Open For Business

Rocky Mountain National Park finally reopened last week after the East Troublseome and Cameron Peak Fires were brought under control with the help of both the firefighters and some winter weather. Currently, there are limited opportunities on the east side of Rocky Mountain National Park for photographers as the west side of RMNP remains closed. I made a quick run up to the park earlier in the week and photographed sunrise over Deer Mountain from Many Parks Curve. While its sad to hear and see of the destrucition in the surrounding areas, it did feel great to be able to get back out for a morning. Technical Details: Nikon Z6, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 S lens
It’s been quiet here on the blog for the past few weeks. After a busy summer and autumn season here in Rocky Mountain National Park, both the Cameron Peak Fire and the East Troublesome Fire’s played spoiler to the end of the fall season.

The two fires which exploded at the end of October and burned nearly 30,000 acres of RMNP as well as large areas outside of Rocky. Snow finally appears to have brought both fires under control and each day that we move closer towards the winter season and snow cover on the ground is positive. In fact other than a few hot spots, there has been no growth of the two fires in the past week.

While the damage is still being assessed, we do know the fires caused significant damage both inside Rocky Mountain National Park as well as outside. Since this blog relates to photographing Rocky Mountain National Park, I’ll stick with what I know as of this writing.

On the west side of the park, the NPS office at the entry station burned down. Somehow, the two kiosks did not sustain any damage. The seasonal employees cabins across from the Green Mountain Trailhead also burned down as well. Portions of Trail River Ranch in Rocky Mountain National Park also sustained damage but Little Buckaroo Barn is ok as is the Holzwarth property.

On the east side of the park, the East Troublesome Fire made a run over the continental divide through Spruce Canyon and down into Upper Beaver Meadows and Moraine Park. To date, the only structure that I know that was damaged by the fire on the east side of Rocky is the Fern Lake patrol cabin which was destroyed.

Small portions of Rocky Mountain National Park are now open again outside the zones where the firefighters are still monitoring the fire, building containment and putting out any hot spots. Currently, the entire west side of RMNP remains closed with no known date of when it will reopen.

The east side of the park is open through the Fall River Entrance through Horseshoe Park and then up Trail Ridge Road to the Many Parks overlook. US 36, Bear Lake and The Beaver Meadows Entry station are currently closed. Old Fall River is open for hiking and bikes until December 1st at which point it will return to a trail until spring. Wild Basin is open to the winter gate and access along Highway 7 including Lily Lake and the Twin Sisters and the Longs Peak trailhead is currently open.

I was able to make a quick run up to the park earlier in the week just to kick off the rust and get out and explore for a morning. While much of the park is not currently accessible, its good to have portions of it back. We’re basically now in the winter season in Rocky, so Trail Ridge will remain closed.

With that being the case, the best locations for photography are going to revolve around smaller areas with access to much of the backcountry of Rocky currently being limited. I’ll keep things updated here as locations open up or I get any new information pertinent to the fires and damage inside of RMNP.

Take The Shot

It’s been a hectic week since the Cameron Peak Fire and East Troublesome Fires exploded and made runs through large parts of Rocky Mountain National Park. On one of my last visits to the park, I stopped at this familiar stand of aspens in Beaver Meadows to photograph the tail end of fall color. I almost kept driving by this spot but pushed myself to take one more shot. This was the last autumn shot of the season I was able to capture in RMNP before the fires and closure hit. When I packed up my camera this morning I had no idea this would be the last time I would be able to shoot fall color in the 2020 season. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 S lens
We’ve all done it. It could be something as simple as taking the garbage out, changing the oil in a vehicle or paying a bill. Procrastinating or putting things off for another day is just part of the human condition. Most of these items we put off will are not life or death and other than ending up in the dog house with your significant other, most of these are trivial.

This same dynamic can affect photographers as well. As is the case with our day to day responsibilities, it’s easy to pack up the camera after a good morning or evening and head back to the house, hotel, bar, coffee shop and call it a day. In fact, I would argue that much of the time this is an important process in allowing artists to refresh, relax and reflect on the process and allow for the creative process to rejuvenate itself for another sunrise or sunset.

