Loess Hills Day 2 Waubonsie State Park

 

Sunrise on the morning of Saturday, November 7, 2020 from our cabin in Arrowhead County Park, just southeast of Neola, Iowa in Pottawattamie County. A start to the day planned for a visit to Waubonsie State Park, located in the extreme southwest corner of Iowa. The above image was captured at 7:19 am CST, and is a 1/125 second capture at f/10, ISO 125, 18mm focal length.

Similar capture at 7:21 am. 1/500 exposure at f/10, ISO 125, 55mm focal length.

11:04 am. Ridge trail scene within the 1,247-acre Waubonsie State Park (40°40'48.09"N,  95°40'54.15"W) in Fremont County, Iowa. The park, located on the southern tip of the Loess Hills, afforded gorgeous open vistas and high wooded foot trails. Conditions and temperatures were ideal for this time of the year: sunny, with highs in the upper 70s F.

Similar view.

Panoramic view, showing the high contrasts of hills and open plains to the west.

Open trail along the ridge, with distant flat plains seen at upper right. 

Trail scene. The blues of the sky contrasted nicely with the greens, browns and yellows of the landscape. I was impressed by the open sky vistas and high hill perspectives so much that it is my opinion these particular qualities are unsurpassed in any other state park in Iowa.

3:38 pm. Final stop of the day before returning to our cabin. Panoramic view looking west from the Lewis & Clark Memorial (41°18'12.26"N,  95°51'30.27"W) in Lewis & Clark Park, just north of Council Bluffs, Iowa. Interstate 29, the Missouri River, and Omaha, Nebraska can be seen in the distance. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Loess Is More--Let's Get Fired Up!

 The Loess (Pronounced "Luss") Hills of western Iowa was our travel destination for the weekend of November 6-8, 2020. The hills are composed of fine particles of wind blown silt, known as loess, created as the glaciers retreated from the last Ice Age. Today, the 650,000-acre Loess Hills landscape rises 200 feet above the Missouri River valley and is recognized for its unusually deep deposits of loess. The only two places in the world where loess has formed in such significant heights is here, and in the Shaanxi province of China. Our Day One destination was The Hitchcock Nature Center ( 41°24'48.42"N,  95°51'31.72"W) located in Pottawattamie County, Iowa. As we approached the area, we noticed large palls of smoke rising in the distance. This in fact was a controlled (or prescribed) burn, conducted here once or twice a year to remove unwanted species that threaten the native prairie ecosystem. Hiking on the network of trails in the 1,268 acre grounds was still allowed during the burns. Above, smoke rises in the distance at 3:07 pm CST, Friday, November 6, 2020, seen from an observation area of the facility.

Another capture seen from the observation area of the facility.

Smoke rises from a charred hillside as seen from the Badger Ridge Trail. The classic Loess Hills landscape can be seen in the background.

Smoke mixed with sun created these shafts of sunlight along the trail.

4:06 pm. More ridge trail scenery.

4:36 pm. Panoramic scene view from atop the facility's 45-foot tall ("HawkWatch") observation tower. The setting sun is now just above the tree line. In the distant background at left is the city of Omaha, Nebraska.

 

4:40, 4:43 pm. Similar scenes from the tower (shown above and below).

The smoke was taxing to our lungs and made our clothes reek, but the unique visual opportunity provided by this burn event was definitely a case of being in the right place at the right time. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Chilly Penumbral Beaver Moon Eclipse

 The "beaver" moon is shown at 3:42 am CST, Monday, November 30, 2020, at the moment of maximum  penumbral eclipse. A penumbral (partial) eclipse occurs when the Sun, Earth and the moon are imperfectly aligned and the Earth's shadow covers only a portion of the moon. A beaver moon is defined as a full moon occurring in the month of November. The image above was captured from the back deck of our home in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It is a 1/640 second exposure at f/9, ISO 400, 300mm focal length. The edge of the Earth's shadow can be seen at the upper right of the moon. I did not remain outside shooting the moon for long, as the air temperature was 25 degrees F, with 15-20 mph wind gusts! Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Night Skies in Loess Hills

A recent weekend visit to the Loess Hills in western Iowa provided clear and vibrant skies. The following three images were captured from our cabin in Arrowhead Park, just southeast of Neola, Iowa in Pottawattamie County. The above capture looks ENE at 6:57 pm CST on Friday, November 6, 2020. Air temperatures were mild--in the upper 50s. At center, above the horizon is the prominent star cluster Pleiades. The bright star to the left--just right of the large pine tree is 0.06 magnitude Capella in the constellation Auriga. 13 second exposure at f/2.8, ISO 800, 13mm focal length.

