4th of July, CNM style

Got to the Monument barely in time this morning to see the climbers hoisting the red, white & blue, then start to make their way down.

For those of you unfamiliar with the "tradition," each July 4 climbers scramble up to the top of Independence Monument, the park's most recognizable icon, and plant a flag which I believe stays up for at least a few days. John Otto, the park's founder, started this tradition nearly a hundred years ago, and the steps he chipped into the rocks are still visible to this day. I apparently misread the park's web site and thought the climbers would start their climb at 10 am, not end it... Missed them coming up, which would have been the fun part to photograph Oh well, maybe next year.

Hope everyone had a safe & happy 4th weekend.

P.S. Anyone have suggestions to keep the gnats away? I was swarmed when I tried to do a night shoot on Sat., and they were bad again this morning. DEET didn't seem to phase them...at all.

Cool image. The gnats hate the sheets you toss in the dryer to soften clothes. You just hang one off the back of your hat and they will leave you alone. I forget which one they REALLY hate...been a long time.

That is such a cool shot and tradition, Angela. Thanks for posting this!

I think you got here at the perfect time. I really like this a lot!
And Ron's tip on repelling gnats was great. I'll surely try that one in the future.