Lightning in Sunset Crater National Monument

A late afternoon storm developed near the San Francisco peaks the other day and I hoped that I would be able to get some lightning images as the sun set and twilight developed. Unfortunately, the initial lighting strikes were too close and I had to retreat to the car for safety. By the time I was able to reset the storm had drifted north and the best lightning was striking behind the cinder hills. Still, the light of the setting sun was making the rain glow.

Lightning behind one of the many cinder hills in Sunset Crater National Monument.
Lightning behind one of the many cinder hills in Sunset Crater National Monument.

As the sun set the colors faded into blue twilight and the storm moved between two cinder hills for a brief time allowing the lightning to appear in the gap.

Lightning behind the cinder hills in Sunset Crater National Monument.
Lightning behind the cinder hills in Sunset Crater National Monument.

Perseid Meteors of 2013

Well — that was fun!

Clouds and thunderstorms during the day and evening gave way to mostly clear to partly cloudy skies after midnight. So I set up the camera to take continuous photographs then combined the best images to make this composite image. This spans a period of about 2 ½ hours in the early morning hours of 12 August.

These images were shot looking to the west at the Milky Way allowing the meteors to move from the radiant in the constellation Perseus (in the northeast part of the sky) overhead and then descend in the western sky.

Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.

The weather was better in the early morning of 13 August but there were fewer meteors. A reasonable tradeoff. Here are a few individual images zoomed in and cropped from both nights of shooting.

Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.
Perseid meteors of 2013.

Lightning at twilight over the Painted Desert

The North American Monsoon is in full swing with daily thunderstorms — all presenting opportunities for photography. I finally got a chance to photograph some twilight lightning while looking out over the Painted Desert from — where else — the Painted Desert Overlook between Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument and Wupatki National Monument.

Double flash of lightning over the Painted Desert of northern Arizona.
Double flash of lightning over the Painted Desert of northern Arizona.
Lightning flash behind a volcanic cinder cone.
Lightning flash behind a volcanic cinder cone.

Shortly after these images were taken rain began to fall and I called it an evening. The drive back home was slow and difficult in the torrential downpour that was constantly interrupted by brilliant flashes of lightning. It was one of the most active nights of lightning in the Flagstaff area of the season. And it did rain hard! One automated raingage reported over 4 ½ inches in two hours.

Wildflowers and rain showers in the Inner Basin

Rain has become a daily occurrence across northern Arizona as the North American Monsoon is now in full swing. The most visual result of this, of course, is the abundance of wildflowers.

We were pleased with the wildflowers that we encountered on a recent mountain bike ride that started from Lockett Meadows and followed both the Inner Basin Trail and the Waterline Road. At the upper end of the Waterline Road is Abineau Canyon and we saw these flowers and many others.

Potentilla hippiana
Potentilla hippiana
Penstomen with a visitor
Penstomen
Fireweed in early bloom
Fireweed in early bloom

On the fast downhill descent on the Waterline Road we stopped to photograph these.

Yellow Columbine
Yellow Columbine
Lupine
Lupine

Storm clouds began to gather and we made haste getting back to the car. Enduring a thunderstorm on a bike at these elevations is undesirable. We made it back to out starting point before the rain started — but not by much.

Lockett Meadow
Lockett Meadow

As we drove out of Lockett Meadows I could not resist a photo of this view. This tank has been photographed by many but usually on clear days with aspen in fall colors. There are fewer images of a light rain shower with clouds over the peaks and tiny splashes in the tank from the rain drops.

Powder skiing on the Kachina Peaks

After a few days of overcast skies and snow the weather has finally improved. With sunny skies and light winds, Friday was a good day to do some back country skiing. Our original destination was near Forest Road 794 at about 8000 feet elevation. We were disappointed to find that even at these elevations much of the snow pack was lost a few weeks ago during the warm winter storm that brought rain to the area. So we went with our backup plan and drove up Snowbowl Road to the base of the ski area. We skied across the lower slopes to the Humphreys Peak Trail and began our climb — eventually leaving the trail and traveling through the trees to some great ski terrain.

Looking downhill across untracked powder at the WWII bomber wreck site.
Looking downhill across untracked powder at the WWII bomber wreck site.

Our first stop was the area known as “Flying Dutchman.” Enough snow had fallen in the past few weeks to finally cover most (but not all) of the rocks. We followed an uphill track and eventually caught up to some acquaintances that we had not seen in a few years. After a few minutes of chatting, they headed downhill while we continued up to the site of the WWII bomber wreck — located just below tree line. The snow was very good — but still a few rocks were poking up through the snow (or lurking just below!) to catch and damage ski bases.

Tracks through the deep powder in Flying Dutchman.
Tracks through the deep powder in Flying Dutchman.

We skied down across the bomber site and then into the trees returning to the top of Flying Dutchman. This is always a lot of fun as it is moderately-pitched, wide-open terrain with plenty of vertical descent from top to bottom. And, yes, we hit a few more rocks.

Powder skiing!
Powder skiing!

Finally, back into the trees and down the narrow Humphreys Trail — which can feel a bit like a bobsled run when it gets hard and icy. But today the snow was good.