Himba village, Nambia, October 2021
Happy Summer Solstice! With 19 hours, 21 minutes, and 18 seconds of daylight in south central Alaska today, the pendulum of light now swings the other direction until December 21, at which time we will have approximately 5 and a half hours of daylight.
This is Glacier Lake, the headwaters of Eagle River. I took this one year ago today on the Crow Pass Trail using the "Big Stopper" 10-stop neutral density filter from LEE Filters to obtain a 60-second exposure.
One year ago my good friend Tyler Howie and I set off trekking on the Crow Pass Trail Pass Trail with his dog Freija leading the way. It was pouring rain when we started, which continued for the first 8 miles or so, eventually clearing off for a spectacular midnight sky. We are planning to do the hike again this year with pack rafts and float most of the way back to the Eagle River Nature Center. Traveling in a pack raft with my camera gear is going to be a new experience for me, so I've been spending some time on the river to get used to maneuvering before we depart.
A telephoto view of Eagle Glacier from Glacier Lake, the headwaters of Eagle River. Next time I hike the Crow Pass Trail, I plan to camp at the lake and hike up to the glacier.
The sun set on the longest day of the year this past week and the pendulum now swings in the other direction. From now until December 21, we will be losing daylight in the Northern Hemisphere while the southern half of the planet begins to gain light each day - perfect for my journey to Australia in November! After looking through my images from the backcountry camping adventure, I feel vindicated in adding 25 pounds of camera gear to my pack and lugging it nearly 30 miles over two days on the Crow Pass Trail. This is a two-minute exposure, taken just after midnight with a Nikon D700 camera body and 17-35mm lens, using a ten-stop neutral density filter system ("The Big Stopper") from Lee Filters. Happy summer to everyone north of the equator!
It's amazing what a little bit of fill flash can do for a photo on a dreary day! We began our hike in the pouring rain on Monday, but didn't let that dampen our spirits. Freija was not deterred in the least, she kept leading the way, carrying her own food in her little Mountainsmith K-9 Dog Pack. This was taken at The Perch, 4 miles into our journey from the Eagle River Nature Center on the Iditarod Historical Trail. Thanks again to my good friend Tyler Howie for bringing such a great hiking companion!
For a comprehensive article on camping with dogs and more, visit this link at Outside How: https://outsidehow.com/camping-with-dogs.html
Glacier Lake - the headwaters of Eagle River. This was the final destination on our trek into the valley. The glacier is visible in the background, roughly 2-3 miles from this point. Originally, Tyler Howie and I planned to hike the Crow Pass Trail over from Girdwood but a portion of the trail is currently closed due to a dead moose lying next to the trail, which creates a potentially dangerous situation if a bear should be guarding the kill. Instead, we decided to hike from the Friends of Eagle River Nature Center, where I reside, up to the lake and back.
Returned from backcountry trip into Eagle River Valley late last night, exhausted and sore from hiking nearly 30 miles with fifty pound packs. We made it to Thunder Gorge on Monday evening and up to the Glacier Lake on Tuesday. Freija was an excellent traveling companion, crossing turbulent glacial rivers and leading the way for much of the trek. More photos to come...
Colin
