The Endless Larches

High up in the dry eastern ranges of the North Cascades lie groves of larches that put on a spectacular show every fall. It requires a bit of effort to get into the hinterlands, but once up here, you are greeted with views of endless larches. These conifers, which covering every alpine slope above a certain elevation, change to a brilliant yellow, and flow like golden lava over the rocky landscape.

While climbing over one such mountain pass in this area, I came across this grand vista of the larches showing off their peak autumnal shade. And nestled amidst the golden valley was a blissful alpine alpine pond. Surrounded by a marsh of drying grass, the lake was shrunken from its summer days but still was a pleasant sight for sore eyes.

I could not get over the tranquility of this silent morning, disturbed by nothing but the wind rustling through the golden needles. But I knew this wouldn't last forever. In a few more days, those larches will be bare, waiting for the arrival of spring to sprout again.

Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest
WA USA

,

Not your typical tundra

,

When I was planning the trip to Lake Clark, I was told I would be hiking through the Alaska tundra. When I imagined the tundra, I expected a mosquito-filled boggy marsh, interspersed with thick dense bush, all moist from a perennially cold summer drizzle that would never stop. But when I arrived there, the marsh I expected was still there, sans mosquitoes. Grey moody skies and cold rain were replaced by balmy weather, bluebird skies and puffy white clouds, straight out of a New England summer.

It was not your typical tundra, at least not for another three days after which a powerful thunderstorm slammed the region with torrential rain and copious water. But until then, the tundra I enjoyed out at Lake Clark National Park was sublime.

Lake Clark National Park
AK USA

Golden Sunrise

Waking up to freezing temperatures, and layering up in the dark to hike up a mountain on a cold morning isn't my idea of fun, but I realized that is what it takes to capture the grand show of colors put up by the vast grove of larches this side of Washington. It was my final morning of the 3-day backpack and my arms and legs were getting sore. I wasn't very hopeful for colors, especially since I heard the winds howl through the night, racing down from the mountains.

Thankfully, as I stepped out, I noticed that the trees had persevered, and most of the needles were still hanging on. I started climbing in the dark, scouting for compositions just as the eastern sky was starting to light up. A few minutes later, I had reached my intended destination for shooting the sunrise. In a few moments, the sun came up from behind the distant hills, lighting up the golden larches in a blaze of fiery glory. As I watched, the glow progressed down the slope towards the lake, and eventually encircled it. The deep red color slowly changed to a vibrant orange and finally turned gold, for which this trail is named after.

I caught this composition just around the moment the glow had spread through the vast bowl covered with larches. And not a moment too soon - the sun disappeared behind a large patch of clouds never to be seen for the next few hours.

Okanagan Wenatchee National Forest
WA USA

A Rainier Summer

I certainly count myself to be blessed to be living within a stone's throw of the Mighty Tahoma, even though my opinion might change when the big one finally erupts. Being this close affords me opportunities to visit the beautiful alpine terrain in different seasons. Late in the summer, I chanced upon a bountiful bloom of purple lupine flowering on the grassy slopes of Mount Rainier. The backlit flowers provided the perfect foreground to juxtapose against the colossal snow-capped slopes of Rainier.

Mount Rainier National Park
WA USA

Colors of the Northwest

Fall has properly set in the Pacific Northwest: thunderstorms with wind gusts topping 30miles per hour, temperatures dropping to freezing, and gloomy grey clouds that blanket the skies every day. But before the weather became winter-like, I had managed one last outing into the mountains on a rare fall day with bluebird skies. Vibrant colors, a consequence of the long and warm summer, covered every square inch of the steep alpine slope, and also served as wonderful hunting grounds for the sweet mountain berries.

The short but sweet fall has been my favorite season to shoot, but scenes like these won't return for another year. I am glad I got to visit it one last time before the onset of winter

Mt Baker Snoqualmie National Forest
WA USA

A Midsummer Sunset

A Midsummer sunset.jpg

One of the many things I didn't realize about going to Alaska was that, as the day grows longer in the higher latitudes, so does the sunset. In midsummer, while sitting on the rocky shores of Glacier Bay National Park, I watched the sky transform slowly from the warm yellows to the vibrant orange to deep reds. This is a process that typically takes under a quarter of an hour at lower latitudes, but thanks to the angle of the sun at this higher latitude, this lasted for well over an hour. Seeing a sunset like this is a rarity in one of the cloudiest regions of the country, and hence I savored every minute of this hour-long sunset

Glacier Bay National Park
AK USA

The Beginning of Summer

While the Pacific Northwest is already in the binds of fall with cooler temperatures and shorter days, I still remember the beginning of summer as though it was yesterday. During one of the early heat waves, I made it out to this famed reflection of Mt Shuksan before it lost its coat of snow and ice later in the summer. Walking around in balmy 60 degree weather at sunrise, when it would have normally been close to freezing, was surreal

Mt Baker Snoqualmie National Forest
WA USA