Willits Photo Overflow

Sun House

2012-01-27T20:13:00.000-08:00

Behind the Sun House, you can find the Grace Carpenter Hudson museum, housing many of the artists paintings as well as family and ethnographic artifacts. All worth stopping for if you pass through Ukiah.

Baechtel Creek in Winter Rainstorm

2012-01-20T23:31:00.001-08:00

A Good Sign

2012-01-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

A lovely looking development, a "Used & Rare BOOKS" and antiques shop is preparing to open on Main Street.

Print Shop Back Door

2012-01-14T16:50:00.001-08:00

Late Light Through an Oak Tree

2012-01-13T22:07:00.000-08:00

Manzanita Skin

2012-01-12T20:21:00.000-08:00

Micro Garden of Lichen and Moss

2012-01-08T15:09:00.000-08:00

New Year's Day Walk Along the Tracks

2012-01-01T16:42:00.000-08:00

Mendocino Headlands View

2011-12-30T18:19:00.000-08:00

A red-clad visitor sits on a bench under a cypress, gazing out to sea. These cliffs are dangerous, and rescue crews are called out to help the imprudent every year. It's especially sad to read of pets falling to their deaths.

Bright Berries on Wild Honeysuckle

2011-12-27T07:15:00.000-08:00

Christmas on the Navarro Ridge

2011-12-26T19:27:00.001-08:00

Late Autumn California Poppies

2011-12-19T19:34:00.001-08:00

Christmas Skunk Train Debarkation

2011-12-18T21:00:00.000-08:00

Oaks With Old Man's Beard

2011-12-02T00:29:00.001-08:00

Most of the oaks in Little Lake Valley are draped with a harmless pale-green lichen called Old Man's Beard. Only the dark green velvety plants, directly on the bark, are actually moss.

Indie Bookstore

2011-12-01T23:21:00.001-08:00

Shopped at Mendocino Book Company in Ukiah, hoping it can hang on in these turbulent times.

The Work of Acorn Woodpeckers

2011-11-27T19:57:00.001-08:00

A roadside salad of moss, evergreen broadleaf California laurel, and Old Man's Beard lichen, along the Reynolds Highway.

Two Ravens in Willits

2011-10-27T19:35:00.000-07:00

Two ravens preen in the crown of an oak tree. I walked around noticing other things, then came back to one preening the other...

Sometimes she stopped her attentions to his feathers to softly make rapid knocking sounds in her throat, just for him.

Birch Leaves on Parking Stripes

2011-10-26T23:45:00.000-07:00

Down by the Old Mill Stream...

2011-10-23T01:18:00.000-07:00

Or, more specifically, the Muir Mill stream a.k.a. Baechtel Creek.

Autumn Anemones

2011-10-13T19:50:00.000-07:00

Pain with a Purpose

2011-10-11T01:51:00.000-07:00

At the Hospital

2011-10-07T20:52:00.000-07:00

Waiting…

Waiting for the loved one's return from repair.

First Autumn Rain

2011-10-01T17:48:00.000-07:00

In Memory

2011-09-24T17:23:00.000-07:00

Hometown son, Jesse Pittman, a member of the Navy Seals, was remembered today in a large event down in Ukiah. Up in Willits, Main Street was lined with American flags in his honor.

New Movie, Old Theater

2011-09-11T23:34:00.000-07:00

Datura in Evening Light

2011-09-08T21:39:00.001-07:00

Walnut Rind in Evening Light

2011-09-07T16:31:00.000-07:00

Tomato Season

2011-09-03T23:35:00.000-07:00

Bee, Blissful

2011-08-26T04:18:00.000-07:00

What the Eyes See

2011-08-23T01:01:00.000-07:00

Ectiv… Ency

2011-08-18T00:24:00.000-07:00

I committed no malic, or other dama … this property. But I did eat the ripe blackberries.

A Haze of Smoke, Over Dry Meadows

2011-08-17T16:29:00.000-07:00

A Bookstore Wall, Revisited

2011-08-15T22:18:00.000-07:00

Punctured Gossamer

2011-08-11T15:11:00.000-07:00

Nearly Ripe Oregano and Tomatoes

2011-08-09T19:22:00.000-07:00

Summer Market Colors

2011-07-28T22:28:00.000-07:00

The Last of a Band-tailed Pigeon

2011-07-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

Old Workplace, Revisited

2011-07-24T09:29:00.000-07:00

Dawn Light on Steel

2011-07-10T22:57:00.000-07:00

The rising sun illuminates disused commercial structures.

