A personal geography of landscape and place, art and geo-science.
In January, I had the good fortune to travel to Chile with my good friend, Bill Bloomer. We planned this after the rise-and-fall of Covid’s delta variant thinking that, just maybe, the window would remain and, with due care, we could wander a few distant places once again. And then
Continue readingOn the circuit in Torres del Paine National Park, Patagonia, Chile
We were closing out the 2021 field season in Owens Valley, and I had been on a long circuitous road trip working on projects in San Diego, California, visiting with colleagues in Henderson, Nevada, and traversing Death Valley to return to our team working on the fans of the Owens
The playa passes quietly beneath the truck, a narrow path traced by the headlights in the predawn darkness. I had left Desna at Planet X to see what the sunrise might bring on the Black Rock Desert playa. A canopy of bright stars suggested that the desert sunrise would be
Continue readingPlaya and Pottery – Black Rock Desert Region, NV
After coming down from the crest of the Inyo Mountains, having wrapped up our small project at the Saline Valley Salt Tram, I set up camp at a small playa on the east side of Owens Valley, north of Dolomite. Desna met me and we circled the wagons in a
In early November, a few colleagues and I traversed the challenging 4×4 trail that skirts the ridge line of the Inyo Mountains, from Cerro Gordo high above Owens Lake, to the remaining historic-era structures of the Saline Valley Salt Tram. Although subject of a heroic restoration project several years ago,
Continue readingSaline Valley Salt Tram – Inyo Mountains, CA
A storm had set in; great wind and slashing rain at StoneHeart throughout the night. And yet the Sierra seemed to have caught the storm by the tail keeping it from breaking further east. When this happens, the sunrise has promise. Hunting color at the edge of the storm, I
Finally, rain. I spent the last week in the Mojave Desert, gouging around Las Vegas Valley, walking several ranges, and spending too much time in a casino conference center. I cannot complain about returning to in-person gatherings with colleagues and friends, but I still felt I needed the solace of
Charleston Peak 11,918 ft (3633 m) – 5300 ft gain 2021.11.09 We have not been on a big hill for a few months. The smaller, hidden gems are a pleasure, but nothing beats some elevation gain and ultimate altitude. I had a work week in southern Nevada, so we decided
Rowland Mountain (‘Rocky’) 6911 ft (2107 m) – 650 ft gain 2021.09.24 The mornings have the feel of autumn, but the midday still holds the heat of summer; it is that time of year. Here, at the close of September, I had a landform mapping project in support of archaeological
Donnelly Peak 8533 ft (2588 m) – 2317 ft gain 2021.09.12 There is a problem with names in this part of the desert. And, as a geographer and some-time chronicler of Great Basin landforms, I strive to maintain a sense of where I am. It stands to reason that the