Pathfinder's fast romp through 14 states in 17 days and home via Route 66

pathfinder · March 7, 2009

Out through Iowa, Montana, Idaho, Utah and home vie Route 66

Nightingale and I made a road trip in February, departing Indiana on Feb 4, so that we could spend a morning in Burlington Iowa and see if there were any eagles nearby. We ate dinner that evening in Burlington to celebrate our anniversary - now how many guys can take their wife with them to go photograph eagles in 15 degree weather on their anniversay anyway?! We ate at a little restaurant, the Drake, along the river front and I drank some neon inspired beer, and shot the bridge over the iced-in river.

The next morning we went down to the locke and started looking for eagles. We did not really have to hunt all that long

We spent a couple hours shooting before our hands got too cold in the breeze and we decided we had shot enough after about 600 frames in a couple hours.

I learned that the leather lens cap for a 300mm lens CAN blow away into the ice swollen river too. But you can order a replacement from B&H for $75. We were off to a less than stellar beginning.

We left by late morning and headed north west into the Dakotas. We made a brief pit stop at Mount Rushmore which was the emptiest I have have seen it, even though it was not cold at all.

There really were just a handful of folks at Rushmore that day!

We hiked around the base of the mountain, and then saddled up and headed west toward Montana. We overnighted in Billings, and made Big Sky the next day. The conference I was attending lasted 5 days, and each afternoon we would wander down toward West Yellowstone looking for game. The best game shots we found at the base of the Big Sky ski area, where there was a local herd of Big Horn Sheep that we would stop and photograph several times.

After conference concluded, we had three days scheduled in Gardiner Montana, at the north gate to Yellowstone, to explore the area between Mammoth Hot Springs and Cooke City. We had more luck in the northern portion of Yellowstone than we did down near West Yellowstone.

We saw buffalo

funny deer

a fawn

elk in the Park

and elk in town

several coyotes

We saw lots of trees in the snow in the sunlight

I shot several sets of panos of 3- 9 frames each

Next we ventured into Idaho and down towards Brigham City Utah where we woke to a blanket of new snow.

Finally we arrived in Kingman Az and met up with kdog for some breakfast and an introduction to Route 66 in western Arizona, which of course means Oatman Az and the Hackberry General Store. Thanks again for all your suggestions, Joel.

The Oatman was where Clark Gable and Carole Lombard may or may not have spent their wedding night

The old ATSF ( now BNSF ) Railroad runs near Rt 66 in western Az, and you can see trains go by frequently

Amazingly, there are dozens of sets of Burma Shave signs which I thought had entirely disappeared. They look new too

There are just a few of the shots on our trip. More can be seen here http://pathfinder.smugmug.com/gallery/7352201_9SahE#483151924_T65WL

Please leave a comment if you visit my gallery, for either praise or criticsm.

DavidTO · March 8, 2009

Jim,

Looks like an awesome trip and a great way to celebrate your years together!

grimace · March 8, 2009

Stunning series Pathfinder!! Really difficult to pick a favorite!!

Richard · March 8, 2009

Excellent work, Jim.

clap Looks like you had a great trip.

Zanotti · March 8, 2009

Jim:

Great shots. I went through your gallery on your Smugmug as well and enjoyed "taking" the trip with you. It looks like you had quite the supply of gear with you as well!

How did the new 5DMII work out for you? Is it now your go to camera for most shots?

I see you still like sign pictures - very cool!

Z

Awais Yaqub · March 8, 2009

Great job my friend

pathfinder · March 8, 2009

Thanks guys for enjoying my trip.

George, I think I actually still used the 5D and my 50D more than their newer brother. Lots of my shots were done with a G10 as well. I tend to get less concerned with which camera I am using at the time, with a vague preference for larger sensors for landscapes and large panos, and APS sensors for wildlife. Nothing original in that type of preference. I think a well done shot with a lesser camera is more important than a poorly composed and executed shot with a better camera - usually, anyway.

Yes, I still do like "sign" pictures - I collect them wherever I see them.

