Spent a little time in the park today… Ohiopyle State Park that is 🙂  First time balancing under Low Bridge this year. Met quite few nice folks even though town was pretty mellow. Several countries were represented… I signed a few stones which will go on plane rides around the world. Always wonderful to make people smile and provide lasting memories.
The weather has been nice as have been other environmental factors. I’ve been enjoying most of my creations as is not always the case. Lots of creek time as well as time spent behind the camera shooting.
Abundant spring conditions were enjoyed along the river in Ohiopyle State Park. late in the day I experienced one of the most impressive Caddisfly hatches in recent years. Emergence happened as I was photographing my last balance of the day.
Time progression through the evening and into night offers many variations of light. This balance was constructed and photographed through magic hour (the hour just before dark) in Linn Run State Park. During this short period, it can get hectic trying to capture the perfect rendition of what my eyes are seeing and photographic artistry before the light fades to black… only possible if the balance doesn’t collapse.
I always remember to take a little time to enjoy the balance, setting, and experience despite being intent on capturing images during this short duration. An important part of the process.  On this day the time leading up to magic hour was rather windy toppling this balance two time prior. After the 3rd build, the winds calmed and allowed for a wonderful hour of photography and balance enjoyment.
Recently I spent some time balancing along the shore of the Youghiogheny River in Ohiopyle State Park.  I rode my bike down the Yough River Trail to the pullout just above the rapids known as “Dimple” and “Swimmers”. This area has a huge beach of some wicked smooth river stones.  The lack of friction took a few visits to get used to. Still lots of room for improvement as always. Here’s the one of the few I photographed.  Wind was a rather large factor this day. Here’s a couple angles and wet and dry photos.
Spent a very tolerable afternoon/evening in Linn Run. It seems winter has released its grip once again. A warm breeze relieved the chill coming off the creek. I’ve been on a kick of spending massive amounts of time stone searching. Collecting FAR more than necessary for a balance. Reminds me of being young and looking for the perfect “skipping” stone. Very similar process only for a different purpose and far more complex. Either way some coolness came out of extensive search today.
Far off the beaten path and worth the effort… Massive amounts of interesting stones, all kinds of cool animal sightings, it doesn’t get much better…
Today was quite windy throughout midday and early afternoon. I held off from heading out to stone balance, deciding to make a late afternoon start if the winds subsided… Colder temperatures further assured a later start 🙂 I made Indian Creek in Melcroft my destination. FUNky rocks can always be found at this reliable spot as can a beautiful sunset on bluebird days. It took a while to get this worked out. The spine weight was spiraled and micro adjustments were crucial. With the slightest misalignment, this combination of stones would tumble, splashing into the water. Adjusting in the smallest possible increments was the true crux of this build. In the end success was had and the late day and evening presented favorable lighting for beautiful photos and experience.
I did a bunch of creation since my last post, but lacked free time to share…Sooo..I’ll catch up on those at some point. For now  here are some photos from a recent outing to Linn Run State Park. Wasn’t really feeling any of the creek flows, so instead went with this little piece of mossy heaven as a creation spot. The sensation of the moss and soft earth around me while balancing this was friendly and inviting. A polar opposite compared to some of my less than comfortable chosen in-creek destinations.
Had a creatively wonderful day stone balancing and meeting friends both old and new in Linn Run state park on February 7, 2016
KeyStone Balance 