When Nature Comes Out to Play
I was trying to use AI to help me come up with a clever title that would fit the theme of this post, but ended up using what I was using in the search. Take that AI
After leaving Ward Charcoal Ovens, I noticed lightning striking off in the distance, so I would safely pull over every so often and film in slow motion to get footage (no audio) like so…
I made it back to a quiet little town, now being covered with the rain. I ventured over to a couple of casinos in town, then called it a night (after a quick walk).
The next day, I headed out of town and any time I noticed something worth capturing, I would pull over and work my magic. I spent an extra hour in traveling time making these stops.
I just can’t afford your mom. Ha!
I passed through Wendover, and was headed home when I glanced over and saw people standing inside the cage surrounding The Tree of Utah… 😱!!!
So I flipped around to head back and captured a few cloudy photographs of The Tree without the fence in the way. (Mile marker 27)
On the way to flip around to finally head home, I stopped at mile marker 21 to get a few photographs, but there was something left behind in the way. I didn’t want to stay long, so I quickly kept taking pictures of the area. I knew if this thing sitting on the GSL could talk, it would want to ask me one thing…
“Well it was about that time I realized that this was no ordinary trash left behind on the GSL, it was the god damn Salt Flats Nessie sculpture… Oh lord, it was scary!”
I know some of you get the reference, ha ha ha… the others who are confused click here. I would have kicked myself if I didn’t make the reference. Ok, back to my story.
After capturing photos around Nessie, I continued on to head home, but hit the storm cloud that I had seen off in the distance while I was at the Tree of Utah. It pelted hail at everyone’s vehicle who were driving in that area. Luckily, no damage to my car. (I made it home safely.)
A few days had passed since getting back home and working a few shifts at work. Before I knew it, I was back on the road to pick up my kid to bring him home.
I spent the night in southern Utah, but since I let the kids spend time with their family for a birthday, I made my way over to Silver Reef, Utah right as the sun was setting.
Silver Reef is now a ghost town, but the land and some of the remaining buildings/foundations are now part of the town of Leeds, and homes are being built along the new road compared to what it looked like before.
Green was the road I drove on, red was places I saw/photos.
I was first wandering around the Barbee-Walker Mill area that is 500 feet behind the museum, and I thought I was seeing things… but I really did see a wild turkey sitting in a tree 25-30’ in the air. That’s when I realized that the 1970’s TV show “WKRP” lied to us about turkeys… they can fly, because I saw a couple more come flying up into the tree!
Well, after walking around near the mill area, I walked down the street and captured a few more photos during the final moments of daylight.
I then drove over near the museum and walked around that area.
I sat down at the bench near the Rice Bank to relax for the first time since waking up that day. I was sitting there feeling bummed, knowing I didn’t really capture anything worthwhile that night… besides the turkeys.
I was also waiting to see if anything would happen along the area of Zion NP mountains off in the distance during the sunset as I watched the east get darker, but nothing.
As I was enjoying the moment sitting alone while thinking, along with listening to the sound of crickets (which sounded like mini jack hammers because it was still so hot), I slowly came to realize something very positive about my situation…
- There were no clouds…
- It’s getting dark as F with a fingernail moon that night…
- My phone captures stars!
- I’m just a few miles away from Grafton and Zion National Park…
- Those two places have a very low light pollution range…
That’s when I realized I was near a photographers gold mine…
I first drove over to Grafton and captured as many pictures as I could capture of the church schoolhouse and house, with the stars behind it. I knew my phone captured stars in the dark… but I did not know my phone was this powerful to capture colors with the stars to show galaxies, without the light pollution. I was ecstatic. To use the word correctly for the first time on my site, this was awesome!
If you don’t understand why I was blown away, is that in 2020, I had to use an app with my phone to capture NEOWISE with time exposure because the iPhone couldn’t do this in the basic camera app back then.
But now
I would try different settings/exposure lengths to try and get better photos in the dark. I know it’s not what a professional camera captures, but for a phone– you have to admit this is pretty incredible.
I then turned around and started capturing photos in the opposite direction, facing south towards the last stretch of road you drive in on. I just happened to capture the Milky Way dead center that night.
I captured/experimented all that I could at that area and then moved on to the graveyard nearby.
After finishing up in Grafton, I then I moved onward to Zion.
I was hoping it would be like Arches National Park [post] where you pay to enter during the daytime, free at night— nope. Just consider it an automated tollbooth.
Since I’m just experimenting on my own dime, I parked just outside the entrance and focused on capturing The Watchman of Zion along with the galaxy in the background. Due to a little more light pollution due to resorts in town, only a few photos turned out.
After capturing all I could in experimenting, I knew I needed to head back to the motel for the night (early morning). I will be coming back to those areas a lot more now when I visit.
I know the next day was August 1st, and I will write about August later, but all I did was pick my kid up and headed home. I also know that is a quick way to end it for July, but I have more to share about what we did before the summer ended and school began in the next post…
