Where's all the autumn colors?

This past weekend I wandered out in search o the fall colors I am so amazed and fascinated with, especially while living in Eugene. The colors then were everywhere, but here, it seems I need to drive elsewhere. So I packed up all my gear and that new camera and went driving north to Stinson Beach, then the long lost route to San Rafael, then cut over to Vallejo in time to see the sun was setting. Being in a low area, I hurriedly went searching for a high spot in order to see and photograph the setting sun. I was finally lucky enough to find a small populated hill......

In the morning I continued my depressing search ~ it seems the few colors seen were in the cities and towns I drove through. In the countryside, everything seems so evergreen! What a surprise!!! I even went down to Alamo where on the freeway I saw color, so turned off but that color was in the backyards of homes!! I accidentally found a park, so parked the car and went walking and after 20mins of seeing just a few reds and yellows, I gave up. Everything - again - was green.In Lafayette I passed by - in another chance encounter - the Crosses of Lafayette, in which a small slope o a hill in front of a BART station is covered with crosses representing each american military death during the long continuing war. It's a sad sight but a part of our american history now.5302 is a lot of crosses, and today four more crosses will be added... :-(

Flames and Fire

What a busy camera weekend but I love being busy!! The weekend had cleared up and was forecast to be cool in the evenings and Saturday the same conditions but with just a touch of clouds.... just imagine how really great it was to be... cool nights with just a slight haze over the whole Bay Area, with just a bit of wind sufficient to push away both clouds and smoke. To make it better, the waters of the Bay was just about still and it was just a very magical night! But I'm getting ahead of myself so please allow me explain my weekend started with late Friday night.

I drove to Davis - almost a two hour drive in traffic, the first jam being caused by a single CHP vehicle with lights on following a single car which caused 300 cars to drive the speed-limit. Once past that situation, the traffic cleared up drastically so I could make up for lost time.... to get to the campus of the University of California at Davis for their Whole Earth Festival celebration. Upon arrival I thought for a long hard moment as though I was transported to hiPPieLand (once again), or did I drive too far and actually end up in Eugene? hahahahaa Part of their events included two hours of fire-dancers from the area but also coming from as far away as Santa Cruz, so with my passion for fire-spinners growing, I wanted to see and photograph the fire-dancers performing at this event. The weather was great and though I brought a jacket, I didn't even need it! There was a slight hint of humidity which disappeared as the night came, though the flying bugs bothered me now and then during the performances ~ but not enough to ruin the magic I was to witness!

After a brief sight-seeing tour of the downtown area of Davis, I spent the rest of the night at a I-80 rest area, it being so late. Though a car isn't the best place to rest/sleep, it did give me fond memories of previous road-trips... the longest being my four-day road trip(s) to and from Germany from Spain, plus a few trips while living in Oregon.

With not even enough time to download and "process" the resulting images, Saturday night was to be just as busy - preparation and driving to the Marin County headlands and to be walking up a very rocky trail to a mountaintop to the top with the most gorgeous view of the Bay Area, and of my gorgeous hometown as I've never before seen. I went here to see the annual KFOG KaBOOM fireworks display which I've never seen, though I've seen a few other fireworks in SF.... What was to make it special was a full moon rising out of the East Bay hills, through the low fog and behind the fireworks!! It was a sight to treasure forever!!

Seriously, if I died that night I would've LOVED to see San Francisco as I saw it last night - in such a glorious view - from this high and tranquil location! Behind me the sun just set in a most intense and golden sky and the hike had me gasping for air but it was all worth it. I did take note of all those loose pebbles and rocks, and that I would trot down this same trail in the darkness, though I do have a tiny keychain light which has a very powerful blue light and I also ~ just in case ~ took a hand-crank light that I keep in my car.But what an experience this weekend has been - except for Sunday (now) when I have to process all of these image files, spending more time in front of the monitor which I just hate, and looking out the window to the nice day.... it was a fanTasTic weekend!
At our mountain-top location a group of hikers did appear shortly before the fireworks started, standing behind us and noisily watched both the fading sunset glow and the fireworks. Soon afterwards though, they left without so much of a single goodbye - and considering that I and fellow Flickr friend Stargazer introduced ourselves to them, they just left... taking their noise with them. I thought how rude!!!

It's COLD outside!!

