Tule Elk

Tule Elk -- Point Reyes National Seashore, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5, 1/1600s, ISO: 320

Coyote

Coyote -- Point Reyes National Seashore, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/2000s, ISO: 2000

The elk reserve at Point Reyes is the best place I know of to see coyotes in the wild.  Like the elk on the reserve, the coyotes seem to be used to the constant presence of hikers on the trail.  They don't seem to associate people with food like some of the coyotes I've encountered at the national parks nor do they seem to be particularly wary of people.  I imagine the ranchers on the Point don't particularly care for them, but I certainly do.

Lunar Eclipse

Alameda, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/8s, ISO:6400

Unfortunately, the moon was hidden behind clouds for a good part of the eclipse.  This is what I caught around 9:00 PDT.  I wasn't very patient with it.  I think I could have done better if I'd spent more time.  Well, it is what it is.

Dance of the Rocky Mountain Elk

Rocky Mountain Elk -- Yellowstone National Park, WY
Canon PowerShot SD770 IS

This is from a series of photos I took of elk on a ridge as we were exiting Yellowstone one evening this summer.  We counted five young elk on the ridge.  They look calm in this photo but they were anything but that.  They were frolicking in the fading light with this lone mother elk in view.  It was a magical end to what had been an amazing day of sightseeing in this oldest of national parks.

Photo selection inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun, image #4305.

Bull Elk

Tule Elk -- Point Reyes National Seashore, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 640

Not sure what this guy was up to, but it made for an interesting pose.

Rump Sniffing

Tule Elk -- Point Reyes National Seashore, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5, 1/1600s, ISO: 320

Fair warning: if you bring your kids to the elk reserve during the rut they may learn a thing or two about life.  Not a bad intro to the birds and the bees, actually.

American Kestrel

American Kestrel -- Point Reyes National Seashore, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM. f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 640

I encountered a kestrel today that seemed almost happy to pose for photos.  That's not normal, at least not in my experience.  Kestrels in general don't hang around long for photos to be taken, and when they do they make sure to be in a position where the lighting will make it impossible to get a good shot.  This little lady, though, she was very patient and gave me a number of different looks.  What a sweety.

Moon Over Monument Valley

Goulding Campground, UT
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/9, 1/1600s, ISO: 1600, 

Kind of strange camera settings on this shot.  I must have had the camera in sport mode.  I use that for shooting birds.  Not so much landscapes, understandably.  I kind of like this photo, though, so whatever.

Golden Gate Bridge

Golden Gate Bridge -- Marin Headlands, Golden Gate National Recreation Area, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, f/8, 1/60s, ISO: 100

Sometimes I take living in the Bay Area for granted.  Hard to do that with a view like this though, isn't it?  It seems like just about every movie set in San Francisco that I've seen lately opens with a shot from somewhere up here.

Photo selection inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 129, image #9998.

Goulding's Natural Arch

Goulding Campground, UT
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/8, 1/60s, ISO: 100

Tucked right behind the tent sites at Goulding Campground near Monument Valley is a natural arch.  There are short trails leading from the camp sites up the cliff side to the arch.  Don't miss this nice little surprise if you stay at the campground.

Sea Lions

California Sea Lion -- Moss Landing, CA
Canon PowerShot SX40 HS

It wasn't all that long ago that sea lions had no presence at Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco.  One day they just showed up and took over a few docks and they've never left.  They've become yet another San Francisco tourist attraction.  The same thing happened here at Moss Landing, except for the tourist attraction part.  This picture is of a dock near the Highway 1 bridge taken a few years ago.  Today the dock is fenced off so the sea lions can't get on it.  I kind of miss them but they were definitely intimidating to paddle past on a kayak.  This new fencing reminds me of certain "No Loitering" signs I've seen posted in shopping malls to ward off teenagers.  Build a mall and teenagers will come.  Build a dock in a sheltered cove along the Pacific Coast and the sea lions will come.  Better to celebrate than complain in both cases, I'd say.

You can see one of the sea lions has something stuck around her neck.  Unfortunately that's a fairly common sight.

Photo selection inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 128, image #0067.

Rudolph Crossing

U.S. Route 89A. AZ

Crossing signs are so much more fun when they are customized, aren't they?  Pop art?  Found art?  Hmmm.  I dunno. I suspect Duchamp would approve.

Whale's Spout

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5, 1/1600s, ISO: 400

It's kind of tough to get shots of whales spouting unless there are a couple close together like in this picture.  It's usually the spout that catches the eye and by the time the camera is ready the spouting is done.

Whale's Tail

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/2000s, ISO: 2000

What is it about the whale's tail that makes it so interesting?  Why is it so much more fun to see a whale's tail than its blow hole?

Humpback Whale

I went on a whale watching excursion yesterday.  We saw about twenty humpback whales.  We saw a couple of whales breach one a couple of hundred yards away and the other much further off.  In most cases we could only see a small portion of the whale at any given moment.  This series of photos gives pretty good idea of what the whale looks like, at least the upper half.

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

Humpback Whale -- Monterey Bay, CA

A Humpback's Hump

Humpback Whale -- Pacific Grove, CA
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM, f/5.6, 1/1600s, ISO: 1250

The warm weather has driven the whales close to shore this year.  No need to get in a boat to see these fantastic creatures, although I'll probably get out for an excursion this weekend.  If I'm lucky I might even see some killer whales.  Wouldn't that be amazing?

Photo selection inspired by Geogypsy's Foto Friday Fun 127, image #0057.

Goulding Campground

Goulding Campground, UT
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/6,3, 1/80s, ISO: 100

Not too bad of a view from the Goulding Campground, eh?  That's Monument Valley in the distance.  We stayed here for the night before exploring John Ford's old stomping grounds this summer.

Talastima Cliff Dwelling

Talastima Cliff Dwelling, Navajo National Monument, AZ
Canon EOS Rebel T5i, EF 17-40mm f/4L USM, f/5.6, 1/60s, ISO: 125