Tag: Photography

The Great Prosser Balloon Rally

Travel an hour beyond Yakima heading south on Hwy 82 and you’ll find the town of Prosser, the heart of the Yakima Valley wine country and the home of The Great Prosser Balloon Rally.

Sitting on the Yakima River, nestled under the Horse Heaven Hills, the town of Prosser is a gem in the beautiful Yakima Valley.

The 2023 rally marks the 33rd year of the Prosser Balloon Rally; somehow, I had never heard of it.  If you have ever wanted to attend the Albuquerque International Balloon Festival in New Mexico but the time and distance have held you back, the next best thing happens right here in our backyard.

This is one of Prosser’s largest 3-day festivals, and the town goes all out.  In addition to the Balloon Rally, there is a Harvest Festival, a Street Painting Festival, a Farmers Market, and a free breakfast at the Fire Station on both Saturday and Sunday mornings. All of this is in the historic old town, within walking distance of the Prosser Airport where the balloons launch.

Balloon Rally

The balloons launch at the Prosser Airport on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday mornings.  The pilots and crews arrive around 6:00 a.m. to unpack and set up their balloons.  There are no barriers between the balloon crews and the crowd.  The crews are friendly and encourage questions.  It’s not uncommon to be asked to help.  Hearing the burners fire off and watching the balloons inflate is thrilling.  You can’t know how huge these are until you are standing beneath a fully inflated balloon.  Very impressive.

While the airport is the place to be for all pre-flight activities, the best place to see the Balloons in flight is a short walk south down Wine Country Road to the Yakima River Bridge.  The Balloons lift off and float out over the river as they head off to the east. A few of the very skilled pilots drop down to the river, touching the surface, floating yet still flying across the river until they hit their burners and lift off again.  It is a sight to see.

As the Balloons float off into the distance, continue walking south on Wine Country Road.  As you leave the bridge, just a short distance to your left, the Benton County Fire Station serves free breakfasts on Saturday and Sunday mornings.  Since that was a sunrise Balloon launch the timing will be perfect for a hearty Biscuits and Gravy breakfast and a cup of coffee.

Harvest Festival

Just beyond the fire station, in the next block, you will find the Harvest Festival. The town closes eight blocks of its historic downtown to traffic allowing people to wander amongst dozens of arts and crafts booths. One block is set aside for food trucks where I counted ten vendors selling everything from Kettle Corn to BBQ. Just behind the food area was a stage set up with tables and chairs where you could enjoy your food while listening to live music.

 Street Painting Festival

The Street Painting Festival is on the block directly behind the Harvest Festival.  On Friday you can watch the artists line out their drawings. Throughout the weekend, they transform their outlines into beautiful multicolored chalk art.  We stopped by multiple times over the weekend to see the progress of each painting. As you can see this festival attracts some very talented artists.

All the events I have mentioned so far are within easy walking distance of the airport where the balloons are launched and there is no charge for attendance or parking.

The Night Burn

If you attend the Balloon Rally experiencing the Night Burn is a must.  The Night Burn takes place at the Prosser High School football stadium.  Five balloons line up across the football field.  When it gets dark, all the lights in the stadium are turned off and the balloons fire their burners lighting up their beautiful balloons against the black night sky.  It was fun to hear the crowd of several thousand let out a simultaneous “Awe!” followed by a “Whoop!” that turned into a loud cheer.  It is an awe-inducing sight.  This event gets crowded. The grandstands were full, with additional festival-type seating all around the field.  We arrived at about 6:30 p.m. and found plenty of parking spaces within three blocks of the stadium.

As with the other events of the weekend attendance and parking are free.

 Wineries   

Although not truly a part of the festival weekend, if you enjoy a good glass of wine, a visit to some of the wine-tasting rooms in the Prosser area is a must.  According to the “Tour Prosser” literature, there are 32 wineries in the greater Prosser area.  Breaking away from the festival for an afternoon we chose three winery tasting rooms to visit. We started at Daven Lore, which is a smaller winery located 3 miles outside of Prosser up in the Horse Heaven Hills. The view of the Yakima Valley from our Adirondack chairs as my wife (*) sampled their wine was beautiful.

