pipestone national monument

#9 on my list of 101 goals is to photograph 10 national parks i've never visited. do national monuments count? i'll count it, mainly since it is staffed by national park service, which have awesome uniforms reminiscent of my old boy scout uniform. i visited pipestone national monument earlier this week. i wanted to learn more about red pipestone (rock jocks call it 'catlinite'). many native americans consider it sacred. they carve the soft stone into pipes used in traditional ceremonies. the tradition of pipemaking stems back thousands of years. it is wonderful to see the tradition alive. today, carvings are made and sold for art and ceremonial use. only a few pipestone quarries exist, making this small southwestern minnesota town special.

the grand entrance:


i arrived at sunset, which provided wonderful, clean light. i knew the 'good light' wouldn't last long, so I had to hurry. it was about 15 degrees without wind chill when these photos were taken.


a fisheye perspective of an active pipestone quarry. permits are required to quarry the stone and may take up to 6 years to obtain.


tools of the trade:


red twig dogwood (cornus sericea/stolonifera) resembles red pipestone.


prayer flags hung around the quarries serve as spiritual reminders to natives.


milkweed seed pod with a distant light in the background (taken with Nikon 85 f/1.4 at f/1.4). gotta love that creamy background bokeh!