Himba village, Nambia, October 2021
Early morning aurora over Dillon Mountain, Brooks Range, Alaska, March 31, 2022.
Happy Earth Day, 2022! Earth Day is significant to me for many reasons, and every year I make a point to explore someplace new on this date. I am currently in my home state of Minnesota and will be visiting a local wildlife refuge for the first time.
Thank you for following and I hope you take some time to enjoy the outdoors today...
Colin
Back to the Arctic for this one - the aurora dances over Sukakpak Mountain in Alaska's Brooks Range. Taken in the early morning hours of March 31, 2022 near the community of Wiseman.
Looks like I will be guiding one more aurora tour for the season with Alaska Photo Treks tonight. Fingers crossed we have a nice display for our guests!
Colin
From the Latin word for crown, 'corona' refers to an auroral display that appears to be flowing from a central point, generally directly overhead. These were taken in the early morning hours of March 31, 2022 in Alaska's Brooks Range, well above the Arctic Circle. If you look closely, you can see the Big Dipper is at the center of the corona.
Thank you for following along, and please stay tuned for more arctic auroras...
Colin
Just north of Wiseman lies what is likely the most recognizable and photographed mountain on Alaska’s Dalton Highway, Mount Sukakpak. The translation from Inupiat is: “Marten deadfall.”
We set up at this location for most of the night, the aurora was visible as soon as twilight arrived. It was faint at first but displaying a spectrum of color, the intensity continuing to build toward morning. These were taken early, with the brightest and most active period coming later, shortly before daybreak.
As always, thank you for following. More to come...
Colin
There is no place quite like the far north, the Arctic. I just returned from a 1,500-mile road trip to Alaska’s Brooks Range and the log cabin community of Wiseman. My goal was to capture arctic auroras and a bit of wildlife. I was joined by a good friend from Minnesota, Joe, and his daughter, Nadia, who was on spring break. While most spring breakers go south, we went well above the Arctic Circle to a beautifully remote landscape and our timing could not have been better - we witnessed a vibrant display last Wednesday night/Thursday morning that certainly was one of my best sessions in more than twenty years of aurora chasing! We also had great weather to drive over Atigun Pass onto the north slope, where we were welcomed by dozens of caribou.
I will be sharing more aurora images in the coming days, so please stay tuned…
Colin
Joe and Nadia watching the aurora dance across the sky
A small herd of barren ground caribou in Atigun Pass
A dirty Four Runner with extra fuel on top is a sign of a great road trip to the far north…