So as they often happens this time of year two seasons collided. This collision of course resulted in stunning conditions for photography. When the weather changes this quickly and it causes winter to overlap fall it can be somewhat bittersweet. While it creates great opportunities to pick up the camera and capture imagery of overlapping seasons, it’s also likely to mean the fall season may be shortened by the cold snap and snow. Many of the aspen trees were still green when the storm hit so at this point it will be a bit of waiting to see how this early season storm affected the fail foliage in Rocky Mountain National Park. 
Looking to maximize both my chances to photograph sunrise as well as a combination of the fall color and fresh snow on the landscape, I hiked up to Bierstadt Lake the morning of the 12th to see what sunrise had in store. I knew it would be too early in the seasons for Bierstadt Lake to have frozen over, so I had my hopes on being along the shores of Bierstadt Lake when the inversion broke and the clouds cleared the sky and revealed the Continental Divide covered in fresh snow. These kinds of opportunities to photograph snow covered peaks with lakes not yet frozen over are rare and short lived in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Hiking up to Bierstadt Lake takes you up and over the Bierstadt Moraine. This is one of the better locations to photograph stands of aspens turning yellow in Rocky. My plan was to photograph sunrise at Bierstadt Lake and then hustle back over to Bierstadt Moraine and see if I could find some color along the hillsides.
I hiked up to Bierstadt Lake with it still spitting snow from the sky. I could still see the nearly full moon behind the clouds so I had hope that the inversion and clouds would clear as sunrise approached. It was peaceful and silent as I made my way through the forest at the top of moraine. Only when I arrived at the east end of Bierstadt Lake was there any signs of activity in the untouched snow. A fresh set of black bear tracks lead the way around the south end of Bierstadt Lake. While I did not see the bear, the tracks had been laid very recently. The Bear tracks in the snow only added to the mystique and aura as fog and snow drifted through the pines along the shore. Knowing a good size bear was ambling around the woods somewhere close by only enhances the experience of wild places and wilderness. 
I setup along the south shore of Bierstadt Lake and waited for the clouds to lift and the sun to shine. Sunrise came and went and the clouds remained. There were a few breaks in the cloud cover from time to time but never enough to let the sun through or reveal the snow covered peaks to the west. Even without the sun peeking through at sunrise the scene at Bierstadt Lake was magnificent. The fog, snow covered pines, and unfrozen lake made for nearly limitless potential. Truth be told, these kinds of conditions along with diffused lighting are some of my favorite to photograph in. After spending over 2 hrs photographing various compositions along the shore of Bierstadt Lake in the 26 degree weather, I spent some more time photographing a few of the aspen trees on the Bierstadt Moraine that had already turned.
So even though the shot of snow covered peaks reflecting in the still, and unfrozen water of Bierstadt Lake did not materialize the way I had hoped, the resulting images and experiences that morning were equally as rewarding. Now I’m just keeping my fingers crossed that fall will hang on a little while longer so I can photograph golden aspen leaves against Colorado bluebird skies.