It's been a busy few days as I have been attempting to devote time to archiving of my image files – not too successful – and still continue capturing what goes on in my life. All the while, I still have to think of packing for my upcoming trip to my apartment in Rota, and that will be a welcome "break". Of course I will be working like a slave, buying furniture and working on the apartment, which isn't in the best shape after being gone for so long. My neighbors who are watching my apartment had fallen on hard times also, and lost contact with them for months. I have been noticing that the temperatures there and weather has been seemingly a "normal" winter with lots of rain, but I know once I arrive in my apartment on the 9th, it'll warm up as it always does when I am there! Hahahahaaa

The weather just a week ago allowed me to get over to the Marina district where I stopped for a rare night shot of the Palace of Fine Arts... not often do I get the opportunity to be out at night with tripod and camera, and these past few days the Bay Area has been really frigid due to a big Pacific storm blanketing my old home of Eugene with snow while here I had to battle frigid gusting winds to get pixs of a gorgeous golden sunset last Friday and Saturday. Even in this weather, I managed to get out into the cold with bare hands to snap night scenes of the bay and the bridge from the Marin County headlands. I expected the road to the Pt Bonita lighthouse to be open due to the full moon, but it wasn't so to make the drive across the bridge worthwhile I stopped to snap pixs, though the blasting headlands winds made it very difficult to get a good steady tripod image. A photographer who later appeared next to me on the dark uneven headlands ground had his camera while mounted on a tripod fall over, when a gust of wind blew it over! OuCh!! This morning in North Beach was apparent scenes of frozen standing water... ice was everywhere - not a normal sight in the City but the weather climate is changing and it's leaving evidence everywhere!

ice on a car windshield is a sign of the
frigid weather in North Beach this morning

This isn't the coldest weather I've been through… while in the military I remember being out in the rain and snow in many places in "warm" clothing all night long standing guard duty {oftentimes all soaked through to the skin and bones}, and in Nebraska I patrolled outside a building in – 4f blizzard conditions. Of course, Germany must be the most recent time I went out willingly to photograph various female clients nude in the snow… them, not me…. And though it was cold, they enjoyed their experiences very much. When we returned to warmer places, we found out the weather outside was about –20c, which reads about –4f….. brrrrrrrr so, this change in the weather isn't the worst but still: any cold shock to the system leaves an impression on the mind and body… that it happens during my photography just gives that image more meaning.

I have another weekend road trip coming up…. Then comes New Year's when I expect to be out again in an attempt to capture the fireworks, and then jes DAYs before I leave for Spain!!! I cannot wait!!!

Please remember – if you'd like to donate to help me with my spending money to fix up my apartment in Spain, please buy a print!! Just want to donate outright? I'll send you a print of your choice/theme if you tell me what you like… remember, there's a LOT of gorgeous spanish sunsets to be seen while I am in Rota, and they will be posted as always on my photo website. As always, there are more images posted in my photo website also, and many more that are unseen by other eyes!!! Your donation will serve as a voucher for your future visit in my apartment!! :-)

Stay warm everyone and have a safe and quiet holidays!!!

I even had a chance recently to photograph
a very nice car!! yaaay!

those sunbeams last night

It's been sometime since I have gone with camera in hand to capture a sunset ~ any sunset ~ in the Bay Area. As most of the haze hanging in the air as a result of smoke from the remaining forest fires isn't as evident as it was months ago, the sunrises and sets are not as smoky red as before, but oftentimes, this area has such natural color that it's not necessary for fire smoke to "enhance" a sunset sometimes......

Tonight I decided to snap some sunset pixs from the curved pier at the foot of Hyde Street Park... I haven't been there in some time. I've actually wanted to snap some for the past weeks, but for one reason or another haven't gone on my personal mission.... till last night. This pier is always a (very) breezy place... people were there crabbing and fishing, kids playing and running all around. Of course the seagulls were out in full force gliding, flying and landing. I could see pelicans occasionally flying by, the flock gliding in perfect formation of a single line just inches over the wind-blown white-caps of the bay, and tourists were everywhere snapping away at the glorious scene before our eyes.

Someone or thing attracted my attention, and as I looked to the right, all at once being blinded but also amazed to see the last seconds of the sun disappearing behind the Marin County headlands, but the sun was spiking, being positioned exactly just behind the north tower of the bridge...

It was simply amazing and one that I've never seen ever!
There was a slight fog over those hills, which made the sunbeams stand out quite well, and it was a incredible sight...... I stood there transfixed and at the same time snapping away... hoping to get what my eyes were blinded though amazed by the light....

Minutes later I discovered myself ~ quite by an intentional accident ~ near Alamo Park and in the quickly fading soft sunset light, decided to double-park illegally, run up the hill (oh my hurting knees!) and snap a few more pics......

Did you see the sunset where you live? Were you amazed by what you saw: the end to yet another day but yet another day in your life?