Starry Nights in Indian Valley - ABDSP

I picked up an old used Minolta kit lens hoping to try and get better photos of the stars. It is a faster lens at f/1.7 but not very wide (50mm) but it definitly lets in more light and allows me to take shorter exposures and get more stars in the picture. My son also gave me an astronomy book he picked up at the thrift store, it is pretty good and I am still learning more about the stars.

Here is a shot of Orion and a close up of the nebula. I am amazed at what the camera can pick up. 50mm, ISO 1600, f/1.7, 5 seconds


Here are some star trails above a peak just north of False Sombrero, this lens really lets a lot of light in! 50mm, ISO 100, f/1.7, 34 minutes


Here is Mars above the Imperial Valley. 50mm, ISO 800, f/1.7, 10 seconds


Orions Belt. 280mm, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 3.2 seconds


Saturn (middle), Spica (up to right). 300mm, ISO 12800, f/5.6, 1/2 second


I don't have a telescope, this is my star gazing kit

Ghost Mountain Thanksgiving

My son and I spent the Thanksgiving day exploring Little Blair valley and Ghost Mountain. We revisited the jet airplane wreckage and some Native American features he had not seen before. We also took a trip up to the Marshal South home site and hiked over to the top of Ghost Mountain. I was surprised how few people were camping in Little Blair for the holidays.

The Marshal South home site. The old cement pond and what is left of the house.




This is the "dump". I found many of the large mouth glass jars common to that era here and also many of the same down in Carrizo at the railroad camps.


This is the kiln the South's used to make their pottery. It looks much smaller than the drawings Marshall South submitted to the Desert Magazine articles.


My son reading the Ghost Mountain register. I had come up here back in June and the next register entry we saw was from November, no visitors for 4 months. You can see Granite mountain in the far off distance. It was a gorgeous day.


I saw this nice "Y" shaped cactus at the base of the mountain

Salton Sea

The Salton Sea is a very interesting place rich in history geologically. Today it is home to many different types of wildlife, recreational visitors and year round residents who call it home. It is worth a visit if you have a chance.

Old Trees on the semi dry sea bed


Coyote prints leading off to Red Hill


The beginning of a mud pot


A more mature mud pot


A video of the mud pots


The beach at Obsidian Butte


Three large birds nests


An Osprey


Large boulder of obsidian