Exit78 Photo of the Day #113

Storming over Lake Dardanelle, shot from Lake Dardanelle State Park at Russellville, Arkansas, July 20, 2013 (Pentax K-r)

Lake Dardanelle (Wikipedia)

Lake Dardanelle is a major reservoir on the Arkansas River and is an integral part of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System (MKARNS), which allows barge transportation from the Mississippi River to the Tulsa Port of Catoosa in northeastern Oklahoma. MKARNS went into service along its full length in 1971.

The lake covers nearly 40,000 acres (160 km²) with abundant opportunities* for boating, fishing, picnicking, camping and scenic views. The lake extends from Dardanelle Lock and Dam (35°14′55″N 93°10′15″W) near Dardanelle, into Pope, Yell, Logan, Johnson and Franklin Counties. The lake reaches 50 miles (80 km) upstream the Arkansas River and has 315 miles (510 km) of shoreline. Each recreational park on Dardanelle has drinking water, picnic tables and toilet facilities. Most have trailer dump stations, boat launch ramps and electrical sites.

* made an edit to Wikipedia as a result of this post

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #112

President Clinton Avenue just before it transitions into Markham Street, Little Rock, Arkansas, December 10, 2008 (Pentax K10D)

Love him or hate him, it was inevitable that William Jefferson Clinton would get a street named after him in the capital city of the state where he was governor before getting elected president.  Stretching from the Clinton Presidential Center and Park west to Cumberland, after which the street reverts back to Markham Street, President Clinton Avenue is almost exactly 1/2 mile in length.

President Clinton Avenue: Little Rock, Arkansas (American Planning Association)

The transformation of Little Rock’s East Markham Street to what is now President Clinton Avenue was, in the words of a long-time Little Rock business leader, “an overnight success 20 years in the making.” The avenue is a popular destination and hub of activity with a mixture of restaurants, museums, art galleries, entertainment venues, stores, offices, educational facilities, apartments, and loft condominiums. Some 30 sidewalk benches, almost 150 street trees, decorative lighting, designed walkways, outdoor sculptures, and scenic views make for a memorable experience.

The entire length of President Clinton Avenue is designated an American Planning Association Great Street, between the Clinton Presidential Center and Park to the east and Cumberland Street to the west.

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #111

Roundleaf buffaloberry bush, 6.5 miles north and east of Head of Rocks Overlook on Utah Highway 12  in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Utah, October 6, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II)

Shepherdia rotundifolia (Wikipedia)

Shepherdia rotundifolia, the roundleaf buffaloberry[1] or silverleaf, is a 3-to-6-foot (1-to-2-meter) evergreen shrub in the oleaster family (Elaeagnaceae) that grows only in the Colorado Plateau (endemic) of the southwestern United States.The common name comes from western settlers using the cooked berries in a sauce for eating cooked buffalo meat.

“Rotundifolia” is for the oval or egg-shaped leaves, which can vary to being lance shaped. They are 1⁄4 to 1 1⁄2 inches (6 to 38 mm) long, silvery green on top (hence the other common name), and hairy and pale on the bottom.

Flowers open from May to June and are yellowish. They are produced singly or in a cluster from leaf axils.

Fruits are elliptical, with star-shaped hairs.

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #110

Prairie grasses at rest stop at Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge, Kansas, East of US 69 on Kansas 52, July 3, 2010 (Pentax K10D)

On the second day of our 2010 western trip, we stopped at a Kansas rest stop at Marais des Cygnes National Wildlife Refuge, one in a system of over 550 refuges administered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The Refuge was established in 1992 for the protection and restoration of bottomland hardwood forests.  Approximately 5,000 acres of the 7,500 acre refuge are available for wildlife oriented recreation including hunting, fishing, and birding.   A wildlife sanctuary encompasses the remaining 2,500 acres of the refuge and is not available for public use.  (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service – Marais des Cygnes)

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #109

Clock tower, a modern rendition of a tower built as part of a bank in 1900 and removed for safety in 1939, Sturgeon Bay, September 18, 2008 (Pentax K10D)

The corner building of the Scofield Block in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, built in 1900, was originally the Bank of Sturgeon Bay and boasted a fine clock tower.  The clock tower was removed in 1939 for “safety reasons.” The old bell from the tower was retrieved by the bank and installed in a new clock tower across the street designed as a rendition of the old tower.

Bank of Sturgeon Bay, before 1939 demolition of clock tow

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #108

Our drive through Dolores County, Colorado, in 2015 was completely unplanned.  We had thought to travel over to the Moab, Utah, area after leaving Mesa Verde, but changed our mind when, on checking the weather forecast, we learned that temperatures there were going to be in the 90s. Checking the outlook for other areas, we decided to head toward Grand Junction.  Along the way, we were treated to stunning vistas replete with great fall colors, such as this one from Rico.

