mountain – Page 15

October 4, 2010January 14, 2013

Eagle Cap Wilderness Part 2

This is a continuation of a recent backpacking trip to Oregon’s Eagle Cap Wilderness. If you missed it, check out the first part of the Eagle Cap journey here.

False hellebore thrives along the banks of the Imnaha River with Jackson Peak looming above, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

Our third day on the trail started in one of the most beautiful valleys I have ever seen. The closer we hiked to Hawkins Pass and the headwaters of the Imnaha River, the more spectacular the scenery became. The trail from our river-side camp site all the way to the pass gave us varied views of Jackson Peak to the west.

Looking south down the Imnaha Valley, one can see Jackson Peak and the mountains beyond, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

The bright yellows and oranges of the sun-baked meadows gave way to light and dark bands of green, with gray cliffs towering above. Just below Jackson Peak was a tree-less avalanche field, adding variety to the features of the landscape. Sunlight played through the fast-moving clouds, drawing shadows across the scene. Every moment brought a new mood and a changing picture.

Near its headwaters, the Imnaha River becomes a waterfall, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

Just when I thought we had seen all this valley had to offer, the land rose abruptly, turning the gentle Imnaha River into a beautiful waterfall. A short hike from the trail to the bottom of the falls was well worth the effort.

The headwaters of the Imnaha River start in a large, glacier-carved bowl, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

As the trail climbed in elevation, the valley opened up into a large bowl. Glacial snow melt cascaded down the sheer cliffs in tiny trickles, gathering the bowl to form the headwaters of the Imnaha. Darker gray and brown rock was banded throughout the limestone, forming a colorful tapestry of geological history. In this high mountain air, it was hard to imagine that this limestone was formed from the crushed bones of ancient sea creatures and coral. I tried to picture looking out upon vast coral reefs teaming with fish.

A backpacker pauses to admire the impressive view of Jackson Peak and the Imnaha River Valley, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

The trail continued upward toward Hawkins pass, switch-backing up a steep slope. This offered us expansive views of the valley we had hiked up that morning. Here is my brother once again volunteering to be my backcountry adventure model. I’d like to think he enjoyed the view as much as I enjoyed capturing him in it. This image is truly a kaleidoscope of nature, with oranges, yellows, many shades of green, all fading into the light blue of the distant mountains and sky.

Two backpackers descend the north side of Hawkins Pass. Eagle Cap can be seen peeking over the ridge, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

After a quick break at the top of Hawkins pass, we were ready to descend into the popular Lakes Basin. Here we met our first people of the trip – an indication that we were entering a very popular area. In fact, from this point on, the trail got much busier (that is until we left the Lakes Basin area the following day!) The view from the pass was mostly rocky steep talus slopes. In the photo above, the wilderness’ namesake, Eagle Cap, can be seen peeking over the horizon, in the center-left.

White limestone cliffs tower above Frazier Lake, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

The trail dropped to Frazier Lake, a popular spot to stop for lunch and a quick dip in the water. Once again, white limestone cliffs made an appearance. Here, a trail splits off to Wallowa Lake, following the west fork of the Wallowa River, but we turned left and started climbing again. After a short climb up a narrow valley, we arrived at Glacier Lake, our destination for the night.

Surrounded on two sides by glacier covered cliffs, the water of Glacier Lake turns turquoise in the setting sun, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

Due to their overuse, at all lakes in the Lakes Basin area, it is against regulations to have a campfire. I don’t know why, but when I’m in these regulated areas, mother nature seems to spite me with some very cold nights. As the sun set over the horizon and the wind picked up, I knew we’d be in for a doozy. Staring across the lake at the glaciers clinging to the slopes of the cliff face, I could see where this lake got its name. In fact, this lake is only ice free for two months of the year. After that long night on the lake, I wasn’t surprised a bit.

To see more, be sure to check out the third part conclusion of this trip.

October 3, 2010January 14, 2013

Eagle Cap Wilderness Part 1

About a month ago I took a five day backpacking trip, accompanied by my brother and father. We decided to check out Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon’s largest National Wilderness area. Our loop took us through a “back door” approach to the very popular Lakes Basin management area of the wilderness, which features dozens of mountain lakes surrounded by towering peaks.

Two backpackers ascend the steep Little Kettle Creek trail to Crater Lake, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

After a 5.5 hour drive from Portland, we got to the eastern side of Whitman National Forest, at which point we spent another 1.5 hours on unpaved forest service roads. Now I understood why our route was completely devoid of other people. The much more popular route into the Lakes Basin is to leave from Wallowa Lake from the north. After parking, we had a steep climb of 3000 feet in 6 miles. We got to our destination of Crater Lake with just enough daylight to set up camp.

Two backpackers pump water from Crater Lake in the early morning as the surrounding hillside reflects off the lake's surface, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

The next morning we enjoyed the sunrise, broke camp, and pumped our water for the day. The photo above shows my brother and father getting water from the lake, with the reflection of Krag Peak in the surface of the water. Due to the lack of clouds that morning, the sunrise was rather dull, but the water was so still and clear that it provided very nice reflections. Once we were done, we hiked around the north side of Crater Lake and caught our first view of Cliff Creek Canyon.