Even though I’m a believer in moderation in all things, there are times when one needs to push a little harder, work one more composition or explore one more mile of trail. Why?, none of us is promised tomorrow so it’s important to take advantage of the moment.

This has become abundantly apparent the past few weeks up here in Rocky Mountain National Park. Fall is by it very nature fleeting. Now combine the ever retreating autumn season in Rocky Mountain National Park with two of Colorado’s largest wildfires burning through portions of RMNP.

The threat from both the Cameron Peak Fire as well as the East Troublesome Fire seemed to be abating as fire season was winding down. In short order, both these fires unexpectedly grew and exploded right as the autumn season was wrapping up. Both the towns of Estes Park and Grand Lake have been severely affected by the growth and destruction of these two fires. Overnight, peoples lives have been turned upside down. Over 25,000 acres of Rocky Mountain National Park has now burned and the park will remain closed until further notice. Photography is the last thing on many of our minds right now, and that changed in an instant.

Whats a beautiful image one day is often gone the next. But its not just fall that is fleeting, our existence on this planet is fleeting from the day we are born into this world. Autumn and the fires emphasize why one should live in the moment and not take for granted whatever time one gets to spend doing what they love. Change is a constant companion, dont put off for tomorrow what you can do today.

Thats Fall Folks!

This last weather system that moved over RMNP this weekend pretty much put an end to the fall color seasons in Rocky. Autumn 2020 was a challenging fall seasons for us photographers with smoke, haze, clear blue skies and a pandemic but even with all of that going on, Rocky has some of the most brilliant color I can remember. These aspens above Hollowell Park were just spectacular last week and they turned red and orange. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 200-500mm F5.6 AF-S VR Lens
Sunday we finally had some rain and snow move in through the park in what seems like forever. Snow fell on the Cameron Peak fire and the park got a decent dusting of snow in the higher elevations. When this new system moved in and out of the region it brought lots of wind with it as well.

As it always is with fall in the high rockies, one quick blast of weather and hillsides go from golden brilliance to down and brown. So was the case with this new system which stripped what remaining fall color there was and ushered in the brown season once again. This last system put mostly to an end what was one of the strangest autumns in Rocky I can remember in sometime.

Not only were we in the midst of a pandemic, but late summer into early fall in Rocky Mountain National Park was absurdly dry. We had very little rain and very little in the way of interesting clouds or weather for what I would estimate to be well over two months. Basically from August through October with the one exception being our early season September snowstorm, we were suffering not only from drought like conditions but also severe clear with little in the ways of interesting cloud cover and skies.

The Cameron Peak fire broke out in mid August and the hot and dry conditions allowed it to spread and grow quickly. Smoke from this fire has been hanging over Rocky Mountain National Park and the Front Range of Colorado ever since. Just 19 miles north of the Cameron Peak fire, The Mullen Fire broke out in September and only added to smoke, ash and haze.

Sunrise from the top of the Bierstadt Moraine on Friday looking back down towards Sprague Lake. Smokey skies were mostly a hinderance this fall season in RMNP but on Friday, clouds and smoke helped to create a colorful sunrise over Rocky. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 24-70mm F4 S lens
As a photographer during what is normally considered the best season of the year to photograph, you try to adapt and go with the flow. If 2020 has taught my anything its that you really need to appreciate your time and freedom as well as learning to make the best of a bad situation.

So while the haze and smoke from the fire, combined with clear skies and non-dramatic skies with weather made it difficult to get motivated or find subjects to shoot, I kept pushing myself to get out in the field and see what I could come away with.

As I always say, field time is always better than office time and if you can push aside your preconceived notions of what you think you should photograph and how the conditions should be and instead work with what you have, I think you will find you can come away with quite a few images that you’ll be pleased with.

