I left Parachute, CO this morning....rolling out in the pre-dawn darkness a few minutes before 7:00 AM and in a medium rain.
Turns out, my timing was very good, it apparently got a lot rainier in the Parachute area later on, deluge proportions were reported to me by two separate sources.
Incredible as it may seem, I managed to outrun the rain storm and traveled the rest of the morning under moderately overcast skies and temperatures in the mid to high 40s. In other words, pretty good considering there was a Winter Storm warning announced for the Vail area starting at Noon.
I arrived at Vail a bit before 10:00 AM I believe, skies were still overcast but it did not dull (by much) the beauty of the Fall Colors festooning the nearby hillsides with brilliant yellows and the occasional reds and muted oranges.
Again, my once-trusty Panasonic Lumix didn't survive the recent deluge last month very well, and I apologize for the fuzziness in the pictures below. My loving wife Martha has procured for me a NIKON AW110 Waterproof camera and all future pictures should be nice and sharp.
The scenery, as you can see above, was very beautiful even under the muted light filtering through the thick clouds overhead. I can only imagine that had the sun been shining, it would have been wondrous.
I am back home from my work trip to Parachute, an interesting experience, and it won't be the last time I go there it seems. I hope you liked the pictures, and I really hope the new camera lives up to its reviews. My thanks to both Bobskoot and Steve of ScooterintheSticks for their info and feedback on camera choices.
8 comments:
Oh, I forgot to mention: Last night was a new type of UDF. I'm laying on the bed watching TV, it's 9:00PM and get a phone call on the hotel phone. Weird, I answered and turns out there was a fellow Uralista down in the lobby checking in for the night. I was asked if I could come down for a chat....so I did! I met Jim Larson of Minnesota who rides a 2011 Camouflage Gear-UP. We chatted for a bit and then said our goodbyes. He would, end up walking up to me to wave goodbye this morning as I was warming up Valencia's engine.
Dom:
I think you are going to like those "rugged" type models. Freezeproof, waterproof, shockproof. It took me a while before I trusted it UnderWater. Slight image degradation due to the additional glass in front of the lens, but with internal focus you don't have to worry about the zoom mechanism, as it is sealed. Slightly different technique when using your left hand whilst riding. Watch out for your glove, which covers the lens. Hold it a bit farther back or around the edges.
I love the colours of your trees. We don't have anything like that here in BC. Filtered, bright clouds give the best colour.
bob
Riding the Wet Coast
Waterproof, dustproof, freezeproof, shockproof. I think they had you in mind when they designed that camera. I was looking at the Nikon AW1 but I don't really need the lens interchangeability.
WORK!!?? Just how does one sign up for a gig like that anyhow? Good on you Dom - beautiful shots as usual.
Bobskoot, initial impressions are very favorable on the Nikon AW110, we shall see next ride. As to shooting while riding, have tried it, it's not for me. Thanks for your comments.
RichardM, it sure sounds like it don't it? :) It's only good to -14F though. It even comes with an adapter so you can screw on a 40.5 mm polarizing filter.
Ken, maybe I mispoke, they let you ride your own vehicle to/from remote field locations. But once there, you must apparently use company vehicles to get to the really remote sites. I do get mileage though so it's all good. And, there's rumors that others have taken their personal trucks into the remote sites, why not a URAL? We shall see.
Hi there ,
WOW the colour is fantastic,
regards
Len
The pictures may not be crisp in focus but it adds a certain watercolor feel to the fall colors.
Len, thanks...I'm thinking the new camera will be better.
Trobairitz...watercolor effect, yeah, that's what I was going for....sure.
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