tour guide. Thanks again Frank!

Here is a link to the gallery of photos I took from our trip. There are many and if you are just browsing might be best viewed in the slideshow view, you can change the speed of the slideshow to taste in the upper right hand corner after choosing the slideshow option. Those of you who were traveling with us on this day, look closely at the photos. Some photos that look like they are the same have a slight difference that changes. Watch in particular for a video camera just peeking though. Ha!

gallery link

slideshow

Hotel Del Coronado Holiday Lights

A group of San Diego DSLR group members got together for a short walk around the Hotel Del Coronado at sunset. I always enjoy the get togethers that the group has coined Dinner and Clicks. I love night photography. The Dinner and Clicks is special. Good folks sharing a common interest and topping it off with good conversation and good food. That adds up to a lot of good!

The sunset was spectacular this evening. Many cell phones held high in hopes of capturing the beauty.

Nature puts on the most spectacular shows!

The Del Coronado all spiffed up in Christmas lights.

A special Dr. Seuss sculpture exhibit is around the hotel.

You're a mean one Mr. Grinch!

This isn't "the" Hotel Del Coronado tree. This was a small tree in the lobby of the convention rooms.

I have uploaded a few more images from the outting here. For my photographer friends the starfish ornament shot in the link was taken at 1/15 second, iso 3200 hand held! I really do enjoy my Pentax k-5.

Little Italy

I took a walk about in Little Italy with a couple friends this week. It was a relaxing and fun time. I'll start with the iconic sign hanging over the main street. For the photo techies out there all of these are hand held shots, no tripod involved and no special noise reduction applied, all edited in Lightroom.

The heaters were up and blasting although it was not a cold night. Folks in San Diego are not used to even the slightest chill in the air.

The store windows had some interesting displays.

While we wandered around we checked out the local eatery menus. We ended up deciding to stop in to The Burger Lounge for a bite to eat.

Filippi's is a place that is dear to my heart. I used to go to Filippi's with my Nana and my mom every holiday to pick up supplies for Lasagna and of course the antipasto.

Here is a link to a handful of shots I took this evening if you'd like to see more. You'll find some Halloween decorations in the mix here. Or view the slideshow it will be short and easy.

Bates Nut Farm

The San Diego Digital SLR group took a trip to Bates Nut Farm on the first day of their fall celebration. The pumpkin patch was open and there were more pumpkins and squash than I've ever seen in one place before. The group got there early but it didn't take long before the place was packed. Bates had a few dozen wheelbarrows for visitors to load with huge pumpkins. This was a great idea because some of the pumpkins were quite large and heavy.
It was a beautiful day. This location can get quite hot in the summer and this time of year but it was quite nice on this day.

The variety of pumpkins and squash was really quite impressive.

Butternut Squash is my favorite winter squash. I had to take home four of these beauties.

On openning day (this day) they hold a scarecrow contest. Folks bring in their entries and they line them all up on a fence for viewing and judging. The winning entries gets to be the official scarecrow display for the farm in the month of October. Prizes range from $200.00 cash and a $50.00 store credit for first place to a $75.00 store credit for fourth place.

And of course many parents want a photo of their youngsters in with the pumpkins. At times the wee tots were not too happy with the idea, but seemed to warm up eventually in most cases.

It was very fun and I highly recommend a visit to Bates Nut Farm for this event. If you have children they will have a blast picking out the perfect pumpkin. To see more of my photos from this visit and to see the expression of the darling above when she was first put in the pumpkins for a photo, click here for my Bates Nut Farm Photo Gallery