So while autumn 2020 in Rocky Mountain National Park was the strangest and most difficult year I can remember photographing in the park, We had some of the most vibrant colors I can remember as well. Overall, fall 2020 worked out nothing like I would have imagined but I’m happy to report that even with the difficulties, I came away with many new images that will eventually be added to my portfolio.

Chasing Our Frenetic Fall

With both clear blue skies at play most mornings along with smoke from the Cameron and Mullen fires, photographing large landscapes in Rocky Mountain National Park has been a challenge this year. Friday morning yielded a decent sunrise over the Bierstadt Moraine which still has some pretty decent fall color this late in the season. While the wind was really blowing on Friday morning, the air quality was decent and we had some high clouds which yielded some nice fall color at sunrise. This is one of the few large landscapes I’ve been able to capture this autumn season due to both the smoke and blue skies. Intimate landscapes have certainly been more fruitful this season. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 24-70mm F4s Lens

I apologize for the lack of updates to the blog the past week or so as i’ve been busy spending as much time as possible out in the field. The fall season in Rocky Mountain National Park is without question my favorite time of year but its also the most hectic. Autumn is both short and frenetic and this means lots of time spent trying to not only chase the light, but also chase where the best color and photographic opportunities are located.

While one location on west side of Rocky Mountain National Park may be hitting peak one day, weather events or just time can cause it to be past peak the following day. That likely means another location in Rocky, likely on the complete opposite side of the park may be hitting peak the following day and one spends quite a bit of resources trying to stay on top of the frenetic pace while also enjoying and savoring the season.

As it stands now, we are in the backend homestretch of autumn fall color seasons in RMNP. We have had incredible stretch of warm dry weather in the park. This has been beneficial in the fact that the fall color season has certainly extended a little longer than it normally would in many areas. As of this writing there is still some decent fall color on the Bierstadt Moraine for example. Normally, I would expect this area to be well past peak come the second week of October but the lack of very cold weather and snow has allowed for trees not stripped by the winds to remain golden a little longer.

While the warm weather is helping to extend the autumn color which is now best in the lower elevations of the park such as Moraine Park, Beaver Meadows and Horseshoe Park, the dry weather has allowed the fire situation to continue to be dire. Currently, the Cameron Peak fire continues to burn just north of the park. While its 43% contained at this point, the lack of moisture allows it to continue to flare up while also putting a good deal of smoke into the air over Rocky when wind directions are favorable.

While the clear skies and smoke in the air have been a challenge this fall season in RMNP, working on more intimate scenes has been rewarding. I ventured over to the west side of Rocky last week and spent time photographing in the Kawuneeche Valley. These aspens near Holzwarth looked spectacular as the sun rose over the valley. Backlighting the translucent aspens leaves against a shaded blue backdrop can create some really nice lighting. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 S lens
Adding a double whammy to the fire situation around Rocky is the Mullen fire which is burning on the Wyoming and Colorado border area. Currently the Mullen fire is burning about 18 miles north of the Cameron Peak fire. The Mullen fire is not contained and this fire is much more active than Cameron and it has also been contributing to very smokey and hazy skies over Rocky.

Last but not least has been the dome of high pressure that has been parked over Rocky for what seems like weeks. This high pressure system with warm days, moderate winds and clear blue skies all day has not been conducive to dramatic sunrise and sunsets. We seem to be regularly going 7 to 10 days with completely clear skies at sunrise. Combine this with smoke from the two fires and capturing grand landscapes in Rocky Mountain National Park this fall season has certainly been a challenge. In fact, in my 22 years of photographing RMNP, I cant recall an autumn season that has been as challenging to photograph as this season has been due to both the smoke and clear skies.

