Although recent heavy rains have taken their toll on the fall colored foliage, these trees lining Shasta View Drive in Redding still look nice on a brisk autumn day in 2024.
The autumn view on Shasta View Drive
A brief timelapse of Castle Crags
Timelapse sunrise over Redding CA 4/12/2024 – 5 seconds long.
Did this TL yesterday. Turned out nice.
While 5 seconds may be my attention span lately, bear in mind that this took a lot longer to shoot and edit. I shot a frame every 10 seconds and you see it here at 24 frames per second. So, roughly 128 shots taken over 20 minutes or so. Took about an hour to edit it to what you see here. Makes you appreciate those really long timelapses you see some artists do.
Sunset over the Sacramento River at the Sundial Bridge
Good morning from the Sacramento River at the Diestlehorst Bridge
3 Shastas early March 2024
Redding’s Garden of Lights 2023
A quick aerial overview of Redding’s Garden of Lights from 2023. Music excerpt “Live illusions” by Craig Padilla and Skip Murphy from the CD “Analog Destination,” recorded in Redding California in 2008, courtesy of of Groove Unlimited NL. Thank you again this year, Redding! #thisisredding, #gardenoflights, #craigpadilla
Where can you see the real night sky near Redding?
Light pollution. That sounds ugly, but that’s what it is. For many places on the modern earth, the night sky is not filled with stars. Fortunately, nearby to Redding you can see the Milky Way and other wonders of celestial majesty with the clarity more familiar to our immediate ancestors.
This segment of map comes from here: Light Pollution Map
Local dark sky enthusiasts head west to the Whiskeytown Visitor Center parking lot for quick access. But it looks like a camping trip to Old Station in the east might be best. Just a bit further. I’ve seen several fantastic Milky Way shots with Mt Lassen in the image, so evidently that’s a good choice as well. Check out the amazing work of local photographer Cory Poole for a 2024 Calendar of jaw dropping images like this:
Makes great Christmas gifts!!!
It’s Really Redding.
The lady of the mountain
Just another spectacular Autumn day in Northern California. The relatively high lake level seems extra fortuitous for this time of year, perhaps heralding another bountiful water year, climate permitting. The lady of the mountain wearing a skimpy, powdery negligee in anticipation of her dense white winter cloak to come. Meanwhile, these balmy days grow shorter. Make the most of them.
Castle Crags, late April 2023
About 25 minutes drive on Interstate 5 north of Redding, you come across a spectacular sight. Granite spires rising through the forest to the west. This is Castle Crags State Park. Pull off the highway for hiking, camping, or just plain gazing upon the beauty of it all.
Technically, these are granite pluons. Molten granite has formed beneath the surface in these shapes, cooling more slowly than the rock around them. The spires are what you can see uncovered as the surface eroded around them. Seeing that, and realizing the time scale involved in their formation, one is left to ponder the insignificance of a single human lifetime in the face of geologic time. Yeah, it’s brief.
Music in the video is an Excerpt of “Eternal Path” by Craig Padilla and Skip Murphy (me) from the CD Phantasma on the Groove Unlimited label. Gobsmacking scenery courtesy of planet earth. It’s Really Redding.