Scenes along Route 66

One morning earlier this year bright sunshine followed an overnight snowfall and created an opportunity for interesting photographs. I had been aware of this old gas station on Route 66 in Bellemont, Arizona, for several years and had been looking for the right setup for photographing it. So, shortly after sunrise with long shadows still playing across the landscape and fresh fallen snow I was able to get this image.

20140201_0829_DBP_6497

For those of you with a sharp eye and great memory, you might recognize this as the gas station that briefly appeared in the movie Easy Rider from 1969. In fact, if you look closely enough at the image, there is a poster from that movie taped to the window of the door.

“Science experiments” with boiling water on a cold day

It seems that we get extraordinarily cold mornings on New Years Day. It was -17°F for a low temperature in Bellemont, Arizona today. Two years ago, on New Years Day 2011, it was -30°F. Both times we had fun tossing boiling water into the air and watching it freeze before it hits the ground.

Yeah, sure, folks up north do this all the time in the winter. But, remember, this is Arizona!

Boiling water tossed in the air and freezing before hitting the ground.
Boiling water tossed in the air and freezing before hitting the ground.

For a brief explanation on the physics of this process see the two links below.

Physics and Chemistry of Fresh Water

Which freezes faster, hot water or cold water?

And here’s a video from two years ago.