The Sailing Stones of Death Valley by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website Instagram Facebook The Sailing Stones or Walking Rocks of the Racetrack Playa in Death Valley National Park, California, USA. The Playa is an extensive "dry" lake bed at a height of 1130 meters, 3608 feet, in Death Valley NP. It is 4.5 km long and 2.1km wide. The Moving Rocks have long been a mystery, leaving behind long tracks as they move without human or animal intervention. It's a fascinating and mysterious place at night. Cameras were set up to monitor them during the winter, and it is now thought that the stones move due to ice in the winter. A temporary pond can form and ice over. As the ice sheet breaks up the ice panels are blown by the wind and push the rocks along the semi frozen lake bed. This is a composite image with focus stacking, all taken at the same sitting and position. There is one exposure focused on the stars and distant mountains, one on the middle ground, and one on the stone, other camera factors unchanged. The rock was too close to get it all focused in one shot. Hope you enjoy, Eric Gail masterminded the trip to this site. Thank you Eric! Thanks for taking the time to look. Hope you enjoy! Big thanks to the wonderful Flickr family for all the support and encouragement! Cheers, Wayne
Grandstand at the La Playa Racetrack by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website Instagram Facebook This is "The Grandstand" in the Racetrack Playa in Death Valley. The Playa is a dry lake bed in Death Valley National Park. It lies in a relatively remote area, about a 4 hour drive from Furnace Creek, mostly down a rutted and sometimes rocky dirt road. This is not a road to hurry alone. There are many tales of flat or ruptured tires, and this is not a place to get stuck. The dry lake bed is sonic and unusual. It is best known for the "Sailing Stones" or "Walking Rocks". The Grandstand lies in the NW area of the Playa, and the Sailing Stones are better see more to the South. The Grandstand is a large rock formation arising from the dry lake bed. The photographer in the right foreground of the photo is Eric Gail. He masterminded the trip to the playa. Thank you Eric! You can see his excellent gallery here: www.flickr.com/photos/dot21studios Hey Eric, I'm going to need another model release! Maybe you can send me the name of your agent! Thanks for taking the time to look. Hope you enjoy! Big thanks to the wonderful Flickr family for all the support and encouragement! Cheers, Wayne
The Sailing Stones of Death Valley by Wayne Pinkston Via Flickr: Website Instagram Facebook The Sailing Stones or Walking Rocks of the Racetrack Playa in Death Valley National Park, California, USA. The Playa is an extensive "dry" lake bed at a height of 1130 meters, 3608 feet, in Death Valley NP. It is 4.5 km long and 2.1km wide. The Moving Rocks have long been a mystery, leaving behind long tracks as they move without human or animal intervention. It's a fascinating and mysterious place at night. Cameras were set up to monitor them during the winter, and it is now thought that the stones move due to ice in the winter. A temporary pond can form and ice over. As the ice sheet breaks up the ice panels are blown by the wind and push the rocks along the semi frozen lake bed. This is a composite image with focus stacking, all taken at the same sitting and position. There is one exposure focused on the stars and distant mountains, one on the middle ground, and one on the stone, other camera factors unchanged. The rock was too close to get it all focused in one shot. Hope you enjoy, Thanks for taking the time to look. Hope you enjoy! Big thanks to the wonderful Flickr family for all the support and encouragement! Cheers, Wayne