Wild Carrots

2011-07-08T08:05:00.000-07:00

Wild carrots amid the mix of exotic and native plants, found on a morning walk along the railroad tracks.

Smart Cookie

2011-07-04T21:40:00.000-07:00

In a canny tactical move, this little business woman sets up her artisanal food outlet at the farmers' market in the park.

A Garden Unleashed

2011-06-11T00:59:00.000-07:00

The flowers buds seemed to hold their breath for a month or so longer, waiting for some late spring warmth.

Market Spots and Dots

2011-06-04T20:58:00.000-07:00

Spot the kitty?

A Walk in the Rain

2011-06-02T15:11:00.000-07:00

Old Rose

2011-05-26T01:23:00.000-07:00

As far as my mother knows, this rosebush has been growing at her place ever since the property was a stagecoach hotel, saloon, and dance hall site back in the 1800s. Some years the leaves and flowers are more robust than others, but it persists through thick and thin.

A Walk in the Woods

2011-05-26T01:16:00.000-07:00

In her younger days, my mom hiked down Ray Gulch from above, something I've never done. This time, we went in to it from the highway, just to stretch our legs for a few yards.

The redwoods here are stained with silt, left by regular winter flooding of the Navarro River on the other side of the highway. The rhizomes of sword ferns and redwood sorrel survive the inundations to emerge and flourish in the spring. In the middle of this picture, multiple trunks of relatively young redwoods sprout from the charred remains of one of the original giants, long ago cut, milled, and sent to San Francisco for building (most likely). River flats like these are prime locations for growing the largest possible coast redwoods. All it takes is a thousand years of being left alone.

Salmonberries are already ripening, near the edge of the forest. Yes, I ate the best one before I thought to take a picture. Sweet and golden.

Hidden Legacy

2011-05-21T22:12:00.000-07:00

The handrail for the steps leading to overflow parking at the Howard Hospital campus includes an echo of the Howard family racing silks used in the days of Seabiscuit.

Iris douglasiana

2011-05-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

A healthy clump of color on the Navarro Ridge.

Sidewalk Footprints

2011-05-01T00:24:00.000-07:00

Spring Greens

2011-04-23T15:59:00.000-07:00

A collage of trees beside Highway 128 near Boonville. A swath of serpentine soil here attracts cedar trees to the mix of the usual buckeyes, oaks, and firs.

Wood Sorrell in April Rain

2011-04-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

Redwoods and Emus

2011-04-13T23:09:00.000-07:00

An old ranch with a great view over the Navarro River gulch belongs to a retired veterinarian now. He used to have beautiful Devonshire cattle, but now mostly raises chickens and two lovely emus. It's one thing to get a few pictures of them from behind the fence, and quite another thing to find one on the loose in the road. I had to creep past this one over in the left lane, as the bird slowly strode down the right, seeming to hesitate at each step, gliding its way to nowhere in particular.

Trilliums in a Redwood Forest

2011-04-07T22:44:00.000-07:00

Calypso in the Woods

2011-04-05T00:30:00.000-07:00

Enveloped

2011-04-04T01:41:00.000-07:00

Broken Window

2011-03-25T02:12:00.000-07:00

On a walk in the rain, an old garage revisited.

Spring Storms

2011-03-23T00:28:00.000-07:00

After a sunny, mostly dry February, the snow is most welcomed.

Blossoms Weather the Storm

2011-03-22T02:45:00.000-07:00

Signs of Spring Rain

2011-03-20T19:15:00.000-07:00

Mighty Madrone

2011-03-08T22:46:00.000-08:00

The biggest Pacific Madrone tree I've ever seen, this spectacular tree stands beside Sherwood Road, itself a relic of the stagecoach era and likely a Pomo migration trail before that. As I was taking these pictures, a man paused in his pickup truck to say he passes it every day, and every day it amazes him still.

Albion Little River Fire Department

2011-02-24T00:39:00.000-08:00

Amazing that so many Americans still depend on volunteers to save the day.

