I began taking photos in 1967 during the
Viet Nam Era. The photos were
of everyday activities
both on the ground and in the air during the years 1967
and 1968. It was generally referred to as the year of the "Tet
Offensive". The quality of the pictures has certainly improved over the
years primarily due to sophisticated equipment and superb photo editing
software. I have owned many cameras over the years but my Canon 40D has
been my favorite. I prefer to take pictures of landscapes and animals
which will become evident when you peruse the various galleries scattered
throughout my web site.
Marie and I travel as much as our budget and time will allow, traveling
to out of the way places and some that would be considered down right
dangerous and others extremely strenuous. We have recently been visiting
1900's Wetherill Trading Posts in the Chaco Canyon, New Mexico area.
Some of these trading posts are so remote it is a four hour back packing
trip over some of the most rugged terrain in the Southwest. I suspect
the quality of my pictures have more to do with the camera, software and
the places we've been rather than my skills. I've found that the great
pictures were a matter of luck and just happen to be at the right place
at the right time.
We've recently taken up hiking to places that are a little out of the way
and climbed mountains that only the fearless or nuts would attempt.
The photos of these trips have turned out to be exceptional and again
related to luck and being at the right place at the right time. We've
found places that are way off the beaten path and not generally known but to
a few people that take the time to investigate these truly bizarre areas,
landscapes, plants and animals.
I've tried to group the pictures into sensible categories related to
areas of the world, areas of the United States, or seasons.
The photos within the section called Photos is a
collection of the best photos and limited in quantity. Sections within
this web site that have hyperlinks are to all pictures but not necessarily
quality photos but of some interest.
The Four Corners
Arizona:
The area
around Monument Valley is one of the premier photo sites in Arizona.
Near the Monument are two of the largest Ancestral Puebloan ruins in the state,
Keet Seel and Betatakin each discovered by the Wetherill brothers, Richard
and John in 1895 and 1909. Both ruins are accessible by hiking down a thousand foot cliff and
a several mile hike one of which is about five miles round trip and the
other about 17 miles.
Montezuma Castle is one of three large cliff dwellings in Arizona.
Richard Wetherill visited here while guiding the Palmer family on an
exploratory expedition in 1896. He left the Alamo Ranch near Mancos,
Colorado, traveling to Chaco Canyon New Mexico then traveling to Montezuma
Castle in Arizona. He excavated several skeletons here that had been
over looked by previous excavations. Richard was an experienced
amateur archeologists and knew where to look.
Colorado:
Mesa Verde near Mancos Colorado has some of the
largest and best preserved Ancestral Puebloan ruins in the United States.
One of these, Cliff Palace was discovered by Richard Wetherill
his brother-in-law Charlie Mason and Acowitz, a Ute Tribal
member in
December of 1888. The group had entered the valley system between
Weber Mountain and what is now Mesa Verde National Park, following the North
side of the Mancos River searching for missing cattle. West of Sandal
House they found a gentle sloping area that gave them access to the top of
the Mesa Verde from the river valley floor. The area was a
dense
Pinon Pine and Juniper forest which made searching for cattle difficult.
When they reached the edge of a cliff and exited the forest they
viewed a huge ruin that Richard later called Cliff Palace. After
entering the ruin that day Richard rode to another large ruin he called
Spruce Tree House. This episode was to begin a life long endeavor for
Richard and his family. Because of the families future activities it
resulted in the formation of three National Parks, two National Monuments
and the discovery of a new
culture and collections of artifacts which were distributed to museums of
world wide fame.
Sandal House which is on the South side of Mesa Verde National Park
in the Ute Mountain Tribal Park. It can only be reached by hiring an
Ute Tribal member as a guide. It is about an hours drive from the Ute
Mountain Tribal Park headquarters on a fairly rough road. During the
rainy season it is accessible only by a four wheel drive vehicle.
Sandal House was one of the first ruins that was entered by Richard
Wetherill in 1882. He left a signature and note in pencil on one of
the walls which is still visible today after more than a hundred years.
It was here that he guided the Palmer family which included his future wife
Marietta Palmer in 1895. The Palmer's parked their wagon in a grove of
native trees below the ruin where they stayed for two weeks. Richard
had taken an interest in the young Marietta and made several trips to Sandal
house. He would tell the family that he was just riding by and
wondered if they needed anything. The ruin was actually called First
Ruin but was named Sandal House by Richard after excavations revealed many
sandals. A collection of artifacts was made here in about 1889 by the Wetherills
and sent to the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893
New Mexico:
This state is one of the best kept
photographers secrets on the planet. Nowhere can such diverse
geological landscapes be found. Extinct volcanoes, lava flows, bizarre
rock formations of Tent Rocks National Park and the Bisti
Badlands, Carlsbad
Caverns and the White sands of White Sands National Monument can all be
found in New Mexico. New Mexico has eight climate zones with
temperatures that range from minus 50 degrees to 122 degrees Fahrenheit with
all the plants associated with those ranges!
Utah:
The area around Monument Valley is also
part
of Utah and offers excellent photographic opportunities as
well as Arches National Park. It preserves over 2,000 natural
sandstone arches, like the world-famous Delicate Arch, as well as many
other unusual rock formations. In some areas, the forces of nature have
exposed millions of years of geologic history. The extraordinary
features of the park create a landscape of contrasting colors, landforms
and textures that is unlike any other in the world.
Rainbow Bridge was first seen by John and Louisa Wetherill from the
top of Navajo Mountain in 1907. They heard rumors about the grand
arch from local Navajo's. When Sharky, a local tribesman suggested he
knew where the
bridge was and would take them there the Wetherill's were delighted.
He guided them to the top of Navajo Mountain Southeast of the bridge where
they were able to view it. John Wetherill led the 1909 Cummings and
Douglass group, on an expedition to Rainbow Bridge, consisting of the rival
but combined parties of University of Utah archaeologists Byron Cummings and
U. S. government surveyor William Boone Douglass. After a difficult
journey and arriving at the bridge, the Cummings and Douglass group each
claimed credit, and the controversy as to "who was first" has
continued to the present. John Wetherill actually led this group to
Rainbow Bridge to allow Bryon Cummings to be named as discoverer. It
was by an unfortunate turn of events that the difficult and recalcitrant
Douglass was allowed to tag along. When John Wetherill knew the group
was approaching the bridge he allowed Cummings to become the lead and viewed
the bridge first. It was not unusual for John Wetherill to allow his
benefactors to claim discovery on expeditions into Navajo country.
