In March of this year, I headed south to the desert to do some sound recording. More accurately, I visited three deserts—the Great Basin, Mojave, and Colorado. It was the second week of March, a little early for much bird activity, but I still came home with some good recordings and a welcome break from
At the edge of spring: listening across three deserts Read More »
After I left Canada, I headed back to the Little Rockies in Montana, where another breezy night kept me from getting any good recordings. Then I explored the northern end of the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming, where the campgrounds were just opening. I found a nice, dispersed area and pulled into a campsite some distance
Thunderstorms and pikas – exploring the Wyoming Range Read More »
After my recording trip to Red Rock Lakes, I headed east, across Yellowstone, to the Pryor Mountains. The plan was to meet Lang Elliott at the Pryor Ice Cave and try recording inside the cave. The plan was thwarted by a muddy road, with foot-deep ruts, which was too much for my small SUV to
Prairie – at last! Read More »
After being gob smacked by the beauty of the Wallowa Mountains, but disappointed in the opportunities for sound recording, it was time to head south. My first stop was in the Blue Mountains, west of La Grande. The rugged peaks of the Wallowas smoothed into rounded pine-covered mountains surrounding meadows and small streams. I found
Exploring northeastern Oregon, Part 2 Read More »
A quick trip to Lassen Volcanic National Park to see the impact of the Dixie Fire reveals some new sounds of the changing forest.
Dead Trees Talking Read More »
Like most summers, this year I took a trip in late June/early July, ostensibly to save Shadow from the horrors of 4th of July fireworks. And once again, I found myself on border between northern California, northern Nevada, and southern Oregon. It was a good trip, with a few breezes, but overall good weather, no
On our recording trip this last spring, Lang Elliott and I stopped by a beautiful area of Sonoran Desert, east of Roosevelt Lake, known as Cherry Creek. I’d never heard of it before but was instantly struck by its rugged beauty. Cherry Creek, and nearby Coon Creek, are lovely drainages with rich riparian areas lined
Timings and transitions Read More »
I recently returned from a 7-week sound recording expedition to the southwest U.S. From Carson City, to southern California, southern Arizona, southern Texas, western New Mexico, central and southern Arizona, a quick trip to Albuquerque to see friends, back to Arizona, and finally home through Utah and central Nevada. Almost 7,500 miles, and almost all
A few weeks ago, just as winter was finally arriving in northern Nevada, the dog and I headed to southern California to do some recording in the Mojave Desert. I expected to find spring on its way out, with birds frantically bringing food to their youngsters. But the weird winter we had out west threw
Spring in the Mojave Desert Read More »
The Great Basin is a rough, corrugated landscape of rugged mountain ranges separated by desert flats. Although each one differs a bit, most of the valley bottoms are decorated with bursage, big sage, and salt flats. When the glaciers melted at the end of the Pleistocene, these basin were filled with large lakes, primarily Lake
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 »
It’s a sad irony that one of our most important senses, hearing, is so taken for granted. So much information about the world around us comes in through our ears, but we place such precedence on what comes through our eyes. We are very visual creatures, granted, with an ability to see color and detail,
“What are you going to do with those recordings?” Read More »
