rocks, more rocks
A favourite subject – aren’t these beauties in that light? How many photos of rocks have I published in the eleven years of this blog, I ask myself?
You are browsing the Blog for Rocks Archives - Marja-Leena Rathje.
by Marja-Leena by Marja-Leena rusty rocks
The colour rust seems to have become a theme with my recent photos of sand, water and these rocks, all on Mckenzie Beach on the Pacific Rim of Vancouver Island. It’s a favourite colour and of course, I love rocks. The bottom two images of rock faces remind me of rich tapestries from the Middle Ages. Such inspiration from nature!
by Marja-Leena tafoni
Susan of phantsythat, who knows my love of rocks, sent me a fascinating link to a pictorial story about tafoni. Oh my, what stunning photos! Tafoni are small cave-like features found in granular rock such as sandstone, granite, and sandy-limestone with rounded entrances and smooth concave walls, often connected, adjacent, and/or networked.
Though the term is new to me, these rock formations are familiar and something I have photographed intensively on Hornby and Gabriola Islands on our BC coast. I became inspired to revisit some of my hundreds of photos, of which a number have been posted here over the years. I have chosen these few from Gabriola Island which I hope haven’t appeared before.
It’s great to now have a name for these formations though I personally have called some ‘rock lace’. If you are interested and perhaps have not seen them before, you may like to visit a few of those older posts, such as:
– rock lace and a great example of tafoni on Hornby Island
– lots of these on the beach at Pilot Bay, and in wall-like formations on Gabriola Island
Oh, and of course, the banner at the top of this site is tafoni!
Thank you, Susan, for thinking of me and my passion for unusual rocks!
by Marja-Leena a Friday drive
Yesterday, on a spur-of-the-moment decision we decided to go for a ‘Sunday drive’ along the stunning Sea-to-Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler. As many know, I love rocks and this highway has numerous massive walls of cut rock with fascinating sculptural faces and colour variations, often where one cannot not stop for photos. The ones above were taken from the parking lot near Brandywine Falls.
Below is a view of the Stawamus Chief rock near Squamish, a very popular spot for rock face climbers. Though we’ve seen this many times, for the first time I noticed the face of it had an image that looked to me like a samurai, with a fierce expression, arms outstretched in battle form and robe waving behind.
by Marja-Leena revisiting rocks 5
a few of my favourite Hornby Island rocks with tidal pools
I dearly wished to take one home for my garden
instead many were homes for jellyfish and starfish
Just after I posted this, I came across a news item about the devastation of starfish all long the Pacific coast caused by Sea Star Wasting Syndrome. I remember how amazed we were to see so many that September of 2009. So sad.
by Marja-Leena revisiting rocks 2
more from the Hornby Island photo archives
nature’s sculpture ever-changing under strokes of wind and water
by Marja-Leena revisiting rocks
While browsing through my digital photo albums looking for something else, I came across the Hornby Island 2009 folder with hundreds of images of fascinating rocks. Distracted and dreaming, I have been. Over the years a number of photos from that favourite island have been posted here from many visits, though not many from 2009. Here are a couple of images that appealed to me with their subtle details.
Oh, and if you are new and curious, or would like to revisit some of those past posts and photos about Hornby Island, try this search.