Landscape

Grand Canyon, Arizona by Liesl Pfeffer

Grand Canyon, Arizona
November 2015

I felt really fortunate to see the Grand Canyon twice in one lifetime. The first time I came here was on a month-long road trip with my family, in 1991, when I was 12. We hired a minivan and the five of us packed in there every day and traced a path all over the western half of the United States. I remember stopping to eat picnic sandwiches in national forests, staying in Super 8 motels, singing along from the middle seat to cast recordings of Broadway musicals, talking to other kids in hot tubs and swimming pools at night, sucking the helium out of a deflating balloon we bought at Disneyland and speaking in high pitched chipmunk voices. I remember drinking Hershey's hot chocolate and eating Apple Jack cereal. I remember Metallica released Enter Sandman that month and my brother had it on repeat on his discman.

I remember when we were at the Grand Canyon, we couldn't believe that people were climbing out onto rocks that seemed to be balanced precariously on top of long columns of sandstone. My brother pretended to leap from the edge at one point and my little sister burst into tears because he really seemed to disappear from sight for a second. 

Tahquitz Canyon, Palm Springs by Liesl Pfeffer

Tahquitz Canyon
Palm Springs, CA
November 2015

There is a two mile loop trail just outside Palm Springs up through Tahquitz Canyon to the falls. I was mesmerized by all the rocks on the ground, wondering if I would find the perfect chunk of quartz, and wondering also if I would have the nerve to sneak it into my pocket and take it home with me. Nice hike, no quartz (probably for the best). 

Colorado Desert sunset, California by Liesl Pfeffer

Sunset, Colorado Desert, California
November 2015

Me in the backseat of the car, a passenger whilst we were driving through the desert highway at dusk: "we should stop soon"... "we should stop and see the sunset"... "it looks like its really beautiful and I want to take photos" ..."I'm just going to put my window down and take some photos" ..."oh boy its beautiful we should pull over if you see a turn off" ...."i really think we should stop". Poor Dan. Like driving all day wasn't enough, he had this whiny photographer in the backseat and Joy in the front seat desperately needing us to get to the first town so she could have a rest room stop. Eventually I got my way and we stopped and I got a couple of photos that do the pink desert light pretty much no justice at all, like most photos of sunsets. 

Salton Sea, California by Liesl Pfeffer

Salton Sea, California
November 2015

A big salty lake in the Colorado Desert in California, we skirted its shoreline for half an hour while we zoomed deeper into the desert towards Salvation Mountain. We stopped for a moment to take photos of the strange hazy light that was floating over the water. Later in the day, and after the sun had set, we passed by again. this time stopping at the tiny seaside community of Bombay Beach (population 295) for a drink at the Ski Inn, recommended to me by a friend in LA. We put songs on the jukebox, looked over a well-loved geology book about the Salton Sea shared with us by the friendly bartender Steve and stuck a signed $1 bill to the ceiling. 

South Beacon Firetower hike, Beacon by Liesl Pfeffer

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Breakneck Ridge, Beacon, NY
October 2015

We hiked up Mount Beacon to the firetower, a steep and very rocky trail with incredible views of Beacon, the Hudson River and the surrounding valley. The trail is a series of switchbacks alongside an old incline railway track, which goes past the remains of the brick building that housed the machinery for the railway, and up to the firetower. I complained quite a lot (that's how I hike) (it was really rocky) (it made my feet hurt!) (it took hours) but the view from the top was rewarding and so was the chocolate Adam brought for me to eat when we rested half way up and the beer we had when we got back down. Ummm, I'm a baby.

Chipmunk Hollow by Liesl Pfeffer

Chipmunk Hollow, NY
December 2014

A place with a silly name where I spent the weekend for an office holiday party. It snowed and snowed, as it seemed to do all winter in New York. The surface of the lake froze and I tried to step on it because I have never walked on a frozen lake but the ice broke and my shoe was drenched with cold, cold water. Still learning lessons in America. 

Topsham, Maine by Liesl Pfeffer

Topsham, Maine
November 2014

The thanksgiving holidays were spent in a beautiful family home on a farm in southern Maine. We drove overnight to get there from Baltimore/New York, and arrived around 6am. The snow started to fall late morning, and by the end of the first day the snow was up to our shins. It then continued to snow on and off for days. One day we went for a walk just before sunset to look at the freezing river. We heard gun shots in the distance because this is hunting country.