Tule Fog - above it all…
The Tule Fog has swallowed us whole these past few weeks. I can hardly recall a winter where the mist has held on this tightly, yet I find I love it. It feels like home. It breathes like the ocean.
This heavy white curtain is a specific alchemy: moist fall soil, the stillness of winter winds, cool evenings, and a lid of high pressure. That is all it takes to drown the world. I knew I needed to grab my camera and ascend—to get above the cloud line and witness how it blankets our valley, transforming trees, rocks, and the Sutter Buttes into islands in a white sea.
Back at my computer, the edit mirrored the landscape. Beauty was hidden in the fog of my .RAW files, waiting for the light. As I pulled the contrast and color forward, the image emerged on my monitor. I was struck, once again, by the sheer elegance of nature—humbled to have caught such a fleeting moment.
This is why I venture out. This is why I hike to precipitous edges and cling to my tripod for dear life. It is the awe of it all. It is humbling, grounding, and deeply nourishing to my soul.
“Hidden by diaphanous clouds of mist and fog floating gracefully over vales of heather and flowing runnels, she began to dance.”
