After the council of The 13 Grandmothers, my friend Terra Celeste and I went to Yellowstone National Park for the first full moon in August. Upon leaving Grandmother Margaret’s home, we were asked to take an offering to the Medicine Wheel in eastern Wyoming.  This location is one of the oldest sacred spots in North America and may have been built over 10,000 years ago.  Different indigenous tribes have been coming and doing sacred ceremonies there for so long, no one is exactly sure who built it in the first place. The meeting of the Grandmothers was a very intense experience, and it was really nice to complete the ceremony at the Medicine Wheel, with an offering of tobacco and prayers.

As we continued our journey, through the park to the town of West Yellowstone, we saw an owl, a pair of coyotes, and a buffalo, all wandering in the middle of the road.  After arriving, we had quick dinner, checked into our hotel, and headed back into the park to see how geysers and thermal water look under a full moon.  August in Yellowstone is high season, and you can expect throngs of tourists unless you head out in the middle of the night.  With the exception of a few other photographers, we had the place to ourselves.  If Yellowstone is a magical place by day, it is far more amazing by full moon.  As we walked around the geysers, moist steam rolled off the thermal pools and punctuated the chilly air; intermittently enveloping us in shifting clouds of blinding, white, warmth.

Over the next two nights, we shot for several hours in the park and came up with some really nice new images.  I would love to return to Yellowstone, as I feel like there is so much more we could have done.  I love the color and texture in the park, from the vibrant blues of a full moon sky to the rainbow colors of the pools.  Although, I think they do work in most of these shots, one of the hardest things about shooting in the park are the walkways.  It was a real challenge to either incorporate them, or to hide them in the images.  Regardless, I am very happy with what happened during this shoot.  I think that a few of these photos really need to be viewed big, so please click on them to enlarge.