Its the time of the year that I start working on the photography calendar. I have had plenty of adventures this year yielding many keepers, despite the fact that I was bedridden for about half the year. That said, I had to revisit the archives to get a bit of variety.
That opened up the choices quite a bit more, and I had to make many difficult decisions to keep some and discard others. This was one of those that I had to discard from the 2025 calendar. I still like the image for what it captures: a slice of the fall in the mountains in the North Cascades. Clumps of short blueberry add vibrant reds and oranges to the subalpine meadows in this fragile landscape dominated by glaciated mountain peaks. It lasts but for a very short time, but it leaves an impression like no other.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
A Blissful State
I always build time into my hike for a moment of self reflections. Being so high in the mountains, where the air is thin, and views stretch for miles, offers one a wonderful opportunity for slowing down, and evaluating not only oneself, but the life around them. Whether it be spending the moment to take in the scenery and admire nature, or to introspect about your part in the wider community, the moment of zen is critical to appreciating the reason to get outdoors. Even if you are with friends, it pays to take time off to de-stress in nature
Here was a group doing this high in the Cascades.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
Nature's Palette
This crisp fall day out in the Pacific Northwest showcases the best of nature's color palette: blue skies with the right amount of haze, a foreground of vibrant reds amidst lush green vegetation interspersed by the dark green of the conifers and the emerald blues of an alpine lake. The balmy temperatures and the receding scent of a misty morning proved to be the perfect antidote for a stressful week. And even though I was huffing and puffing my way up there, the airy views of the sublime PNW scenery more than made up for it.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
A National Parks Journey - North Cascades National Park
Almost every National Park that I had visited so far had a central attraction or theme that made it famous: Death Valley for the vast desertscape and sand dunes, Rainier for its peak, and Shenandoah for the views of the Appalachians. I couldn't put my finger on what specific attraction North Cascades had in store. At least not until I climbed to the lip of the Sahale Glacier, and surveyed the panoramic vista of snow-capped peaks of the Cascades all around. That view planted in me the seeds that would eventually lead me to settle down in the Pacific Northwest.
I returned to the park multiple times after moving to the Pacific Northwest, each time exploring a different part of the vast network of mountains and valleys along State Route 20 and the Mount Baker Highway. The short summer hiking season really leaves very little time to appreciate the place, but I hope I never get tired of hiking to the nooks and crannies of the wonderland.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
Calendar of 2021
With the pandemic restricting travel in general in 2020, I focused my photography on the amazing landscapes in and around my home in the Pacific Northwest. And even when constrained to this rain-drenched corner of the country , I found so much diversity, from rugged mountains of the North Cascades to temperate rain-forests in the Olympic Peninsula, and from dry volcanic terrain at Mt St Helens, to the lush farmlands of the Palouse.
And all of these are public lands preserved under the auspices of the National and State Parks, Wilderness Areas and National Forests that cover vast swaths of the PNW. By limiting my travel to this home range, I have come to realize what a treasure this region has to offer. And I am sure such outdoor destinations all over the country, including the 61 National Parks, have been a welcome respite from the harsh realities of the pandemic.
Having visited 45 of those 61, I have come to realize the vital importance of our National Park system in protecting and preserving nature, culture, wildlife, and landscapes for the future. The National Park Foundation helps safeguard our national heritage, ensuring generations of national park enthusiasts can enjoy the parks we love. Hence, this year, I chose to raise funding for this amazing organization.
Purchase the 2021 Calendar, and support the National Park Foundation
Seattle
WA USA
The Fleeting Summer
These are the reasons I love the North Cascades: the vista of endless snow-capped peaks catching the last light of the sun, with many such spots within an easy day's hike of civilization, as well as places to escape into the remote wilderness where you are unlikely to meet a soul.
The price to pay is the incredibly short summer season where many such places are actually accessible, and makes you realize the real value of time. I find the opportunity cost that you pay of working full time is the limited window of a few weekends when you can really explore the PNW Wonderland, while balancing familial and social commitments, as well as travel urges to places outside the northwest. The pandemic this year has made things more challenging for all, but it gave more time to explore local destinations which have become more crowded than prior years.
I have often wished whether I could change that balance and adjust the trade-offs, but so far, it has proved challenging.
Mt Baker Wilderness
WA USA
Too much of a good thing
This is one of those places in the North Cascades that has become too popular for its own good. Not just for the glistening alpine lake set amidst the towering granite peaks of the Cascades, but also for the larches that sprinkle gold on the rocky slopes that line the bowl-like depression where this beautiful lake lays. I remember spending a lot of effort into trying to pick up empty plastic bottles and food waste from around the pristine alpine lake.
I have witnessed how crowded up a popular area can get. And that increases the chance that visitors don't adhere to Leave No Trace principles. Not a day goes by when I don't read trip reports of trails and campsites littered with trash. At a popular backcountry location in the North Cascades I visited over a year ago, I was shocked to see the dirty remains of an illegal campfire covering over a dozen beer cans, innumerable cigarette butts, food wrappers and much more. I spent over an hour trying to clean up as much as I could and haul all the trash, but one can only do so much.
I urge you all to read about Leave No Trace , and adhere to it when you are out in the wilderness. Here are three key principles of the seven things you can do when you outdoors:
1. Leave what you find: Leave areas as you found them. Don't clear out sites or build fire rings, damage trees and plants/
2. Dispose of waste properly: Pack it in and pack it out, and this includes all trash, leftover food, fruit skins. litter and toilet paper. Always leave the place cleaner than you found it.
3. Travel and camp on durable surfaces: Concentrate usage on existing trails and focus activity in areas where vegetation is absent
These will help ensure that you such pristine locations are preserved for posterity.
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
High in the Pacific Northwest
The short summer season leaves very little room to explore the mountains. So when July comes around, I try to take every opportunity to head to the vast wilderness of the Pacific Northwest.
This year, it will likely be a different experience: the pandemic will most certainly shape the number of people I go with and limit interactions in the outdoors. It also will remove one of my favorite parts of hiking: the post-hike burger, beer and ice-cream, which will most likely be relegated to flimsy takeouts.
Nevertheless, I still hope to head outdoors, and capture the wonder that is the wonderland of the Pacific Northwest.
Here are four images from different parts of Washington and British Columbia, showcasing the endless mountain-scape of rugged peaks with mighty glaciers and volcanoes interspersed amongst them.
Happy Earth Day
The mountains are still there. The wild places still abound. Nature still exists.
And they'll be there when we return to seek solace in the wilderness.
But lets take a pledge to preserve where the wild places are. Because if not us, who else
Happy Earth Day
North Cascades National Park
WA USA
For Nature
One of the many things that photography teaches me is a sense of love and respect for nature. And I strive to avail myself of the opportunities that allow me indulge in this love, as well as my passion for photography. This has taken me to diverse parts of the country, and explore the inner pockets of the Pacific Northwest. And wherever I go, I adhere to low-impact hiking by following Leave No Trace principles, and try to leave the place cleaner than when I arrived.
But one can only do so much. And that is why I believe in the work the various non-profit organizations around the country perform to preserve the present for the future. Join me in supporting the National Park Foundation and WildAid, two such non-profits whose missions I care about deeply.
Purchase my 2020 Photography Calendar here: http://www.lulu.com/shop/sathish-jothikumar/2020-photography-calendar/calendar/product-24355024.html. Order now to receive by the New Year.
All proceeds go to the National Park Foundation and WildAid.
Seattle
WA