Granitepeaks Photo Album

Easter Sunday In Missoula

2007-04-08T20:44:00.000-07:00

So here are some shots from our first Easter Sunday here in Missoula (it was a great day, in more ways than one). As always, it's best to jump to the bottom and then scroll up to see the pictures in sequential order...

2007-04-08T20:34:00.000-07:00

A really cool looking tree, shot panoramic style (vertically). I loved the bright orange moss set against the deep blue sky. A very cool shot to end the day with (and you might want to check out the hi-res version too - just be warned, it's 10 MB!).

2007-04-08T20:30:00.000-07:00

Of course the down side of fishing w/ your dog (if he's a lab) is that he's probably going to get in the water. You know, to help you flush out some fish, and make sure the water is still wet, and stuff like that. Lab's are very helpful dogs.

2007-04-08T20:28:00.000-07:00

A guy fly-fishing w/ his dog. Nice.

2007-04-08T20:25:00.000-07:00

Sunlight on willows.

2007-04-08T20:24:00.000-07:00

Another shot of color and water...

2007-04-08T20:23:00.000-07:00

Looking up the Clark Fork. (Again, the views were just stunning all afternoon, as the sun sank into the west and bathed everything in a golden light. Really, really pretty.)

2007-04-08T20:22:00.000-07:00

A closer shot of that budding tree across the river. Gorgeous.

2007-04-08T20:19:00.000-07:00

I love the colors on the water in the right hand side of the picture here... And the sky turned out nice and blue too.

2007-04-08T20:15:00.000-07:00

...and here's what it looks like if you're a fish. Yummy.

2007-04-08T20:14:00.001-07:00

This would be a stonefly (fish love 'em).

2007-04-08T20:14:00.000-07:00

...and this is 'daylight' (much closer to what it really looks like w/ the naked eye). I like the composition of both of these shots.

2007-04-08T20:13:00.000-07:00

Want to see the difference between that 'tungsten' filter and the 'daylight' filter? This one is 'tungsten'...

2007-04-08T20:09:00.000-07:00

Spring has sprung. And it's beautiful.

2007-04-08T20:07:00.000-07:00

A nice shot of the island areas we were biking through. Lots of trails, fairly open, great riding. Once again, though, I'm using that dang tungsten filter and I don't like the look of it outdoors.

2007-04-08T20:06:00.000-07:00

Can you say 'backwater'? Mmm... yummy looking (not!).

2007-04-08T20:05:00.000-07:00

Later in the afternoon, after a splendid dinner and several hours of good conversation, Malachi and I went for a bike ride, heading down to Kelly Island (to the west of Missoula). Here's Malachi walking his bike across a slough... (I don't like the digital filter I was using when shooting this photo - tungsten - much too blue for an outdoors shot)

2007-04-08T20:03:00.000-07:00

Looking back to the Southwest...

2007-04-08T20:02:00.000-07:00

So a small group of us gathered to celebrate Easter early in the morning. Here we are standing on the bridge... (Yes, it was a wee bit cold).

2007-04-08T20:01:00.000-07:00

Looking east, towards the sunrise behind Mt. Sentinel and Mt. Jumbo. It wasn't actually this dark, but in order to get the blue of the sky, I ended up losing the foreground (I really need someone to sit down and explain to me how to do a better job of taking photos like this)

2007-04-08T19:50:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunrise, California Street Bridge, with the moon and Lolo Peak way off there in the background. Beautiful.

Robinson Crusoe (MCT)

2007-03-21T20:58:00.000-07:00

So here you go, finally - pictures from Rebekah's performance of Robinson Crusoe. So jump to the bottom and scroll up! I've also got some video, but I'm having trouble uploading them to YouTube right now...

2007-03-21T20:39:00.000-07:00

Nice panorama of what it looks like from up on the stage.

2007-03-21T20:38:00.000-07:00

Rebekah, along with another aspiring actress named Caelin (Wild Boar Willy).

2007-03-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

".... and then, I had this REALLY big moment of terror, when I thought, 'oh no! what if I forget my line!" (of course she didn't. she had hers down pat, along with just about everyone else's as well...)

2007-03-21T20:33:00.000-07:00

Rebekah w/ her cousin Hailey on the left (she came up w/ Clarice and Dad to see the big show), and her friend Sarai on the right. Everyone agreed it was a great show.

2007-03-21T20:32:00.000-07:00

...and by flowers. Wow.

2007-03-21T20:30:00.000-07:00

So Rebekah's pretty excited by this whole 'drama thing'...

2007-03-21T20:29:00.000-07:00

...along w/ her fellow actors.

2007-03-21T20:28:00.000-07:00

Final bow...

2007-03-21T20:27:00.000-07:00

It's hard work being a chameleon... (don't know who this little girl is, but she sure is cute in her costume!)