Another example of backlit aspens in the Kawuneeche Valley near Holzwarth Ranch. Again, using the shaded blue lighting present in the Kawuneeche Valley before the sun hit the valley floor added a nice backdrop to these orange aspens on the west side of RMNP. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 S lens
Even though its been a very challenging fall season (why would we expect 2020 to make anything easy?), there is still plenty to photograph. The autumn color while about average when it comes to the large deciduous trees like aspens and cottonwoods has been average, but the underbrush and scrub has been spectacular this year. Intimate fall scenes are where its best this year as you avoid the clear skies and smoke concentrating on the smaller landscapes less dependent on dramatic lighting.

As it stands I would expect another week of decent fall color in parts of Rocky. The wind is forecast to pickup this week and it does not look like we will have any decent cloud cover until the backend of the week. Currently the best fall color is on the east side of Rocky. The Bierstadt Moraine and Boulder Brook area are decent but look for the lower elevations to provide the best color the next week. So keep an eye on the weather and your viewfinder on smaller, more intimate scenes and you should still be able to come away with some great shots. Lastly, don’t forget the trails area still snow free and the lakes and tarns still open so traditional summer type images may also yield great opportunities once the fall color is past peak.

Ice On Fire

A much needed change in the weather descended over Rocky Mountain National Park last week. After record warm temperatures and the end to the Labor Day weekend, cold air and snow blanketed RMNP for most of last week. On Wednesday the 9th of September, I took advantage of the fresh snow to hike up Flattop Mountain for sunrise. While sunrise was mostly obscured by clouds, by the time I was back down at the Dream Lake overlook, beams of light were shining down on Longs Peak and Glacier Gorge. Mills Lake and Jewell Lake can also be seen in this image below Longs Peak. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S VR FL lens

Its been a rollercoaster week in Rocky Mountain National Park. With late summer continuing its trend of hot and dry weather, exacerbated by the Cameron Peak fire which entered Rocky Mountain National Park last week and burned up along the Hagues Creek and Cascade drainage, one could only expect the year of 2020 to continue with oddities and disruptions.

With the park service closing Trail Ridge Road, Old Fall River Road and access to pretty much all of the north eastern and western portions of Rocky Mountain National Park due to the Cameron Peak fire, the weather took a dramatic turn after the Labor Day holiday weekend.

A strong early season cold front dropped in the night of September 7th, plummeting temperatures and kicking off 3 days of unseasonably cold and wet weather which was badly needed over Colorado.

Most of us probably don’t envision waking up the day after Labor Day, the unofficial end to the Summer Season to find temperatures in the 20’s and snow falling hard but thats in fact what we were greeted with.

Snow fell on Rocky Mountain National Park along with the Cameron Peak Fire from the night of Monday the 7th all the way the through the early hours of Friday morning. In total nearly a foot of snow fell over portions of RMNP and the needed moisture helped to at least temporarily stop the explosive growth of the fire.

Early season storms RMNP provide great opportunities for photographers to get into areas that would be very challenging in the middle of winter. Near timberline on Flattop Mountain the pines were coated in ice and snow. In the middle of winter these trees would not only be buried in large drifts, but just getting up here would require technical winter skills along with great stamina. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 24-70mm F4 S lens
The dramatic shift from summer to winter also allowed for the skies to clear of all the smoke and ash that had been falling over the past few weeks and flip the script from summer type photography conditions to winter landscapes.

I took the opportunity to get out the back end of last week and enjoy the snow covered landscapes in Rocky and get into some areas that are usually very difficult in the winter months due to heavy snows and cold conditions. These early season storms in Rocky typically offer photographers a chance to capture the landscape of Rocky covered in fresh snow without the brutally cold temperatures one would find in the middle of winter while also needing only minimal equipment such as micro spikes to access the backcountry and trails.

While I had 3 great mornings out in the park, the morning of September 9th offered the most dramatic conditions and I took advantage of them by hiking up to the top of Flattop Mountain for sunrise. While the sunrise was obscured by clouds, breaks in the cover did happen latter in the morning make for some dramatic lighting over a snow covered Longs Peak.

The reprieve to cooler weather was only temporary as this week looks once again to be warm and dry. Hopefully the moisture from last week can keep a handle on the Cameron Peak fires spread into Rocky and we can get some more moisture over the park by the end of the week. Either way it was a welcome change even if I’m not quite ready for the snow and winter just yet.

