This was originally a full moon project; tuned specifically toward the approaching moonrise on the horizon. But as luck would have it, I spent 6+ hours building up to a no-show moon (as can be seen in the first post of this series). Instead, a snowstorm happened, beginning with freezing rain and progressing into snowfall through the night. Curiosity left it be.

Anyway. . new weather, new paradigm. Focus went from moonrise to snow, and the multitude of new possibilities therein. One day of snow and silence became two, then three, at which point it seemed a kind of mini vacation!! :)) Minus the strenuous hike each morning. Pre-sunrise to post-sunset spent intelligently holding heat on a frozen mountain… (and basically fantasizing about this exact scene) haha

it tickles to think of how initial alignment with the moon somehow spiraled into this unexpected view with sunrise, 3 days later. Felt like a different planet altogether.

…after an hour-long hike up the mountain, through a dark, frozen forest, under a near-full moon… something in and of itself romantically beautiful.

this last hike had me more freaked out than usual, worrying of possible mountain lions under cover of darkness…or whatever else. but my prior weather research yielded high probability for a dynamic sunrise… so, considering the rarity of circumstances, i dragged myself up the mountain anyway, with slight faith that nature favors courage… long trek short, got up to the spot just in time as things began to shift.

the hike itself is always humbling… but to finish the hike in the dark, with snow and heavy gear, after feeling quite scared for my life throughout, and then have the opportunity to behold such beauty, is, well… there are no words . . .

 

 

71 Responses
  1. F-that… Mountain lions = scary shit! One of my main fears in life. Those and sharks. Nice photos and series. Being low on the food chain definitely sucks! We have cold and icy weather, but very few mountain lions and no Granite… the trade off is questionable ;) I’d probably risk plenty for the stones in your region. Jealous, but possibly not in a good way!

    1. I don’t think Mr Grab knocks his creations down. Gravity does it for him. (With the exception of times he knocks them down for effect – there’s a scene in his 2013 film compilation (I think) that shows one such occasion.

    2. Quoted from his post on Sunday…
      ‘middle of a snow storm…
      …to kill the suspense (kinda)… i destroyed this creation yesterday. tis gone. no more. finished. i’m free. but the total life after creation was 3 nights/days. started raining and then snowing the first night i left it. 3 days is the longest i’ve ever left one of these standing, for various reasons.’
      So one way or another, he makes sure they’re down. After no longer than 3 days. ;)

  2. Thank you for sharing such a beautiful photo!! I’m glad I got to see the structure in real live person a few years ago. If I see one again, I’ll appreciate it even more.

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