Monday Morning Winter Photo

This was my dilemna from a photography standpoint this morning: It was mainly a sunny day with blue skies, but thick clouds hovered over the Sawatch Range, including Mt. Princeton. I wanted to zoom-in on the summit, but those clouds wouldn't allow for a decent picture. Thus, I zoomed out to capture the pretty blue sky above instead. I think it's a pretty picture. (Photo taken from the parking lot of the Colorado Mountain College extention campus in Buena Vista.)

I spent the morning in Salida. I snapped photos of F Street and myself with my hairdresser that made it on my Twitter feed. Amber is the greatest!

Oh and lastly, I uploaded another video from last weekend. Please enjoy Driving in Eastern Colorado. (1:01). :)

-Steve (February 6, 2010)

The photo above was taken this evening as I was returning from Leadville to Buena Vista. I like the pink shaded clouds on the left.

I finally posted my photos of the Oklahoma High Point. 17 U.S. state high points down, 33 to go! :)

-Steve (February 5, 2010)

I snapped this photo during the day's final rays of light. The title above reads "Icy Blue Mountain Scene" because of the distinctly white, silver and blue shades.

Last weekend, I hiked to the Oklahoma High Point with friends. Definitely watch that video! Photos are coming too. :)

-Steve (February 2, 2010)

Ordinarily, I would not post a photo of such poor quality, but I will be out of town this weekend and I wanted to provide at least one update. Colorado's mountain region received snow yesterday and today. It wasn't a large amount of snow, but the sky remained gray and dreary throughout.

Tomorrow night, I will be leaving to see friends in Johnson, Kansas, a teeny tiny town in far southwest Kansas. Our plan on Saturday is to hike to the Oklahoma High Point, located in the Oklahoma panhandle near where Colorado, New Mexico and Oklahoma meet.

-Steve (January 28, 2010)

Today's photo was taken this morning as I drove north on Highway 24 in Buena Vista. I carefully turned the camera toward the mountain as I watched the road and snapped three photos - this was the best one.

Check out a 3+ foot icicle I photographed in Leadville on Monday. Pretty nifty, isn't it? :)

-Steve (January 27, 2010)

Oh what horrible lighting! Despite it being a generally sunny winter day, a band of clouds have been hovering over Mt. Princeton and much of the Sawatch Range. At 1 p.m., I zoomed-in on Mt. Princeton as I sat on the shoulder of Chaffee County Road 306 ("Cottonwood Pass Road"). These kinds of photos greatly frustrate me, as I like "clean and crisp" landscape shots, but this is what nature has given us today. I hope you like it.

Regarding the Colts, Jets, Saints and Vikings in today's conference championship games, I want to say I have a positive regard for all four teams. It would be nice to see any of them win a Super Bowl ring. I will admit I am cheering for Brett Favre and the Minnesota Vikings later today. Why? Well, I'm 38, and so I have got to back the "old man" ... C'mon Vikings! :)

Here are my latest pages: Sunrises and Sunsets in January 2010 and Utah Trip page. Also, take a look at the new avatar, color scheme and background picture on my Twitter profile. I don't mean to be so twittertistical, but I must express my joy. ;)

-Steve (January 24, 2010)

After buying it two weeks ago, finally I pulled out my tripod to tinker with it and actually use it! Above is the very first photo used with my tripod, and as you can see I am included in the photo. I trust this contraption will make it easier to capture self-portraits. Oh and that ain't a shabby view of Mt. Princeton either, is it?! :)

This morning I have been thinking about bicycling across America again. So many things (particularly having time and money) need to happen before I would do it again, but it's on my mind. I invite you to read my 2008 bike across America journal if you are interested.

Lastly, a significant fire with explosions occured in Leadville yesterday afternoon. Some news stations in Denver and Colorado Springs noticed my tweeted photos like this one and used them in news stories. I also interviewed live by phone with a Denver news anchor, as I spoke like an "on the scene reporter" and shared what I saw and heard. The crux of the story was two large warehouse-sized buildings with various businesses were burned to the ground. The fire began at 3 p.m. and lasted throughout the evening. At approximately 4:30 p.m., the fire apparently ignited something that created a really loud explosion that was heard throughout town. I was approximately 0.2 miles away during that explosion and it rattled the windows and items in our building ... It was so loud!

-Steve (January 23, 2010)

This morning and evening I noticed the days are slowly becoming longer. We are still in the thick of winter, of course, but there is hope for warmer and longer days! Today's photo was taken this morning on Highway 24 a few miles north of the Buena Vista traffic light.

