Rocky Mt. N.P.

[civich]

Kansas does seem like that, but sometimes flaunts its photo ops. This was taken at about mile 229 on westbound I-70, a little more than 20 miles west of Salina. Alas, it is not a large format capture. Before I could set up the real camera, a friendly highway patrolman advised me that stopping along the interstate is illegal except for emergencies

Jim,
Thank you for that prairie shout-out. Those of you from more tree covered climes might look at the endless horizons of Kansas for what they are - endless horizon. Think Art Sinsabaugh who would sometimes crop a 1"x 20" portion of his 12x20 negative to print. His skies were almost always white (he didn't burn and dodge much) but there was always detail on that flat Illinois horizon to which the eye gravitated.
Also Alan, Long's Peak does present a face toward state hwy 12 which under early morning light or clearing storm conditions would give a photo op. As mentioned by others the trail to chasm view or the boulder field is long and gains significant elevation so, depending on your fitness, give yourself a week to acclimate while pursuing less strenuous goals if you feel inclined to try it. And that 2 or 3 a.m. start for a day trip is good advice - especially if you want to go to the summit.
-Chris

[windpointphoto]

Yeah I meant Basalt because Aspen is so darn expensive. The last time I went to the ghost town Ashcroft they'd put stupid signs all over the place. I lugged the camera up to Dream lake and just didn't think it was worth the effort. Granted I weighed 265 pounds, smoked and was use to 795 foot altitude and not 6000 ft, but I'm sure that had nothing to do with it. The comment about no real dramatic points of interest is kind of true but there is lots of grand landscape. Now I think Yellowstone is BORING but the just goes to show different views. Most of my work the last ten years is in New Mexico. Here's an old one at Bear Lake taken in mid June.

[Alan McConnell]

Great ideas from all of you. This is just what I was looking for. Keep the ideas coming if you can. I'll see if I can make camp reservations. A few years ago while I was at Glenwood Springs, I stopped and bought some good topo maps of the White River N.F. areas. I need to pull those out and do some good research.

[Alan McConnell]

Now hear's a question for you people that have Colorado experience. Two years ago, during springbreak, I traveled up as far as I could on Fryingpan Road past Basalt and Meredith. I went as far as the road was plowed. According to the map I'm looking at, there is an unpaved road leading up toward Sylvan Lake and then on down to Eagle. Is this worth exploring? Or would I be better off heading up to the Maroon Bells? Also, just a change of pace, I know there is a Brewery at Edwards and Glenwood Springs. Any other fine establishments one might suggest?

[Erik Larsen]

Now hear's a question for you people that have Colorado experience. Two years ago, during springbreak, I traveled up as far as I could on Fryingpan Road past Basalt and Meredith. I went as far as the road was plowed. According to the map I'm looking at, there is an unpaved road leading up toward Sylvan Lake and then on down to Eagle. Is this worth exploring? Or would I be better off heading up to the Maroon Bells? Also, just a change of pace, I know there is a Brewery at Edwards and Glenwood Springs. Any other fine establishments one might suggest?

There's some nice scenery with rivers in the foreground/peaks in the background that can be interesting if you like that sort of thing. If you want the iconic shot, go to the 'bells but if you want a bit more solitude and more unique type of shot follow the "road less traveled" Glenwood springs,basalt, apsen are full of places to eat, from Yuppy to granola crunching places. You can visit Hunter Thompson's old hangout in Basalt, can't remember the name - it's nothing special, good food and mostly locals.
Where are you planning to make base camp at?
regards
Erik

[deatojef]

Everyone is right, RMNP means an early start, period. Mostly to get to the sunrise lighting, however, people can clog up the place on the weekends during "tourist" hours.

Some of the obvious/popular spots:

Dream lake is an awesome venue, but the best shots are with clouds and some nice color from the alpen glow. Sometimes that can be a challenge, but what is more frequently a challenge is wind. Be prepared to have some way to slow down the water or just be ready to "skip" the morning session because of the massive gusts that can come across that lake. Focal length wise, you'll need somewhere in the 150-240 range for 8x10...not sure if you're shooting 4x5 or not. The most popular spot is of course at the end of the lake looking west. Yeah it's cliche, but I've still yet to get a shot of that place that I really like. The trail up to dream lake has a great vantage point for the Westerly side of Longs Peak. You'll want a longer focal length lens for that, but it can be really spectacular at sunset. It's a challenging shot as the valley below gets pretty dark in the evening shadows, just fyi. ...and no, I've not been able to capture that successfully yet.

Emerald lake is also nice, but if you want to capture the peaks and the lake in one shot, you'll need a really wide angle lens.

Lake Hiyaha is also nice with some really large (bus sized) boulders strewn everywhere. It can be hard to find a composition with the lake, but if you prowl around there are some nice scenes to be had. Or look to get more intimate with some of the boulders.

