Slickrock and Shadow

  Bonsai Tree of East Zion The slightly famous Bonsai Tree of Zion National Park stands atop a sandstone formation right off the road.  This is a "Oh-that's-so-cute!" location for those who know where to park their car.  Speaking of which, this is between the tunnel and East Entrance, about midway.  There's no sign or parking lot and the roadside pullouts are small.  Nevertheless, it's worth a stop.  If you drive slowly and look for it on the south side, you'll see it easily.  Pullover and walk back to explore some more.   The first picture is what it looks like from the road.  That bend tree trunk points up, then sideways and then down.  Framed against a blue sky, it leaps out.  This looks great from all directions.  Below is a photo taken from the lower front and then an old photo taken from the far side back in 2008.  You'll notice the  tree has grown slowly over 13 years between photos.   The twiste...

Road through Winnats Pass I saw some spectacular photos of Winnats pass when researching the Peaks District.  They impressed me so much I decided to go here for my sunrise.  I started off hiking along the southern edge which became higher and higher.  Deep grass was easily negotiated because there are some footpaths running here and there.  I hiked out to those prominent rocks in the upper picture and shot a mostly-cloudy sunrise.  My result is the photo below. Winnats Pass at Sunrise The small town in the distant haze is Castleton, UK.  I went there for sunrise and found some clouds, a little bit of light peeking through and some colors in the sky.  Looking down, I found much more to be excited about: green like I never see covering all the hills, crags and slopes.  From high up on the canyon precipice I watched the light slowly come into the world.  The vibrant green color and steep canyons here reminded me of Hawaii. After hiki...

Passo Pordoi Lift to the Mountaintop The Sella Ronda is the term used for going around the Sella Mountain group.  This particular group of mountains is surrounded by several skiing towns.  Some people travel by bicycle, automobile and hiking.  I was with my family and we traveled by car.  Some of the great highlights include 3 high mountain passes.  These are Pordoi Pass, Sella Pass and Gardena Pass.  The first pass is Pordoi.  This pass has a list that goes to the top.  It opens earlier in the summer than most other lifts.  We took the ride.  I would highly recommend doing so.  In just a few minutes you ascend thousands of meters into the clouds.  While we were on top, beautiful sunshine hit us in the face.  20 minutes later it was snowing.  Unforgettable.   Sella Pass Sella Pass has 3 ragged peaks shooting into the sky.  As you drive from pass to pass, your neck might start to hurt becaus...