Category: Sandias

pTerodactyl Tree Morning

Timothy Price42 Comments

Jupiter shining through the clouds last night. I have no idea what the alien mushroom is.

Lacy trees under cloudy sky

First view of the pTerodactyl in the tree this morning.

pTerodactyl in deep thought

Sasha wearing Spunk’s ears

Morning moon

Frost-edged cottonwood leaf

Sandhill cranes foraging in a field.

Sandias with snow

Sandias behind dead trees

TDITC

Timothy Price108 Comments

Can anyone guess what the acronym in the title stands for?

The kitties are nonplussed or perhaps nonpussed about it.

Pink at dawn

Venus shines through the clouds at dawn.

KOB TV channel 4 in Albuquerque began broadcasting 75 years ago today. Happy Diamond Anniversary KOB TV!

Hooteluja!

Timothy Price46 Comments

Dawn

Sunset on Sandias

While taking the above photo of the Sandias in red, I heard a buzzing noise. I turned to see what it was and three paragliders were flying my way.

Moon and contrail at dusk

While I was photographing the moon and contrail, I heard an owl hooting close by. I investigated further and there was an owl perched on the edge of the nest I hung in Susan’s tree in August 2022. Hooteluja! Hooteluja! Hooooteluuuja!

It was dark, and I had to use 15x digital zoom on my phone’s camera, so I couldn’t tell if it was daddy owl. It could be one for the owlets from a few years ago out house shopping. Whichever owl it is, it’s a good sign to see an owl perched on the edge of the nest.

dusk

Afterglow

Mad Dogs @ Bedtime

Timothy Price45 Comments

Loki: “Il Paparazzo sta per morire!”

Spunk: “Boy, I say boy, pay close attention to me ’cause you’re a burrito short of a combination plate.”†

Loki: “You’re bothering me, boy!”

Spunk: “Wait ’till you turn off the light, Paparazzo!”

Meet the new snake. Same as the old snake.††

Nice reflection this afternoon.

Cottonwoods in the bosque turned red at sunset.

Sunset looking north from the top of the levee.

†Foghorg Leghorn quote.

††Juvenile Bullsnake: I moved him from the top of the levee so he wouldn’t get run over by the cyclists who were behind me.

A Persistence Of Wastewater

Timothy Price48 Comments

Corrales flood control channel this afternoon.

When I first started riding in July, the flood control channel was dry, and I could ride across the arroyo where the water ends, 300 yards from where I took this photo. At first, the flood control channel filled with water from rain collected on the west mesa up to 20 miles west of Corrales. That was the beginning of the second week of September. Since the beginning of October, the flood control channel has been filled with water. However, we have had zero rain in Corrales in October and little rain in Rio Rancho west of Corrales. I finally came to the realization that the water in the flood control channel is the treated wastewater from Rio Rancho backing up into the channel. I have not investigated why the water is backing up into the flood control channel now when the channel was dry in July, August, and the first week of September.

The treated wastewater from Rio Rancho is released into the mouth of the flood control channel near the levy and flows into the Rio Grande, as does the runoff collected by the flood control channel. Rio Rancho is the third largest city in New Mexico, with 109,060 people in 2023.

Cyclists, runners, and hikers who want to cross the flood control channel to continue north or south on the levee or the Bosque trail either have to ford the water or walk, run, or ride 200 yards into the flood control channel to get around the water.

The outlet for Rio Rancho’s treated wastewater.

Treated wastewater flowing toward the mouth of the flood control channel. The water smells like chlorine and detergents. I was surprised to see people fishing there the other day.

Different views of the treated wastewater outlet.

Erosion east of the current outlet. The erosion may be from before they reworked the area. The photo on the right is looking west from the eroded area.

The photo on the left was taken on 9/9/2023. The photo on the right was taken on 10/28/2023. You can see how much farther the water extends into the channel in the photo on the right.

Sasha and Glenda hovering over the heater.

It’s cold this week. The cats are clamoring for the space heaters we use to warm the spaces close to us. The cats were all piled up on me at 3:50 AM this morning. I had a cold ride this afternoon with the temps in the low 40s.

Cats from head to toe: Sasha on my chest in the foreground. Gwendolyn’s ears are on the right in the foreground. She was under the covers, resting her head on my shoulder. After Sasha is Marble, Spunk, Silver, and then Glenda is at the end of the bed, curled up on my feet. Loki was on Laurie out of the picture.