Introduction
- For readers outside the United States and Canada, Groundhog Day occurs every year on 2 February. It is a midwinter observance halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. If the groundhog pokes his head out of his hole and sees his shadow, he has just forecasted six more weeks of winter. But, if he does not see his shadow, an early spring is soon here. In the 18th century, the Pennsylvania Dutch brought this folk wisdom to the American colonies from their native Germany. From there it spread to the rest of what would become the United States and also to Canada. Please note that the Pennsylvania Dutch are from Germany, Deutschland in their native language, and not the Netherlands.
- To observe Groundhog Day 2021 I headed over the Brickyard Plaza, an outdoor shopping mall within walking distance of my house. For a longtime I have wanted to photograph the mountains from the mall, and so I did on this Groundhog Day.
Mountains, Clouds, and Sky Behind the Brickyard Mall
I love the constant show that the Wasatch Mountains put on.
The Brickyard Plaza
The mountains and sky are overexposed to properly expose the mall itself.
Three Trees, a Crane, Power Poles, and Light Standards
I took all four photographs in this post from the same spot. All I did was turn the camera on the tripod a few degrees and tighten up the field of view to capture this scene along Brickyard Road. I often find deciduous trees even more interesting without their leaves than with them. The parking lot and the stores are just beyond the trees. If you want, follow this link for another view of those same power poles: https://wp.me/p8OLgC-hQ.
Groundhog Day Sky, Central Wasatch Mountains, and the Brickyard Plaza
I love the details in developed photographs. When I was composing this picture in the viewfinder, the gestalt of the dramatic clouds obscuring the Wasatch peaks enthralled me, but the brightness of the day obscured the details. The developed photograph now allows a leisurely inspection those details.
Endnotes
- As it turns out, the Groundhog was right about us having more winter. On 15 February a slow moving snowstorm enhanced by the Great Salt Lake effect dumped more than a foot (30+ centimeters) on us. As I prepare this post for publication 10 days after that storm, patches of snow are still hanging around.
- The good news was that several feet (meters) of snow piled up in the Wasatch Mountains. Those mountains, which range north and south, are thick to the east. That thickness assures our water supply for the next year.
- The proximity of Salt Lake County to the Wasatch Mountains gives front row seats to a show that changes by the hour.
Thank you,
Dr. Mike
Whoa! Crazy clouds in this post. Such a variety. I enjoyed reading about your camera explorations but more importantly, the short history of Ground Hog Day was fascinating.
Who would have thought that there would be so many types of clouds in one small part of the sky?
There is so much going on in these clouds. Very stunning! The first image captures some dramatic Kelvin-Helmholtz instability, with the prominent wave features, akin to surf breaking at the beach. I miss Utah skies. Very nice!
What a great comment! Thank you for teaching about the Kelvin-Helmholtz instability. Waves in the sky -who knew? Also, you threw me when you mentioned Helmholtz because he is a big name in psychology. I now know that he contributed to many branches of science.