Wild View Yonder

Rainier

2011-11-10T07:09:00.000-08:00

Sunset begins

Mt. Rainier shrouded in a cloud scarf and bathed in the early evening glow

Mt. Rainier with a wispy cloud cap

A Summertime Mt. Rainier protruding from the cloud deck

Also check out Mt. Rainier in the Setting Sun and Mt. Rainier in the Sunset Light

Yosemite

2011-04-03T22:30:00.000-07:00

Yosemite National Park is known the world over and really needs no introduction. Thousands of people fly over the park every day but few see it or recognize it if they are looking. Yosemite is quite spectacular from the air, as clearly shown below.

March 2011, El Capitan illuminated in the late afternoon light

Yosemite valley and El Capitan peeking out from beneath the clouds.

Yosemite Valley, Half Dome at right.

Half Dome at upper right.

Close shot of Half Dome.

Stereogram of Half Dome and vicinity.
Click to enlarge; cross eyes to converge the two images to appear as three.
3-d effect will appear in the middle. Be patient - this gets easier with experience.
(1536px wide version here)

Upper El Capitan brightly illuminated in the late afternoon sunshine. Upper Yosemite Falls can be seen in shadow above and to the right of El Capitan (click to enlarge).

El Capitan stands out in the foreground. To its lower right, and clearly visible during one of the rare times when it's actually illuminated in direct sunshine is Bridal Veil Fall. Half Dome towers over the upper-right corner of the image; below and to its right, in shadow, can be seen Nevada Falls and Vernal Falls. Even Upper Yosemite Falls can be seen (barely visible in shadow) in this shot, up and to the left of El Capitan.
(Click to enlarge)

Wide shot of Yosemite; El Capitan in lower-left quadrant and Half Dome in upper right. The telltale vertical white line of Upper Yosemite Falls can be clearly seen to the upper right of El Capitan. Mono Lake appears in the upper-right corner of the image.

Close shot of El Capitan.
Optical distortion visible at the bottom of the image is caused by the aircraft window.

Yosemite in the summer heat.

Upper Yosemite Falls can just barely be discerned just left of the center of this image.
(click to enlarge)

El Capitan and a good portion of the valley are visible in this view.

Same shot, different day...
Shadows of the late afternoon obscure much of the valley.

Half Dome casts its late afternoon shadow over the trees beyond.

January 2009, El Capitan.

A closer crop of El Capitan.

January 2009, Half Dome.

And a closer crop of Half Dome.

Snow-capped El Capitan peeking out from beneath the clouds.

May 2009, stitched from 4 images. The falls are all in sunlight.

May 2009, more falls in sunlight.

More information about Yosemite National Park [wikipedia].

St. Helens

2010-07-20T16:18:00.000-07:00

Mount St. Helens [US Forest Service] Erupted in1980 [Wikipedia], blasting more than a cubic kilometer skyward, obliterating in that moment what had been a pristine wilderness park, turning much of it into a barren moonscape.

Today, some 30 years on, areas of the park that have been under the stewardship of logging companies have been replanted with thick forests, albeit of far less diversity than would occur naturally. Some large areas of the park have not been artificially replanted. There, the post-eruption conditions have been largely left alone except for restoration of a few roads and installation of several view points and associated parking areas, allowing nature to take its course and heal itself at its own pace, and providing an opportunity to observe, document, and learn from this experience.

Today, much of the blast zone is still fairly barren. Spirit Lake remains full of the logs of trees that were blown down in the eruption, covering about 1/3 of the lake surface, floating back and forth at the whim of the winds. In and around the blast areas though, clear signs are everywhere of life reasserting itself. Within the last 5 years or so, small trees that had emerged between the fallen trunks of their predecessors have begun to grow taller. Birds and other wildlife are increasingly found in these areas. It's not hard to imagine in another 25-30 years, this area will look much as it did before the eruption.

