This years summer vacation

[Renauda]

@bachophile

To me it looks like a gopher snake. Non venomous. Fairly common here in southern Alberta around Medicine Hat and Lethbridge. Often mistaken for a rattler.

[bachophile]

Today was sequoia national forest day.

I bet u didn’t know that sequoia has 5 vowels

[LuFins Dad]

Beautiful.

[jon-nyc]

Nice. I considered making my way there in August, it would even give me an excuse to get some meth in Bakersfield, but decided against it. We will see some Redwoods somewhere.

[bachophile]

Coming to you from Mexican Hat Utah

This is the view from the motel room overlooking the San Juan River just outside of monument valley

Thats monument valley, recognize the scene from Forest Gump?

Glen canyon dam

And downstream from the dam, the Colorado eventually feeding into the Grand Canyon

Tomorrow into the Rockies and Colorado.

[bachophile]

Better dam pictures. Damn it’s nice.

[Jolly]

Don't know how I missed this. Great pictures!

And yeah, that's a rattler. They ain't bad fried.

[LuFins Dad]

@Jolly said in This years summer vacation:

Don't know how I missed this. Great pictures!

And yeah, that's a rattler. They ain't bad fried.

Nahhh, I’m with Renauda. That’s a gopher snake. Rattler’s heads are particularly arrow shaped. The teeth and venom glands are exaggerated more than most other vipers.. And are diamonds more than striped in patterns..

[George K]

I love travel photos. Thanks for continuing with this.

[Mik]

Yes indeed. Aren’t the redwoods in Sequoia and Kings Canyon spectacular?

[Copper]

Yes, nice pictures. You could see most of that on Google Earth, but it's not the same as knowing the photographer.

[Jolly]

@LuFins-Dad said in This years summer vacation:

@Jolly said in This years summer vacation:

Don't know how I missed this. Great pictures!

And yeah, that's a rattler. They ain't bad fried.

Nahhh, I’m with Renauda. That’s a gopher snake. Rattler’s heads are particularly arrow shaped. The teeth and venom glands are exaggerated more than most other vipers.. And are diamonds more than striped in patterns..

Isn't that a dozen rattles on the tail?

[blondie]

Really nice pics. Please post more!
Oh, and definitely a rattlesnake. It has a rattle. And that’s the 1st defining feature with your pic. Gopher snakes (aka bull snakes) don’t have rattles on their tails. Their tails taper to a point. I’m more familiar with prairie rattlers. They aren’t as pretty as the ones down south.

[Horace]

Beautiful pics! I hope you enjoy yourself. I remember those sequoias from our camping trip around there a few years ago. Don’t hike to exhaustion like we did.

[Renauda]

@blondie & @bachophile

I have sent a copy of the snake photos to someone in Calgary who ought to be able to identify that snake with high certainty. Hopefully he is not out in the wilds right now and can get back to me soon.

[Doctor Phibes]

Great photos, Mr. B.

There's nothing like the US for just jaw-dropping canyons and what-not. We went to the Grand Canyon and Sedona a couple of years ago, and I was really just struck dumb by the experience. I'm hoping it's reversible.

[Mik]

I haven’t noticed any further deterioration, Phibes. Wasn’t a lot of room for it anyway

[Renauda]

@bachophile & @blondie

My contact in Calgary got back to me and said that it was a beautiful example of a Southern Pacific Rattlesnake (Crotalus helleri )

What really impressed him was the perfect condition of his tail for a snake that has undergone twelve sheddings.

Good call blondie.

[bachophile]

So, currently in Grand Island Nebraska.

As I said going fast over the plains. Here there be…basically just cornfields.

Some catch up

The south west deserts are just beyond spectacular. Every turn was a new canyon, a new mesa, colors unbelievable.

But fraught with danger.

Four corners

Joshua trees

Ouray Colorado

Scottsbluff Nebraska.

Tomorrow booked a hotel overlooking the Mississippi in Iowa.

[Mik]

Nice trip!

Our drive from North Carolina to Las Vegas last summer was kind of a survey of American deserts. Quite spectacular.