My August 2022 Photo of the Month is LM292, taken during a monsoon storm at Kwaaymii Point in the Laguna Mountains.
LM292 Background
After a couple of mild Summer monsoonal seasons, the moisture has been flowing this year. This month, I traveled with my daughter to see family in Colorado. I was happy to see the familiar August Summer “green,” which can develop in Arizona and New Mexico when enough rain falls during the afternoons.
Getting back, we were treated locally to a few evenings with actual precipitation. It wasn’t as much as we needed, but it has been most welcome.
Finally, I was able to match my schedule with a beautiful developing monsoonal pattern. This is one of the best times to be in San Diego County’s Laguna Mountains. I visited most of my usual haunts, and hiked out to Foster Point, which I need to cover in a larger blog post. But this beautiful cloud formation showed up near the end of my day at Kwaaymii Point off Sunrise Highway.
The view into the Borrego Desert can sometimes include dust, smog, and low visibility. This view, South of Whale Peak, was nice, and I enjoyed the cloud behind me casting a shadow on the desert floor.
The subject, of course, is the amazing cloud formation, that made a perfect vertical composition. After I was satisfied with my work, I headed home, only to run into reasonably heavy rain at the Storm Canyon overlook platform. I pulled over, got out of the Subaru, and just stood there in the rain. In warm weather, the rain was a nice respite. I can think of no better moment during monsoon season.
As always, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoy the image.
Further Viewing
Laguna Mountains Portfolio Gallery
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T.M. Schultze is a San Diego-based photographer, traveller, and writer. He writes, photographs, and draws things of the outdoors that have inspired humans for thousands of years. He co-authored the Photographer’s Guide to Joshua Tree Park which can be purchased here.
I’ll be there in November for a week and want to do a trip on Sunrise Highway! I miss this stuff. Thanks for posting
Would be fun to join you, text me when you’re in town, I think my November is wide open.
A beautiful, expansive sky – the shadow of the cloud is cool.
Thanks Tom. Monsoons make the Summer bearable here.