White Pocket

A short walk from the car on a sandy path and up a slight incline . . . you look over the landscape before you and if you breathe normally . . . well you won't!  I had no idea where to start!

In the center of Dave's photo you can see the iconic 'oyster'.

With water I always want reflections.  Not so easy on this day. You can see the rain drops on the pond.  There were times we took turns holding a large umbrella so the other could shoot.  If it was not raining the wind picked up and churned the water's surface a bit.  Once in a while some semblance of a reflection was possible. 

Storms built up, passed by and then a few minutes of sun.  Most of the time we had the scene pretty much to ourselves.  Just before we left a group of about 20 people showed up.

This is for Cory.

A closer look at the whirling rock of the oyster.

Whew!  A lot of photos!  Let me digress.  The trip from the paved highway to White Pocket does requires both a high clearance vehicle and one with four wheel drive.  It takes a bit over an hour of slow, careful driving, mostly over sand, on a narrow road to get to the site.  Signage is non-existant from what I could tell.  That is probably one reason that so many people hire a guide.  It is not that you would need help with photography or to be shown what to photograph. All of this is in a rather small area.  You can't miss any of it. You just want to get there!

The drive to White Pocket is scenic with hints along the way of what awaits you when you arrive at the parking lot.  There is a telephone booth rock!  It is one place that you can stop and make a cell phone call!!  I asked Dave how he knew that.  He said that in passing by it he started getting alerts of new mail and messages.  He checked.  Sure enough, he had service.  Fifty feet later it is gone!

Telephone Booth Rock (our name for it).

A tease rock!

We spent about 4 to 5 hours at White Pocket.  Storms were still developing in the area when we left and returned to Jacob's Lake to get my car.  Dave made the long drive home to Phoenix.  I drove to Williams to spend the night with Greg and Ann.  Thank you Dave, for sharing this treasure, for driving, for having great optimism when it counted.  I want to go back.  Next time we will shoot the Milky Way.

North Rim Detour

Dave and I agreed to meet at noon at Cliff Dwellers, have lunch and plan our trip to White Pocket.  I was excited!  I left home early so I could shoot along the way.  By the time I reached Flagstaff it was raining.  Dang it!  I knew when I left that the weather was not optimal for this sort of plan.  But, I had agreed to meet Dave and he had already sent a text message that there was a clearing in the otherwise gloomy and stormy skies.  He, optimist that he is, was sure the storm was clearing out.  I, of course, did not want to chance missing out on a great opportunity to photograph at White Pocket.  Dave's early morning photos of Vermillion Cliffs confirm that they are interesting in any light.

Dave hiked Soap Creek, very near Cliff Dwellers Lodge, waiting for me to arrive.  Wowza!  

It is easier to be wise and practical when one takes turns passing the optimism baton back and forth!  We decided to head up to the North Rim, spend the night camped out and take a look at photo opportunities out on Cape Royale.  Dave knows that area very well, had a site in mind where I could park my Miss Precious Prissy Prius.  We planned to set up camp first so that we would not have to do it in the dark.  As it turned out, it was a wise decision as we returned well after dark and in rain.  The whole drive was punctuated by fog, heavy dark clouds, moments of clearing, and snow.

Taken at the scenic viewpoint as you head up the hill to Jacob Lake.  David always looks at the positive side . . . "There are really good cookies at Jacob Lake", he said.

Our campsite.  Photo taken in a break in the weather.  I am going back in better weather.  This is a great find for someone like me who is fine sleeping in her car.  By morning, the overnight rain and sleet had melted the snow.

Taken with my iPhone 6.

Path to Cape Royale lookout points.

Patches of sun, weaving fog, and wisps of clouds played around in the canyon below us.  You can see why David really was hoping to get a great Golden Hour shot of Cape Royale.  Me too.

I have had better sunset shots.  But this one will always be special for the memories of the day it evokes.

My last shot as we left Cape Royale.

We drove back to the Lodge and had a pulled pork sandwich at the Deli.  Then, a long drive back to our camp.  More rain.  I was so glad that the sleeping bag was already in my car.  It had been a long, but wonderful day.  But, I was tired!!  Tomorrow, we just knew, would be perfect at White Pocket.  Clouds, puddles of water and exquisite rock formations . . . . But first, we were going to have to get through a very cold night.  The sound of sleet hitting the metal on my car woke me up several times.  In the morning it was all worth it.

Waiting for Lightning on the South Rim

David is passionate about photographing lightning and the Milky Way.  He loves night photography.  He generously invited me to join him this past weekend to photograph the Milky Way over White Pocket.  At first the weather forecast suggested a great opportunity.  Then the forecast changed.  David, the ever optimist, called and suggested shooting lightning over the Grand Canyon.  He was SURE there would be some.  Then we could go to White Pocket on Saturday.  The problem with the plan was the weather.  I opted to meet up with him at Cliff Dwellers on Saturday, leaving him to capture great weather photography on his own.

These images may seem to be very redundant.  Consider, however that they are taken just minutes apart.  They moved so quickly he almost had a time-lapse going!

As it turned out, the skies cleared just long enough for Dave to capture a couple of Milky Way shots before the clouds closed in.  He spent the night sleeping in his truck.  I met up with him as promised on Saturday.  Much more to our adventure to come!

Awesome!