The next two wineries were back in town at Airfield Estate and Witt Cellars.  Both wineries spared no expense in building their tasting rooms and grounds.  Airfield Estate is built like an airplane hanger with a lot of outside seating and the Witt Cellars building and grounds were beautiful.  In the spirit of the weekend, Witt had a stage set up with live music on the festival Saturday.  (*) I am the designated driver 😊

It’s all about the food…

The restaurant scene in Prosser is small but very good.  Our dinner Thursday night was at The Prosser House.  Everything at our table was delicious but the consensus entrée winner was the crispy chicken and grits with chorizo gravy.   As good as that was the real debate was over the Mexican street corn ribs and the churro Fries.  If you like Mexican street corn these ribs will blow your mind. They quarter an ear of corn lengthwise and smother them in street corn seasoned lime-butter.  Amazing!  The churro fries are what you would expect. Crunchy outside, soft doughy and delicious on the inside covered in honey and cinnamon sugar.  When they set a big bowl of these on the table, we thought we couldn’t possibly eat all of them and asked for a box.  They were gone in no time.

Luckily, we went to Whitstran Steak and Spirits for dinner on Friday.  The lucky part was that Friday night is smoked prime rib night.  Yes, smoked! and we were early enough to get an end cut.  Lean, seasoned to perfection, and served over a bed of tasty, mashed potatoes and honey-roasted carrots.  Easily one of the best meals I’ve had anywhere.  There were other things at the table, but I was so engrossed in my prime rib that nothing else mattered.  I did share though…

Brewminatti is an eclectic coffee shop in the morning and a Tap House for local beers in the evening.  When out on adventures we always try to bypass the large corporate coffee houses for the smaller locally owned baristas which offer more character, greater opportunity to mingle with locals, and tasty coffee.

Go for a drive!

The Yakima Valley and the Horse Heaven Hills are beautiful.  We drove south out of town on S. Ward Gap Road which winds up to a ridge atop the Horse Heaven Hills and beyond.  Stop at the top and marvel at the unobstructed valley view. This would be a good spot to turn back if you choose but we decided to explore further continuing south, winding through the dry wheat fields and farms.

Eventually, you’ll come to a tee at Sellards Road.  Either way will take you back to Prosser, but we turned right then turned right again on McKinley Spring / Township Road which runs along the ridge top providing peek-a-boo views of the valley below.  Eventually this Tees at the Mabton-Bickleton Road.  We turned right and drove back down into the Valley.  If you want to search for Bluebirds, turn left and head for the town of Bickleton;).

Bluebirds of Bickleton (Weekend Getaways)

This was a wonderful weekend getaway.  If it sounds fun, mark your calendar for 9/27 – 9/29 2024 for the 34th annual Great Prosser Balloon Rally.

We’ll see you there.

Gallery

@BR Images 2023, all rights reserved

 

Darrington Bluegrass Festival

This is a repost of a story I wrote for www.explorewashingtonstate.com.  (With a lot more pictures;)

Located roughly an hour and a half northeast of Seattle, tucked into the base of Whitehorse Mountain, lies the little logging town of Darrington, home of the Darrington Bluegrass Festival.  This was the 46th annual festival and over the years it has grown from a few locals playing on a flatbed trailer in the rodeo rink to a 3-day festival that attracts the finest bluegrass musicians from across the U.S. and Canada.

This is not a huge festival.  I’d estimate the Friday night crowd to be no more than three to four hundred people.  Saturday’s crowd may have reached 1500 in a venue that could comfortably hold double that.  If you’ve ever been traumatized by the crowds at The Gorge no worries, here you can bring your folding chair, spread out, relax in the sun, and enjoy some incredible live music.

You should leave any preconceived notion of what bluegrass music is at home.  The level of skill both instrumentally and vocally was astounding.  These groups are award-winning recording artists.  The warm sounds of an all-acoustic band playing guitars, mandolins, fiddles (not Violins), standup basses, and banjos in such beautiful harmony was wonderful but when you add three and four-part perfect vocal harmonies… well, prepare to be gobsmacked.

The history of the festival dates back to the 1940s in North Carolina.  When the hardwood logging industry ran out in the Tar Heal state a group of loggers and their families moved across the country to the booming logging industry in Darrington and with them, they brought their love of bluegrass music.  These transplanted Tar Heals would get together for weekly jam sessions and as their popularity grew, they formed the Darrington Bluegrass Association.   In the early 1970s, five locals formed The Whitehorse Mountaineers, a talented and popular bluegrass band.  In 1977 they held their first festival, and it has continued to grow into a nationally recognized and desirable festival for musicians across the country.

As the unofficial photographer for the festival, I was able to speak with several of the musicians who all said that if they get an invite from the Darrington Bluegrass Festival they come without hesitation.  In citing their reasons, they all mentioned the tradition of this festival as well as the natural beauty of the area.  This year’s lineup consisted of groups from as far away as Georgia, Kentucky, Kansas, and Wisconsin, as well as British Columbia, Portland, Mount Vernon, and of course Darrington. The father of the Darrington group’s lead singer was one of the original Tar Heals that moved to the area in the 1940s.  The connections still run deep.

