Month: October 2022

Just Pure Beauty

I was not able to go this year, but the east side of the central California Sierra Nevada mountain range in the fall and spring are absolutely gorgeous. This picture is from three years ago, and I truly miss being there. This is from the Bishop Creek area and the trees were just starting to turn.( I was a little early that year). The timing of the color change is unpredictable every year and because you have to make reservations for lodging months in advance you make your best guess. Have a wonderful weekend and stay healthy

Once Upon A Time in the Wild West

Rock Hunting with the “Gem & Mineral Club in Mariposa” along the border between California and Nevada, with camp base in Benton-Hot-Springs.

I guess, a couple of ??? million of years ago, large trees where growing in the western portion of Nevada, with mature tress having diameters of 4-7…> feet at the base. Then came a mudslide or something like that, burying all the trees. After the burial, minerals started to seep into the wood, crystallizing within the cell structure, replacing the organic material and so ultimately turning the upright trees into petrified tree trunks. Yet, then volcanic fissures ripped the earth open, spitting lava all over the place. The tremendous heat caused metamorphosis of the petrified trees, making them “glass-like”, easily breakable, yet still 4-6 feet in trunk diameter. In front of the petrified & metamorphosed tree trunk you can see fragments of the tree trunk chipped off.

Metamorphic Tree Trunk, still standing upright

Below, you see one of those volcanic fissures.

Volcanic Fissure in the foreground with metamorphic petrified Tree Trunks in the background

Looking a bit closer at the fissure, the greenish material looks a bit like Malachite, a greenish copper carbonate hydroxide mineral.

Possibly a Malachite Vein stuck in the fissure.

Nearby, greenish copper containing mineral streaks travel through the landscape.

Copper containing minerals

When looking towards the West, mountains can be seen in the distance, but otherwise there is just barren land, absolutely no vegetation anymore.

Barren Land today…

Herbstliche Impressionen

Das faszinierende am Herbst sind das Licht und die Farben. Diese Tage, an denen die Sonne scheint, muss man ausnutzen und diese Stimmung einfangen. Anke und ich sind am Sonntag in unsere Nachbarstadt Oebisfelde gefahren und haben das schöne Wetter genossen. Natürlich auch eine gute Gelegenheit ein paar Impressionen aus Oebisfelde mit der Kamera festzuhalten.

The fascinating thing about autumn is the light and the colors. These days when the sun shines, you have to take advantage and capture this mood. Anke and I went to our neighboring town Oebisfelde on Sunday and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Of course, also a good opportunity to capture a few impressions from Oebisfelde with the camera.