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Beyond
the National Parks - Western
Wilderness
by Guy
Tal
NOTE: this
exhibit appeared in October 2003. Click
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Pastel
Prelude
Tall buttes
glow in pre-dawn light in Utah's San Rafael Swell.
Various proposals have been discussed to declare
the Swell a National Park or Monument. These never
came to fruition. Even spots designated as
"Wilderness Study Areas" are no longer protected as
a result of a deal between Utah's governor and the
Secretary of the Interior (a deal that was never
reviewed or opened for public comment). Those
seeking the solitude and inspiration of wild and
rugged desert scenery will surely fall under the
spell of the San Rafael Swell, but lack of
protection places much of this beauty, delicate as
it is powerful, in danger of abuse and
destruction.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 240mm lens
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Striped
Slot
Most people
are familiar with the Antelope slot canyons, but
few realize many more are found in the Colorado
Plateau, each with its own unique texture, color,
and shape thanks to the immense variety of
sandstone. Fewer still venture out into the desert,
map in hand, to find these beautiful formations.
This canyon, located in the heart of
Grand-Staircase Escalante, is known among some
local photographers for its unique color and
strongly striped santdtone. No trail leads here,
and no signs point to it. One needs to know the
desert, dress and pack appropriately, and journey
into the wilderness to find it. The reward of
having this unique place to yourself more than
makes up for the effort. Despite being on a
designated National Monument, areas like this are
not truly protected. Existing ranching and mining
operations are usually allowed to persist in the
monument and despite restrictions, they continue to
erode away its beauty. Off-road vehicles, albeit
illegal, tear away at pristine scenery, erode the
soil, and create new paths for flash floods. Laws
are in place but the agencies charged with
enforcing them rarely do.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 150mm lens
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Fall
Tapestry
Aspen groves
turn bright gold, pink, and orange as autumn rolls
in before shedding their foliage for winter. One
way aspen trees propagate is by sprouting new trees
from roots of existing ones. These new trees are
genetic clones of the ones they grew out of. Trees
of similar genetics turn at the same time, which
explains why different parts of a grove show
different color and why some turn earlier than
others. These trees cling to the steep slopes of
Northern Utah's Wasatch Mountains. While the area
is an officially declared wilderness, it is also
under heavy use by hunters and fishermen. Land use
issues aside, many of these visitors are very
careless about littering, and the popular camping
areas often sport large heaps of garbage, scattered
bottles and cans and other debris. Regardless of
how one uses these resources, let's all try to
preserve them so that future generations can enjoy
them as we do.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 240mm lens
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Last
Light on Timp
Mt.
Timpanogos, the second-highest peak in Northern
Utah's Wasatch range, is a place of rare beauty. It
is also an excellent example of public land tended
to with care and appreciation. Trails are
unobtrusive and carefully maintained, rangers
patrol the area regularly and a special rescue team
is on call for emergencies. This may have something
to do with the nearby prestigious ski resort of
Sundance, but whatever the reason - one can revel
in the beauty of this wild place with the knowledge
that its timeless beauty is safe for future
generations.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 90mm lens
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Nebo
Alpenglow
The aspens
had not yet shed their colorful foliage when the
first snow arrived. A bright white blanket covered
the flanks of Mt. Nebo - the highest peak in
Northern Utah's Wasatch range, and a thick layer of
clouds rolled back just in time for the first rays
of sunlight to set the peaks ablaze. I set myself
up for this shot about 30 minutes before sunrise
and waited in anticipation. By the time it came I
was so cold I could barely move my fingers to pull
the dark slide, set the exposure and release the
shutter. Afterwards, I had to carry the camera,
still attached to the tripod, over to my car about
a mile away, where I turned the heat on and waited
a few minutes before my fingers regained enough
motion to disassemble everything and pack it up. It
was well worth the effort.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 240mm lens
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Painted
Hills
A long way
from anywhere, this fascinating area is located in
a small unit of Oregon's John Day Fossil Beds
National Monument. While most people know the state
of Oregon for its majestic coastline, volcanic
cones of the Cascade range, and lush rainforests,
much of the state's eastern part is
sparsely-populated high desert rich with unique
scenery.