Boulders give way to dense forest along Cliff Creek canyon, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

Cliff Creek flows from an outlet of Crater Lake to the north east, eventually joining the Imnaha River. Cliff Creek Canyon a V-shaped valley interspersed with forest and meadows. I could see the remnants of various wildflowers here, although I think we were catching the tail end of the season. The trail was fairly uneventful, until we reached the Imnaha itself – a much bigger river, in a more impressive valley.

The Imnaha River sweeps through a river valley surrounded by trees, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

After an easy creek crossing, we wound up the Imnaha River Valley in a northerly direction, following the South Fork of the Imnaha River. Here the landscape exploded with beauty, informing us that everything before was just a prelude. Towering white limestone cliffs greeted us at every turn.

Limestone formations form wave-like patterns underneath towering limestone cliffs, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

Broad meadows stretched before us, with mountains to each side. Lush grass bloomed with wild flowers, growing near the many tributaries running out of the mountains.

Limestone cliffs tower above the Imnaha River Valley, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

We hiked on until close to sunset, at which point we found a shaded camp site next to the river. Although the temperature dropped significantly that night, we had a pleasant night sleep listening to the quiet burbling of the water.

To see more, be sure to check out part two of this trip.

September 27, 2010January 14, 2013

East Eagle Creek Canyon (Photo of the week)

Painted cliffs descend to a mixture of fir and pine along East Eagle Creek, Eagle Cap Wilderness, Oregon

This week’s photo was taken on a recent backpacking trip to Eagle Cap Wilderness in north-eastern Oregon. The trip was so scenic that I’m still wading through many great photographs, creating a photographic trip report (so stay posted). This shot was taken on the last evening of the trip, as we were working our way down the canyon from the headwaters of East Eagle Creek. The setting sun lit the western-facing cliffs in soft light. I was doubly blessed that in the afternoon, the gray skies broke up into fluffy white clouds, giving the sky a little texture.

This shot is a great example of what RAW capture from a digital SLR can achieve. The most important aspect to keep in mind when finding the right exposure, is to make sure not to blow out your highlights. Once a highlight is blown, there is no information to recover in the image file. To prevent blowing out the highlights, I use the histogram and adjust the exposure compensation up or down as needed. In this case, I was at risk of the clouds being overexposed, so I had to dial back the exposure to -1 EV. The resulting histogram actually showed that I had overexposed the image just a little, but I knew that was okay, because I was shooting RAW. I brought the file into Lightroom, and used the Recovery slider to bring the detail back into the clouds.

Now I was faced with a very dark foreground. The Fill Light slider helped with that, but the sky was still brighter than it appeared to my eyes in real life. Enter one of Lightroom’s best features, the Graduated Filter. This allowed me to darken just the exposure of the sky, bringing the whole image back into balance.

Shooting RAW gives me the most flexibility to make important image processing decisions on my computer after I get home, rather than relying on the camera manufacturer’s automated algorithms to run in camera while processing the RAW into a JPG. If there is one aspect of digital photography I would recommend, it is learning about and understanding the benefits of shooting RAW. If your camera has this setting (even many point-and-shoot cameras now have this), use it. There will be more work to be done after you get home, but the resulting images will make that effort well worth it.

September 13, 2010January 14, 2013

Mt Lassen From Lake Helen (Photo of the week)

Mt. Lassen is reflected in Lake Helen after a morning snow shower, Lassen National Park, California

This week’s shot was taken on my way out of Lassen Volcanic National Park after a failed attempt at a solo backpacking trip. After trying to wait out the rain in the morning, I finally gave up and headed back home after my long drive only the night before. The rain was strong, and the dark clouds foreshadowed the wicked thunderstorm to come.

However, just as I was passing Lake Helen on the main road through the park, the rain stopped and I decided to take advantage of this brief respite. I parked my car by the lake and jumped out with my gear, hoping to make a few quick exposures before the storm started in again. I had the lake to myself, and I didn’t see a single car pass on the road while I was shooting. Although I knew the temperature had dropped the night before, I was surprised to see fresh snow on the top of the mountain. That was my second fresh snow of the summer, the first being at Crater Lake in July.

This shot is actually a combination to two images – a technique I’ve been using successfully for a couple of years. Traditional photographic technique would have required I use a graduated neutral density filter, in order to darken the exposure of the sky so as not to blow it out when I exposed for the foreground. Shooting digitally from a tripod allows me to create this effect later on the computer using two exposures instead of one. This saves the weight of the extra filters out in the field, and frees me up aesthetically.

First, I expose for the foreground light, and capture the frame as if the entire scene was lit evenly. This will result in an image where the sky (and in this case mountain top) is completely blown out and appears white in the photograph. Next (without moving the camera or tripod), I expose for the sky, rendering the foreground very dark, if not black. I later combine both images as separate layers of the same file in Photoshop, using layer masking and the gradient tool to blend them together, getting the best exposure for the sky and the foreground.

Soon after I got out of my car, it started raining again, and I knew it was time to leave. I’m glad I got this opportunity to shoot this area during a break in the storm – the rain could have easily let up somewhere else (or not at all), and I would have driven out of the park without another shot.