Last Thursday, the 18th, I happened to glance out of the kitchen window. It was about 0445 PST and the colours of the sky were magnificent.
I immediatly grabbed my camera and went onto the deck, looking towards Mount Sexton.
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They are all as shot. The only changes made are the size of the photograph and the intensity of the image.
And we should not forget that today is the Summer Solstice.
The June solstice arrives at 8:25 UTC (3:25 a.m. CDT) on June 21, 2026. For the Northern Hemisphere, it’s the longest day and shortest night. For the Southern Hemisphere, it’s the shortest day and longest night. Watch this video with EarthSky’s Deborah Byrd to learn the top 3 sky sights on this June solstice 2026. And what does “sun stands still” really mean? Plus, EarthSky’s Will Triggs joins to tell us about visiting Stonehenge on the solstice!
As I said to Jeannie the broadcast really spoke to me as each morning I am in awe of the black-tailed deer that I go down to feed near the old stables just outside the house.
Then I pause on my way back and look at Mount Sexton and the rising sun; again I am in awe.
Then at night, being a crystal-clear sky on many occasions, I am in awe at the heavens above.
The programme spoke of one being in awe of both the small and the large and I want to close with two of my photographs of me sensing awe in both scales.
I just ran out of time yesterday to publish a proper blog post so I am sharing this photograph with you. It shows Mount Sexton in the distance, just to the right of the fir tree, and two rainbows, it being a rainy afternoon. The camera is facing North-East and the picture was taken at the north end of our rear deck.
A post that involves dogs but not what I had in mind!
Last Saturday I published a post The burning of our forests! that included a photograph of the nearby Klondike fire.
Courtesy Jeffersen Public Radio
Then last Sunday I was speaking to Maija, my daughter back in England, and she was asking how the fires were and I distinctly recall saying: “Sweetheart, I think we are over the worst!”
That same Sunday evening, around 9:45pm, in other words two evenings ago, one of our neighbours, Margo, who lives on 60 acres adjacent to the west of us, called with real alarm in her voice:
Paul, have you seen the fire that is burning just to the North-East of us?
I replied that I had not but immediately went to our deck that runs the whole Eastern length of our house. Mount Sexton is just a few miles to the North-East of us.
This is what I saw!
Taken on the 2nd September, 2018 at 21:44 PDT
Apparently, a short while previously the wind had blown down a tree that had fallen across some high-voltage power lines causing sparking that had, in turn, ignited the extremely dry grassland.
The fire was between Oxyoke Road and Three Pines Road and roughly 2 miles from us line of sight.
That explained why some thirty minutes before, in the last of the light of the setting sun, there had been a number of helicopter flights come across us en route to dropping fire retardant close by. It hadn’t occurred to me that it was an incident so close to us.
Many of us living nearby then called each other to spread the word.
Jeannie and I, in turn, drew up an evacuation checklist and started getting things ready. More importantly, getting ourselves psychologically prepared to have to vacate the property at very short notice: Jeannie and me: six dogs; two horses; two parakeets; three cats; two chickens!
Thankfully an order to evacuate did not come during the night.
So yesterday morning I grabbed my bike and rode to Oxyoke Road. On the way I stopped to photograph the smoke in the air.
Three Pines Road looking to the East.
Once at Oxyoke Road I chatted to a search and rescue volunteer on duty controlling the traffic.
His report, as of 11:30 on September 3rd, was that the fire was just 15% contained, was “pretty active”, and that they were keeping an eye on the winds that were expected to be rather gusty later on that afternoon. I am writing this at 13:40 on the 3rd and the present winds are 6 mph, gusting 12 mph, from the North-West.
I rode back home to brief Jeannie and found her working her way through an idea for evacuating the dogs!
H’mmm! I am not sure Pedy is getting the message!
But a few words from Sweeny seemed to sort things out.
So there you are my good people, a post about dogs! Sort of!
Fingers crossed we will speak again tomorrow!
Assuming we don’t have a repeat of last night’s spectacular sights!!
Photo taken by Holmes Ariel of the Hugo Road Neighbourhood Watch group.
In last week’s Picture Parade it was mentioned that at some point I would share some of the sights of home.
Well today, all the photographs were taken here at home (that being Merlin, Southern Oregon). The motivation behind these photographs was learning the operation of a new camera that I recently treated myself with. That is turning out to be quite a task; the user manual is 510 pages long!
But in no particular order, here are a few pictures.
Brandy staying cool on the kitchen floor!
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Looking out to the East from the deck adjoining the house.
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Photo taken at 06:10 on the morning of the 25th July. That is Mount Sexton on the horizon and the view is towards the North-East, again taken from our deck. (I was playing with the exposure control on the camera.)
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Looking from the end of the deck towards the South down to where our stables are. Photo taken at 06:20 on the 28th shortly after I had put out feed for the deer that come most mornings.
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Taken at 06:10 on the 25th. This shows ‘Doris’ (the second) who has been sleeping under the trees overnight.
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Zoomed in a little closer to Doris and she looked up at me exactly when I took the photograph!
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Morning sky. Unusual to have cloudy skies at this time of the year. 06:20 on the 26th July.
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Our beautiful, gorgeous stag. He has been a regular visitor for the last two years. Taken at 06:10 on the 25th.
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Morning sky, with exposure adjustment, taken at 06:00 on the 25th July.
Can’t close without publicly thanking the wonderful photographic forum Ugly Hedgehog. With over 75,000 users it really is a superb place for all those interested in photography. The forum was invaluable in helping me decide what camera to purchase and, just as importantly, where to purchase it from.
Learning from Dogs 