Another weekend another mountain..

This weekend we went on an amazing hike with friends to Mount Hamilton area. We climbed 1600 feet and did 7+ miles of some pretty steep hikes in Joseph D. Grant county park. Part of the park had fires and while it was all out, we could see the burnt trees and get some of the smell in the air. 

It was an amazing hike. It had rained all last night and this morning and the colors were vibrant. There was a part on our way back where the fog rolled in and we had very poor visibility, but it was okay because we were in a group. 

Once we descended below the fog, we were treated to amazing views of the lake and a spectacular sunset.. 

It took us a good 45 minutes to drive to the parking lot and three hours to do the trails. Some parts are so steep that you pretty much have to run down in as controlled a fashion as possible! 

There is Mount Hamilton in the background..

Happy to be in fresh air among friends..

was wearing the mask when anyone was within eyesight.. for the most part the entire area was empty. We saw a total of 8 people over that 3 hour period...  after some point was just wearing the mask like an armband just to huff and puff my way up the slopes.

The scenery was breathtaking.. 

be it sunny..

overcast..

or foggy..

I also got a close up picture of this little guy who we almost stepped on..

A short video clip from the afternoons hike..

When the sun started setting we were treated to some amazing colors..

amazing views of the lake as we walked down towards it 

The last few pictures were taken from the park entrance/exit..

The fog was amazing to watch, as long as we were below it! 

Our friends treated us to some vadais, hot chai and cookies etc. 

after they were all safely tucked away into the tummy, we drove back to what was an amazing sunset..

got these from the moving car..

There was no room to park and take pictures on this one lane windy road that got us back down to the valley.. 

It was surreal with all the hues being reflected everywhere! 

Something tells me we will be going here again and spending more time in this park. Strongly recommend a hike here if you have at least a 4-5 hour window. Go there by noon (if you are going in December!) so you are back down before the fog rolls in..

A belated birthday present

The family co-operated as planned on the birthday present.. a family portrait.

The idea was to wear something we all have.. flannel shirts and blue jeans..

This was the first family portrait since Jr.'s graduation..

That middle aged man in the picture is happy for that moment. 

got this pic of Jr. as she was switching sides while doing the test shots.. she is always my test subject. 

We have another month to put enough fat on her and send her back to the midwest winter..

That that parent, that that worry! 

Hope all of you are having a safe and happy thanksgiving!

Trying to get the focus right

One of the biggest challenges I had trying to get photos of the comet was to try and focus on the stars. It is tricky business when you are fumbling in the dark trying to see how infinity is infinity focus..when the lens ring just keeps spinning. 

when you are taking shots with 10 second to 30 second exposures, it is all the more painful.. you don't know how it will turn out after what seems to be an eternal wait time. Then you have to zoom into the pic on the display to see if the stars looks like sharp points or blurred bokeh's.

It took me 70 tries to get the hang of it.. to the point where we were at Skyline ridge for 20 minutes and I got zero shots.. then we go to a friends backyard and got better shots.. 

even had a few airplanes fly by to give the comet some context. 

I should practice more.. start clicking pictures in dark conditions from my own backyard and then try it on things like comets.. 

The practice has begun.. somewhere in this cosmic mess, Neowise is there as seen from our backyard..

or maybe it is just blocked by that tree..one more day to practice "finding the comet" today. Apparently it stops being visible starting tomorrow night. 

This thing was fun. Got pictures of it on three different nights. 

The best part ?

For a guy who gets lost in his own house or work or local roads, the abilty to use the big dipper and precisely point to the comet even though it is not visible to the naked eye...

that was something! Family was impressed. now they might expect me to "not get lost" when we start driving again.. that is a tough ask. 

Comet sighting

The Neowise comet is the "star of the show" ironic as it may be.. 

We have a neighbor who has a decent telescope. So for starters he helped me find the general direction of the comet. Given the clouds and the fact that we are not at some skyline on a hill top viewing this, the general strategy was to zoom out , set a 4 second aquisition time and see if the comet is in the frame..

Then zero in on it and play with settings.

Finally have someone show an iphone flash on you for a split second to illuminate foreground during a 4 second shot where you hold your breath as much as possible.. That is where the yoga helps. 

as an added bonus got Jupiter from the front yard.. they are almost in exactly opposite directions.. you can clearly see at least 4 moons of Jupiter (used the 70-200 mm lens with a 2x extender set to 400mm.. the trick I learned was that if you set the focus ring at infinity it doesnt work.. you have to focus on Jupiter.. easier to do than a dull comet which you really have to hunt in cloudy conditions). 

Hoping to find a view point just post sunset locally here to get a decent shot of this in next two or three days. 

Tamil New year - a delayed photo op

My mom got me a few shirts and pants to wear for this years occasions on my last India trip in December. This year we were not exactly in celebratory mood for Tamil New Year two weeks ago. 

We had just finished 30 days under lockdown and were at the stage where everyone was ready to kill each other within the house. The good news is we are all doing okay and are all healthy. 

I have been pushing the family to come for a photoshoot to get a family picture and tonight they obliged.. it was not possible to make everyone dress up as some folks expect me to be happy for them even showing up for the picture. 

We did have some good eats on April 14th to celebrate but we were in stay-at-home clothing.

Here is last years photo..

and this years photo..

and another photo to remember this time and this year..

Next year Jr. will be in college and given Tamil New Year falls on April 14th, chances are she will not be visiting.. it might be a good  8 years before we see the family in one place for this. . . which is why I was pushing for these pictures in the first place!

This year started in quarantine and has set the bar very low for any year in our lifetime. We sincerely hope that things will get better and we get back to at least 50% of our routines.

Given my grumpiness and the actual day being spent in back to back zoom meetings and calls...

I wish you all a better year! 

Hope by next April we are all back to normal!