From Fire To Ice

2020 has been nothing short of a wild and strange trip. The year continues to forgo ever having a dull moment as we have now seen both the Cameron Peak Fire expand into the borders of Rocky Mountain National Park, while and early season post Labor Day snowstorm blankets the park with a predicted foot plus of snow. Hopefully this will help to abate the spread of the fire and bring some much needed moisture to Rocky. The only positive to all the smoke and ash over RMNP lately has been interesting sunrises and sunsets. This was sunrise on Labor Day morning from Moraine Park as the sun rose over Eagle Cliff Mountain. Hopefully, this will be the last smoke filled sunrise of the season that I photograph. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 200-500mm f5.6AF-S VR lens.

2020 continues to be the year that fails to be dull. The year that never fails to surprise and amaze, and not always in good ways continues on with more surprises. The current surprise being a post labor day snowstorm that is now hitting Rocky Mountain National Park after a week of near record temperatures and the exponential growth of the Cameron Peak Fire which has now entered the northeastern section of Rocky Mountain National Park.

With ash raining down on the park all weekend, and smoke so thick that the NPS had to close Trail Ridge Road due to poor visibility, the Cameron Peak fire exploded and nearly tripled in size from a few days ago to just under 100,000 acres. Even more upsetting is that the fire managed to cross over Highway 14 and make a run up the Hague Creek drainage in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Reports on how much damage the fire has actually caused in RMNP are still vague as most of the news reporting has been focused on the areas outside the park where there is housing and buildings to direct resources to.

The fire incident mapping which is updated once a day now shows that the drainages up Hagues Creek and just below Cascade Creek and Mirror Lake have now burned. This hits close to home for me not only because the fire is now inside Rocky Mountain National Park, but also because I just recently spent a few days backpacking in the Mirror Lake getting to explore the beauty in this remote section of the park. As is always the case, when one visits and area it just leads one to plan on exploring larger and different areas on future visits. This was certainly the case with the Hagues Creek drainage which is a beautiful and remote section of the park just asking to be photographed.

The good news with regards to the Cameron Peak Fire is that the current snowstorm that is blanketing the park, should help with much needed moisture. Fire officials do not believe this will be a season ending event and think the fire will continue to burn even after the predicted 8-14 inches falls on Rocky in the next few days, but it will certainly help with what has turned into an unbelievably dry summer.

I’ll certainly welcome some cooler weather and hopefully smokeless skies moving forward. Hopefully the NPS will be able to reopen Trail Ridge Road, Old Fall River Road and some other northern sections of the park after all the moisture falls. While it would be easy enough to complain about the early season snowfall and the impact it is likely to have on fall color and late summer season photography, it really could not come at a better time considering the spread of the Cameron Peak Fire.

September Brings The First Snow

The first day of September here in Rocky Mountain National Park did not disappoint. With a cold front moving in over RMNP that night, I found the first snow of the season above 11,500 ft. Here is the sun rising just above the ridge of Mount Chiquita while Marmot Point fills the foreground. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S ED FL lens

Summer continues to fly by here in Rocky Mountain National Park. August has now come and gone and one of the best months for photographers has now arrived. With the calendar page flipping over from August to September, the first day of September left little to the imagination on what lies in store for us as we begin to say goodbye to summer.

After having an above average temperatures for the months of July and August, and the Cameron Peak fire burning just outside the northeastern boundary to the park since August 13th, the morning of September 1st brought some much needed relief.

The first of two strong cold fronts moved in through the park on the night of August 31st into September 1st. Rain fell over most of Rocky Mountain National Park but just above 11,500 ft, that rain turned to snow. For the first time this season, the high peaks of RMNP had a nice dusting of snow on them.

