Full Pink Moon

 

This full Pink moon from two years ago reminds me that I need to get back to the prairie and do some more night photography.  I have lots of ideas I'm eager to try out.  The recent planet and moon alignment was spectacular to see, but didn't turn out as well as I had envisioned photographically.  And my plans for night shots in Colorado the end of 2011 were derailed by technical difficulties and just plain freezing weather.  Next time...   

Bashful Bison

I just had to personify this guy based on his shy demeanor.

Tallgrass Road in Winter

Tallgrass Road has only one lane in the winter, as witnessed by the tire tracks in the snow on this January day in 2011.

Prairie Clover

Ripple

This super large (5 ft.), HD pano of a local bridge didn't sell.  People thought it was "boring".  What do you think? 

Hotevilla

A short way down the road leads to the breakaway village of Hotevilla.  Here, a predawn view down the road that leads toward the Grand Canyon.

Old Oraibi

Old Oraibi is a Hopi village in Navajo County, Arizona.  When you drive into Navajo County, your GPS goes completly black, it is off the grid.  Oraibi was started sometime before 1100 A.D., and has been continually inhabited ever since.  You can see the smoke coming from early morning fires.  It is situated on the edge of the Grand Canyon.

In 1540 Oraibi was discovered by the Spanish in their quest to find the Seven Cities of Gold.  In 1629 Europeans attempted to establish a mission in Oraibi which led to an eventual split in the population, with some embracing cultural influences from the Europeans, and some rejecting all such influences.  In 1890, this philosophical division in the population resulted in the founding of a new settlement closer to the trading post, named New Oraibi.  In 1906, a final split resulted from a bloodless expulsion of those friendly toward the European influences. 

Through the years, those friendly componants have repeatedly attempted to reintegrate themselves back into Old Oraibi, but to no avail.  Old Oraibi exists today much as it always has, and is the oldest continually inhabited settlement in North America.  The ruins of the Spanish mission can be seen in the village.