Wind & Rocks

I'm used to seeing beautiful skies out in east Joshua Tree. I guess I'm spoiled. Yup, definitely spoiled. Today started out like many others, with a solid blue sky. The only difference was high winds were predicted for late afternoon.

Elephant??

I wasn't following a trail (this is designated wilderness area), just following waypoints across open desert en route to a destination, and looking for interesting rock formations along the way.

About an hour or so into my hike, I noticed the wind picking up. My only thought was that it might mess up my sky, wrecking an otherwise beautiful day for photography.

I noticed what looked like clouds moving in, but realized these weren't clouds. These were areas of blowing sand and dust.

As I passed the rock that, from this angle, looks like an old man with a big nose, the sky was losing much of it's blue color and the wind was getting stronger. A little disappointed, I continued my hike.

I hiked by the old fire ring that, based on the wood decay and rocky breakdown, appears that it's been here a VERY long time!

The photos above look like they were taken on a foggy day. Definitely not the case, as there was flying sand and dust everywhere!

The big thing I learned on this hike was that as the skies started to white-out, it made it easier to concentrate on the rock formations and textures. Normally I'm very focused on the sky backdrop, and it's a big part of how I compose my photos. With the sky effectively neutralized, it forced me to focus 100% on the rocks. In the second photo, I see some "eyes" carved in the rock. Let's go check it out.

Getting closer. Let's climb the rocks...

There we go. Very cool! Almost like having a version of Skull Rock out here in east Joshua Tree. But given the remote location, very few people have seen this skull rock!

A small, interesting shelter.

Rocky textures in b&w.

Looking down!

The rocky textures and patterns seem to really stand out against the neutral sky.

B&W works well for these conditions.

It wasn't until the sun was setting and the wind was really blowing hard that concern entered my mind. I wondered if there were ever times of complete "white-out"... when the sand was blowing so hard you couldn't see the surrounding hills to navigate. Much like hiking at night. As I pushed against the wind, I hoped it wouldn't come to that. I spotted an alcove, and the thought crossed my mind that if things got too bad, I could shelter in there for a while.

The alcove reminds me of a tortoise shell.

Inside, the alcove was calm and perfectly protected from the wind. However, I didn't rest for long. I was quickly loosing daylight and still had a long hike back to the Jeep.

Sunset during a desert sandstorm!

After safely making it back to the Jeep in near total darkness, I checked my phone. There was one of those emergency alerts sent out to all local residents regarding a High Wind Advisory. Stay off the roads if possible. The 40-mile drive back to the house in my open Jeep in high winds and blowing sand was a real white-knuckle experience!!

Thanks for joining me on another desert adventure!

Stay safe and stay healthy.

Linking with Skywatch Friday.