Finally some fog and clouds for a change in RMNP. Looking at the north side of the Lava Cliffs, Fog and low lying clouds skirt the snow covered ridges above 11,500 ft as the sun illuminates the fall colored tundra grasses just below the snow line. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S VR ED FL lens
The combination of snow along with the alpine tundra that is found at nearly the same elevation made for a nice combination of color and contrast. Snow dusting the peaks and reds and yellow alpine tundra displaying its fall glory helped to change the scenery for a change. No smokey or cloudless skies this morning, just some light snow on the peaks and the tundra looking colorful as it was amplified by the moisture on the grasses.

While its hard to know if this is the start of a weather pattern change here in Rocky Mountain National Park or a one off, it was an unmistakable change in the weather that could be felt as we moved into what is regarded by many, as the best month of the year in the park.

A Little Bit Of Clarity

It was great to be able to finally see the mountains in all their beauty after weeks of smokey and hazy skies in Rocky Mountain National Park. I took advantage of the great conditions to photograph on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park. Here we see the Colorado River winding its way through the Kawuneeche Valley only a few miles from it’s headwaters with Baker Mountain looming in the distance. The mix of brown and green grasses adds some color to this later summer seen on the west side of RMNP. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm F4 S lens

While the Cameron Peak Fire continues to burn just outside the boundary of Rocky Mountain National Park (21,000+ acres with 0% containment as of this writing), we finally caught a break the other morning with regards to air quality and smoke which has been ever present since the fire started back on August 13th.

Shifting wind patterns and some nice afternoon and evening rain showers helped to improve the air quality over Rocky Mountain National Park on the morning of August 26th. While I’ve been trying to use the smoke as best I can when out photographing in Rocky, sometimes there is only so much you can do .

Heading out yesterday morning, I was surprised to be able to see the stars as I started my drive north towards Estes Park. The smoke tends to settle in the valleys overnight but its been so heavy of late that its often hard to tell if its cloudy or just smokey in the morning.

The forecast showed clouds moving in over the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park around sunrise yesterday, so I figured I would head up Trail Ridge and over to the Kawuneeche Valley to see if the combination of less smokey skies and haze and clouds at sunrise might yield a good old fashioned morning of photography.

For the past few weeks, The Kawuneeche has be inundated with smoke from both the Cameron Peak Fire and the Williams Fork Fire further to the west. With rain that had fallen overnight and clouds predicted on the west side of the park, I was also hoping that maybe some low lying fog would form in the valley to add to the mood.

While the low lying fog only materialized in a few isolated areas of Kawuneeche Valley, the clouds did just as predicted and started moving in just before sunrise. Best of all, while there was still some smoke present in the valley, the air quality was the cleanest its been in over two weeks.

I took the opportunity to setup along the Colorado River at a location I’ve photographed a hundred times before. It’s a classic west side of Rocky image. The Colorado River a few miles from its headwaters with Baker Mountain looming over Bowen Baker gulch to the west. This time of years the grasses which have been growing all summer in the Kawuneeche Valley are waist high and there are hints of golden autumn hues mixed in with still lush greens.

Great clouds, great scenery and more importantly, some great conditions which included the air quality yesterday morning made for a refreshing change. Cooler weather is predicted for the park starting on Friday and smoke from the fires in both California and Colorado are supposed to abate as well. Here’s to hoping for some great conditions again as we hit the homestretch towards the end of summer and fall in Rocky Mountain National Park.

RMNP And Cameron Peak Fire Update

Here I used the heavy smoke that is filling the valleys of Rocky Mountain National Park to my advantage when photographing the diffused light at sunrise. Looking back towards Lumpy Ridge from Tombstone Ridge allowed me to create this layered effect with the combination of blue smoke, and diffused light from sunrise. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S VR FL lens

Lots of photography tour clients have contacted me asking what the current conditions are in Rocky Mountain National Park. Many want to know if their are any signs of fall color or the elk rut starting as we are moving into late August. Others just want to know what the air quality situation is with the Cameron Peak Fire burning just outside the northwestern boundary to the park ongoing.