Mamiya 645 Super, 55-110mm zoom lens
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Flaming
Bristlecone
High atop
Eastern California's White Mountains is one of the
oldest groves of these amazing trees. Perched above
the Great Basin and Owens Valley at altitudes of
over 11,000 feet, these ancient bristlecone pines,
some as old as 5,000 years, weather bitter winters
and scorching summers. Their thick trunks tell a
story with every twist and wrinkle. On this evening
a thunderstorm rolled in, its heavy clouds glowing
in the last rays of the setting sun. As darkness
fell, bolts of lightning and loud thunder served to
complete the primordial scene.
Pentax 67, 45mm lens
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Moqui
Marbles
Sometimes
referred to as "Shaman Stones" these strange
formations range in size from playing marbles to
baseballs. The marbles are actually an outer shell
of hematite (iron) around a sandstone core. The
processes that created them, as well as the ones
responsible for the psychedelic swirls in the
sandstone slab beneath them are as fascinating as
anything else in the Colorado Plateau. This image
was made in a hidden spot I stumbled upon
accidentally while searching for alternate routes
back from a wash I hiked down in Utah's
Grand-Staircase Escalante National Monument. While
little known to humans, this area seems to be
frequented by cattle, leaving their unmistakeble
traces behind. Of course one cannot blame the cows.
I'm sure they are as puzzled as anyone about what
makes someone think of the desert as good grazing
range.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 240mm lens
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Lion
Tracks
Mountain
lion, that is. These mysterious, stealthy hunters
are slowly making a recovery after many years of
being hunted for no real reason (several states
offered an arbitraty bounty on predators, some
still do). These cats roam in what little is left
of their former habitat, which is getting smaller
all the time. Clashes with humans are becoming all
the more frequent as cities sprawl and drought
conditions in the West are luring their native prey
closer to irrigated crops and gardens, always with
devastating results to the cats. Many so-called
experts point out the need to carefully manage
animal populations for a variety of reasons, mostly
concerned with scarcity of natural resources and
maintaining a natural balance. At what point do we
start managing our own population for the same
reasons?
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 150mm lens
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Hibernating
Aspen
High above
the canyon country, mountain plateaus provide a
home for aspen and conifer forests. After the
colorful display of fall color, leaves are shed and
the tall white boles look like an extension of the
white snow piled below.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 150mm lens
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Intimate
Kayenta
Known for
its sheer cliffs, deep canyons, tall mesas, and
monolithic formations, the sandstone wonderland of
the Colorado Plateau also offers infinite beauty in
minute detail. Sensous, almost erotic curves are
formed by the flow of water over centuries and
millenia, sculpting shapes that keep an explorer's
imagination constantly active.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 150mm lens
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Misty
Redwood Forest
The
temperate rainforests of the Pacific Coast are
unique in a number of ways - not only are they home
to a large number of plant and animal species that
depend on their unique ecosystem, they also have
much higher biomass per square foot than their
tropical counterparts. The latter fact makes them a
desirable target for the logging industry. Here
again the interests of conservation clash with the
needs of local residents and their families to earn
a living.
Pentax 67, 75mm lens
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Sundial
Peak and Glacial Polish
Prominent
Sundial Peak looms over the snow-covered Lake
Blanche in Northern Utah's Twin Peaks Wilderness.
These mountains, part of 3 wilderness areas butting
against the sprawling neightborhoods of Salt Lake
City and its suburbs, were set aside as wilderness
despite their commercial potential for winter
recreation and expensive housing. Repeated attempts
to open more of these areas for construction have
so far failed. It remains to be seen who will win
this controversey. In the meantime
wilderness-loving residents of Salt Lake City can
find beauty and solitude among these mountains.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 150mm lens
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Desert
Moonrise and Thunderstorm
A moment of
inspiration in a place whose name I don't even
know. After hours of driving through Arizona and
New Mexico I came upon this scene - heavy thunder
clouds parted, allowing the setting sun to
illuminate them from below, as a large yellow moon
slowly rose over the horizon. I stopped by the side
of the road to watch the magic light unfold. Other
than a persistent swarm of mosquitoes, there was no
sign of life - not the hum of cars, no chirping of
birds, no buildings or lights. I was the sole
spectator of this grand production.