2007-03-21T20:26:00.000-07:00

Ooh, what nice tentacles you have! All the better to latch on to you, my dear!

2007-03-21T20:24:00.000-07:00

Nice shot of the cast at the end. (Those are cute little chameleons up front there in the green)

2007-03-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

Yep, that is most definitely her. :-)

2007-03-21T20:22:00.000-07:00

And whaddya know, there's a shot of Oscar her - um - himself. Pretty cool costume.

2007-03-21T20:21:00.000-07:00

And there's Marilyn, sitting to my right...

2007-03-21T20:20:00.000-07:00

Sarai, eagerly waiting for the show to begin. We had great seats, in the second row...

2007-03-21T20:18:00.000-07:00

There's Micah, expressing his angst at being a 'Loser' - hey wait, are you saying that L sign is intended for me!?!?!?

2007-03-21T20:16:00.000-07:00

...and here's our intrepid actor: Rebekah Cryder, starring as Oscar Octopus, no less! (wait till you see her costume)

2007-03-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

Here's the program...

2007-03-21T20:14:00.000-07:00

Clarice and Dad.

2007-03-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

So here we are walking down into the Missoula Children's Theatre (MCT) auditorium. There's not a bad seat in the house.

2007-03-21T20:03:00.000-07:00

And this would be Sarai - one of Rebekah's very good friends from school - who has come along to see her as well, and is holding the flowers we got to give to Rebekah after the performance. (Sarai is a really great artist, btw).

2007-03-21T19:55:00.000-07:00

So I'm finally getting around to posting the Robinson Crusoe pictures from a while back. Here are my folks, who drove up from Billings in order to see Rebekah perform.

Winter Walk in Missoula

2007-02-03T12:18:00.000-07:00

Well, not a real full blown photo-essay or anything, but it was beautiful day in Missoula yesterday afternoon, so I grabbed the camera and my dog and we went for a walk down by the Clark's Fork. Results? Well, you can see for yourself down below. As always, you can jump to the bottom and scroll up to see things in chronological order...

2007-02-03T12:14:00.000-07:00

Parting shot - mailboxes on an old wagon wheel. A nice little slice of classic Americana...

2007-02-03T12:12:00.000-07:00

Closer view of the same thing. If you click on the image, you'll get the full size version. Very, very interesting...

2007-02-03T12:10:00.000-07:00

One of the most interesting things I discovered on this walkabout - 3 separate campsites where homeless (?) people are living along the river. This one is within a stone's throw of Reserve St. (you can see it there in the background), and judging from the looks of it, someone has been living here for quite some time - they've gone to a lot of effort to make it snug, cozy, and hidden from plain view. I've driven by this almost every day for the past 4 months, never knowing it was there. I wonder how many other Missoulians are aware of these types of things. Quite sobering, especially when it gets really cold...

2007-02-03T12:06:00.000-07:00

Same geese, up close and personal. I love how well my Canon zooms...

2007-02-03T11:50:00.000-07:00

Another shot, looking downriver...

2007-02-03T11:47:00.000-07:00

Geese (and a few mallards), sitting on the far shore

2007-02-03T11:46:00.001-07:00

Looking southwest, along the Clarks Fork, just west of the Reserve Street bridge.

2007-02-03T11:41:00.000-07:00

Longing for spring.

2007-02-03T11:36:00.000-07:00

Another shot of that same clearing, this time with more shadows on the side...

2007-02-03T11:26:00.000-07:00

Nice picture of Jack, enjoying the snow...

2007-02-03T11:24:00.001-07:00

So yesterday, Jack and I went for a walk, from our house, down towards the river (less than a half mile away). This is a back channel which would be fun to skate on (although its got a couple of inches of snow on it right now). Amazing how much beauty is within the city limits of Missoula...

Childhood Photos #2

2007-01-12T16:01:00.000-07:00

Well, here you go. Nearly a year after the first round (Childhood Photos #1), I finally got ahold of the second disk that went to my sister Nori. If that Cryder strangeness caused you to wonder about my childhood, well, here's all the explanation you ever needed.

As always, it's probably best to jump to the bottom and then scroll up to see things in order (more or less).

2007-01-12T15:59:00.000-07:00

Nothing like a good nap after dinner, right? Great photo to end things with...

2007-01-12T15:58:00.000-07:00

Christmas dinner (I believe this was the year dad shot his first goose, and good 'ol Molly nearly drowned retrieving it. It was her or the goose, and well, as you can see here, the goose got it!)

2007-01-12T15:57:00.000-07:00

The family portrait.

2007-01-12T15:56:00.000-07:00

Beneath the Christmas tree.

2007-01-12T15:55:00.000-07:00

I think you could safely say Nori and I are stoked. Either that or we're doing our own version of the snow dance.

