A Different View

When you make the trip to Sedona, I highly recommend seeing it by balloon. Neither my wife nor I have ever ridden in a hot air balloon so we were a little apprehensive about what to expect. Turns out it was a few hours of breathtaking views and crisp morning air, absolutely delightful. We used Red Rock Balloons and they were professional, safe and hospitable. Looking up at the giant red rocks of Sedona gives you an indelible feeling of grandeur and power. The view from the air, eye level with the giants, allows a glimpse into nooks and intricacies etched into the stones from all angles, revealing facets unable to be seen from below. I recommended hiking the area a few days ago, which immerses you in the canyons. In a balloon the expanse of miles of the landscape rolls on and on. Hopefully the pictures can express what I saw since my words fall short.

My wife eagerly watching the balloon inflate

In the air watching the others

Amazing power of sunlight

The skill of our balloonist was impressive, we climbed up and gradually descended artfully.  

Just after dawn was the perfect time to be in the air.

Quite a few balloons were in our view, but they just enhanced and gave scale to the vistas

In the early morning rays of the sun our beautiful country certainly showed its wonder

That's us :)

From the depths of the canyons to the plateau to the mountains in the distance

Pictures taken on the NIkon D800 and D4 using Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6, Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8 and Sigma 70-200mm f/2.8 lenses.

#TravelTuesday Cathedral Rock

Staying with the Sedona theme I wanted to call your attention to what is one of the most iconic views of the American Southwest. Cathedral Rock is easy to get to. It’s just a mile off highway 179, ten to fifteen minutes from downtown Sedona. Hiking is permitted up to some of the peaks, my wife and I did not make the climb (we had a plane to catch that evening, and a hospital stay would have delayed our departure). There is a state park on Forest Park Rd (fee) where you can walk 3 minutes to a stream and photograph this structure to your heart's content. These are a few of my favorites from different vantage points. When, and I highly recommend it, you visit to Sedona, even if you are not a hiker or trail runner, take an hour or two and relax at Cathedral Rock. (Bring your camera)

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 42mm f/18 ISO 100 30sec w/10 stop ND filter

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 45mm f/14 ISO 100 30sec 10 stop ND filter

Sedona at Dawn

When we were visiting Sedona, most of the time there wasn’t a cloud in the sky which made stargazing quite easy. The fact that the city sits in a canyon and most of its lights are blocked by the walls makes just outside of town a great place to catch the first rays of the morning Sun. Early, before most of the population was up I was driving around the back roads looking for picture opportunities (I’m a little crazy like that). Thankful for the headlights on the SUV we rented and gleeful I remembered to pack a headlamp (useful for fiddling with camera settings in the pitch black while being careful not to fall into a ravine) the journey still had its heart racing moments. A wolf darted in front of the vehicle at one point, which gave me some moments to reflect on what creatures might be stalking me, while I was stalking the sunrise. Who says photography is a boring endeavor?

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm f/3.5-5.6 @ 32mm f/3.8 ISO 100 6 sec.

Hiking in Sedona

One of the best things about Sedona is its multitude of hiking trails. There are miles and miles of walking trails for all different types of hikers. You can meet other people, sit and rest by a cool stream, breath deeply the thin air, have a picnic lunch, all while keeping your eyes open for wildlife that may in fact kill you. Attacks are rare and shouldn’t dissuade anyone from walking the glorious valleys or climbing the breathtaking ridges that make up Sedona, but sightings of bears, mountain lions, rattlesnakes, and scorpions occur often. The great thing is, every trail I have ventured onto was clearly marked, well maintained, mildly strenuous and worth every penny. Plenty of trails are free of course, but there are some in places where there is a minimal charge for admission or parking. Not that these are the best trails or come with cocktail service, but if a small fee is what’s needed to keep the trails in the condition they are, then it’s well worth it. Splendid views arise every few minutes, as a reminder of how small we all are in the world. The picture below was taken after climbing about 75 feet up a cliff at the end of the Fay Canyon Trail. It’s a six photo panorama. To give you some sort of scale, if you look directly in the center of the picture and see the rock structures in the distance, they are taller than the rocks on the right and left. This is the view looking through the canyon and my 75 foot climb was merely to get above the tree line. The mountain behind me is much bigger.

Nikon D800 Nikkor 28-300mm @ 32mm  f/6.3 ISO 100 1/60sec 5 image panorama