Pentax 67, 135mm lens
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Island
Utah's Great
Salt Lake holds a special fascination for me. Over
the years several attempts were made to find
commercial uses for it, yet it remained untouched
for the most part. Access is possible in a number
of spots but large parts of the coastline are
inacessible by vehicle. Different parts of the lake
have unique characteristics - from the color of the
water to the type of flora and fauna around them.
One evening while hiking along the shore, this view
stopped me in my tracks. What struck me about it
was the graphic simplicity - few lines, few
elements, and the strong, surreal color of an
unusual sunset.
Wista VX 4x5 field camera, 240mm lens
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Wasatch
Winter Blues
For years I
wanted to spend Christmas on a mountain until I
finally got my wish. Work obligations required that
I stay home while my wife flew out to celenbrate
with her family. Left to my own devices I bundled
up and headed for the high country. I snowshoed my
way up the slopes in late afternoon and as the sun
set and the Christmas lights came on, I watched it
all from a cosy perch 5,000 feet above the city.
And yes - it was a silent night. Just me and the
stars twinkling through the clear winter sky.
Gowland 4x5 Pocket View camera, 90mm lens
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About the
Exhibit:
"Love of the
wilderness is more than a hunger for what is always beyond
reach; it is also an expression of loyalty to the earth
which bore us and sustains us, the only home we shall ever
know, the only paradise we ever need - if only we had eyes
to see." -- Edward Abbey
The American West is home to some of the world's most
spectacular scenery. Industrial society had not been here
long - a mere hundred years or so, yet its presence is felt
in the ever-growing and consistently invasive use of these
places. A treasure for the soul, these lands also pack
significant commercial value, and an ongoing struggle
continues to unfold. National Parks make up a small part of
these lands and ensure protection for some of their precious
gems, albeit often at the cost of removing their wild nature
by taking away the danger, the effort, the novelty, and some
of the magic of journeying into them.
These images expose some of the beauty outside the National
Parks - beauty that at varying times and places may or may
not be awarded some protection from commercial development.
There is no easy way to balance spiritual and commercial
interests, yet here we have been given a chance to do just
that - a treasure trove of scenic wonderlands under
jurisdiction of a powerful and enlightened nation. If we
cannot find and maintain this balance, who can?
About the
Photographer:
I grew up in another
country in a good place at a good time. The building my
family lived in was one of only two multi-storey buildings
for miles. In every direction lay fields and orchards
teeming with life and color. The words "video game" held no
meaning to anyone I knew growing up, and the only television
set in our house was a bulky black-and-white beast with
boring programming for just a few hours a day. I spent my
early years in the hills, studying animals and plants,
getting bit and scratched and bruised, getting to know every
living thing and falling in love with the natural world.
By the time I reached my teens, the "culture revolution" had
hit full force, along with a seemingly never-ending war.
Waves of immigrants brought with them almost overnight
explosion of new construction, reducing the fields of my
youth to distant memories. With every passing year more of
my beloved spots succumbed to houses and malls, but the kind
of place I grew up demanded loyalty and patriotism and
belief in the common good. If you questioned any of these,
the choice was simple - leave or go insane. I stuck it out.
What finally drove me out were three years of mandatory
military service that tested everything I came to love and
believe in. Some of the answers were not easy to accept, but
at that point I had no other choice. The wonderful place of
my childhood no longer existed.
As a young man I liked to read. Among the many books that
passed through my hands were the likes of Aldo Leopold's "A
Sand County Almanac," and Edward Abbey's "Desert Solitaire."
The latter had me imagining the wonderful places as he so
expertly described and their majestic beauty. I never
thought I would actually get to see them with my own eyes
someday, let alone live within a short driving distance of
them. On the day I realized it was time to leave, I also
knew where I was headed - the American West became my new
home. As a child there was little I could do to protect the
lands I so loved, now gone. In this life, however, I hope to
use my photography and writing to bring the natural beauty
of my new homeland to everyone, so that more caring and
inspired souls can assist in keeping the West wild.
To see more of my
images, please visit my web site,
http://www.scenicwild.com.
Also, please contact
me with your comments. I'd love to hear from
you.
Please
note: All images featured in this showcase
are Copyright © Guy Tal, all rights reserved.
These images are protected by U.S. and international
copyright laws and may not be used or reproduced without
permission. For licensing information, or to order
prints, please contact Guy
Tal.
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