Camping

You can choose to attend a single day on Saturday and enjoy a lot of good music.  When I agreed to cover this for Explore Washington, I decided to buy the 3-day Festival and Campground Pass and immerse myself more fully in the bluegrass culture.  Boy, am I glad I did!  When I arrived on Friday all the tent sites were filled so I set up my tent camp amongst the RV’s with more than a little bit of dread.  All my worries were for naught as the people were so friendly, and the generators were off by 9 pm.  The most magical part of the entire weekend occurred in the campground at about 1 am Sunday morning as I was woken by live music.  I threw on some clothes, grabbed my flashlight, and headed out into the dark to investigate.  Just across from my tent between two RV’s, I found a group of six or seven musicians jamming around a campfire.  There were one or two musicians from the various bands, obviously friends, playing their assorted instruments.  Between tunes, they’d talk and laugh then someone would throw out the name of a song, start and the rest would join in.  This was the best live music experience I’ve ever had, and I would highly recommend camping for this reason alone.  As I wandered through the campground in the wee hours that morning, I found a half dozen more groups playing their hearts out around campfires under starry skies.  Truly amazing…

Food

I didn’t know what to expect as I packed to attend the festival, so I brought a cooler full of food.  I knew it was only 3 miles from the venue to town so running into Darrington to eat was another option.   As it turned out, there was a wide variety of food at the venue.  Bluegrass Concessions is a permanent building that serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  They served everything from pancakes to cheeseburgers, to Chicken Caesar salads and more.  It was all good.

In addition, the Big Stick BBQ food truck was there for the weekend from the town of Twisp.  I had their hand-packed bacon cheeseburger.  It was seasoned to perfection and delicious.  The next time you’re in Twisp they are located across from the IGA on Hwy 20 and well worth the stop.  Other food booths at the venue served gourmet brats, Ice cream, mini donuts, and of course, coffee.

 

The Darrington Bluegrass Festival is the biggest little music festival I’d never heard of, and it happens right here in our beautiful backyard.  So put a reminder in your calendar and come up to Darrington in 2024 for the 47th annual Bluegrass Festival.  You won’t regret it and I’ll see you there.

Gallery

@BRImages 23, All Rights Reserved.

 

The Cowboy and the Bronc.

The dust had just settled on the dirt floor of the rodeo ring as the Cowboy slowly climbed over the rail and gingerly lowered himself onto the Bronc.  Zooming in from my position directly across the ring I saw a look of focused concentration and determination in the eyes of the cowboy.  The eyes of the horse told a different story, wild and angry.  As the cowboy adjusted his grip and pressed his hat down firmly onto his head, the horse fought against the constraints of the chute and the weight of the cowboy.  As the moments passed with the two adversaries wedged in that small chute you could feel the tensions rise. Looking back at the cowboy I could see his mouth form the words “Let’er Go!” and the gate swung wide.

The horse exploded from the chute with 1500 pounds of muscle and fury, twisting left then right, lowering his head as he bucked high in the air trying desperately to throw this stowaway overboard.  The cowboy was up for the challenge with his left hand in the air and his right tightly gripping the reins.  Shifting his weight front to back, left to right, the cowboy countered every move the horse would make.  It became apparent that these were equal adversaries as they fought their way to the center of the ring.

It was at this point that I noticed the two were getting large in my camera viewfinder.  Looking over my camera from my perch on the rail, I realized that this battle was coming straight at me.  As they slammed up against the fence neither would give quarter to the other.  I adjusted my camera and continued to shoot hoping for something worthy of the moment.  It all happened so fast.

Finally, right in front of me, the cowboy flew off the horse.  I’m not sure if he was thrown or if he bailed.  I don’t know who won. In all the noise and excitement, I did not hear the 8-second buzzer.  I’d like to think it was a draw.

The ring riders led the horse out of the ring where his saddle and bridle were removed, and he was let out into the paddock to mingle with the other horses, no worse for wear.

The cowboy picked himself up out of the dirt and slowly walked across the ring and through a gate where he was met by other cowboys offering handshakes and backslaps.

And as the dust settled on the floor of the rodeo ring, another cowboy slowly climbed over the rail….

 

Klickitat County Fair and Rodeo, 2023

Historical note:

The practice of “Bronco Busting” goes back over 6000 years to when the first horses were domesticated on the Eurasian Steppe.  Since then, the Mongols, Romans, Spanish, Native Americans, and our western cowboys have all used this method to tame and domesticate horses.  Rodeos with events such as Bronc Riding and Calf Roping is a celebration of these cattle ranching traditions and a taste of old-time western America.

