May 2022

To Build a Fire
Little Utah, Montana
2022

Rock Continent
Little Utah, Montana
2022

Bare Tree #86
Little Utah, Montana
2022

The twists and turns of this juniper tell the story of it’s growth and demise, if only we knew how to interpret them.

The Solitary View
Little Utah, Montana
2022

It’s a tough life for a tree up there on that rock, but the view is spectacular.

A Perfect Day #3
Little Utah, Montana
2022

A Perfect Day #2
Little Utah, Montana
2022

You might have wondered where Little Utah, Montana is so tried to Google it to find out. You didn’t find anything about the area or canyon I was in because it’s not called that. One of the best things about my visit there was the solitude so I did not want to contribute to ending that possibility by publishing the location. I’ve seen too many places ruined by the attention they get. This canyon is not unknown to the world and receives it’s small share of visitors each year. Small is the keyword and I’d like to keep it that way. So I called it Little Utah after the country it reminds me of.

A Perfect Day
Little Utah, Montana
2022

If you asked me how I would describe a perfect day, I’d likely be hard pressed to come up with a definition. It’s one of those “I’ll know it when I see it” kind of things. And many different kinds of days could qualify as such for various disparate reasons. However, the day I took this photo was in fact one of those perfect days. Perfect weather after days of dreary, raining, snowy weather in Bozeman. Pure blue skies with puffy white clouds floating by. On top of that I was driving in the Montana back county and did not see another vehicle all day. And then the canyon I was headed to turned out to be a small version of a classic southwest canyon, only it was in Montana and I did not have to drive nearly as far as Utah to experience it. The canyon has junipers and little sand dunes the color of Utah sandstone with the accompanying rock hoodoos all around. To top it off I hiked the canyon and had fun photographing. Returning to the van I camped there overnight and again saw no one all night or the day until I drove out to the highway.

Today in Bozeman it’s snowing, again! But that’s o.k. too because it’s perfectly good weather to stave off the summer fire season which always seems to be excessive and long anymore.

Cottonwoods in Black and White #3
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Montana
2022

The inverse skunk tree.

Cottonwoods in Black and White #2
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Montana
2022

It was a very easy decision to photograph these burned trees in black and white, as they were in fact just that.

Cottonwoods in Black and While #1
Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area, Montana
2022

I’ve driven by this grove of burned cottonwood trees many times over the last few years. My eyes are attracted to them every time but it was only on my most recent trip there that I took the time to photograph them. It was easy enough to do this time as I was camped right next to them.