Colorado – 4 – Petrified Wine

We were sad to leave the mountains because our trip was coming to an end. Often I feel ready to go home on the last day or so of vacation but this trip was different. However, as planned, we rolled out of Mary E Campground a little slower than we had pulled in because we knew the reality of everyday life was waiting for us.

Before leaving Colorado we stopped at a little place called Yellow Car Winery. They have quite a large repertoire of fruit wines. The owner greeted us and promptly retrieved a large box of toys for the kids which meant that we had an hour, or so, of uninterrupted wine tasting and visiting with other travelers. Our host had a few RV sites with picnic tables for overnight patrons (or perhaps those who found themselves over imbibed). I took this photo in pretty dark light (as exhibited by the 1″ exposure). The sun had gone down and I was playing around with camera settings. The table with the lights in the trees makes a nice foreground for the naturally supplied background of Cortex, CO. I wish there were no phone lines and that my post-processing skills were better on this one.

We are trying to hit as many National Parks as we can in our travels. The kids get their iconic smashed pennies to put in their collection books and we can live as proud park-goers. On our way home, we made a stop in Petrified National Forest. My father-in-law loves rocks. All of ’em; everywhere. Why – I do not know. Although I do not share this strange obsession, the petrified wood was quite neat to read about and observe. I tried to get some good shots of these beautiful paperweights but I’m not skilled enough to have come up with anything worth showing. Other sites in the park were easier to photograph and came out quite nice. When we got to the Blue Mesa area we went ahead and took a little hike. It was hot – very hot! We took a short and easy hike far enough to see the coloration of the rocks. The tiny bushes in the top right balance the path and rock in the bottom left. The cloud that was rolling in dims the upper part of this photo making for some nice depth.

Another shot from our short hike. For a guy who loves trees so much, I think this photo is really interesting. When I look at it, it’s almost too much contrast and texture but I do not think it crosses the line. The yellows of the (relatively) flat ground on the right show no slow or smooth transition as the eye moves up in elevation. This one is just fun to look at!

As I try to build some skills, I’d appreciate comments or critique on the photos and writing. Also, I was informed that none of my photos were showing up on iOS devices. Hopefully I have remedied that situation though not having any iOS device to test makes it difficult to confirm.