Sept 2014 Joshua Tree National Park

My buddy David and I visited Joshua Tree for the first time Sept 23 and 24.  This high desert national park is just 77 miles east from where we live or 25 miles east of Palm Springs, CA. It's an easy day trip although we stayed at a motel just to give us a "base camp" for our first time.

For those not in the know, anyone 62 or over can buy a park pass for just $10 and it's a lifetime pass to any national park (unless you lose the card they issue you.)  Does not apply to camping fees etc.

Joshua Tree is a photographers paradise because with the sun constantly changing, no scene is ever the same.  I'm always amazed how much life there is in a desert!  Kick back and enjoy our trip!

The next two are of David and I

Joshua Trees only grow in the higher altitudes and are related to the Yucca plant.

One of the many boulder formations throughout the park

There's many valleys like this full of Joshua Trees

At one of the many pullouts in the park

Our little friend, a desert Chipmunk(?) who hops around kind of like a kangaroo.

Me next to a Joshua Tree

This is a fascinating mountain formation where magma pushed it up.  Zoom in on the info board to learn more.

This area is called Jumbo Rocks and is also a camping area

Another pullout area called Split Rock.  We kicked back here for a while to enjoy the deafening silence!

Use your imagination and you can see a Transformer image in this formation

Another unusual formation

This was our trusty steed, a Ford Focus, 38 mpg!

We traveled the northern part of the park, next trip we'll do the southern route.  These last photos are all sunset images that I shot as we were leaving the park.  Enjoy.

Collage - Magnet?

Hey Jen and/or Brett,

I don't know who put the collage of pictures together at the top of the Blog but it is fantastic.  Think we could get a magnet of that???

Brett Goes to Washington

Brett's vacation to Jeni's house 11-13 through 11-18, 2013.

When Brett arrived on Wed afternoon I had a mini Thanksgiving meal planned for us, with roasted chicken, pumpkin pies, potato salad, banana nut bread and oatmeal cookies to snack on through the week.  Later on in this saga we are too large to photograph....

Cheers!

Brett is right at home in my "Control Center" adapting all of his electronics to mine.  Later that night there was strange glow reported coming from my place...

Thursday it rained all morning so we had to skip our plan to hike to Staircase.  Instead we took the trail behind my house as soon as the sun came out in the early afternoon.

setting up for the family photo magnet

What happens if I press this button....

Which one of these two (above) do you want for your magnet this year???

Looking back at my place

Little black riding hood

The GPS says this is the way home.... really?

  These are Brett's photos - pretty good with the iPhone!!  (Sorry Bro, those black and white ones were an accident, my photo program did it - I later got smart and rotated them some place else).
We really did miss the turn to come back to my place.  I hadn't taken this hike in 8 years.  Fortunately Brett had the trusty all-knowing iPhone with satellite GPS.  I was leery of it's direction into what looked like more woods - but it did indeed get us home - well someone elses home anyway - right into their back yard.
We spent the evening eating left overs and laying on the floor.  How's that song go about the 3 hour tour???  Ours was about 3.5. 

On Friday we headed north to Port Townsend, Brett's first visit there.  I think he really liked it.  We walked the entire town and he took about 400 pictures, or more.  I tried to condense them down to a grouping you could all view in less than a day.....

This is what it did to us all day

Nice lunch at Doc's Marina.

Brett will return here and build his own kayak.

This is a boat building school.

On Saturday we drove up to Bremerton to see Jesse. 

Brett got this way cool shot on his iPhone of the Olympics.  Fortunately it was a lovely clear day - such is the weather in the PNW.

Jen and Jes (mother and son) at Jesse's pad.

First ever photo / meeting for Brett and Jes.

The Arts District in Bremerton

Important stuff happening here at Starbucks

All grown up at 32

On Sunday we hung out at the house and I got a crash course in "iPad".  OMG, what a mind bender!  But I am SO excited to have this technology now!!  Look out world!

Flying in or flying out - Brett got these from the plane.

So Brett's got some editing and additional photos he may want to post here to wind up the adventure.
It was a great time for all!!