Adventures through Photography: Hot Springs and Supermoons!

I have been looking forward to the November 2016 Supermoon for months! Seriously, months!

In case you're not a geek like me, November's full moon was a "Supermoon" which is when a full moon occurs when the elliptical orbit of the moon brings it closest to earth. Not only was this a Supermoon, but it was the closest the moon has come to Earth since 1948! AND it's the closest it will be until 2034!

So I really wanted to try to get some amazing shots of this special celestial occurrence. I had some pretty good success on my last dedicated Supermoon shoot in 2013. That was just from my balcony, so this time I wanted to get away from all the light pollution and try for something extra.

I definitely got extra!!

Perigee (closest point to Earth) was actually set for the early morning hours of Monday, November 14th. But I had to be at work fairly early, so I decided to try my luck on the evening of the 13th. Since it was a Sunday, it also allowed me to do some other stuff. That turned out to be getting some work done on my car after running over a big piece of metal that fell off a semi right in front of me the day before.

And then setting off for Mono County, where the moon was due to rise at approximately 4:45, right as the sun was due to be setting over the Sierra Nevada Mountains to the West. Perfect.

But first, I wanted to scope out Travertine Hot Springs. I had tried to stop by on my previous trip to Mono Lake and the amazing Bodie Ghost Town. But I just didn't have time. This time, I was more determined.

But I did stop to take some photos of the beautiful landscape.

Science experiment: Edit from a darker exposure

Science experiment: Same shot but edit from a lighter exposure

Of course I did not realize that the main tubs would be SOOOOO crowded! I knew these springs are popular, but there were quite a few folks when I got there about 3:30 p.m.

So I opted to hike around and take some photos. I didn't even go up to the main four tubs. Which are located in these cliffs...

These main tubs are located at the top of a hill. And the small valley below is quite spectacular. I'm soooo, so lucky to have been there when the sun was just about to set. It made for AMAZING pictures! I did not Photoshop any lens flare or sun rays into any of these photos. Nature did it for me because I am just not that good in Photoshop.

You can see water which is a sort of marsh created by the runoff from the springs. There is also white ground that looks like the Bonneville Salt Flats, which is because it is salt. And minerals, of course.

There was a beautiful pool at the base of the cliff...

...which was FREEZING cold when I dipped my toe in!

I continued meandering around until I heard a soft cough and was startled to find that I wasn't as alone as I thought I was. A very nice gentleman was sitting in an almost hidden spring below me. Or rather, he was sitting up on a rock above the hidden spring. It was actually a very cool, picturesque scene. After talking with him for a little while (which was a little awkward for me as he seemed to be naked - I guess this might be a good time to mention that Travertine is a clothing optional hot springs), I surprised myself by feeling comfortable enough to ask him if I could take his picture. I promised that it would be tasteful and discrete and I did not lie.

Science experiment: Edit with higher contrast.

Science experiment: Original.

I also spent a bit of time talking to another gentleman I ran into. He was a Native American local and he told me about when the local tribes considered the area sacred ground. It's sad that it's now a place where the local kids party until sunup frequently.

This gentleman pointed out another spring down below. It's amazing how camouflaged these things are! He said that it was his favorite, but unless you get there early in the morning, it's usually taken.

There was a couple in it as we were speaking, so we both thought it unlikely that it would become vacant. But to our surprise, the couple got out after about 20 minutes. I started to leave, but the local gentleman wouldn't hear of it and said he insisted I stay. So I did.

This is the "hot tub" from below. You can barely see it! Hint: It's to the right of the photo behind the log.

Surprise! You can see the spring running through the green crevice and gently falling into the natural pool below.

I'm assuming that these logs were put there by some enterprising person to make seats and maintain the natural look.

It was so amazing. The water was hot like a bathtub and it was just so cool to be out in nature like this. I didn't go clothing optional, but I did go topless and it was heaven.

But it was getting close to sun set time and I didn't want to miss the moon, which was my main reason for being there! So after soaking for about 20 minutes, I hiked back.

Eeek! The sun was actually setting and I wasn't even back to my car yet!

I raced back to the highway and headed towards the lake as fast as possible. I just made it!!

I stopped at the vista point overlooking Mono Lake and grabbed some shots of the Moonrise at Sunset. None of these photos are composite or retouched except for exposure/contrast.

Mono Lake was bathed in the shimmery colors of sunset too.

This orange cast on the moon was from the sunset. There is very little pollution up in the high desert and I was sooo fortunate to catch the moon during the sunset!