My Treehouse Can Beat Up Your Treehouse

2011-02-03T22:16:00.000-08:00

Just in my lifetime, some of the redwood trees near my mom's house have doubled in size, but as a kid they seemed big enough to be awe inspiring. In my memory, our treehouse in a redwood tree seemed like it was half way to the top. But if I peek under the branches, I see that it was just a few platform boards and a roof, about twenty feet high. You can barely spot it above and to the left of the old ladder. We completed the climb using the giant branches.

A castle is where a child finds it.

Neon Colors

2011-01-31T00:10:00.000-08:00

Way back when I was posting to Willits Daily Photo, I made note of a damaged sign on Main Street that never seemed to be lit up. Well, the proprietors not only fixed it, they added color.

Mossy Walk

2011-01-28T04:14:00.000-08:00

Shiny Winter Creek

2011-01-22T18:14:00.000-08:00

The streams of this valley all drain to the Eel River. I've been told they used to be teeming with migrating salmon, half a century ago.

Haiku

2011-01-21T05:04:00.000-08:00

Meanwhile, back in Willits...

This could, plausibly, be gang tagging. Haiku is well known as Ukiah spelled backwards, and Ukiah is a neighboring town. It also hosts the (International) http://www.ukiahaiku.org/ Festival. If you enjoy composing haiku, this is your place.

Firewood

2011-01-17T03:27:00.000-08:00

Primitive, and not so good for air quality, but a wood burning stove is all that heats the house at mom's place. Millions of people around the world do the same, in far tougher circumstances.

Scarlet Carpet

2011-01-16T04:02:00.000-08:00

We really should shovel these old apples out of the yard, I suppose, but we more or less let them compost in place. The orchards up here have fed all sorts of creatures, from bears and boars to tiny hummingbirds. Winter carbohydrates are hard to come by, so we clear a path and carry on.

Around the Barn

2011-01-13T03:36:00.000-08:00

Over a century old, a barn barely reveals its former function. Too dangerous to enter any more, I circle around it, remembering how I learned to drive on the old red Jeep, used to climb the rafters to jump down on old straw and manure, where I first saw a cow being milked. Most of the old apple orchards have died away, most of the farm implements are reduced to skeletal axles and wheels. Just yards away lie the bones of previous people connected with this land, including the homesteader himself, I'm told. This place has been part of me for all of my life, and even I must learn to let go. We are just here for a short while, in all our busy aspirations and worries, but the Earth abides.

Fir of Life and Death

2011-01-12T03:04:00.000-08:00

A Douglas fir, probably already dead when a grass fire surrounded it two years ago, still stands as a resource for other forms of life. Eventually it will fall, returning nutrients to the soil from which it came.

Golden Delicious In-Waiting

2011-01-10T01:03:00.000-08:00

A month and a half later, a golden delicious apple remains in place, caught up in its tree (as seen December 1st, below). It will be useful food for birds or animals as winter continues.

Golden Apples

2010-12-01T21:52:00.000-08:00

After the rain and hail on Thanksgiving, it's time to collect a few golden delicious apples, leaving windfall for the deer and other creatures.

Sky Aflame

2010-11-20T01:23:00.000-08:00

Ready for New Life

2010-11-07T20:20:00.000-08:00

Busker's Payment

2010-11-04T21:42:00.000-07:00

The Willits farmers' market moved indoors this month, changing the light but not the spirit.

Happy Halloween

2010-10-30T15:16:00.000-07:00

More colorful neighbors in aqua, plum, and orange.

Redwood in Autumn Rain

2010-10-29T20:13:00.000-07:00

Neighbors in Aqua

2010-10-25T15:30:00.000-07:00

Goat Milk?

2010-10-16T15:37:00.000-07:00

All American Bounty

2010-10-07T22:59:00.000-07:00

It is the season for every kind of beautiful squash at the local Farmers' Market.

Sunflower Shadows

2010-09-24T18:31:00.000-07:00

County Fair Fowl

2010-09-19T01:32:00.000-07:00

Vintage Autos at the Roots of Motive Power Festival

2010-09-11T22:30:00.000-07:00

Baled Grass at Forest's Edge

2010-08-27T22:47:00.000-07:00

Albion Village Store Abstraction

2010-08-22T20:25:00.000-07:00

Fog and Lichen

2010-08-16T17:48:00.000-07:00

It may look gloomy, but coastal fog offers the pause that refreshes in these hot summer days.

