Well hello there, long time no posting…
So, it has been a while since I got on here and posted some new work. Between getting back from Burning Man, packing my whole house in storage, and moving to San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, things have been a bit crazed. Never fear though, I have been working a lot and have some exciting new work to put up over the next few days. Aloyse came down for a week to visit during the full moon, even with the rainy hurricane Jova weather we still managed to get some terrific new images. First things first though, I still have one shoot I did on the way home from Burning Man that I never got around to posting.
One of my favorite places on the planet is this bizarre spot in the middle of the deserts of Utah. Named Goblin Valley, for its unusual sandstone rock formations, I can truly say this place is one of the world’s most magical and psychedelic locations. I have been coming to Goblin Valley since I was about sixteen, and my friends would be surprised to see the new pay station, on grounds ranger housing, and full campground. The cat may be out of the bag. Fortunately, we were still able to drive right into the park at night and “illegally” run around in the moonlight.
Getting to Goblin Valley was the end of a great adventure. We had had a long few weeks of road tripping across the American west, and when all was said and done we had traveled over 4000 miles. Accompanied by my great friend Angelo Valenzuela, we had driven from Colorado to Las Vegas, Palm Springs, Los Angeles, and Black Rock City, now were slowly retracing our steps towards home. As we crossed the desolate strip of highway between Salina and Green River, Utah, I watched the moon traversing the mackerel sky, illuminating the vast desert emptiness. Slowing heading for the horizon, I was concerned we would not get there in time to use the moon’s natural light. As we pulled in to the parking lot, the moon was low, but on an angle that was reminiscent of the “golden hour” just before sunset.
The night was cold, and I was afraid that shooting naked might be miserable, but once disrobed, I adapted quickly and felt comfortable enough. I climbed up on to the rocks and went through the usual static poses. Then something happened. I became a four-legged alien monster creature. Always looking for new directions and growth, this seems like a very fun interesting avenue for exploration.
Goblin Valley is a truly bizarre and amazing place. Wherever you look there are rocks and towers that resemble everything from falaces to faces. In the second image, if you look at the rock, you can see the profile of a face, leering at me in the dark. After shooting in the first three locations, the clouds began to move in and the light became obscure, so I pointed the camera directly at the moon. At this time, Angleo decided to jump in to the photo and we got a wonderful backlit image.
On the way back to the car, the moon set, the clouds really came in and we didn’t have much of a flashlight. Suddenly, we became wildly disoriented. Goblins reared out of the darkness, and I was irrationally terrified. Although Goblin Valley is not large enough to really get lost, that moment of panic was an amazing experience. After a few frightening moments, we retraced our steps, and were able to find the truck. The campsite was full, so we parked a few miles away, and fell asleep pretzeled together in the front seat.
