Home, home on the web…
Came across a beautiful set of photos from Sandra Freyler on Flickr with the simple title The West. They feature Vulture City, Arizona - not high on my list of places to visit but a nice place to glance upon from the comfort of your own laptop:
Taken July 1991
See Monument Valley and Mesa Verde National Park when you ride the California Zephyr train on the Page & Moy Canyon Lands tour.
I have been going through my collection of old National Geographics and wanted to share one of my favourite issues.
It’s the September 1996 edition (Vol. 190, No 3 in case you want to buy a copy on eBay) and features a fantastic article and series of photos taken high above the Fours Corners region in the American Southwest.
Writer T.H. Watkins and former Navajo Nation pilot Adriel Heisey teamed up to produce a beautiful illustrated guide to what must be one of the most scenic and - for geologists, especially - most amazing landscapes on earth.
Watkins quotes WWII reporter Ernie Pyle to illustrate how many have loved the region for its isolated magnificence:
The only way to feel the country is to pause in it… in the desert it’s likely to occur to you that our daily lives in the cities are full of seeing, hearing, and worrying over a great many things that are of no damn consequence whatever.
Given the current state of the stockmarket this might be a nice quote to start the day with to soothe those pension fund concerns!
The region encompases some of the most amazing canyons you could hope to photograph - Dark Canyon, Marble Canyon and, of course, the Grand Canyon. Plus there are the glorious iconic Mittens in Monument Valley which have come to represent the mythic West.
I camped in the park back in 1991 and watched the sunrise at dawn, an unforgettable experience. In the absence of my photos I’ll point you to James Neeley’s shot of the Predawn Mittens.
For the Navajo this land is more than just a source of tourist income:
If a Navajo stands at at the center of the Four Corners country, he looks to the La Plata Mountains in southwestern Colorado, to Blanca Peak in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, to Mount Taylor in western New Mexico, and to the San Francisco peaks in northern Arizona. To the Navajo’s way of thinking, these are not just geographic points pinning down the four corner’s of the place where he happens to live, they are the bounds within which lie the ancient spiritual traditions of his people. In the Navajo cosmology, the landscape here is numinous with meaning and power, and when a person lives in harmony with the land and its spirit, he is said to be walking in beauty.
If you want to read more about this geographical anomoly, the only place in the United States where the corners of four states intersect, I’d highly recommend picking up a copy of Watkins’ article and perhaps even subscribing to the magazine.
Looking for a fill of the Rural American West? Save your money and the planet by not bothering with a plane ticket - it’s all within a click’s reach at Flickr.
I came across some great new groups today and have just enjoyed perusing the pics, ready for my trip to Arizona in January:
The best new find by far has to be this photo by James Neeley of a Drop-Shadow Cowboy. I’m not familiar with the HDR Photoshop technique - being a digital SLR newbie - but it is a truly beautiful picture and the related Idaho photoset amazing.
It’s funny how something as simple as watching a kids DVD can send you off on a wild goose chase or, more accurately, a wild jackrabbit chase.
I have always loved the short film that preceded Disney Pixar’s 2003 film The Incredibles. Boundin’ must have been popular as it wound up being Oscar-nominated and is a great extra to watch on the UK DVD boxset.
The film features a sad little lamb taught the benefits of positive thinking by a legendary Jackalope - I haven’t seen Wall.e but I guess Disney films must have an upbeat message - and the lyrics voiced by animator Bud Luckey are hilarious:
Then a-boundin up the slope
Came a great American jackalope.
This sage of the sage, this rare hare of hope,
Caused to pause and check out the lamb.
“Hey kid, why the mope?”“I used to be something all covered with fluff,
And I’d dance in the sunlight and show off my stuff,
Then they hauled me away in a manner quite rough
And sheared me and dropped me back here in the buff.
And if that’s not enough
Now my friends all laugh at me
Cause they think I look ridiculous, funny, and pink.”“Pink? Pink? Well, what’s wrong with pink?
Seems you’ve got a pink kink in your think.
Does it matter what color? Well, that gets nope.
Be it pink purple or heliotrope.
Now sometimes you’re up and sometimes you’re down,
When you find that you’re down well just look around:
You still got a body, good legs and fine feet,
Get your head in the right place and hey, you’re complete!
How does watching Boundin’ lead me onto jackrabbits? Well many years ago I picked up a legendary cowboy postcard that features a rider ‘Saddling up Big Jack’.
After spending an hour looking for this travel treasure it turns out there’s an entire industry built up around the jackalope/jackrabbit! In fact you could collect a boxful of postcards featuring the furry critters: Jackalope Postcards - Flying, riding, seated, standing, the list goes on.
Roadside architecture in America has always been used to pull in the punters if you’re running a restaurant, rock shop or any kind of tourist business. So have a look through this great collection of Roadside Big Critters featuring rabbits.
Browsing on, there’s even a band on MySpace if you’re into experimental rock music. My favourite connection though has to be this modern day Photoshop masterpiece - the Area51 Cowboy:
