Fall is quickly transitioning over to winter in Rocky Mountain National Park. A very cold low pressure system from the north swung down into Colorado late last week and brought with it just the kind of unsettled weather that I look forward to shooting Rocky in.
Saturday morning I headed up to Rocky in a light but steady freezing drizzle. Making my way up through Pinewood Springs I could see the rime ice and hoar frost coating the Ponderosa Pines along the road. Arriving in Estes Park, town was still socked in with clouds but the freezing drizzle had stopped.
While I generally prefer to get out on the trail and into the backcountry to photograph Rocky, I opted to head on up Trail Ridge Road to see if I could get above the cloud deck. There were some small breaks in the clouds around the Beaver Meadows entrance station which gave me some hope that the cloud deck might not be as high up as I first suspected.
Trail Ridge Road was only open to Rainbow Curve, so I kept my fingers crossed as I drove Trail Ridge high above the Estes Valley. About a half a mile before Rainbow curve, the clouds disappeared and the stars where shining brightly above.
The view from Rainbow Curve looking back east over Rocky Mountain National Park and the Estes Valley was spectacular as the sun began to rise. The clouds filled the valley due to the inversion. The tops of the clouds took on the hue of the deep blue pre dawn sky and to the east and orange glow precipitated the oncoming sunrise. It was another great morning to be up in the park and one that further reinforced the bad weather equals good photos mantra.