Meanwhile, inside the crater, another kind of growth is going on. The mountain itself is healing. At a rate that has been described as the equivalent of a dump-truck full every few seconds, a dome of ash and lava grows. Most of the time a plume of smoke and steam is visible over the mountain; more noticeable during cooler weather when the steam condenses as it rises. Given enough time, even the mountain will eventually return to a conical shape, leaving little surface evidence of that cataclysmic event.

For an up-close and personal look at the mountain, check out this Gigapan.
July 20, 2010

May 13, 2010
Apr 13, 2010

Sep 9, 2008
July 22, 2008

Jan 1, 2008

Feb 1, 2005

Feb 26, 2008

Feb 26, 2008

Apr 4, 2006

Apr 4, 2006

May 18, 2003

May 25, 2006

May 29, 2007

May 29, 2007

May 29, 2007

Jun 7, 2007: Molokini of the North.
Molokini [Wikipedia]
Molokini Aerial [Maui Boat Rental]

Jun 7, 2007

Jun 7, 2007

Jun 20, 2006

Jun 30, 2005
Jul 3, 2007

Jul 25, 2007

Jul 29, 2005

Sep 8, 2005

Oct 5, 2004

Oct 5, 2004

Oct 5, 2004

Oct 5, 2004

Oct 25, 2005

Nov 17, 2005

Nov 20, 2007

Nov 20, 2007
May 1, 2008

Feb 3, 2009
Right now (View from Johnston Ridge Visitor Center, courtesy USGS).

Above Kauai

2008-09-01T16:46:00.000-07:00

An aerial tour of the Hawaiian island of Kauai, the Garden Island on Blue Hawaiian Helicopters.
A few of these images also are featured on Shutter-Eye photoblog.

Leaving Lihue Airport

Over Nawiliwili

Kauai Marriott at lower left

Towards Kipu

Kipu

Looking southwest toward Poʻipu

Tunnel of Trees

So Many Falls, So Little Time

Manawaioʻpuna Falls

Toward Waimea Town

Secluded Plantation House

Above Waimea Canyon

Stereogram - click to enlarge; cross eyes to converge the two images to appear as three.

Stereogram - click to enlarge; cross eyes to converge the two images to appear as three.

Pacific Missile Range Radar Tracking and Communications Facility.

Captain Andy's Tour Boats. Note people snorkeling in the water.

Honopu Area

Kalalau Valley

Hanakapiʻai Beach

Hanakapiʻai Beach

Hanakapiʻai Valley and Beach

Keʻe / Tunnels Beach

Keʻe / Tunnels Beach

Lumahaiʻi

Hanalei Valley

Mouth of the Wainiha River with Baily Bridges spanning it

Wainiha Valley

Inside Mt. Waialeale

Waterfall Inside Mt. Waialeale

Agricultural Plantation

Entrance to Lihue Airport

Crater Lake

2008-03-08T16:21:00.001-08:00

Welcome to Wild View Yonder. This site is specifically for aerial photography. Some of the images featured here are cross-posted to Shutter-Eye as well. Posts on this site will grow over time as appropriate new images become available.

I chose as the banner image a shot of Crater Lake because it is perhaps one of the most striking aerial Images I have shot to date. It seems fitting therefore that the first post on this site should be a Crater Lake collection. The images featured here were selected from many I've taken over the years. Image quality varies from image to image due to various factors including atmospheric conditions (weather, fires, pollution, etc.), proximity to the subject, altitude, time of day, season, camera equipment, and the condition of the aircraft windows.

Enjoy.

5/22/2008 12:09pm

11/20/2007 7:55am

10/23/2007 2:58pm

10/23/2007 2:58pm

10/23/2007 2:58pm

10/23/2007 2:59pm

10/23/2007 3:01pm

8/7/2007 7:36am

6/30/2005 8:10am

5/29/2007 8:08am

4/2/2007 7:52am

5/19/2006 8:55am

6/26/2004 1:30pm

See Crater Lake from the ground.