Lake Bierstadt is a short hike (about the same effort as the dream lake hike) and can be really nice at sunrise. I've also yet to get a shot of this lake that I like. There are some really nice grasses that grow up out of the lake on the east end, and if your there early there can be some fog over the lake to go with the alpen glow of the peaks beyond. Very nice.

There are also some great shots to be had of Mills Lake. Mills is in a valley that runs sortof north-south so lighting can be a challenge in the morning/evening, but there are some nice vantages to be had lookup up the valley/gorge towards the southerly direction.

In John Fielder's RMNP photo book he has a shot in there that Enos Mills took of the Loch Vale which shows a couple of Bristlecone Pine trees on the shore. Now that photo is probably a 100yrs old now, but those trees are still there. I've been to that very spot and have 35mm photos of those trees, but want to get back there with the 8x10 to see what I can shoot. So that can be a great destination.

If you're into water, the aluvial fan falls has more opportunities than alberta falls in my opinion. Alberta is kindof in a hole and lighting can be a challenge...and in getting a shot without people in it, same probably goes for Aluvial. Aluvial fan falls, however, can end up with too much light so you'll need a big blocker ND filter for that shot or a micro aperture. There are ample creeks around to try and scout out more intimate silky water shots.

The Rock cut along trail ridge road can offer awesome shots at sunrise/sunset and doesn't require a lot of hiking, but you are above timber line and need to watch the weather for storms/lighting.

There are almost unlimited possibilities around the park...it's big. Unfortunately most of those spots have already been photographed out the ying yang, but that doesn't stop me, I just want to create a picture I'm proud of. ...which is hard. Most of the lakes end up being pretty tricky with the lighting (especially Dream) so you'll need a GND filter(s) and a wide latitude film. Velvia will be difficult in those spots...obviously.

Hope that helps,
-Jeff

[Alan McConnell]

Thanks for the valuable info Jeff. So far, I have reserved 3 days at the Glacier Basin campground. I should be able to get up early and head out for the day on several trails off of Bear Lake trailhead. I'll have my 4x5 with a 90, 150, & 210 lens. Once I leave there, I'm thinking about a nice slow drive (many probable stops) on the Old Fall River Road. Do any of you recommend that road over Trail Ridge Road (which I was on 2 years ago)? From experiance, should I make reservations on the west side of the park?
Oh Jeff, liked your web site.

[Darren H]

With all respect to my Colorado friends..... Rocky Mountain NP is over rated. Glacier and Tetons are the much more scenic "Rocky Mountain" parks.

You can goto Dream Lake and Bear Lake, etc, but it will be crowded. Probably have to take a bus to Bear Lake.... Fall River road is good-if its open.

Personally the scenery around Ouray in the San Juans is much better and much less crowded. As is the scenery around Craig, Co or up into Wyoming around Saratoga.

If keen on RMNP a few things to check out:

Old Catholic Church just a few miles south of Estes Park made of stone and on a a small lake-looks right out of Scotland.

Cameron Pass-the pass north of RMNP out of Fort Collins. Great river drive up the Cache La Pudre River valley. Great chance to see moose.

Big Thompson Canyon between Loveland and Estes is pretty neat too.

Have fun!

[deatojef]

Thanks for the valuable info Jeff. So far, I have reserved 3 days at the Glacier Basin campground. I should be able to get up early and head out for the day on several trails off of Bear Lake trailhead. I'll have my 4x5 with a 90, 150, & 210 lens. Once I leave there, I'm thinking about a nice slow drive (many probable stops) on the Old Fall River Road. Do any of you recommend that road over Trail Ridge Road (which I was on 2 years ago)? From experiance, should I make reservations on the west side of the park?

There is a small waterfall that is somewhat unique along Fall River Road that has a small pull off for parking. However, I've only been there once and it's probably a challenging shot to get without people in it, but it's shape and the rocks are unique.

Other Fall River Road things to shoot are obviously the sweeping vistas and some small tarns with maybe some snow and tundra in the shot. I haven't spent a lot of time on fall river road. There's no reason you can't do both sides...just drive up Fall river road, then drive back down Trail ridge.

I've never been on the west side of the park, unfortunately.

Oh Jeff, liked your web site.

Thanks for the kudos on the website....it seems to be in a perpetual state of flux.

You can goto Dream Lake and Bear Lake, etc, but it will be crowded. Probably have to take a bus to Bear Lake.... Fall River road is good-if its open.

In my experience, I've never had an issue with crowds...usually been hiking in the dark to try and get a sunrise shot. With the exception of Sprague and maybe Dream, if your at <insert place> at sunrise, you'll probably have it to yourself. Especially on weekdays. Of course, the closer it is to a parking lot the more likely you'll have fellow photographers with you. To put "crowds" into perspective, it's absolutely NOTHING like the madhouse that Maroon lake is during the the fall when trying to photograph the Maroon Bells near Aspen - that's just insane. You might share the Dream lake sunrise with one or two people compared with sharing the Maroon Lake shoreline with 50!!


-Jeff