when weather ruins your shot..

I suppose you had no tripod? If so low ISO, long shutter and great DOF would have worked.

Yeah, no tripod. I have a few shots using that technique, but still the same boring sky

i still really like that shot. great scene.

It's a beautiful composition, and sometimes grain can look totally cool. The only REALLY distracting element is the bottom, where the most OOF and grainy element is. If you cropped that off the bottom so the image was started a bit higher up, I think it would be a winner. I know landscapes like that are supposed to be shot at high DOF so the whole image is sharp, at least that's the common logic, but sometimes it's good to break the rules. I think the grain adds drama. Might also be interesting in B&W. This, of course, is just IMO.

I've had a few "failures" that turned peoples' heads more than what I'd hoped to achieve when I set out.

I LIKE that B&W. Well, since I suggested it, I suppose I WOULD like it.

No doubt others may have a different point of view, but the tree is the only sharp element in the whole image, and my eye, undistracted by the bright yellow/green of the plants, travels from the bottom of the photo right to the tree.

wow...now that is definately stunning. awesome suggestion stevefossimages and great capture, spaced.