Bull Riding???  That’s plumb loco as the Caballeros used to say.  I imagine a group of cowboys staggering out of a saloon after a few too many sarsaparillas.  There’s a bull in the corral across the street.  One cowboy lays down a “Double Dog Dare ya” to another cowboy and the rest is history.

Gallery

@BRImages 23, All Rights Reserved.

Springtime in Yellowstone Part 1

Obsidian and her three adorable cubs

This is the first of a multi-post story.  As I began sorting pictures from my recent wildlife photography trip to Yellowstone I quickly realized that I had far too many to put in a single post so I’ve split it into three.

I’ve been fortunate to visit many of our beautiful National Parks over the past few years, but in my opinion, none can compare with Yellowstone.  Our first National Park, Founded in 1872, is little changed and offers a glimpse of what the West may have been like back in the day.  The concentration and diversity of wildlife found in the park can be found nowhere else in the Lower 48.

Yellowstone is immense at over 2.2 million acres.  Its geological variety offers volcanic geysers, deep river valleys and waterfalls, the prairie grasslands of the Lamar Valley, and the rugged giant peaks of the Rocky Mountains.

Spring is the perfect time to visit Yellowstone National Park.  While Spring mornings may be chilly the afternoons can be perfect shirt-sleeve temperatures**.  The Summer heat and crowds can be oppressive.  Fall is a beautiful season in the park but the thing that draws me to Springtime in Yellowstone are the newborns emerging from their dens. Spring is the time to witness the next generation of wildlife as it steps out into the world.  I was there June 3rd -9th and the conditions were perfect.

** Anytime you go to Yellowstone prepare for all weather conditions.  It snowed in the park a week or so after I left.

Before I go further with this report, I want to thank Max Waugh of Max Waugh Photography for all his hard work in making this such an amazing experience.  I was extremely lucky to land one of four spots in Max’s Spring  Yellowstone wildlife photography tour.  After 20-plus years as a professional wildlife photographer,  exploring the park and guiding wildlife photography trips it would be hard to find anyone with more knowledge of Yellowstone’s wildlife.  Thanks, Max!

https://www.maxwaugh.com/

Grizzly Bears

It was a little before 6 am as we rounded the corner approaching the Obsidian Cliffs area of the park when Max called out “Bear”.  Up on the grassy hillside to our left was a sow grizzly named Obsidian after the area in which she lived.  It was still a little dark and a hazy mist hung in the chilly morning air making visibility a little tough.  Eventually, we spotted her three adorable cubs as they followed their mom out onto the hillside.  We had this scene all to ourselves for the first hour before anyone else arrived or traffic became too busy.  That’s the reward for rising at 3:30 am to be on the road by 4:15 am.  It was so worth it!

Remember, click on the pictures to see them in full format.  These guys pegged the needle on the cute meter.

This all happened in the first two hours of a five-day wildlife photography trip.  I must admit I thought there was no way we could top this…. I was wrong.

Black Bears

We found this mamma with her two adorable cubs just off Tower Road.   When we arrived, the momma was in a grassy area below the road with her two cubs up a tree.

Eventually, the cubs came down and followed their mom across the road but not before the cubs became distracted by this traffic cone.

Even in Spring, the traffic can get crazy with “bear jams”.  Don’t be a drive-by wildlife watcher.  We saw more than one person stop in the middle of their lane causing long traffic jams.  When you spot an animal, find a place to pull over and enjoy the experience.

Possible mating pair of Black Bears, one black one cinnamon
Bison

It’s an awe-inspiring sight to look out across the vast Lamar Valley and see many hundreds of Bison roaming the grasslands with their little “Red Dog” calves.  The calves are full of energy running, playing, and chasing each other around.  They are so cute and fun to watch.

It is hard to imagine a time when millions of Bison roamed the western plains and harder still to fathom how they were hunted to near extinction.  In the mid-1880 a conservationist named William Hornaday began a campaign to save the Bison.  In the early 1800’s there were an estimated 30 million Bison on the western plains. By the time Congress made It illegal to kill bison in 1894 there we fewer than 1000.

Gallery

The Yellowstone ecosystem is truly a wonder with its diverse landscapes and a wide array of wildlife.   From the apex/keystone predators like Grizzly Bears and Wolves to the grassland grazers like the Bison, elk, and pronghorn Antelope to the Pocket Gophers and Ground Squirrels, all the animals in the park are part of the delicate balance of life that is the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.  It is truly something to be cherished.

For all we saw on this trip, there is so much more to see and I am eager to go back.

Part two of this series will include Fox Kits, Badger Cubs, an adorable newborn Moose calf, and baby Owls.

@BR Images 2023, all rights reserved