8:06 pm. The Milky Way stretches above our cabin (41°26'10.73"N,  95°35'27.28"W) in the northeast sky. The star Capella can be seen just above the peak of the roof. Also prominent is the Andromeda Galaxy, visible at upper right. 15 second exposure at f/2.8, ISO 3200, 12mm focal length.

8:14 pm. Similar view, with the Milky Way, Capella, Pleiades and Andromeda all visible. 15 second exposure at f/2.8, ISO 4000, 12mm focal length. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Wild About Wildcat Den

My wife and I decided to travel to Wildcat Den State Park on Saturday, October 30, 2020 for some hiking and photography opportunities. Wildcat Den State Park is located in Muscatine County in Iowa, roughly between the cities of Muscatine and Davenport. Despite the forecast of an ideal crisp sunny day, we were somewhat worried that fall foliage there might be well past its prime. Our fears were alleviated as the hard maples in the park still clung to their yellows and oranges among the rock faces and cliffs. Above is a view of Devil's Alley, part of Steamboat Rock.

Fall foliage contrasted beautifully with the many heralded rock faces that make Wildcat Den a special place.

Blue sky with yellow and orange foliage mix for this classic autumn image.

One of the many trails in the park, with this one skirting an open prairie field. The image above includes a bald eagle in flight (upper right).

Autumn scene near Devil's Punch Bowl.

Panoramic scene.

Picturesque view of Pine Creek Grist Mill, a popular attraction at Wildcat Den State Park. Note the reflective qualities of the creek water.

Iron bridge at Pine Creek Grist Mill, with a very colorful fall backdrop.

Another panoramic trail image.

Trail image with the sky now a little clouded-over.

Just outside the park to the north is the Old Stone Church, which sits on a small hill. This view looks south from the church in the direction of the park. In the foreground is 180th Street, in the background Verde Avenue. Only known to us since last summer, Wildcat Den State Park in my opinion features the best rock faces and cliffs of any other state park in Iowa. A pleasant discovery! Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Once-In-A-Blue Moon Halloween Treat

Happy Halloween! A second full moon of the month fell on Halloween night on October 31, 2020--a "Blue Moon." In the image above, the moon rises out of clouds and tree branches (and is that a witch flying across its face??)... Image is a blend of the moon and background, and was captured from Bowman Woods Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa at 6:48 pm CDT. Air temperature was a mild 59 degrees F. The moon is a 1/200 second exposure at f/5.6, ISO 640 and 300mm focal length; the background a 0.5 second exposure at f/5.6, ISO 500 and 300mm focal length. 

Blue Moon. 6:53 pm. 1/200 second exposure at f/5.6, ISO 640, 300mm focal length. Blue Moons on Halloween are a rarity: the previous Blue Moon on Halloween occurred in 1944 and the next one won't happen again until 2039! 

For good measure, let's throw in the eerie Red Planet Mars on Halloween evening too. This image also looks east from Bowman Woods Park and was captured earlier at 6:36 pm. Mars shone brightly at magnitude -2.14. 1.6 second exposure at f/4, ISO 320, 70mm focal length. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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Derecho Fodder Aflame

The following images show an immense pile of tree debris, cut and gathered from the August 10, 2020 derecho storm, set alight on Saturday afternoon, October 24, 2020. The bonfire was located in rural Shueyville, Iowa. The anticipated huge rush of flames did not materialize, probably because of recent rains and the fact that these were live trees when they were destroyed by the storm. Nikon D7200 DSLR camera.

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