Am I the only person who sees the pairing of these two signs somewhat ironic, or am I just overthinking it? (Shot with a G10 also)

BradfordBenn · March 8, 2009

Great pictures. Yes, I also find the sign picture humorous.

DoctorIt · March 8, 2009

Excellent stuff! The snow panos and that golden light on the trees were fantastic!

And thanks for whetting my road trip appetite, I leave in less than 7 days now.

:ian

pathfinder · March 8, 2009

Thanks Erik, I thought the trees in the golden light were the best of the lot also. You can't plan for those, but just grab them when they show up.

Her is another one of the trees

Every year when I go out west for spring skiing, I remark about how lovely the red bushes along the creek beds are, but have never really captured the color and detail well on film. I think some of these are beginning to get close.

DoctorIt · March 9, 2009

Nice - you can see how its shaped by the wind too

And btw, 17 days = fast?! Thanks to employers, rent, and bills, we have to make both oceans in 11 days! Vroooooom!

pathfinder · March 9, 2009

Fast?

5 days were in Big Sky, and ~4 were in Gardiner, and 2-3 were in Kingman, so we did not spend all of our time on the road.

I have a number of shots of Rt 66 in Arizona and Missouri, not so much in Oklahoma as much of it was driven through after dark.

davev · March 9, 2009

Looks like you had a good trip.
I'm glad you made it to the eagle spot, I hope it was worth the stop to you.

Route 66 looks like it'd be a fun trip.

JulieLawsonPhotography · March 9, 2009

What a fantasic series!!! I felt like I was going right along with you. Crystal clear clarity and wonderful color. I love the panos too.

Antonio Correia · March 9, 2009

Beautiful pictures.

Happy anniversary !

D

summerz · March 10, 2009

Fabulous pics,

thanks.

slflash · March 11, 2009

geat shots
Jim,
You never cease to amaze me! Great shots as usual. Loved all the picts. in your gallery.

Sheila

ehughes · March 11, 2009

Great set Jim, looks like a fun trip. I still need to get out to Yellowstone someday... Know a good guide?

pathfinder · March 11, 2009

I am afraid I can't help you about a guide. We did not use one, just wandered about along the northern highway in Yellowstone - the road from Gardiner, to Mammoth to Cooke City is the only road open to wheeled traffic in the winter.

We tried to hook up with Tom Murphy who has shot a lot of wildlife in winter in Yellowstone, but did not get an answer to our email. Google Tom Murphy - Yellowstone and and you'll find him.

SamirD · March 16, 2009

Great pictures! I just finished a trip from CA to AL with a lot of Route 66 stops along the way. I need to post some of my pictures up once I get a chance to go through all of them.

I can't believe how close you were to some of the coyotes on the road! There's also some amazing landscapes in the series. It's so hard to capture the true grandeur of the sites. But I can feel it in your shots. The train shots were also amazingly close.

My favorite from the whole series is this shot. I think it captures the essense of the west with the history of Route 66.

After looking through your series, I want to hit the road again even though I was on the road for a month!

pathfinder · March 16, 2009

That stretch of Rt 66 from Cold Spring to Oatman is really cool old, narrow twisty road isn't it? A great road to ride carefully on two wheels or on four wheels even. There are mountain goats along it too.

I am glad you enjoyed a few of my images.

Here's another one from Oatman that I hope captures some of the flavor of the old road

kdog · March 16, 2009

SamirD wrote:

My favorite from the whole series is this shot. I think it captures the essense of the west with the history of Route 66.

Hey, I know that mountain, but didn't know there was a car there!

I'm going to have to go back and get that shot.

Hey Jim, great Journey report! Amazing variety of pictures. The wildlife shots just blow me away.

I felt a little bad that you drove all the way to Kingman for just such a short stay, and with bad weather to boot. However, after looking at your shots, I can see the time was put to good use here. You got some really special shots. I can't imagine what you'd create here if you had more than 24 hours!

Great meeting you and Nightingale. See you next time, and hopefully we'll find some time to shoot together.

-joel