Posted on August 17, 2011, 10:01 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The weather system that produced interesting clouds over the crater summit continued to hang over the coast. I was hoping to do some night photography, but when I got up two hours before sunrise, it was pitch dark, with the stars totally obscured by dense cloud cover. I crawled down to the beach and set […]
Posted on August 4, 2011, 11:30 am, by QT Luong, under
Books.
William Neill‘s exquisite portfolio of Yosemite photographs, “Yosemite: The Promise of Wildness” became my favorite Yosemite picture book upon publication in 1994, one year after my arrival in California. It has remained so until today (even though I have my own) to the point that the spine has begun to separate. There are many scenes […]
Posted on July 19, 2011, 6:48 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The Heleakala summit, at more than 10,000 feet high, is above the inversion layer separating lower maritime air from upper atmospheric air. On my previous visit to the crater, I always found myself above the clouds, in clear air. Last May, I arrived in Maui as storms were moving in and out. There were unusual […]
Posted on July 7, 2011, 2:25 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The three first hikes in this series may have given the impression that to see something out of the beaten path in Yosemite, you need to venture out of established trails, on exposed or strenuous paths. This could well be true of Yosemite Valley, so unique and so full of landmarks such as Yosemite Falls […]
Posted on June 8, 2011, 11:02 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
The Hawaiian islands are further away from a major land mass than any other in the world. Over the span of about 70 million years, plants and animals managed to make the voyage to the once barren islands and to colonize it, at the rate of one every 70000 years, and then evolving into more […]
Posted on June 3, 2011, 8:10 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Halemaumau crater – home to Pele, Goddess of Hawaiian Volcanoes according to the traditions of Hawaiian mythology – is a pit crater located within the larger summit caldera of Kīlauea in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. During my previous two visits to the Park, a decade ago, Halemaumau crater was inactive. I remember standing at the […]
Posted on May 25, 2011, 11:07 am, by QT Luong, under
Esthetics.
As many of my readers know, the exhibit Treasured Lands, currently at the National Heritage Museum, consists of natural, awe-inspiring National Parks landscapes big and small, mostly untouched by man. I have began to post those images to my new Facebook page, in the same sequence, and with the same comments as in the exhibit. […]
Posted on May 1, 2011, 12:00 pm, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
Jackson Hole airport provides a convenient access to Grand Teton National Park. One would be hard pressed to find a closer an airport closer to a National Park, since for some reason Jackson Hole airport is within the boundaries of the park ! Without yet a replacement for my totaled trusty Subaru, I chose to […]
Posted on April 18, 2011, 9:21 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
More Yellowstone Winter Wildlife pictures All Yellowstone Winter pictures The official winter season (during which lodges and roads are open) generally lasts from mid-December to the beginning of March. If I was to return to Yellowstone in winter, I would pick mid to end January. At the beginning of winter, the Park may not have […]
Posted on April 14, 2011, 10:00 am, by QT Luong, under
Locations.
In the past, I have visited Yellowstone at three different times of the year, in July, September, and late October. I have always wanted to come back in the winter, and eventually got around to doing it this February. Part of the reason it had taken me so long are the logistics, which I’ll detail […]
