Sunset Over Mount Rainier

I often say, "What a beautiful world we live in," but it's moments and sights like this that still to this day make me stop and really feel what is right before my very eyes. Over the years I've had the privilege to step foot on every continent, visit dozens and dozens of countries, meet people from all over the world, and swim in every ocean, but even today I still am in awe at what a beautiful world we live in and am amazed at the many creations we have before us.

I feel lucky that through my photography, poetry, and writings I'm able to share what I see and feel with everyone. It's often said that a picture is worth a thousand words, but with me you get the story too, poetic or not. ;) It's just my inspiration and I want to share it with everyone I can. Okay, back on track now...

Yes, the sun sets every day over Mount Rainier and I've seen it probably hundreds of times since I lived in Seattle for a couple years back in college (Go Dawgs!), but look at this! Wow, what majesty as the sun sets over her on a beautiful night with the low, wispy clouds around the base of the mountain.

Spectacular and just breathtaking. Sometimes I wish people around the world would spend more time and effort seeing, touching, feeling, and experiencing than talking, fighting, etc. Oh, well, that's just me.  I guess that's why I can enjoy a day at the beach with my feet in the sand and water and just "be" with it, for hours. So, I hope you can spend a little time with this photo and try to imagine being there. Maybe next time when you're flying into Seattle, catch the later flight and get a window seat, yes?

Oh, one last thing. And just think, Bigfoot is down there somewhere looking up and probably saying/feeling the exact same thing! ;) Yeah, but he/she can't fly! (that we know of). I'm sure Bigfoot would, no doubt, easily slip past the wonderful TSA with no problem at all.

Mahalo for flying with Captain Bobby Mitchel

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Ship? Rock?…Shiprock?

Yes, Shiprock. What is it and where is it? Seriously, I've been flying for 28 years now and it was only recently that I finally put two and two together and found, researched, and photographed the illusive Shiprock. Not like it's as illusive as the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot, but to actually fly near it on a clear enough day with a good sun angle does take a little luck, if you know what I mean. And having grown up in Hawaii, I never really had the opportunity to see a lot of the US Mainland, so a majority of what I do see from above is new to me and it's beautiful.

Once I started flying commercially, I often heard of Shiprock. I'd hear, "Oh, there's Shiprock" and I'd respond with, "Oh, okay," when I really had no idea what I was looking at but just went along with it to make the Captain feel good. That's what First Officers do, you know. :) Come on now, leaving the beautiful islands of Hawaii for college and traveling the world for over 20 years, Daylight Savings Time (DST) was new to me; it still messes with me, even today.

So, here it is, Shiprock, New Mexico! WooHoo! It is kind of cool looking and really out there in the middle of nowhere.

I always thought, and was actually told a few times (probably by one of those Captains), that it was the mountain in the movie, Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Yeah, not so much. That would be Devils Tower in Wyoming. Now, back to Shiprock.

Shiprock is Navajo for "Winged Rock" or Rock with Wings" and is located in the far Northwest corner of New Mexico, right near the Four Corners area. It rises about 1,583 feet to a peak elevation of 7,177 feet. It's a famous place for New Mexico tourism and is a favorite of photographers. While you can view many photos on the internet of Shiprock, you don't see many like the one I took above. Someday, though, I'll have to get out there and see it up close, but I have a lot more on the bucket list to go through first.

Well, that's Shiprock. I hope you like the photo and if you want to learn more, check it out on the internet at: Shiprock. And yes, I do point it out to my passengers when we're lucky enough to pass near it. I'm sure they see it, unlike those four intersecting lines on the Earth's surface that make the Four Corners area that I tell them about and have them rigorously searching for as we fly by the area. Oh, they're there, you just have to look really hard and concentrate. Hey, at least I'm not pointing out Bigfoot or UFOs, right?

Mahalo for flying with Captain Bobby Mitchel



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