2016 Year In Review (Ron)

2016 was an eventful year for Sarah and I. We bought land in southwest Colorado in the heart of the San Juan Mountains and will shortly be building a house on it, sold our house in Denver, and moved full time into our Airstream trailer. During that time we went over 5 months (!) without taking a single photo, by far the longest stretch since we've been photographing.

Despite the "Lost Summer" we were able to get a decent amount of photography in during the rest of the year.  We started the year in Death Valley, moved to the Sonoran Desert in Arizona, and then went up to Nevada and Utah during spring. After summer we spent 10 days in Iceland leading a workshop, a few weeks in the San Juan Mountains and south Utah photographing fall colors, and then spent some time along the Oregon Coast in November.

All photos I have processed from this year can be viewed on my 2016 Portfolio page, including:

• Death Valley Winter
• Southwest Spring
• Iceland Autumn
• Colorado Autumn
• Southwest Autumn
• Autumn Monochrome
• Pacific Northwest Winter

Finally, I have collected a few of my favorite photos of 2016, some of which I will include below with brief captions. You may also be interested in the 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015 versions of this post.

Desert Gold. One of the highlights this year was the wildflower bloom at Death Valley National Park. This photo fails to convey how wonderful it smelled out here!

So That Happened. The other major highlight at Death Valley National Park this year was all the rain which flooded Badwater. This particular sunrise came out of nowhere, it was completely clear about an hour before.

Wind Rain Sand. This photo was taken the sunrise after a day of almost constant rain (not that common in Death Valley), the winds were blowing 35-50mph - creating a unique mix of rain patterns and blowing sand.

Wavy Ibex. Ibex Dunes may be my favorite in Death Valley, we were treated to some stormy light at sunset.

Beach Bubbles! Photographing these foam bubbles on Cannon Beach was quite the challenge, they would move quickly and then burst and evaporate. I was lucky to get a few sharp photos highlighting the iridescent foam.

Stormy Cannon Beach. The Pacific Northwest coast in late fall and winter is beautiful - there are often breaking storms in between the relentless rain which we were lucky to catch on this particular sunset along with some washed up foam and a well timed gull.

Mossorama. Winter trees in the forests along the Pacific Northwest coast are beautiful, especially the mossy trees with a little backlight highlighting the shapes and forms of the trees.

Shuffleboard. Mud patterns in Death Valley (reminding me of a shuffleboard table) and an approaching storm that would dump about an inch of rain later that day.

Organ Pipe Frames. Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument has some of the most pristine Sonoran Desert scenery in the United States and is the only place in the US with the namesake Organ Pipe cactus.

Colorful Blurries. Multicolored aspen leaves photographed against a colorful blurred out background. Aspen leaves in fall can be all sorts of colors, not just the common yellow and gold.

Organ Pipe Fuzzies. Backlit Saguaro and red-fringed Organ Pipe cactus. The Sonoran Desert is called the green desert for a reason!

Ocean Motion. A nice sunset on the famous beach in Vik, Iceland

Classic Zion. The famous Watchman framed by colorful autumn Cottownwood trees and surrounded by lush desert vegetation. 

Last Leaves. Bare aspens in front of the last autumn foliage of the year.

Saguaro Forest. Saguaro, cholla, and green octotillo frame a hillside in the Sonoran Desert in Arizona.

In Celebration of America’s Best Idea

"The national park idea has been nurtured by each succeeding generation of Americans. Today, across our land, the National Park System represents America at its best. Each park contributes to a deeper understanding of the history of the United States and our way of life; of the natural processes which have given form to our land, and to the enrichment of the environment in which we live." - George B. Hartzog, Jr., NPS Director, 1964-1972

In my early twenties, I took my first real hike – a backpacking trip on the Tonahutu Creek Trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. Before that experience, I had not spent much time outdoors and was completely unprepared for the trip. My hiking boots were too small. I wore cotton socks, which combined with the problematic boots, encouraged painful, bleeding blisters to form on both of my feet. I brought along a completely inadequate sleeping bag, with no sleeping pad. In the summer, this choice might have been fine but in mid-October, it meant spending two nights as cold as I have ever been. In all, it was kind of a miserable experience. 

Despite the misery, the magic of being deep in nature, miles away from the closest road, proved transformative. Experiences like seeing a moose and its baby in grassy meadow, standing on the brink of a thundering waterfall with no one else around, and sharing the company of good friends around a late-night campfire made up for all of my ill-preparation. On this trip, I experienced the healing and inspiring power of nature for the first time and thus started down the path that eventually lead me to landscape and nature photography.

For me, you, and millions of other people, the creation of the National Parks Service has made it possible to experience these moments of awe, wonder, inspiration, relaxation, contemplation, and healing and connect to our nation’s history in meaningful ways. Without the National Parks Service and the acts of preservation that came before it, the most special places in the United States could have been commercialized for private profit rather than protected for the enjoyment of generations of Americans. 

Today, August 25, 2016, is the 100th anniversary of the founding of the National Parks Service and we offer this sampling of photos from some of our favorite national parks in celebration of America’s best idea and the impact that this essential act of preservation and protection has had on our special places. 

Death Valley National Park, California. (c) Ron Coscorrosa.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

White Sands National Monument, New Mexico. (c) Sarah Marino

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

Redwoods National and State Park, California. (c) Sarah Marino

Crater Lake National Park, Oregon. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

Death Valley National Park, California. (c) Sarah Marino

Zion National Park, Utah. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

Badlands National Park, South Dakota. (c) Sarah Marino

Olympic National Park, Washington. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

Yosemite National Park, California. (c) Sarah Marino

Mount Rainier National Park, Washington. (c) Ron Coscorrosa

An essential part of the National Park Service’s mission is protecting land with natural and cultural importance for future generations. Thus, we all have the responsibility to help protect and preserve this important legacy. Here are three things you can do to help protect these “crown jewels” of the United States and reduce your impact: 

• Follow the Rules. A new story about bad behavior in our national parks comes out almost every day. With people regularly doing things like walking on geothermal features, getting far too close to wildlife, illegally using drones, and vandalizing priceless natural and cultural treasures, NPS resources are stretched. Take these figures shared by The Denver Post: citations within the National Parks system were up 19% from 2014 to 2015 and search and rescue operations were up 67% - all in a single year. We can all help the NPS and protect important natural resources by following established rules. And, if you are a photography workshop leader, we encourage you to serve as a good role model and help educate your students about both this point and the next one.  

• Practice Leave No Trace principles. With visitation to NPS sites at an all-time high, it is even more important for all of us to be good stewards of the places we visit. A simple way to reduce your personal impact in learning about and practicing Leave No Trace principles. You can find a longer post on this topic here. 

• Vote. At least for us, the preservation, protection, and adequate funding of public lands is one of our biggest priorities when voting for local, state and federal officials. If these things are a priority for you as well, check in with your local and national conservation organizations to see how politicians in your community view the protection of public lands before you cast your votes this November.  

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