This did happen last year. I mean, the photographs did, but not this post, this blog. I didn’t write a “year five” blog, as I’d don’t previous years. I wasn’t entirely sure that this one would come to fruition, but here it is. I’ve mentioned the hectic school year, and the numerous projects on some rental property, along with Thanksgiving trip to Michigan and Andrew and Adi recently purchasing their first home, there has been less time dedicated to photography and more time dedicated to being dad and to being Mr. Landon. This really is what the balance of life is all about, isn’t it? The roles as parent and educator, sibling, friend and child, should take precedence over that role of “creator.” Not that “creator” isn’t important, again it is all about balance.

2022 does seem like a bit of a blur. I recall January being the only month not dedicated to traveling Highway 285 exclusively, but every month after that involved one or more trip up the South Platte River. I did take trips south to the Sangre de Cristo mountains, taking in that vast and dry valley and formulating summer plans that didn’t quite come to fruition. February and March meant a return to home repair and improvement and a chance to get our under the night sky - spent the absolutely coldest morning out on Clinton Reservoir in late February capturing the Milky Way, I still can believe the camera wanted to shoot at -10F. Through March and April I stayed on the eastern side of the Mosquito Range, photographing the night from my favorite spots along Pennsylvania Mountain, along with another trip to the Sangre de Cristo’s for a brilliant sunset, Milky Way, and sunrise collection. May opened up Windy Ridge, and took me back to Loveland Pass, and when June arrived it was more house work and more night sky in Park, Gunnison and Alamosa Counties.

With most of the known tasks taken care of and a quick visit to Colorado’s Wildflower Capital, it was time to head east, to catch up again with Tanner in Chicago and then to venture into Michigan for one of my longer visits in a while. The usual haunts of Charlevoix and Saginaw Bay as well as the St. Mary’s River, but I was able to add some new spots, taking in the eastern side o f the, as well as some of the most beautiful state parks along Lake Michigan. What was most impressive of all was witnessing the Northern Lights over Lake Huron on a storm filled July night. The individual compositions were not as singularly impressive as one would hope, but the timelapse they created is one of my favorites so far.

The road back to Colorado would hold one more surprise with the most vibrant and stunning sunflower field in central Kansas. At the end of a long day on the road this was such a welcome site. Two hours before sunset is the perfect time to arrive, getting to take in the changing light after a day of rain. Back to Colorado the sunflower fields near Denver International Airport were of course my first destination.This year the fields were to the south of the airport and for the first time in a number the skies were absent of the smoke from late season fires and instead we experienced some really intense rain and thunderstorms.

Fall colors were not far away, but before those trips into the central mountains a trip to the far northwest corner of the state, to the Sandwash Basin to spend time with the wild horse herds and explore the Green River and the eastern gates of the Dinosaur National Monument. This is not a quick trip but utilizing the long weekend of the Labor Day allowed for the time to take it all in. Of course those fall colors wouldn’t wait and as September progressed plans needed to be made for the best approach to making the best use of limited time. Hopefully this need to compress time and take shorter trips won’t be a reality for too many more years, nonetheless it is an amazing time of year, and Colorado is the most brilliant place to witness it.

What follows is not necessarily “the best,” or even my favorites, but what are the photos that join the narrator’s tail from 2022. They do not appear in any particular order, I’ve tried to label them in a way to make some sense to it all. I do hope you enjoy the depth and breadth of the photos, as in hindsight, 2022 was another incredible year, filled with brilliant and breathtaking sights, each worth the effort to explore and share.

As always, thank you for joining me on this little adventure. You can find more words at alma175w@wordpress.com and see more timelapse and drone videos on YouTube at @alma175w.

Cottonwood Pass - A Weathering, June 2022 — Cotton Pass Colorado - Shoulder Season, June 2022

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