Tag Archives: travel

Photographs: Albania, Photographs: Europe, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Travel

Albanian Alps, Valbona Valley

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Albanian Alps, Valbona Valley
“Albanian Alps, Valbona Valley” — Rugged Albanian alps rise above the Valbone Valley.

We visited Kosovo and Croatia and briefly entered a few other Balkan countries back in the summer of 2023 during a very long trip to Europe. There’s a lot to say about this remarkable and complex part of Southern Europe — more than will fit in one post. We stayed in Kosovo, at the home of people with extended family connections. Our closest Kosovo family contact enthusiastically showed us many places we would not have seen had we traveled on our own. One day we headed briefly into the mountains of Albania.

I have to admit to almost complete ignorance about this part of the world. Like most Americans, my knowledge was limited to very outdated Cold War history and a vague recollection of the war there during the Clinton administration. I knew literally nothing of the people or the landscape. Imagine my surprise when our drive took us deep into the Albanian Alps, where the scenery competes with the most spectacular mountains of my California Sierra Nevada.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Salt Flats to Mountain Peaks

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Salt Flats to Mountain Peaks, Death Valley
“Salt Flats to Mountain Peaks” — Snow-covered Telescope and Rogers Peaks and the Panamint Mountains tower above Death Valley salt flats in morning shadows

It still seems odd to find water flowing here, but out on the salt flats of Death Valley it does flow at all times of the year. It is extremely shallow and it moves very slowly — but the amount of moisture out there is still impressive. Hint: don’t walk on these flats — you aren’t going to enjoy the thick mud on your shoes, the sensation of sinking into it, or the tracks you leave behind.

These mountains face the rising sun, so I was out there before sunrise, getting set up and framing some compositions so that I could work rapidly as the sun arrived. It comes quickly, and it is only minutes from the first light on the high, snow-covered peaks until the line of light starts to creep across the flats. This isn’t the lowest spot in the valley, though it is below sea level. The highest of those distant peaks is over 11,000 feet tall.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Death Valley, Photographs: Desert, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Southern California

Zabriskie Before Sunrise

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Zabriskie Before Sunrise,Death Valley
“Zabriskie Before Sunrise” — Badlands terrain, distant Panamint Mountains, and Rogers Peak.

I made this photograph right around sunrise. A half hour earlier I had abruptly aborted my drive to a different locationi when I thought I saw some promising clouds in the pre-dawn dusk. I thought that they might produce something exceptional at sunrise. My hunch was wrong — it was a lovely morning at Zabriskie, but nothing particularly out of the ordinary. But since I was there I went ahead and photographed, including this image that includes the short and long views.

As I was standing there waiting for the right light, some women asked about that snow-covered peak. I said it was Telescope Peak, then realized my error — Telescope is hidden behind the dark foreground ridge, and the high point visible here is actually Rogers Peak, a lower summit near Telescope. One of the remarkable things about Death Valley National Park is the range of climates it encompasses. We can stand in an arid desert location like this one and look up to snow-covered alpine peaks.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Europe, Photographs: France, Photographs: Travel, Photographs: Urban/Street

Rainy Evening, Montpellier

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Rainy Evening, Montpellier
“Rainy Evening, Montpellier” — A rainy night street scene in Montpellier, France.

After we left Germany during our late-autumn and early-winter visit to Europe last year we headed to France, eventually ending up in Montpellier, a city in the South of France. While we like returning to places we have previously visited — we always see things we missed the first time — we make a point of going to new places, often those we had not thought of visiting before. Montpellier fit the bill, as it had not been on our radar at all, and we knew little about it.

We were there for just three nights, so I can’t claim that we fully “know” the place, but we liked what we saw a lot. We were in the older central part of town, staying in a small hotel a block from the central square, the Place de la Comédie. It was raining when we arrived, but that didn’t stop us (or thousands of locals!) from heading out for the evening.

G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” (Heyday Books) is available directly from him.

G Dan Mitchell: Blog | Bluesky | Mastodon | Substack Notes | Flickr | Email


All media © Copyright G Dan Mitchell and others as indicated. Any use requires advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.