Fine Art Photography Blog

We’ve been treated to especially disjointed weather lately in the Emerald City. Last Friday saw big snow-flakes falling downtown for several hours in a late March storm more appropriate to Colorado than the ocean-side Pacific Northwest. We’ve enjoyed freakishly benign weather ( “that yellow thing in the sky” ) up until last week, and on clear days, both mountain ranges have sported receding snow lines.

The Cascade Range divides eastern and western Washington / Oregon, and the northern edge of California. To the west is a lush valley, while a vast desert lies to the east. Dividing these eco-systems, the spine of the mountains cuts upward, breaking up the path of the clouds overhead, getting many of them to spill their water earthward.

This divide creates an unpredictable series of micro-climates. A storm can be profoundly violent in one area and open up like an eye in others. Above, wide swatches of blue shine through, while below we see thick fog hugging the mountainside while sleet falls on the trees.

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“It’s god-awful country,” the officer said, recommending that I avoid US 287 across Wyoming from Rawlins to Moran Junction. He was right. I had flown to Connecticut, where I grew up, bought a used car, and was driving it home to California; a member of the local highway patrol wanted to make sure my [paper] temporary plate was legitimate. After our ad hoc meeting, I confirmed that the road to Grand Teton is indeed long, sun parched and wind swept high desert.

Yellowstone itself is an oasis, rising up on the back of the Rocky Mountains to pull moisture out of the air, and teeming with life because of it. Sitting on a now-protected crest of the continental divide, the park is known the world over for its wildlife, although the photo doesn’t show any endangered species. In the surrounding hills and meadows live bison, elk, bighorn sheep, black and grizzly bears, eagles, and more.

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