Since I don't have anything new to display, here's a video of a friend and I driving in Nebraska! ;)

-Steve (January 20, 2010) Af

The day began with a stunning and colorful sunrise. Much of the sky, however, is gray and overcast, and snow is in the forecast later today.

For today's photo, I zoomed-in somewhat with my new camera. Do you see the horizontal line going across on the left above timberline? That is the standard hiking route to the summit. I've ascended this mountain twice via that trail: 2005 climb and 2009 climb.

Lastly, I encourage you to become a fan on Facebook. I am always encouraged by seeing an increase in numbers and you benefit by being notified of any and all photography updates. It's just a suggestion. :)

-Steve (January 17, 2010)

I visited my hairdresser in Salida this morning, and then wandered by car in Wellsville in western Fremont County. On my way back to Buena Vista, I snapped this photo from Highway 285 as I was driving. No worries, I was safe! :)

-Steve (January 16, 2010)

I snapped this photo while pulled over on Chaffee County Road 306 ("Cottonwood Pass Road") early in the morning. I like the snow and the morning light highlighting small portions of the mountain. Very pretty!

-Steve (January 13, 2010)

This evening's photo was taken at approximately 5:30 p.m. on East Main Street in Buena Vista,. I included lights in the foreground to make things somewhat interesting. The sole traffic light in town is on the right and the Mt. Princeton "three humps" are recognizable on the left.

In other news, last night I made another photo gallery: Broken Arch in Arches National Park. Also, I wrote quite a controversial tweet an hour ago. Heh heh! ;)

-Steve (January 12, 2010)

My new digital camera (a Canon PowerShot SD1200 IS) has a sunset feature. I snapped numerous photos trying various functions and it did seem like the sunset feature captured the essence of the sky more than the others. This evening's photo was taken north of Buena Vista, Colorado.

I am still working through my many photos of Arches National Park. Last night I completed a page about Sand Dune Arch. Also, you really must see the cute baby photo I captured yesterday of the one and only Zach! He is a friends' baby, not mine. ;)

-Steve (January 11, 2010)

I have a new camera! Last night, at the Best Buy on the north end of Colorado Springs, I bought a Canon PowerShot SD 1200 IS. It has ten megapixels, a 3x zoom and other quality features that make it a vast improvement from my old and broken Canon A85, a model no longer sold.

Oh and get this: I also bought a tripod! No more frustration laying my camera on the ground, a wobbly rock or something else to include myself in self-portraits. And no more angst of having a stranger to take that self-portrait, only to learn that person took a horrible photo! Watch out world ... Steve Garufi has a tripod! ;)

Today's photo was taken a short walk from Chaffee County Road 339, near the Maxwell Park Schoolhouse. I definitely need to learn the features of this new camera to optimize it's photographic potential, but at least it's better than my crummy cell phone pictures. Ha ha!

Lastly, I'm a little late in saying this, but I want to wish everyone a glorious and meaningful 2010. I am so grateful for all of you who visit this web page. May all of your wildest dreams come true! Take risks, do something totally out of character and may blessings flow to you and your family.

-Steve (January 10, 2010)

If all goes well, I will be buying a new digital camera in Colorado Springs this evening. Thus, you won't have to endure many more of these crummy cell phone photos. Ha ha ha!

I created two more pages in the past 24 hours. Both are from my visit to Moab, Utah last weekend: Park Avenue Trail and Morning Glory Natural Bridge.

-Steve (January 9, 2010)

Just a reminder that my real camera (an outdated Canon A85) is broken and currently I am using my cell phone camera to photograph the mountain. The photo above was taken yesterday as the day was coming to an end. I was pulled over on Chaffee County Road 306 (facing west), and I turned on the headlights so you can see the road. Of course, the well-known "three bumps" of Mt. Princeton can be identified in the photo. :)

I've created new pages this week. Check them out: 2009 Thank You Page, Corona Arch and Sunsets in Arches National Park.

-Steve (January 8, 2010)

I apologize for the seven day gap from my last Mt. Princeton photo. I spent four days in Moab, Utah doing all sorts of photography. Check out my three sunsets inside Arches National Park! :)

Sadly, my digital camera broke on my last day in Moab. Thus this morning, on my first full day back in Buena Vista, I captured this photo with my cell phone. The image is far too blurry, but I guess it will do. I make no promises, but I hope to buy a new and improved digital camera in Colorado Springs perhaps as early as next weekend.

