Happy New Year

Blue Moon over Wild Nevada

Cold, Dark, & Gloomy

Nothing quite says gloomy like black & white...I love northern Nevada and it's got some great places , but I'm ready to head down south, warm up a bit and go hiking. I'm going to get up to the snow , but I'm looking forward to staying a little lower and exploring the west side of the Springs, Not to mention,Gold Butte is calling, and the whole virutially untapped territory of Lake Mead. Well...untapped by me, lots of folks hike out there all the time.

The image above is my backyard hiking spot in Reno the Huffaker Hills

Highland Range

Dancing Light...I love it. When the light is moving I could hang out in the desert all day and just wait for the shot. I wanted this shot so much I pulled off Hwy. 95 south of Boulder City just to try and capture the moment. The light would dance for a few seconds on this little hill then it would fade...ebb and flow, just like the tide moving across the sagebrush sea.

Anyway this shot is from early December...I long to get back to southern Nevada and get back in the hunt for the magic light.

Wilderness Magic

"Do you have magic in you? You bet. Magic is that little genetic genius that has been evolving for three billion years: It connects us all to each other and to everything that has come before and still lives on the planet. That is some magic, and it was formed in wilderness.

Let us begin. Let us restore the Earth. Let the mountains talk, and the rivers run. Once more, and forever." - David Brower (Let the Mountains Talk, Let the Rivers Run)


For all the Friends of Nevada Wilderness volunteers and suporters a big THANK YOU! You folks are the best! I'm looking forward to working and volunteering with all of you in the Wilderness Areas of Spring Mountains National Recreation Area.

For the Spring Mountains,
Kurt Kuznicki

Black Canyon Wilderness, Lake Mead NRA

The 17,000+ acre Black Canyon Wilderness is home to some really rugged country. We hiked down Boy scout Canyon and we negotiated the many pour overs, man eating cats claw bushes, challenging route finding, and an interesting first step over the lip. The Black Canyon is National Park quality and the rough country doesn't give up it's secrets easily...but hey we wouldn't want it any other way.

Clearing Storm at Red Rock

Sometimes Red Rock seems so tame with the paved roads , bus tours, and hoards of tourists that come up from the strip, but the Wild is still there. The howling wind and the bitting cold on my fingers as fumble around with my camera...that first bit of sunlight that dances across the red & white rock...or getting a glimspe of a huge ram surveying his standstone kingdom...yeah the Wild is still there I can feel it.

Rainbow at Red Rock

I saw the Rainbow as I was headed down Charleston;I was hoping it was going to last until I got there. I fought the temptation to speed and I managed to get a quick shot just as it was starting to fade...if I just hadn't hit the snooze button on the iPhone

Climbing High in the North McCullough's Wilderness

Petroglyphs

I saw some glyphs on Friday like I never seen before like the cowboy with the pack animal above...??? or the space alien. My favorite is the lizard...very cool. Remember petroglyphs are very special and the native artwork is very fragile ...Please don't touch even the oil on your fingers can have an effect on them, please just take pictures and enjoy.

Winter comes to Red Rock

...Good Stuff

Rain Tree Project, Mt Charleston Wilderness

Some folks go to the Mt Charleston Wilderness for enlightenment, others got there to get a from it all, some to esacape the summer heat or enjoy the winter snow, and some folks go there to build things, like wind structures, they're everywhere, on top of peaks, in windy saddles ( am I missing something???) or at the foot of one of the oldest if not the most famous tree in the Forest. Wind structures take away from the undeveloped character of the lands and cause damage to the resource. So fight that construction urge if you think you have to build stuff...go buy an erector set or some legos but please leave the Bristlecone alone. Even the stuff that's dead as door nail it could be 1000's old years old. Some wonderful volunteers from Friends of Nevada Wilderness went up to the Rain Tree and removed some of the downed Bristlecone from around the area where the Raintree holds court.

This ain't your Daddy's Wilderness, practice Leave No Trace...besides LNT a lot hipper than that old school camp craft stuff

Spirit Mountain

Last Light in Trail Canyon

Wee Thump

How's awesome is that 6,050 acres of some of the best Joshua Trees in the state protected in the Wee Thump-Joshua Tree Wilderness. I went out there Sunday for a hike and the light was moving across the landscape in waves due to the cloud cover...I swear some of them were dancing as if in a spotlight.

Wee Thump means ancient ones ...Good Stuff

Chilly Sunset

The Desert was calling to me today. I've spent the last couple days glue to the computer screen , all of it necessary in order to Keep it Wild...but I needed to get out. You know the feeling, the mind wanders, you think about hiking and getting outside ,the clock seems frozen. Anyway, I've been out to Wee Thump & Spirit Mountain and I'll get those images posted but here's I few I got on this chilly southern Nevada evening out on the Desert Refuge.