#SundayStills – This is Another Story

I have never heard of Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park until I watched a video of a man’s road trip on YouTube. His road trip was about him driving from his home in Phoenix, Arizona to the border of Montana and Alberta, Canada. One of the states he had to drive through was my home state – Utah – in which he stopped and camped in 2 spots – Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park and Antelope Island State Park.

Though he only showed clips of the park, I instantaneously knew I must make a trip there. The park is located in southern Utah, about 90 minutes from the Arizona border and it was one of the destinations on my recent road trips.

Most of the park is made for camping and it’s a playground for ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) with only one parking lot for day use. My aunt and I were one of the first ones in the park that day as, with a ATV tour later in the day, we were running on a semi-tight schedule.

The sand in this place was created by the constant wind that’s transporting the particles from the surrounding mountains to this exact spot, creating sand dunes in certain spots of the park. Walking on the sand isn’t like walking on the beach. It’s much better, I think. The sand has a fine and soft texture that even if it went into your shoes, you wouldn’t feel it until you’re walking on solid ground again. I found it hard to walk on the sand as my feet sank with every step, making my steps feel like I was dragging a cinder block.

Because of the constant wind in this place, the sand is constantly shifting, wiping away the footprints and any trace of disturbance in the sand within minutes and maintaining this line pattern in the sand. I will definitely visit this park again but next time, I’m doing an ATV tour.

For SundayStills

#SundayStills: Thinking of Brighter Things

Published on November 26, 2025November 25, 2025 by Yinglan2 Comments

As the days become shorter and the nights become longer, I can feel S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder) hit me like a ton of bricks. This year, however, instead of feeling like not wanting to do anything (perhaps this will hit me later), I feel annoyed because I haven’t been able to finish the tasks in the garden because of the shorter days. Since my mom’s been in China, I feel like I haven’t stopped working in the garden and now, one week before my mom comes home, I feel like I still have a ton to do. I wish nothing more than for the sun to shine just a little bit longer right now.

If I can have one bright thing to say among this is I’m heading south toward Arizona this week for a couple of days. Checking on the day length, the sun sets about 30 minutes later down by the Grand Canyon, which should help brighten my mood. I am looking forward to visiting the Grand Canyon again and re-doing Horseshoe Bend to make sure my pictures are not drowning in shadows again.

The photo of the raven is from a previous road trip when I visited the Bryce Canyon in December. I remember how bright the snow was, so bright that I was squinting and had to shield my eyes. Sometimes, under the right conditions, snow can be ridiculously bright. Though there’s no forecasted snow during the days I’m at the Grand Canyon, I do hope to maybe see a hint of snow in the distance. Crossing my fingers that the weather cooperates.

For SundayStills

#SundayStills: Monthly Color Challenge – Brown and Gray

Published on November 19, 2025November 18, 2025 by Yinglan3 Comments

This picture was taken over 2 years ago and when I look back at the pictures of the garden, I can see just how much has changed and how the climate has changed. My cloud shows me photos of the day’s past each morning. Yesterday, I was shocked to see that last year at this time, it was snowing. This year, who knows when that will happen. The ski resorts were supposed to open this week but had to be delayed due to the lack of snow, or so the news says.

Meanwhile, all the deciduous trees in my backyard dropped its leaves simultaneously last week and with the rain that came a few days ago, everything is still sopping wet. I suppose I will just have to hand-scoop the leaves and pile onto the soil to be used as mulch.

Having been gardening for a few years now, I love seeing mushrooms in the garden and anywhere. Mushrooms are my friends. They are present when there is something to decompose. I couldn’t believe how much mushroom I saw in the garden last year, especially in the asparagus bed. Alas, I didn’t take a picture of them. I found these big fellas near a pond when I visited the mountains a few years ago but you get the idea. I hope to have more mushroom in the spring since I scattered a whole 5-pound bag of mushroom spawn earlier this year.

Okay, enough brown, let’s do gray. I don’t like just any gray skies but first, I should clarify. There is photogenic gray skies and non-photogenic gray skies. This is the photogenic kind of gray sky. The non-photogenic kind is what I’ve been experiencing the last few days. It does not make me want to leave the house. On the other hand, this gray sky makes my photos so much more unique and special.

Do you think so?

For SundayStills

#SundayStills: Three Stories about Creatures with Hooves

Published on November 4, 2025November 3, 2025 by Yinglan6 Comments

In my opinion, the horse has to be one of the toughest animals out there, yet its life is probably one of the hardest.

My mom once told me the day you see a horse lying down is the day it dies. It was the saddest fact about a horse I’ve ever heard and it also made me feel sad for the horse. “You mean to tell me,” I said, “that the horse is on its feet all its life?”

I didn’t believe that fact until I listened to Black Beauty. I cried nearly the whole way through as I listened to a horse narrate its hard life – working from a young age until it’s old and going through so much hardship. Though this horse is living a good life (I hope) in beautiful Capitol Reef National Park, the fact that it must stand for the duration of its life made me feel sad for the poor creature.

Bisons, on the other hand, though I feel the life of a bison and a horse may be similar in some ways, at least a bison can rest its legs when it gets tired.

This was in Yellowstone, by the way. We were heading down the road when suddenly, cars started stopping and people started getting out. Being small and in the backseat, I had to crane my neck to see what people were looking at. “Over there!” My mom’s friend pointed at the field on my right. There they were, dozens perhaps hundreds of bisons on the grassy field, enjoying the sunshine. Some were sleeping, some were feeding the young, while this particular bison appears to be on th lookout for something or someone.

Hmm…

Lastly, how can I forget deer – another animal with hooves. I think this is a young deer, wandering up and down the shrine dedicated to the deer in Nara, Japan. I remember there was a lot of deer in that part of Nara. Almost every YouTube video I’ve seen of Nara talked about the deer population in Nara. As we walked through the park, my mom asked if I wanted to feed the deer, I flat out refused because I’m absolutely terrified of animals – wild or domestic.

I do, however, enjoy taking pictures of them. Some of these deer are quite photogenic as long as I stand at a safe distance with my long lens.

For SundayStills

#SundayStills: Autumn in my Meadow

Published on October 22, 2025October 21, 2025 by YinglanLeave a comment

I think I’ve had enough with posting photos of autumn colors this year, so, if you don’t mind, I’ll make this post about autumn in my meadow. The weather may feel like autumn but the meadow does not look autumn.

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