I recently returned to Arizona, after spending the entire summer in northern Nevada. My first stop on my way south was in the newly designated Basin and Range National Monument in southern Nevada. I spent the first night at a little campground on the Pahranagat National Wildlife Refuge, which comprises a series of wetlands near […]
Seeking quiet in eastern Nevada Read More »
I love the transition in sounds as day fades into dusk and then evening, especially in late summer when the chorus of crickets and tree crickets creates a repetitious and soothing melody. I find recording at this time of day challenging, though, as man-made sounds, particularly vehicle traffic, are still quite loud. The early evening
Night falls on the Carson River Read More »
This summer has been a tough one for recording. With much of the mountainous west either on fire, freshly blackened from a fire, or waiting to burn, camping out in the mountains while hoping for something to record is a scary proposition. I’ve spent most of my time sequestered away from the heat working on
One marsh, many voices Read More »
It was one of those glorious days in the fall, when the sun is bright but not hot, and a light breeze makes the golden aspen leaves shimmer. The kind of day that just makes you feel glad to be alive. It was on one of those glorious days, one of a string of similar
Fall afternoon on the Tahoe Rim Trail Read More »
Wildlife refuges are some of my favorite places. Little pockets of wild that provide critical habitat, they are usually great places to see and hear wildlife. On my frequent trips to northern Nevada, I try to get to Stillwater National Wildlife Refuge near Fallon on each visit. Stillwater is part of a complex of refuges
Beneath Still Waters Read More »
On my June road trip from southern Arizona to northern Nevada, I made a stop just southwest of Ely, Nevada. Ely is surrounded by interesting mountain ranges, such as the Egan, Schell Creek, and Snake Ranges, some of which I’ve written about in previous posts. On this trip I picked the White Pine Range to
Wild horses in the Great Basin Read More »
September 2014 marked the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Wilderness Act, which has helped protect more than 100 million acres (about 5% of the total acreage of the United States) from human development. Passage of the Act was a hard-fought battle, taking 8 years and many, many revisions. It has been amended numerous
The Sounds of Wilderness Read More »
Soundscapes are constantly changing, from moment to moment, season to season. In the temperate zones, winters are much quieter than summers, as many of the birds have disappeared to their wintering areas and the insects have stopped singing. The leaves of the deciduous trees have fallen off, quieting the ever-present rustling that we don’t even
On my recent trip to Nevada, I spent a few quiet mornings along the Carson River, just outside of Carson City. The river was pretty low for this time of year, reflecting the low snowfall in the Sierras last winter. But during the hot spell that hit the area in July, the mornings on the
Lazy morning on the Carson River Read More »
I discovered another of Nevada’s hidden gems recently. In early July, I traveled from southern Arizona to northern Nevada, dodging wildfires and thunderstorms, and ended up in a lovely little canyon in the Toquima Range. Not far from the geographical center of Nevada, Pine Creek Campground is a gateway to the 11,000 foot crest of
River speech is a concatenation of murmurs and burbles, hisses and humming, snarls, chokes, whispered asides, and violent coughs. The voice of mountain water is always many voices, blended like the roar of the crowd, and although even before you think about it you know you can never tease those myriad elements apart, you keen
The dead-end river Read More »
The effects of the atmosphere on sound transmission can be quite profound. I found this out recently when I was recording along the Carson River, near Carson City, NV. I first set up my recorder along the river on December 28, 2012. It was lightly overcast, the temperature was in the mid-20s, and the ground
Bouncing off the sky Read More »
