Deadwood Society

Odin's Eye: Watching Everything

Lurking in the mountains of Olympic Valley, California, among the lifeless trunks of trees which once stood tall and majestic, are faces of things which seem suspiciously alive, full of expression and familiarity. 

Taking a hike in these mountains is like visiting Dr. Gunther von Hagens’ spectacular exhibition BODY WORLDS. Up here, however, if you pay attention and engage with the forest with child-like curiosity, you'll have an unprecedented view into something

vastly more unusual. Consider this a trip through the Museum of Nature and you're exploring deadwood anatomy.

On this page are 20 such "exhibits", part of an ongoing collection I call “Deadwood Society.” 

A tribute to the 50 year anniversary of JAWS. You never know what you’ll encounter on a hike up these hills.

The psychological phenomenon that causes people to see patterns or shapes, such as faces in random stimuli, including tree trunks and clouds, is called pareidolia [pair-ahy-doh-lee-uh].

The fallen tree and exposed roots above, for example, appears to be holding a face, a wound, and a warning all at once. There’s something hellishly alive inside this wood. Like something from Dante’s Inferno.

What you see below, if you squint your imagination, looks much like an ancient Sea Turtle, mouth open, swimming through air up the mountain.

Creatives draw from this way of seeing for inspiration. Whether or not you’re a “creative,” I hope these images encourage you to find examples of pareidolia on your next hike in the woods. Once you start noticing instances of pareidolia, the world takes on a whole new perspective.

If you follow the sound of Washeshu Creek up Shirley Canyon Trail, you might stumble upon something most hikers pass by without noticing: the Driftwood Phoenix, guardian of the watershed…

From embryos and animals, serpents and monsters to sinister stares, the deadwood is alive with mysteriously life-like expressions... if you pay close attention.

Like the bones of an ancient serpent crawling down the mountain. Dull moments don’t exist up here.

In the classic words of Jack London, “Don’t loaf and invite inspiration; light out after it with a club, and if you don’t get it, you will nonetheless get something that looks remarkably like it.”

Join me as we light out after it...

An ancient elephant wandering through the forest.

"The cure for boredom is curiosity.

There is no cure for curiosity."

~ Dorothy Parker

A horse of a different color.

There's mystic and silent strength in these images.

The fractured head of a horse moving through the woods.

The image below reminds me of a Komodo dragon wandering far from its home among the small islands of Indonesia, lost somewhere in the hills of Tahoe.

You see, here in Tahoe you don't follow your wonder up the hills or into the forest, your wonder follows you... often times into places where ancient dead things appear as real as things that are vibrantly alive.

What do you see?

The Frog King of the Forest.

"The unpardonable sin is being bored."

~ G.K. Chesterton

A Lone Wolf morphing from the wood.

“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”

~ Animal Farm

And so it goes with the gnarl of branches and bush in the mountains of Tahoe.

Listen closely to this tree stump. You might hear Robert Mitchum say, "The only difference between me and my fellow actors is that I've spent more time in jail."

Nature is a magical and mysterious place where fairy tales are born.

In the mountains of Lake Tahoe, you discover a sense of phosphorescence (now there's a fancy word!) - that light within, that helps to expand your imagination.

"Look deep into nature, then you will understand everything better."

~ Albert Einstein

Where Eagles Soar.

“The basis of all human fears, he thought.

A closed door, slightly ajar.”

~ Stephen King

Carpe diem, horam, minutam

The important thing is to enjoy what you're seeing and doing as much as you can to find anything in it to enjoy. Savor the moment... the tree stump staring back at you, the wildlife in the deadwood, the sounds and smells. Carpe diem, horam, minutam. In other words, seize and savor the moment on your walk in the woods.

It may seem like a Brothers Grimm kind of moment in the woods. Spectral figures and the chilling feeling of being watched.

“Darkness falls across the land

The midnight hour is close at hand

Creatures crawl in search of blood

To terrorize y’all’s neighborhood…”

~ Vincent Price, Thriller Rap

But in the end, nature and all the beautiful and bone chilling sights she serves up are things to marvel. Things to make you appreciate the good things to come.

Where the stone masons of European Cathedrals got their ideas of 'gargoyles and chimeras'. (Thanks for that, Peter Hampson.)

To be bored is inexcusable. To be fascinated, is to be reminded that you're not just here to punch a time clock, fight traffic, eat, sleep, pay bills and die.

Fascination, whether it's in the smile of a loved one, a sunset, a flower, or a weed... or whether it's in the twisted, gnarly root system of a dead tree trunk that looks like an animal, gargoyle, or something prenatal from a Ridley Scott movie is a reminder to experience excitement and boisterous joy.

There's a great Swedish proverb that goes something like this:

"Fear less, hope more;

eat less, chew more;

whine less, breathe more;

talk less, say more;

love more; and all good things are yours."

Fear scares inspiration away.

Fascination arouses emotion and stimulates curiosity.

You attract inspiration through curiosity.

Take a hike in nature and let your mind whirl. Expand your senses. Take a closer look at things. Light out after inspiration.

In the words of Kurt Vonnegut, “if this isn't nice, what is?”

All photographs by Michael Kennedy (unless otherwise noted) / BlueWolfGallery.com

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I’m Michael Kennedy, a resident of Olympic Valley, CA (in photo above). I’m a photojournalist and I love exploring nature and getting lost along the way. We live in a world that demands our attention and I just want to say thank you for your attention. If you enjoyed this post, please share with a friend. For more photos and stories visit BlueWolfGallery.com.