“Canyon de Muerto,” so named by the Spaniards after on-going conflicts with the Navajo Tribes who once lived here. The Spaniards are gone, but the Díné still dwell in these canyons. Many of the proud Tribe reject the name Navajo since that is the name given to them by the invading Spaniards.
In this panorama, Verna looks down into the canyon, whose floor is a thousand feet down. Click the thumbnail image below to enlarge.
This is Bright Angel Canyon, as seen from Mather Point, on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. Bright Angel extends from the Colorado River to the north and is in the center of this photo. Bright Angel Creek empties into the river straight ahead and down, out of view.
On the right side of Bright Angel, you can see Sumner Butte near the mouth of the canyon, with the higher formations of Brahma Temple and Diva Temple behind and further to the right. On the left side, you can see Sturdevant Point and Johnson Point, with Hiller’s Butte and Buddha Temple to the left of them, all beyond Phantom Creek which empties into Bright Angel Creek on the left.
At the top of Bright Angel Canyon is Bright Angel Spring near the village at the North Rim, about 13 miles away. Visitors to the North Rim get this view from the other end.
This is one of the most beautiful sights in the world. Click on the image for a closer look.
At the Point Vicente Interpretive Center, there is a deck where whale-watchers gather to spot the humpbacks and other whales as they migrate. I was standing on the deck a couple of weeks ago and took a couple of shots looking south and southeast. I later merged them onto this composite view of the center, the cliffs and the lighthouse. It was a little too hazy to see Catalina Island on this day, but a pleasant view nonetheless. Click image for bigger.
On this Halloween, the spooks and spirits are reaching far into space. This whimsical presentation of the Cassini Saturn mission, with ghost, pumpkin and black cat demonstrates a lighter side of NASA for the Halloween holiday.
In February of 2006, we had a very cold spell where the overnight temperatures dipped below freezing. I went out one morning and read the thermometer at 31° – very unusually cold for this part of California. After that freeze, this Umbrella Plant turned yellow, all the branches fell off and nothing was left but a skinny stump sticking out of the ground. I don’t have a photographic record of that, but it was pathetic.
In the spring of that year, the stump sprouted some new growth, so we decided to let it grow. And grow it did! Now, just 30 months later, the shrub is full and seems to want to take over its little corner of the yard. Verna took this shot today in the back yard. Click the image to enlarge.
Wow! Bear just got this deluxe doggie-reception device for the Animal Planet channel!
Actually, she has a ‘hot-spot’ on her skin that we’re medicating and she’s not allowed to munch on it while it’s healing. We installed this ‘Elizabethan Collar’ last night.
