Lone Willow, Four Seasons

Day 97: The Lone Willow stands in an open pasture at the bottom of the hill, just off Hwy 161 south of the town of Graham, obvious to anyone travelling either direction. I'm sure most drivers notice it, but how many observe its seasonal changes? After it lost a major limb during an ice storm, I decided to make it the subject of a nature-mapping project before its graceful shape could be further altered by the elements. A convenient telephone pole allowed me to situate myself in approximately the same position each time I visited the tree, and a little cropping and straightening adjusted any inequities. These photos were taken in the first week of May, the last week of July, mid-November and today (January 7, 2014).

While the Lone Willow and I are friends of many years' standing, I feel I've become more keenly acquainted with it over the last year. I'd hoped to capture it in a snowy setting, but alas, when the snow comes to Flatland, it's deeper here and I do not venture out of my driveway.

Nature Mapping In Ohop Valley

Day 263: The Nisqually Land Trust's annual Volunteer Appreciation Picnic was held today, so I decided to take a little time out en route to do some nature mapping of my regular beat in Ohop Valley. The requirements for this particular type of nature mapping are simple: pick a spot which you can reliably find again, set up your camera and take four pictures, one in each of the cardinal directions. I have my spot marked with a GPSr. The challenge is in getting to it! When I chose the location, the grass had been compacted by winter rains. Now it stands as high as my waist, sometimes reaching shoulder or head height. Lurking in amongst it are thistles, teasels and the occasional patch of Poison Hemlock, just to keep things exciting. It's only a few hundred feet from parking, but when I reached my marker today, I felt like I'd won a minor skirmish with the elements.

Then the issue of finding the landmarks arose. The grass obscured the logs in the creek which I normally use to set the "north" shot. The fencepost for "east" was visible, but the creek beyond was barely visible. "South" and "west" had grass stems in front of the lens which I had to bend down to have a reasonably clear but still representative shot. Even the distant horizon was obscured by the abundant grass. If these shots aren't exactly aligned on the same compass bearing as my previous submissions, don't blame me. Blame Ma Nature!