On Sunday, May 22, 2011, a set of late evening thunderstorms came through Abingdon.  They left in their wake an unusual reddish hue in the sky, more of an Alpenglow than we ordinarily have in this region (especially for this time of the year).  From our house you could see the sky change from dark grey, to burgundy, to red, eventually to a reddish orange.  My son Karl and I hopped in the car and hastily drove to some vista points to capture the post-storm sunset, as there were only about five minutes left in the evening to capture the skylight.

Landscape photography is something I have always enjoyed and is an interest my son and I have shared for the last year or so.  This winter he received a camera which he has been using on our trips outside.  In addition, we have become fans of From the Edge, a photography show on The Weather Channel with landscape photographer Peter Lik.  In From the Edge, Lik travels to beautiful areas of the United States, primarily our National Parks, and demonstrates photographic techniques.  The show at times is a bit over the top, and Lik may exaggerate somewhat how dangerous some of the situations are, but the man is exuberant, the show is entertaining, and the photography and cinematography are gorgeous.

On this evening Karl and I were able to have our own “Peter Lik” moment inside of town limits as we raced to the west side of Abingdon to get these shots before the light changed.  As the photos show, to the west the sky was a fiery red with heavier cloud cover framing a shrouded sunset.