Before giving an update on the Cameron Peak fire, I’ll give a brief update on the first two questions. The back end of summer has been very dry here in Rocky Mountain National Park. Evidence of this can be seen not only from the fires burning across Colorado, but also in the alpine tundra which has now turned mostly brown instead of it autumnal red. Wildflowers have dried up in most areas of the park and the grasses in the lower elevations are browning. Even with that said, there are certainly signs of autumn appearing now in Rocky. With the exception of a few draught stressed aspens which have started to turn, at or above timberline one will find both the grasses, tundra and willows starting to change. In fact, just last week on Flattop Mountain I was surprised with how far along the willows below the summit had turned yellow. Its possible that both the dry conditions and diluted sunlight from smokey skies will have some effect on Rocky’s fall color season which usually begins in earnest around the second to third week of September.

Secondly, the warm weather has kept most of the elk herds high above the parks so far. While the bulls have been shedding their velvet in preparation for the rut, overall congregation of the males and the females remains separate and even the offset bugling bull elk has been fairly subdued. I would expect this activity to start changing in the next few weeks, especially if some cooler weather moves in.

Lastly, the Cameron Peak fire continues to burn just outside the northern boundary of Rocky Mountain National Park. As of this writing, the Cameron Peak Fire had burned just over 20,000 acres with 0% containment. The National Park Service has closed off access to the northern part of Rocky and one is not able to access anything from along Long Draw Road, the Poudre River Trail or the areas around Mirror Lake and Hagues Creek. As it currently stands there is no reason to believe any of these areas will reopen anytime soon with the fire at 0% containment. Luckily for Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado Highway 14 and Long Draw Road have been acting as a fire break and preventing the fire from moving inside the boundary of RMNP. While there is concern with such a large fire burning just outside the boundary, it appears as it stands today that the biggest impact from the Cameron Peak fire to RMNP will be smoke and poor air quality.

With the Cameron Peak Fire continuing to burn just outside the northern boundary of Rocky Mountain National Park its been a difficult couple of weeks to photograph inside of Rocky Mountain National Park. At this point, its best to use the atmospherics to one’s advantage. Photographing sunrise yesterday from Tombstone Ridge, I like to photograph back into the rising sun and use the smoke to enhance the layers and mood. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikon 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S VF FL lens

For photographers, smoke is now making photography inside of Rocky Mountain National Park a challenge. The smoke is not only coming from the Cameron Peak Fire, but also from the 3 other large fires burning in Colorado and along with smoke from the numerous California fires.

The smoke is thick enough most morning that getting anything close to full sunlight is very difficult even if there are no clouds present. The smokey haze is causing for diffused lighting and poor air quality. While the smokey skies certainly present some unique opportunities to photograph the park, it certainly makes getting classic vistas like sunrise at Dream Lake, or sunset at the Rock Cut along Trail Ridge Road very difficult as the smoke obscures and diffuses most to the light.

At this point, I find the best strategy is to head into the park and use the smokey skies to ones advantage. I’ve been doing that by getting as much elevation as I can and shooting back into sunrises. The smoke filled valleys and backlighting allowed for one to create moody, layered images with deep blue shadows and warm reds around the rising sun.

I’ll continue to keep the blog updated on the status in Rocky Mountain National Park but with regards to the the Cameron Peak Fire but also the fall color status as well as the elk rut. In the meantime, if you are heading to Rocky for photography, prepare to make adjustments to your shooting itinerary and use the smoke and haze to one’s advantage.

Smoke Filled Days

With four large fires currently burning over the state of Colorado and one of those four burning just a few miles outside the northwest corner of Rocky Mountain National Park, smokey skies are the order of the day. Even though these conditions might not be ideal for landscape photography, one can use the conditions to create moody images. I shot this image earlier this week from near the summit of Flattop Mountain. With signs of autumn starting to appear above 11,000 ft, the sun is seen rising east of Bierstadt Lake and Sprague Lake in this image. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm F4 S lens

Dry. Thats the operative word for the current conditions in Rocky Mountain National Park. After a winter with above average snowfall and a more or less normal spring, moisture has been tough to come by as summer moves along.

