Hunter’s Moon

ByMatt


Havest Moon, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer.

I’ve been so busy lately that I haven’t been able to make any new posts. I wish I could tell you that I’ve been busy doing some sort of interesting research, but that’s just not the case yet. However, during my drive home this evening, I was given a nice treat.

My drive to and from school is about 25 miles, one way. This is a bit on the long side but nothing that can’t be done. I do sometimes envy those who can get up and walk to school, not using any gas while getting some exercise. However, my half-hour commute comes with great scenery as part of the package. I get to endure views of Moscow Mountain and the rolling hills of the Palouse in both directions, during the early light of the morning, and the warm evening light.

Tonight’s drive home, I got to stare at a very large moon cresting the horizon, and I wished that I had my camera in the car. And then I noticed something else. It looked like there might be a full moon tonight. As it turns out, I am correct.

I had beautiful light on the drive in, but as I said before, no camera on me. So when I got home, the first thing I did was grab the camera and the tripod and head to the back field to shoot the moon before it rose too high in the sky. Unfortunately, the moon was residing behind some light clouds, but the effect is still pure awesomeness.

As I finished up my shoot, I heard footsteps in the field, and in the distance, a large black blob slowly meandering its way to the road and to the next field beyond. I can’t say for certain what this beast was, but it was huge. I don’t think it was a moose because it didn’t seem tall enough, but perhaps a large black bear?

According to the Farmer’s Almanac, October’s moon is the Harvest Moon. However, other sources refer to the Harvest Moon as the full moon occurring closest to the autumnal equinox, which is in September. This year, we had a Super Harvest Moon, in which the harvest moon occurred on the equinox. How cool is that! Why didn’t I photograph that one? But by that naming system, this would be the Hunter’s Moon.

So Happy Hunter’s Moon.

Similar Posts

  • Snowshoeing: Potlatch River Loop

    This week’s snowshoeing adventure takes us on the Potlatch Canyon loop trail (Clearwater NF #765). If the view above looks familiar, it’s because I have hiked this loop many times in the summer, and first posted about it two years ago. This time, armed with snowshoes, we had a very successful winter hike through the woods. Despite the rising temperatures this past week, the Potlatch Canyon was still a veritable winter wonderland. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if the temperatures down by the water never rose above freeziing all day. That’s because we have been having some inversions the…

  • |

    Storms

    Last night, we had the storm of storms come across the Palouse. It was a quick, but powerful cell the big lightning strikes every few seconds that produced enough power to disrupt phone service (land line) each time a bolt struck the ground. Luckily, we had no major power surges and all of the electronics in the house work just fine. But the ligntning and thunder show was both awesome and a bit frightening. I stood outside with the camera as the storm approached, but quickly retreated into the house as the storm came atop of me. Winds picked up…

  • The Joy of Home Ownership: Adventures in Plumbing

    When we moved to Moscow, we knew we’d be here for more than five years and that buying our own place would probably benefit us more in the long run than renting. There are many advantages to owning your own home. The most obvious is that your monthly payments go toward something tangible. When you pay rent on an appartment, all you get back is a place to live for the month. With a mortgage payment, you’re that much closer to actually owning the place you live in, which means when you move out, you can get that money back…

  • The Last One

    Since last week, we had been down to three puppies. Three is much more manageable than seven, but still a crowd. In fact, having two out at a time was still a handful. Tuesday, I made up posters advertising the rest of the pups, and in less than 24 hours, we had two more sold. This left us with one Pink Girl to care for. Having one puppy isn’t so bad. They’re a lot more mellow by themselves, they don’t eat as much, and most importantly, there’s not as much pee and poop to clean up. Of the three that…

  • |

    Fireworks in the Mountains

    A garden update from the last post: I’m happy to announce that the lettuce that the chickens ate down to the soil is growing back quite nicely and will be ready for consumption within a few days. And now on to the main post: Elk River hosts an annual Independence Day celebration they call “Fireworks in the Mountains,” but they don’t necessarily hold it on the 4th of July, but on the weekend before or after if the 4th happens to be mid-week. The event attracts a lot of people and the general store stays open late to sell its…

  • Jerry Johnson

    We’ve gotten a lot of snow this winter. And then it got cold. Like, really cold. Night time lows below zero, and daytime highs hovering around 20.  So the only thing to do with this kind of weather is go swimming. Last year, we took Clara to a developed hot spring near McCall and she loved it. This year we decided to give the undeveloped hot spring a try. Spoiler: She had a blast. Our biggest concern was keeping her warm during the one-mile hike to and from the springs. She did fine in her little blue down suit, but…