skʷkʷec spqniʔ

skʷkʷec spqniʔ.

Shoot the Moon

Over the years, I have gotten some pretty amazing photographs of the moon. Unfortunately, the lunar eclipsed posed some unique challenges. For one, the relative scarcity of eclipse conditions meant that I could not really rehearse the photo settings in advance. It was surprisingly difficult to get a focused shot of the moon under such dark conditions. As it turned out, the coloring of this shot was beautiful, but I was disappointed with the lack of clarity. 

We're supposed to witness another lunar eclipse next year. I guess now is the time to start researching the best method for getting clear shots of the moon during an eclipse.  

Blood Moon

Before I went to sleep yesterday evening, I made up my mind to get out of bed early enough to witness the blood red moon. I set my alarm for 4:00 am and went to sleep. When the alarm sounded, I dressed quickly to go outside, and immediately I was surprised by the utter depth of darkness - the near complete absence of light. For a moment, I stumbled to find my footing, but I looked up and saw the moon veiled in red, surrounded by an infinite number of stars. Just then, a meteor streaked overhead, and for one brief instant, the meteor was the brightest object in the sky. 

The blood moon was magical and awe-inspiring. I'm so glad we got to see one another. 

Moonrise

The moonrise over the ancient basalt

near Coulee City, Washington.

The Sun and Moon

Over the years I have purchased so many SD cards that I sometimes take pictures and then forget about them. Sometimes I won't find them until weeks or months later. Such was the case with these pictures. I don't even remember when I took them - I suppose it was close to the so-called super moon from a while back.   

There is an old abandoned farm house on the road to Wellpinit. I have traveled that road my whole life, but I don't actually know the street names. I think this is at the crossing of Four Mounds Road and Long Lake Road, but I'm not sure. The names actually change from time to time. 

The sun reminded me of an eye. 

A little farther along the same route, the road turns into Devil's Gap. This picture was taken near the potato farm at Devil's Gap, looking up toward the cliff.  

This picture was taken the night before the "super moon." To be honest, I don't even know what that means. The moon didn't really look any different, but people were calling it a super moon. 

skʷkʷec sp'qniʔ

skʷkʷec sp'qniʔ

Supermoon

Some time over the last few weeks, I heard news of a so-called 'supermoon' that would appear 10-15% larger than normal. They said the moon's orbit is not perfectly round, but instead follows an elliptical course about the earth, meaning that the distance between the earth and the moon actually changes from time to time. Every so often, the moon approaches and even exerts a stronger influence on the ocean tides.

After hearing the news report, I forgot about the supermoon, that is until my wife and I went to a movie on Saturday night and saw the moon rising behind a thin layer of clouds in the eastern sky. We had just parked our car on the upper level of the mall when we saw the moon and remembered. It really did appear larger than normal. But unlike some of the incredible pictures I found online, there was no Taj Mahal or striking mountain vista to frame my photograph of the moon; only a few neon signs on the side of a concrete wall and a tangle of power lines and street lamps. But despite the urban distraction, I cannot help but feel inspired.

The moon rises above it all.

Winter Moon

I came home from work tonight and saw a fresh covering of snow on my street. Meanwhile, the moon cast a cold blue glow as the end of winter clings to the land.

The Moon

No, I did not see the lunar eclipse. In fact, I was feeling just a little disappointed that I missed it. They say the lunar eclipse has not aligned with the winter solstice in over 400 years, but that night the clouds formed a solid wall of gray over the Spokane sky. Oh well, I suppose I can wait a few centuries more.

By the way, I took this photograph a few weeks ago. I kind of like the way my camera captured the lunar craters, especially near the southern pole.

Sky People

The moon and Venus stood together in the early evening sky, just after sunset. They looked down upon us and offered their blessing as we entered the lodge. In turn, we offered up our respect and thanked the Sky People for their wisdom and protection.

The two elders raced over the horizon, and sadly, we will not see them together again for many years to come.