Moisture and active weather patterns are not only good for the ecosystem of Rocky Mountain National Park but dynamic weather is great for photographers. Other than a few gully washers we’ve had in July during the peak of the monsoon season here in Colorado, rain, fog, or just plain cloudy skies have been hard to come by this season.

While out in the backcountry of RMNP camping at Mirror Lake a few weeks back with my friend and fellow photographer Erik Stensland, we were discussing just how mild and placid the weather had been this summer. We both remarked at how we badly needed moisture and then both tried to remember the last time we had an entire day or rainy weather or even upslope conditions and or fog to get out and photograph in. The best we could come up with was sometime during the COVID-19 lockdowns when Rocky was still closed and photography in the park was not possible.

During the conversation it was never stated but its always implied that if we dont get moisture soon the risk of a large fire in or near the park is always looming. Combine all of the pine beetle kill of the last 20 years with the fact that many parts of Rocky Mountain National Park have not seen fires in hundreds of years and you realize our favorite location on earth is also a tinder box.

Another image of sunrise from Flattop Mountain earlier this week. This was shot just as the sun crested the horizon ot the east. Blue smoke fills the valley while the sky begins to turn red. Even Bierstadt Lake which looks tiny from this perspective picks up the color of the sky on its calm surface. Tecnical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 70-200mm F2.8 AF-S FL lens

Fast forward to today and there are now 4 major fires burning across the state of Colorado, with the Cameron Peak fire burning just a few miles outside the remote northwest corner of Rocky Mountain National Park. Ironically, the Cameron Peak Fire is burning only a handful of miles from the Mirror Lake area where Erik and I were discussing our dry weather just a few weeks back. The fires are so close in fact that the NPS has closed the area around Mirror Lake as well as much of the Never Summer Range, The Poudre River headwaters and the Hagues Creek area. If we were back camping in this area today we would have been forced to evacuate the area or cancel the trip.

Currently the park service is only closing these areas of Rocky Mountain National Park out of an abundance of caution. The fire has jumped across Highway 14 near Long Draw Reservoir a few times but luckily firefighters have been able to quickly extinguish the growth and hold the fire line on the north or west sides of Highway 14.

With the 4 large fires burning and one burning only a few miles from the boundary of RMNP, smoke has become a major issue in the Estes Park and Grand Lake area over the past week. The thick smoke which comes and goes based on wind direction and humidity has created very poor air quality in the park but has also made photographing landscapes more difficult as the light is diffused and the visibility is reduced.

It’s difficult to get motivated to wakeup just past midnight and head out 7 or 8 miles into the backcountry when you know the air quality is likely to hinder your quality of light on the landscapes. I find the best thing to do in this situation is to just ‘embrace the suck’ and use the current compromised atmospherics to the best of ones advantage.

I photographed this image just after the Cameron Peak fire had started. Looking northeast at the back of the ‘CCY’ or Chapin, Chiquita and Ypsilon, the subtle colors are reflected in a high alpine tarn between Trail Ridge and Fall River. Technical Details: Nikon Z7, Nikkor 14-30mm F4 S lens

strategy is to go high and shoot into the sun when possible. All that smoke and haze not only creates colors and patterns that may not exist on clear days, but it also can enhance mood, texture and obviously the light.

Mountain ridges, the sun rising over the eastern plains of Colorado, every valley and peak take on a different quality when sifting through the blue smoke hovering over the landscape.

While it may not be ideal right now to be out photographing grand landscapes in Rocky Mountain National Park, theres plenty of unique and subtle photography that can still be done that will help to document and capture one phase of life in the Rocky Mountains. So while I’m hoping for a few nice days of rain soon, I’ll still get out there in the smokey air hanging over RMNP and try to get some unique compositions and color palettes not typically present when our air quality and visibility is excellent.