Winter Journey – Beautiful Cloud Day at Joshua Tree NP – February 2017

Saturday February 11th – I am up in time for a pretty sunrise and find great delight in walking about catching silhouettes of yucca and creosote bushes with the sunrise colors as the backdrop.

Most wide-angle view of desert at sunrise
Most close-up view to draw attention of silhouettes against the colorful backdrop of sunrise

Behind me to the west, as the sunrise fades, the moon is just setting.

Sunrise begins to fade…
while the moon sets in the west

I sit outside and write in my journal until Clifford is up. Then we drive down the road to the Bajada Nature Trail to check email before heading to the nearby village of Chiriaco for a late lunch, part of the extended birthday celebration. Clifford buys me a pretty pair of earrings and a pint of local honey, which was very sweet! Sometime, either coming or going, I post another blog and get a couple of texts sent off.

Great cumulus clouds have built up during the day

Cumulus clouds form in the afternoon
Interesting cloud formations form
More cumulus clouds over the hills to the east

and by evening, the sunrise is especially spectacular.

The light begins to change, bringing a warmth to the hillside
Last moments of sunset causes the hill to glow orange and the clouds to take on more reflected color
And finally, the deepest color in the clouds before darkness descends .

After sunset as the evening coolness comes on, I make a campfire, which I haven’t done often on this journey because of the wind. After the fire dies down, we go inside for dinner – a cup of soup – since we had a big late lunch. Into the later evening, I edit photos, losing track of time and going to bed at midnight, which is way late for me.

It was a very pretty day with good fun activities.

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