fstopandsee

Once people walked on these floors and these stairs. Now they are no more.

I’ve recently had a few unwelcome visitors in the house. Normally I wouldn’t find a fly that interesting, but this one was slowing down in his old age and did a good job of posing. I offered him one photo op before sending him to the trash can.

I recently hiked the Grand Canyon and spent some time in the Southwest, so this blog may have that kind of vibe going on for awhile. After watching the sun set facing the other direction, I went back to this spot. The light seemed flat at first, but also really brought out some of the colors and removed all the shadows that previously darkened many of the details.

The Cottonwood is a fantastic old ski lodge overlooking Truckee, CA that has been restored as a restaurant. An abandoned ski lift stands nearby that used to take skiers up all 700 feet of available vertical. Since then the resorts in Tahoe have greatly expanded their terrain, but this place remains to show what skiing in the area used to be like.

I was in the backyard taking photos of the very last rose left at the end of summer. I thought the photos would be OK but typical. I was so intent on keeping the shot in focus I didn’t realize I wasn’t the only one enjoying that very flower!

Red flowers stand all over the top of Squaw Valley, with The Palisades off in the distance. I like hiking here in the summer and taking pictures, but I like skiing here in the winter even more!

Fireworks as seen over Raley Field in Sacramento after a River Cats game. Have a safe and happy 4th of July!

If I can’t have snow in the summer, at least I can have a snow plant! I found this one on a hike above Ice House Reservoir in the Sierras.

I can’t say I’m a connoisseur of jug wine, but this stuff at Preston Vineyards wasn’t half bad. Not good enough to buy a jug, but not bad.

A nice view and a great walk down. Heading back up was a bit more work.