Lenticular Clouds Over Cub Lake

Sunrise at Cub Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
I had no idea what I would be photographing when I started my hour long drive up to Rocky Mountain National Park. Many of my freinds think I have a screw loose waking up at 1:45 AM in order to photograph sunrise in the park. It's morning like these at Cub Lake that keep my going. I cant get enough of mornings like this in the park. Each sunrise is so different from the next that I never tire of the morning reveille. Technical Details: Canon EOS 1Ds III, 17mm F4 TS-E L
Each time I hit the road at o’dark thirty and head up to Rocky Mountain National Park the excitement of what I might photograph is palatable. Fortunately, that excitement remains just as palatable for me as the first time I headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park in the pre-dawn hours to capture sunrise.

Some of my friends, family and fellow photographers wonder why the fixation with photography and in particular Rocky Mountain National Park. I don’t have a perfect answer for them, but both photography and Rocky Mountain National Park continue to be an obsession of mine.

For me, it’s the thrill of the unknown. Even though Rocky is a location I spend much of my time exploring, I leave feeling like I have not even scratched the tip of the iceberg. The possibilities are endless and no two days or sunrises are ever the same.

I had no idea what I would walk away with this morning at Cub Lake. Rocky was quite breezy when I arrived and the outlook for clouds in the sky or a colorful sunrise did not look promising.

Regardless, I was still pumped up for the hike and the potential on the ride up. Getting out on the trail in the pre-dawn hours regardless of the ultimate outcome is therapeutic to the soul. Rocky Mountain National Park is just to majestic a location to walk away empty handed, image or not. It’s mornings and experiences like these that keep me mesmerized with photography and Rocky Mountain National Park. What get’s you out of bed at 2:30 AM?