Heart-Shaped Cloud

 There were beautiful clouds over the White Tank monzogranite rocks, although not much color in the sky. I took a few shots and considered heading back to the car. Then I thought: "Be patient; no reason to be in a hurry!" 

 

6:09 PM

 

6:12 PM

 

6:22 PM, and some color in the sky!

 

6:30 PM

 

6:33 PM

 

I heard someone behind me say "That cloud looks like a pink heart!" Pretty cool, especially with Heart Rock being right around the corner. I wonder if the folks at Heart Rock noticed the resemblance?

6:38 PM

 

6:39 PM

 

6:41 PM - NOW it's time to head home!

 

Hope you enjoyed these desert skies.

Thanks for stopping by!!

Have a great day, take your time, and enjoy the moment!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

White Tank Campground and Peak 4097

 It's a Saturday in Joshua Tree National Park. It's peak season, and White Tank Campground is a popular destination. All good reasons why I would normally avoid this place. But I have a plan. There's an unnamed peak behind White Tank (peak 4097) that, if I'm physically able to make the climb, will definitely get me away from the crowds and should also provide impressive views. I've researched it on Google Earth and planned a route for what looks like the "easiest" way to the top of the peak. Let's get started and see if my plan works!

Going up!

 

As usual, the higher I climb, the better the views!

 

Near the top of the peak, you get to enjoy this impressive view of the campground below that not many have seen. You can tell it's a crowded day by all the cars along Pinto Basin Road. The Park Services discourage parking along the road (it can be dangerous and people run over plants) but it's hard to control, and there's not nearly enough parking for all the tourists who visit the park. Quite a dilemma.
 

The road coming in from the upper right of the photo leads into the campground from the main road. Camping among the huge boulders is something everyone wants to experience, and the campground is usually full.

 

View north towards 29 Palms

 

Peak 4097, cell phone pano.

I take a different route down peak 4097, and come across this rock formation that reminds me of Skull Rock!

 

 

 

Cracked rock. I wonder how many years/centuries/millennia before it all comes crashing down?

 

One of the most scenic locations in White Tank. I'll spend the rest of the afternoon and early evening here.
 

 

Turns out I wasn't the only photographer!

 

I need to sign off now, but come back next week for sunset photos taken from this location. The sky really put on a show!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

Stirrup Tank and White Tank Campground

 Stirrup Tank goal: Find a petroglyph site that a friend told me about. I even had coordinates, so it should be a piece of cake, right? A relatively short hike, so my plan was to cross the highway to White Tank Campground for part two of my hike after finding the glyphs at Stirrup Tank.

Roar!!

 

Water in a tinaja after recent rains.

 

 

Can you see the petroglyphs? They are faded and hard to see, and these are NOT the glyphs I was looking for. I continued to scour the area around the coordinates for the glyphs, but no luck. Even so, I was thrilled to stumble upon these glyphs.
 

A closer look.

 

I even found a small, faded pictograph, but still not the petroglyph pannel I was looking for.

 

Using d-stretch to enhance pictograph color.

 

Face-shaped Native American morteros, filled with rain water!

 

So I'm forced to give up on finding the glyphs, but that's OK. I decide to continue my hike and just enjoy the unusual rock formations Stirrup Tank has to offer.

 

One of the few Joshua trees in the Stirrup Tank area.

 

Native American steps??

 

Tuft

 

The creature!

  

Leaning left!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Time to make the short drive over to White Tank Campground. My goal for this hike: Find Grand Tank, and, with luck, it will be holding water from recent rains. White Tank is relatively easy to find and I've been there before. Grand Tank is more elusive and I've never been there.

 

Upon arriving at the campground, my first observation: There are LOTS of people and parking areas are overflowing! This being Joshua Tree National Park on a Saturday in peak season, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I was expecting crowds, just not to this extent.

 

After a fair amount of hiking, I manage to find Grand Tank. From this view, I can't tell if it's holding any water. Lets try to get around the boulders to get a closer look.
 

Dang!! No water behind Grand Tank. It's easy to see from the hard water markings on the rocks that it occasionally fills up. Someday I hope to see this full of water. It would be quite a sight!
 

I end up hiking and exploring the White Tank area until after sunset, but way too many photos to add to this post. I'll leave you with a final photo of a wonderful view of the boulders just north of White Tank Campground. Stop by next week for photos of some of the most beautiful rock formations in all of Joshua Tree National Park!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.

Consider the Ocotillo

 They often look like dry sticks coming out of the ground, just waiting for the next big wind to blow them over. You would swear they were dead.

Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons

 

But give them some water, and magic happens. Just a single rain that soaks the ground is all it takes, and within a day or two small greenish leaves cover those dead-looking sticks. And shortly after that, you will see some unusual red flowers at the very end of the sticks (see photo below). Like I said, it's magic!

Photo credit: Pithandvigor.com

Ocotillo is described as a woody shrub that grows in the deserts of the southwestern US and northern Mexico. It's also know as candlewood, coachwhip, or vine cactus, although I've never heard anyone refer to Ocotillo by those names. Ocotillo means "little torch" in Spanish, which seems like a perfect description, given those bright red flowers at the end of the long branches. And a side note, the hummingbirds go crazy over those flowers!

 

Ocotillo can be up to 20' tall. This one we came across recently is a good, tall specimen. Mitch is about 6'2" or 6'3", and this one is at least 3 Mitch's in height!

 

Here are some Ocotillo showing off in the late afternoon light. They tend to grow in "clumps" or patches. You can hike for long distances without seeing any, and then come across a grouping like this. If you are ever in Joshua Tree National Park, keep an eye out for the "Ocotillo Patch" along Pinto Basin Road. It's the largest patch of Ocotillo in the Park.

 

So I found myself driving home through the Park after a long, exhausing hike recently. It was about 8pm, unusually warm for February, and a beautiful clear sky. My mind was wandering, thinking about possible places to stop along the road to get a picture of the desert stars (I had my tripod with me), but also thinking about how tired and hungry I was (I hadn't eaten since lunch). There was a chicken pot pie and a cold beer with my name on it. About this time I see the sign for the Ocotillo Patch turnout. Well, dinner would just have to wait!

Ocotillo under the stars!

As we get closer to Milky Way season, I think it would be fun to return and get a shot of the Milky Way over an Ocotillo. I'll put it on my to-do list!

 

Thanks for stopping by!!

Linking with Skywatch Friday.