Art on Sunday #33

Fairies, Elves, and Dragon, Mural on side of Crystal Wizard Gift Shop, Manitou Springs, Colorado, September 10, 2011 (Pentax K-r)

I do like to take photos of murals and always endeavor to square them up to remove the keystone effect.

Crystal Wizard Gift Shop: Fairies, Elves and Dragon (peakradar.com)

This Manitou Springs mural was painted on the North side of the Crystal Wizard Gift Shop in 1999 by Mike Beenenega. The theme was chosen by the owners to reflect the nature of the items sold in their shop. However, since they already had a mural of a wizard on the south wall and to be sensitive to a nearby resident, they chose a subdued nature theme.

The trees in the mural mirror trees then nearby to the shop. The Elves are “Tommyknocker” elves from the legends brought by immigrant Welch miners to the area during the gold mining days in Teller County. According to legend these elves would knock on the walls of tunnels to warn the miners of impending collapses but would also sometimes mischievously “borrow” the miner’s equipment. One of the Elves holds a crock of Tommyknocker Ale. A flying saucer, included at the owner’s request, hovers behind the upper tree limbs at the top left-center of the mural. (Source: conversation with owners)

Medium type: Paint (acrylic, oil, etc.)

Exit78 Photo of the Day #92

Crowing chicken, Mountain Farm Museum, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, May 6, 2009 (Pentax K10D)

Mountain Farm Museum (Blue Ridge National Heritage Area)

The Mountain Farm Museum, in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, showcases one of the finest collections of historic log structures in the National Park system. The 19th century buildings were relocated from the surrounding mountains and coves in the Park to replicate a typical farm of that era.

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 #91

Shelter at CCC Overlook, Red Bluff Drive, Petit Jean State Park, November 18, 2007 (Pentax K10D)

Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the early 1930s, this beautiful stone overlook is perched on the rim of Cedar Creek Canyon. The Petit Jean River can be seen to the west. Black and turkey vultures frequent the windy bluffs and roost on the sheer canyon walls below. (What to see at Petit Jean – Mountaintop Motor Tour; Arkansas State Park brochure)

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 #90

Claret Cup Cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus), Natural Bridge National Monument, Utah, September 29, 2011 (Pentax K-r)

Echinocereus triglochidiatus (Wikipedia)

Echinocereus triglochidiatus is a species of hedgehog cactus known by several common names, including kingcup cactus, claretcup, and Mojave mound cactus. This cactus is native to the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, where it is a resident of varied habitats from low desert to rocky slopes, scrub, and mountain woodland. It is most abundant in shady areas.

There are a number of varieties of this highly variable cactus species, but not all are universally recognized. In general it is a mounding cactus, forming bulbous piles of few to hundreds of spherical to cylindrical stems. It is densely spiny and somewhat woolly. The showy flower is a funnel shaped bloom up to 8 or 9 centimeters wide and bright scarlet red to orange-red tepals. There is a thick nectar chamber and many thready pink stamens at the center of the corolla. The flowers are pollinated by hummingbirds.

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 #88 – 2

Even though we are not in the deep, deep south, summer sometimes seems to arrive too early.  It was just a few weeks ago that trees were bare of leaves and, now, the leaves are fully formed with the colors moving from springtime freshness toward the deep green of summer.

And we’re already getting temperatures in the 90s.  The droning buzz of cicadas can’t be far away.

Summer temperatures in early May, west-central Arkansas, May 9, 2018 (Apple iPhone 6s)

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 #89

Campground, Lake Fort Smith State Park, Arkansas, October 23, 2008 (Pentax K10D)

The State Park that Moved

Located in a wooded valley in the Boston Mountains of the Arkansas Ozarks, the 260 acre Lake Fort Smith State Park reopened May 21, 2008 four miles north of its original location, which was closed in early January, 2002, as a park reborn. With totally new facilities, the park has 30 camp sites, 10 cabins, a group lodging facility, picnic sites, a pavilion, marina with rental boats, a double lane boat ramp, a swimming pool, playground, and an 8,000 square foot visitor center with exhibit gallery, gift shop, a meeting/class room, a patio with an outdoor wood burning fireplace, and a great view of the lake and mountains.  Activities for visitors include camping, fishing, kayaking, canoeing, backpacking, boating, hiking and mountain biking.  The park borders lands of the Ozark National Forest.

The park has 30 camp sites.  Twenty have 50 amp electrical service, water and sewer hookup.  Ten have 30 amp electrical service and water.  All sites have a woods view. Hot showers in a heated bathhouse provide year-round convenience. Two sites are barrier-free.

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 #88

Sunflowers, in Autumn, Wetherill Mesa; Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado, September 27, 2015 (Pentax K-3 II)

Mesa Verde’s Wetherill Mesa is a remote, day-use only area that less than 10% of the park’s visitors ventures to.  Past the parking lot at the end of 11-mile-long Wetherill Mesa Road, the mesa is only open to hiking and, on the 5-mile paved Long House Loop and marked trails, bicycles. The mesa is open from April 30 (or when road conditions permit) to October 31 (or when closed by weather/road conditions).

Mostly open except for the shelters built over archeological sites, Wetherill Mesa trails pass through areas heavily burned by the 2000 fire, with skeleton remnants of Utah juniper and Colorado pinion pine still standing.  “Over 640 species of plants occur in Mesa Verde National Park. These include approximately 556 species of vascular plants, 75 species of fungi, 21 species of moss, and 151 species of lichen.” (National Park Service)

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 #21 |

Jucy rental RV, Bryce, Utah, at Bryce Canyon Auto Care, October 8, 2015 (Apple iPhone 5)

JUCY

JUCY, a tourism company founded in New Zealand in 2003, is primarily a car and campervan hire business. In 2012, JUCY opened offices in the United States, initially offering larger motorhomes for hire. In 2015, JUCY offered 200 campervans for hire across the West Coast of United States in three locations; Los Angeles, San Francisco & Las Vegas. In 2016, JUCY had more than 4000 rental cars and campervans across 16 branches in New Zealand, Australia and USA.^1,2

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. Jucy Group Limited – Wikipedia
3. JUCY RV Rentals

Exit78 Photo of the Day #87

Devils Tower from Devils Tower / Black Hills KOA, which abuts the National Monument, Wyoming, August 29, 2007 (Pentax K10D)

Of all the KOAs (Kampground of America) that we’ve stayed at, the KOA just outside the entrance to Devils Tower National Monument has one of the very best locations. All campsites have a view of Devils Tower.

Devils Tower / Black Hills KOA (from their webpage):

Devils Tower National Monument, named a “top 10 ecotourism destination,” is America’s first national monument. The monument was established in 1906 by Teddy Roosevelt. Nestled on the banks of the Belle Fourche River in the beautiful Black Hills of Wyoming, this KOA campground lies in the shadow of Devils Tower. Enjoy the nightly hayride through the historic Campstool Ranch, one of the oldest ranches in Wyoming. The movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind was filmed on-site in 1976, and it is shown nightly at the campground. This KOA offers a full-service restaurant, an extensive gift shop and a Sweet Shoppe that features legendary fudge and hand-dipped ice cream.

[It’s Devils not Devil’s….. In the United States, possessive apostrophes are only used for 5 officially recognized locations. Place names are controlled by the Domestic Names Committee of the U.S. Board on Geographic Names.  The committee argues that an apostrophe implies private ownership of a public place. The United States is the only country with such a policy, but the rule has been reaffirmed five times. (Futility Closet)]

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.