Friday, April 18, 2014

Total Lunar Eclipse - First of the Tetrad

Total Lunar Eclipse in North American April 15th, 2014, First tetrad
Living in the United States, we are in for some treat. For the next 18 months, we will witness 4 consecutive total lunar eclipse also known as the Tetrad. The first one occurred on April 15, 2014. Luckily, we didn't have to go anywhere to witness this spectacular event. We just sat in out front yard with the camera pointed at the sky. We were drinking hot tea, eating snacks while waiting for the event to unfold. We still have 3 more to go; so if you missed this one, there is still chance.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Lake Siskiyou & Mt. Shasta - Shasta Cascade, Northern California

Sunrise on Mt. Shasta and Lake Siskiyou - Shasta Cascade, Northern California
Mt. Shasta has to be one of the most iconic landscape features in Northern California. Rising more than 14,000 feet above the sea level and with impressive snow cap, Mt. Shasta has been dubbed "the Fuji of North America." It is an active volcano which erupt every 600 years and the last eruption happened about 200 years ago. So it will not happen again (not anytime soon). It is part of the Cascade mountain range stretching all the way into Canada. Mt. Shasta is also the second highest peak in the range after Mt. Rainier in Washington.
There are many places where you can take photo of Mt. Shasta. You can see it while driving on the freeway or by hiking for miles into the wilderness. My favorite viewing location is Lake Siskiyou. On a clear and calm day, you can clearly see the reflection of the mountain onto the crystal clear lake.  This location is easily accessible. You can drive to the parking lot just about a mile from the Interstate freeway 5, then hike a few hundreds feet to reach the lake. It's a great quick getaway during a long drive.

 Sunset on Mt. Shasta and Lake Siskiyou - Shasta Cascade, Northern California

Sadly, California has a driest year on record. Thus, lakes and streams have been dried up even early in Spring. You can clearly the drought on lake Siskiyou. Water has receded and exposed a lot of trash and debris from the lake bottom. Hopefully, we'll get more rain this year. But regardless, lake Siskiyou is still strikingly beautiful place to view Mt. Shasta. I come back to this place every time I come to visit the Shasta Cascade region. So if you ever drive by this area, just go visit the lake. It only takes a few minutes but it will leave an impression of a lifetime.