Needful Things Revisited

Some of you will remember an old building I found along a country road with lots of wonderful old things hanging or sitting on it. I went back to visit the building again and found things I didn't even notice on the first visit.

These are maybe batteries?


This is the building from an earlier post.

The Ultimate Fixer Upper

I haven't decided why I love old falling down buildings so much but there is certainly an attraction there for me. I think it may be because with the dilapidation comes age and with the age comes history. Not knowing the history I get to imagine what might have been in that old building. This is another one I found on the trip to Crater Lake.

...and you are who?

Crater Lake part 2

The day we went to the lake only one mile of the rim was open but later in the year one can drive the entire 33 mile rim. There are places to pull of to enjoy the view all along the rim drive.



A small volcanic island, Wizard Island, rises 764 feet above the surface of the lake on its west side. A small crater, 300 feet across and 90 feet deep, rests on the summit.



This one is not my photo but gives a better idea of how remote the lake is.

USGS Photograph taken on December 10, 2005, by Mike Doukas

Crater Lake

Crater Lake: overwhelmingly yet sublimely beautiful. Moody. At times brilliantly blue, ominously somber; at other times buried in a mass of brooding clouds. The lake is magical, enchanting - a remnant of fiery times, a reflector of its adjacent forested slopes, a product of Nature's grand design.

Few places on earth command overwhelming awe from observers, but Crater Lake, in south central Oregon, certainly does. Even in a region of volcanic wonders, Crater Lake can only be described in superlatives. Stories of the deep blue lake can never prepare visitors for their first breathtaking look from the brink of this 6 mile wide caldera which was created by the eruption and collapse of Mt. Mazama almost 7,000 years ago. Even seasoned travelers gasp at the twenty-mile circle of cliffs, tinted in subtle shades and fringed with hemlock, fir, and pine: all this in a lake of indescribable blue.

The information above comes from the Crater Lake website. I totally agree because
the first time I saw the lake I literally gasped at the breathtaking view before me.

This is the first view of the lake as you come in from the South entrance.


Generous amounts of winter snow, averaging 533 inches (1,354 cm) per year, supply the lake with water. There are no inlets or outlets to the lake. Crater Lake, at 1,943 feet (592 meters) deep, is the seventh deepest lake in the world and the deepest in the United States. Evaporation and seepage prevent the lake from becoming any deeper.

Gene Martin memorial

I first met Gene Martin while I was doing a wedding at the Astoria Manor. He came over to me while I was setting up mono-lights with either an umbrella or a halo by the piano and wanted to know what studio I was from and why I was working so hard. Seems that he was working for some "good friends" in Steinway and only getting 100 a job. That was about 25 years ago. That night we spend some time in each others cocktail parties and then he showed me his personal work that he kept in an attache case near his equipment.
He somehow met my life long friend George Spence and George start assisting him. This brought Gene to my other Friends Dave Smith and George Kunze, before you knew it we were all getting together whenever Gene had new work to show and our camera club was born!
Gene became a close friend and someone I could confide in. I went though an divorce and so did he and we were there for each other when we needed to talk. Boy the stories we told! Its not often you find someone who is truly concerned and really cares, Gene was just as intense in his emotions and he was in his photography. Like any life cut short, there is alot unfulfilled. Personally him and I were working on some projects together that will now never see the light of day and the world will be at a loss for the visions of things to come that he had. Anyone who met Gene couldn't help but be touched by the realization that here was a man who as long as he was alive would be going after his dreams.

Majestic McLaughlin

We are very close to Crater Lake here. There are still 55 inches of snow at the top of the mountain.

I'm headed out of town now and will post pictures of the lake when I get back home Sunday night.

Fenced In

Still on the way to Crater Lake. This barn has an unusual shape and I liked the fence running along the field.

Trees 'n' Things

On our way to Crater Lake, my friend, Darlene and I saw some strange trees. The first one we noticed we dubbed the Boob Tree for obvious reasons. :)



In one area there were many trees that were twisted and broken. I would imagine a huge wind storm came through and did a lot of damage.



Later in the day I discovered a wonderful old hollow tree. As I sat and looked at it I kept seeing some movement like small birds flitting around the base of the tree but couldn't figure out what it was. I watched for awhile and finally around dusk my curiosity got the best of me and I crept closer to see what was there.



And lo and behold........



:)

Artsy Dogwood

A quick one before American Idol comes on. I may be back to change this photo afterwards. GO BLAKE!

The Tree

I think the tree outshines the barn in this shot. This is also on the way to Crater Lake.

Mt. McLoughlin

Two weeks ago and friend and I drove up to Crater Lake National Park, Oregon's only National Park. The Lake is absolutely breathtaking but I'm posting some of the gorgeous scenery along the way first.

Mt McLoughlin is a volcano south of Crater Lake. It last erupted about 20,000 years ago. It's highest peak is 9454 feet and it is covered with snow year round.

I'm back.... with a barn

I'm finished with my break. I needed to step back from photography for a bit. Occasionally I get so caught up in something that I can only see things from that perspective and my life becomes unbalanced.

I am rebalanced (if thats not a word it should be) and I can't wait to see what everyone has done while I was gone.

And, of course, what else would I come back with but a barn :) This great old barn is on the way to Crater Lake.