Navarro Beach in Fog

2010-08-09T11:23:00.000-07:00

The beach at the mouth of the Navarro River, engulfed by fog, offers refuge for campers escaping the inland heat. Part of the State Parks system, the property includes an old inn, awaiting restoration. Out in the river on partially submerged tree trunks, one cormorant tries to sun himself among his fellows.

Flat-Faced Hedge

2010-08-08T17:45:00.000-07:00

I nearly didn't see the picket gate, near Ft. Bragg, California.

Bright Borscht

2010-08-01T00:22:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite soups, when prepared by Ardella's Diner.

Viewshed Encroachment

2010-07-29T00:08:00.000-07:00

Can't hardly see the forest for the trees...

The Road Home

2010-07-26T22:27:00.000-07:00

A section of the road to my Mom's house, where I've seen a mountain lion a couple of times. The biggest trees were logged out of here a decade or two ago, leaving younger redwoods to filter the late day sunlight.

Lunch

2010-07-20T23:47:00.000-07:00

A journey to Ft. Bragg took me to the friendly Headlands Cafe for lunch one day.

Water Works

2010-06-27T20:40:00.000-07:00

I've been curious for years about this facility on the east side of US101 down in Ukiah. I took the tiny "River St." exit last time, to give it a closer look. I suppose I hoped for a little more deco detail, but a fresh coat of paint would do it a world of good - maybe a darker contrast on those moldings. The monumental lettering deeply satisfies. It probably houses a pump to draw water from the nearby Russian River.

Tenacity

2010-06-24T21:58:00.000-07:00

I can be pretty pessimistic about the chances of humanity surviving another hundred years. But I also notice how tenacious many other, older lifeforms are, even in the most challenging circumstances. The earth will express itself, one way or another, with or without us.

Happy Solstice Eve

2010-06-20T21:08:00.000-07:00

On a quick getaway while the clothes dried at the laundromat, I explored a road I'd never gone up before. It crossed the crest of a ridge at an open field, offering late day light with a view.

Farm Fresh?

2010-06-18T00:26:00.000-07:00

You never know what fresh things you'll find on display at the Farmer's Market.

Apple Leaves in the Rain

2010-06-06T00:59:00.000-07:00

I often run brief fantasy scenarios in my head, perhaps as a result of not watching TV, but more likely just a mental "quirk" of mine. The scenarios almost always involve choices to be made in response to some kind of supernatural reduction in resources. Some examples:

- If you could only have one kind of tree to take on a spaceship to colonize another planet where nothing else yet exists, what would it be specifically?

- If you were to enter into a Brigadoon-like village for the rest of your life - separated from modern technology and materials, and would be imbued with a specialty skill/occupation to contribute, what would it be?

- If you were allowed just a dozen books to keep you company in isolated confinement for a year, what would they be?

I think my answer to the first scenario would be apple trees, specifically Rhode Island Greenings.

Mayan Weaver at the Market

2010-06-03T21:57:00.000-07:00

Today's farmers' market had some light rain, but some people still turned out to shop. The market manager wrote up a nice preview for the local paper, including this tidbit:

Special this week: Katja Grace will bring her friend, Albertina López Húmez, a Mayan weaver from the town of Santa Catarina on Lake Atitlán, Guatemala. Albertina will demonstrate Mayan back-strap weaving and show her work, along with that of other Mayan craftspeople featured in Katja's "Tomorrow's Traditions" fair trade business.

According to the resident vendor, Katja, this woman will be going back to Guatemala before next week, even though her home has been "wiped out" by the flooding down there. I wish her well.

Giant Steam Powered Spool

2010-05-31T00:17:00.000-07:00

Take It Easy, Deer

2010-05-13T00:21:00.000-07:00

A trip to Ukiah included a visit to the graves of some ancestors. Among the elaborate monuments of the past, about a dozen deer calmly rest together between rounds of grazing and browsing.

On a visit to mom's place, a very pregnant doe and her handmaid showed little fear, even as I tried to get to my vehicle without causing undue alarm. Move along, ladies...