-Steve (January 4, 2010)

The photo above was taken yesterday after the sun had set. I was really hoping those patches of clouds would turn bright colors, but sigh, they never did. Nonetheless, I thought this was a nice shot for those of you who are sky lovers!

-Steve (December 28, 2009)

I visited Granite, Colorado yesterday to get a tour of the historic schoolhouse. Special thanks to my great friends Kent and Kim for giving me a tour and being so much fun in the video I made.

Today's photo was taken while pulled over on Highway 285, south of Nathrop. I was en route to Salida to feast on yummy Kentucky Fried Chicken. Come to think of it, you can see a photo here. :)

-Steve (December 27, 2009)

As the sun was setting on Christmas Day, I was busy typing away on my computer, and in particular I was tweeting like a maniac about delicious tamales on Twitter. Then I glanced out the window and noticed the sky was various shades of pink and purple. With little time to waste, I grabbed my camera but couldn't find my boots, and so I hurried outside in my slippers. My feet were very cold from trudging in the snow, but oh was it worth it. Look at this shot of Mt. Princeton! Also, click the photo above to see a second photo that includes the colors over Sheep Mountain. Not too shabby! :)

-Steve (December 26, 2009)

Early this morning, on Christmas Day, I attempted to hike a little known trail named the Broken Boyfriend Trail located near Midland Hill. It was only five degrees (colder with the windchill factor) when I arrived at the trailhead at 8 a.m., and after walking about a half mile, I decided to turn back. The thought of having a full breakfast with friends who were serving pancakes, eggs and bacon with hot coffee was too much. I opted to hike this trail on a warmer day when perhaps the sky was clearer. As you can see from the photo above, those clouds hovering over the mountains took away from the view.

Oh and Merry Christmas! Happy Hanukah too. New Year's Day is one of the most impactful holidays in my life, as somehow the change of the new year forces me to reflect on the past year's accomplishments, disappointments, things to be grateful about and personal issues to work on. Ultimately, it is a reminder that the length of our lives are finite. Use your time wisely!

Best wishes to you on this day. I've read, with much amusement, so many tweets from people in Oklahoma, Texas and southern Arkansas who had snowfall last night. Congratulations on your white Christmas! :)

-Steve (December 25, 2009)

The temperature was somewhere around 5 to 10 degrees this morning. Such cold weather is not a big deal and we have a white Christmas every year in the mountains, but boy did I feel it as I walked outside in my shorts en route to the gym! :)

Last weekend I spent an evening viewing holiday decorations in Colorado Springs. You can see all photos and a video here: Three Spectacular Christmas Displays.

Today's photo was taken near the drive-in theater on Chaffee County 339.

-Steve (December 24, 2009)

Today's Mt. Princeton photo was taken as I stood on Chaffee County Road 302, east of Johnson Village. I zoomed-in so you could see some of the structures in the foreground. It has been a very sunny and beautiful Sunday! :)

-Steve (December 20, 2009)

Today's photo entry was one of those where I didn't take into account much, other than I wanted to "get the picture over with." I pulled over on Chaffee County Road 306 ("Cottonwood Pass Road") west of Buena Vista for this one.

Later this afternoon I will be in Colorado Springs. I need to drop off my troubled laptop (with a service plan) once again to Best Buy. I also intend to photograph some of the popular Christmas light displays with friends and maybe squeeze in a short hike. That's the tentative plan. It should be fun! :)

-Steve (December 19, 2009)

The photo above was taken yesterday morning. Although the sun rises to the east, occasionally there are pretty morning colors over the mountain.

It's been a long week and I'm going to bed early. If you are a fan on Facebook, then you probably know about the latest updates, but in case you haven't seen them yet: Christmas Lights, Christmas Tree Cutting and Colorado Snow Photos.

-Steve (December 18, 2009)

It has been a very snowy week in Colorado. This morning I casually drove around attempting to photograph wildlife and of course, to capture a photo of our beloved Mt. Princeton. Today's picture was taken near the Chaffee County Rodeo Grounds.

You can view two snow pictorials I've made in the past week: Sunday Snowfall and Driving In Snow.

-Steve (December 12, 2009)

Overnight and throughout the morning, we received a large amount of snow in central Colorado. After shoveling myself out of my driveway, twice I cruised in my vehicle and photographed snowy scenes. Late in the afternoon, I captured the photo above that had some colorful clouds over Mt. Princeton, and be assured a photo gallery of all of my snow photos are coming in the next day or so.

-Steve (December 6, 2009)