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Tag Archives: milky way

Images from Churchill

At long last, I am showing photos from my trip to Churchill last October. The show is on the walls of The Winthrop Gallery from now til July 6. This coming Saturday, the 16th, we will hold an opening reception for me and two other artists – Pearl Cherrington and Cliff Schwab. There will be light refreshments. I will be in the gallery today and on May 25 if you want to stop by and chat about the show. Here are my images from the show. Most are from Churchill but some are closer to home!

I love seeing these images printed and hanging on the walls of The Winthrop Gallery. I hope you come in and enjoy the show.

Methow Dark Sky

We recently celebrated Methow Dark Sky week in conjunction with International Dark Sky week. Here is my celebration from my backyard. As usual, I am a little behind with my posts. Sigh.

The Milky Way in my backyard

Dark Sky

Due to light pollution, it’s hard to find a place where a person can see the Milky Way. According to Dark Sky International, “light pollution is the human-made alteration of outdoor light levels from those occurring naturally. Light pollution disrupts wildlife, impacts human health, wastes money and energy, contributes to climate change, and blocks our view of the universe.”

I am lucky. I don’t have to travel far to see the Milky Way. Here are a few images from the past week.

Camping Up High

There are not too many places in Washington where you can tow a trailer to above 6000′ elevation for a boondocking camping adventure. I found one and invited two friends who I knew were familiar with that area of the central Cascades. So, four dogs, three women and two cats traveled a long bumpety bump road to enjoy two nights on a mountain top. Somehow, I didn’t get any photos of the dogs and cats. They all got along wonderfully. The cats were mostly confined to their trailer unless they got out for leashed walks. Willow made a new best friend, Addie, a long legged doodle dog, almost one year old.

We had terrific views of two of Washington’s volcanoes – Tahoma and Pahto, otherwise known as Rainier and Adams. Like many other places in the west, much of the forest has burned leaving behind stands of silver snags. The snow had only recently melted and the tiny wildflowers were in full bloom. I was surprised by the lack of birds. Maybe that was due to the wind which nearly never quit blowing up there.

Night photography was a challenge due to light pollution from the closest towns and also, the tiny crescent moon was still up when the Milky Way was at its best. It’s amazing how much light it provides. Timing is everything!

Dark Skies

There are few places in the world where we can truly see the night sky anymore. I returned to this place in eastern Oregon knowing that I could really see and photograph the milky way, assuming the weather cooperated. And it did for two nights when it was calm and clear.