2007-01-12T15:54:00.000-07:00

He's loving it....

2007-01-12T15:53:00.000-07:00

Jake, and his rocking horse (which my dad made).

2007-01-12T15:52:00.001-07:00

Christmas morning!

2007-01-12T15:52:00.000-07:00

Glory. A moment of silence ("See Santa, we really have been good! We really can get along without fighting! Why, this is what it's like all the time here in the Cryder houselhold! Really!")

2007-01-12T15:49:00.000-07:00

With stockings and everything (Nori looks stoked, and I just look like Jr. Santa, in my cool red sleeper)

2007-01-12T15:48:00.000-07:00

Decorating the tree...

2007-01-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, a juniper for a Christmas tree, in a little trailer on the prarie with cool 70's paneling, right smack dab in the middle of nowhere in eastern Montana... ah! It just doesn't get any better than this!

2007-01-12T15:46:00.000-07:00

Not only did he spot it, but it looks like he helped cut it down. If you look carefully, you'll see that the tree is a juniper (When's the last time you saw someone using a juniper for a Christmas tree? And when was the last time you saw someone as excited about it as Nori? I told you Christmas trees were hard to come by in eastern Montana...)

2007-01-12T15:43:00.000-07:00

Of course winter means Christmas is near, and Christmas means you need to get a tree. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Christmas tree in eastern Montana? "Hey, dad, look, IT'S A TREEE!!!!" (Whew, looks like Jake has spotted one)

2007-01-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Winter blizzard, back on the farm.

2007-01-12T15:40:00.000-07:00

Oh yeah, that was good cake, huh Jake?

2007-01-12T15:39:00.000-07:00

Nori's thinking, "How come HE gets the candles???"

2007-01-12T15:38:00.000-07:00

An earlier birthday, this one my 6th. Love the look on Jake's face there in the background - he probably doesn't know many words at this point in his life, but it's obvious he knows what mom's dishing up: "CAKE!!!!!!"

2007-01-12T15:36:00.000-07:00

Look ma! I'm a vampire! :-)

2007-01-12T15:35:00.001-07:00

Best thing about breakfast in the mountains? Bacon tastes better than anywhere else in the world.

2007-01-12T15:35:00.000-07:00

Not sure where this was taken, but it looks like it was on my birthday (which we always spent up in the mountains, when we lived near enough to get to the mountains. I'm guessing I had just turned 8 here, which would have been May of 1977).

2007-01-12T15:33:00.000-07:00

Mom and Nori.

2007-01-12T15:32:00.000-07:00

And there's my mom on the horse she broke all by herself - Aacha (an arabian)

2007-01-12T15:31:00.000-07:00

Me and mom, out for a ride. (Admit, you wish YOU had a shirt like mine, don't you?)

2007-01-12T15:30:00.001-07:00

Nori's birthday number 5.

2007-01-12T15:30:00.000-07:00

And of course, you've also gotta have presents!!!

2007-01-12T15:29:00.000-07:00

Of course, what's a birthday without cake and ice cream?

2007-01-12T15:28:00.000-07:00

Nori's 4th Birthday (that's a big event, turning 4!)

2007-01-12T15:26:00.001-07:00

And Nori with Grandpa Balster (not sure what they're building).

2007-01-12T15:26:00.000-07:00

Nori and Dean (the farmer's youngest son).

2007-01-12T15:25:00.000-07:00

Mom, with a nice antelope doe. Ah... eastern Montana.

2007-01-12T15:23:00.001-07:00

Nori, on her bed.

2007-01-12T15:23:00.000-07:00

Jake and Dad, reading the paper (this is a great shot).

2007-01-12T15:22:00.001-07:00

Helping Dad build flowerboxes.

2007-01-12T15:22:00.000-07:00

With my liddle brudder Jake, checking out the sandbox. That is what you're doing, right Jake? HEY! You better not be taking a wiz in my sandbox buddy!!!!

2007-01-12T15:20:00.001-07:00

Me again, this time playing on the swingset.

2007-01-12T15:20:00.000-07:00

And me, doing a little fishin.

2007-01-12T15:19:00.000-07:00

Great shot of Nori and Molly.

2007-01-12T15:17:00.000-07:00

Oof-da! Another one bites the dust. You can just taste the dirt, can't you. (Now you know WHY that bathwater was so dirty...)

2007-01-12T15:16:00.000-07:00

No, I am not trying to hump the calf. Good grief. How can you even think that?

2007-01-12T15:15:00.000-07:00

'Scuse me, 'scuse me! Comin' through!

2007-01-12T15:14:00.000-07:00

Look Dad! I'm riding! I'm riding!!!!!

2007-01-12T15:13:00.000-07:00

Of course, there are upsides to life on the farm. I mean, how many kids have their own local cow-herd to go ride?