Town Hall, Rico, Dolores County, Colorado, September 29, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II)

Rico (Wikipedia)

Rico is an incorporated small town in Dolores County, Colorado, United States. It was settled in 1879 as a silver mining center in the Pioneer Mining District; today it functions as a historic and tourism site. The population was 265 at the 2010 census,[8] up from 205 at the 2000 census. Its current form of government is that of a Home Rule Municipality.

Rico is a name derived from Spanish meaning “rich”.

Rico is located in eastern Dolores County at 37°41′32″N 108°1′51″W (37.692095, -108.030839), in the valley of the Dolores River. Colorado State Highway 145 passes through the town as it follows the river, leading southwest 48 miles (77 km) to Cortez and northeast over Lizard Head Pass 27 miles (43 km) to Telluride.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the town of Rico has an area of 0.8 square miles (2.0 km2), all of it land.

Rico experiences an alpine subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification Dfc) with long, cold, very snowy winters and short, cool summers due to the high altitude and high precipitation year-round due to orographic lift.

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Post-processing¹ #24 |

Barbed Wire, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, US 89, October 9, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II) 37°11’10″N 111°59’44″W

While stopped for a stretch and photo break, I took the opportunity to get several DoF (depth of field) photos.

1. Post-processing – Image editing to enhance the photo closer to what the eye “saw.” Images in this series are selected within a day or so of being edited and are either posted at the time or scheduled for posting at a later date.
2. Depth of field – Wikipedia

Exit78 Photo of the Day #108

Clay coil cooking pot, Anasazi State Park Museum, Utah 12, Boulder, Utah, October 6, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II)

Cooking Pot (from Anasazi Pottery – Evolution of a Technology, Penn Museum)

The formula for Anasazi cooking pot clays was achieved by A.D. 700 and remained stable for the subsequent six centuries of occupation in the Four Corners area. However, there were dramatic changes in the appearance of cooking vessels throughout this period. Initially, the coils of clay that made up the pot were carefully scraped on both interior and exterior surfaces, welding coils together and creating plain surfaces. Prior to A.D. 700, and especially during the brown ware phase of Anasazi pottery development, these plain surfaces were then polished to greater or lesser degrees. By A.D. 700, polishing ceased and most cooking jars were left plain. By the late 8th century, potters began to leave unobliterated coil junctures on the exteriors of the vessel necks, creating a neckbanded appearance. In the early 10th century, some neckbands were rhythmically indented, creating a corrugated appear­ance. At first these surface treatments were confined to the neck region of the vessel, but by the late 10th century entire cooking jar exteriors were cov­ered with corrugations. Corrugation became the norm for most Anasazi cooking jars from this time through the 13th century abandonment of the Four Corners area.

Anasazi as a cultural label (Wikipedia)

The term “Anasazi” was established in archaeological terminology through the Pecos Classification system in 1927. It had been adopted from the Navajo. Archaeologist Linda Cordell discussed the word’s etymology and use:

“The name “Anasazi” has come to mean “ancient people,” although the word itself is Navajo, meaning “enemy ancestors.” [The Navajo word is anaasází (<anaa- “enemy”, sází “ancestor”).] The term was first applied to ruins of the Mesa Verde by Richard Wetherill, a rancher and trader who, in 1888–1889, was the first Anglo-American to explore the sites in that area. Wetherill knew and worked with Navajos and understood what the word meant. The name was further sanctioned in archaeology when it was adopted by Alfred V. Kidder, the acknowledged dean of Southwestern Archaeology. Kidder felt that it was less cumbersome than a more technical term he might have used. Subsequently some archaeologists who would try to change the term have worried that because the Pueblos speak different languages, there are different words for “ancestor,” and using one might be offensive to people speaking other languages.”

Many contemporary Pueblo peoples object to the use of the term Anasazi; controversy exists among them on a native alternative. Some modern descendants of this culture often choose to use the term “Ancestral Pueblo” peoples. Contemporary Hopi use the word Hisatsinom in preference to Anasazi.

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.

Exit78 Photo of the Day #107

Wavy looking roof, General Store, Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah, October 8, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II)

Bryce Canyon General Store (National Park Service informational sign)

“Notice the wavy pattern in the roof? This optical illusion is created by cutting each shingle uniquely.  This was part of Gilbert Stanley Underwood’s plan to help the buildings blend in with the forest of wavy pines.”

This unique shingling pattern is on the original cabins as well as the main lodge buildings, and has been replicated with each re-roofing of the complex, using the original pattern, as a way to keep the craftsman’s trademarks of the original builders and Underwood’s design. (Wikipedia)

Series notes:

• The photos in this series are (usually) randomly selected from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Exit78 Photo of the Day.
• Each photo in this series is an “original work” – a copyright term – of Michael Goad.