p.1 #1 · Wind Rivers: Dinwoody Lakes and Cirque of the Towers redux
I was fortunate to get into the Winds several times this year; a mild winter made a late June trip to the Cirque of the Towers possible. I brought microspikes for the snow, but forgot about them until I was halfway across a descending sidesloping traverse on a snowfield (still hard even though it was midday or maybe even early afternoon). "Gee, microspikes would be good here.........oh, I have some in the side pocket of my pack........if I were to try to take my pack off here, that would send me sliding down the snowfield to the bottom, so I guess I 'll just keep kicking steps". Most of the campsites were still under snow, but I found a flat area in the boulder field that was free of snow. I nicknamed it Marmot Town and was very glad to have lugged in a bear cannister to keep the rodents away from the dog's & my food. I had hoped to cross Warbonnet Creek to shoot from the far side of the waterfall so that the Milky Way would be in line with it, but the water was way too high (with the dry winter, I hadn't considered that possibility), so settled for a vertical pano instead.
My next trip was 5 weeks later, in early August. Wildfires were consuming the west and I started my hike after an 8 hour drive in near 90 degree temperatures and heavy smoke. Somehow, all the trail descriptions neglected to mention that right out of the parking lot, there are switchbacks up for 1100 vertical feet. And no accessible water for the dog. We camped after @3 miles, before the much touted 1500' vertical gain through 30-something switchbacks, then @900' gain on a seemingly endless plateau. Most people hiking in are going to attempt climbing Gannett Peak, some 25 miles in. I did not have such lofty goals, wanting to explore the Dinwoody Lakes area instead. Mornings were cloudless, smudgy skies until my next to last morning at Double Lake, where I again shot a vertical pano.
1 1/2 months later, I returned to the Cirque of the Towers. The forecast had been vacillating between clear & dry and partly cloudy & rain/thunderstorms. It was completely cloudy on the hike in, an hour of rain in the morning, then completely cloudy until 7pm or so. The waterfall was just a dribble when I arrived, but, fortunately, picked up after @3 hours. The spot I had hoped to shoot from (downstream from the waterfall) was a no-go as the willows had leafed out & obscured most of the waterfall, so I was back to shooting from the base. This was 2 shots (one for the waterfall & the lower 2/3 or 3/4 of the Milky Way and another for the top of the Milky Way). I had shot this last year with a wider lens, but it was only f/4, so this year I had an f/2.5 lens, though not as wide.
p.1 #11 · Wind Rivers: Dinwoody Lakes and Cirque of the Towers redux
Nice work Monika, "Sunrise at Double Lake" is my favorite. "The Milky Way and Warrior" is a great concept, but I'm not a fan of light painting 90% of the time, and this is an example of over painting. That is a near impossible shot needing a perfect sliver of moon for illumination.
p.1 #12 · Wind Rivers: Dinwoody Lakes and Cirque of the Towers redux
Thanks for the critique, Jim. I chose the dates because there was going to be a 30% moon. Unfortunately, the clouds hadn't completely cleared and, of course, covered the moon. I tried higher ISO, longer exposures, etc, but was left with light painting (which I "never" do). I had food for 2 more days, but because there were t-storms lasting for hours (the night I came out, it lasted all night), I opted not to stay in & hope for better conditions.
