A Trip Report

Hey Folks,

I’ve headed out again for the next trip, but will schedule this post in advance. This is from close to the pass above Hidden Creek, looking back down the valley we’d just hiked. We walked up the south side of the valley (right side in the frame), then crossed and climbed up to a bench on the north side of the pass. Camping up there was simply awesome. 2 bands of Dall sheep were wandering the mountains above us, and we saw mountain goats higher still.

Hidden Creek is simply stunning. This particular afternoon, we crested the pass and camped on the other side of the saddle, which is where the previous post’s photo (“Reflections”) was taken. Suffice it to say that the back half of the trek is just as rocking as the front half.

Suffice it to say, I’ll be on this route again next year. ?

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Here’s another from the Hidden Creek backpacking trip this past summer. Well, if one can really call the last week of August in Alaska “summer”.

We had a great time on the trip, as I mentioned in a few earlier posts, in particular because we were fortunate enough to have some fine weather. Those big sunny skies make the world of difference when you’re sleeping, eating and doing everything else under them.

I miss the summer already! Right now we’re kind of in that dead era between fall and winter. I’ve been back from my last trip (photographing grizzly bears in Katmai National Park) over 2 weeks now .. the longest stint i’ve spent inside the house since May.

I think next week I’ll try to head to somewhere and sleep in my tent again. I need some wilderness, especially after sitting in a court room all week (so far) doing my civic service of jury duty.

This particular hike was rewarding as well,, because last year I did this section as part of a longer route, from Nugget Creek to Kennicott – 65 miles through the Wrangell mountains. However, most of the trip was under socked in, gray, cloudy skies, cold damp air and gusts of winds. It was a treat to get to see at least some of what we hiked through in the fog.

I think I’ll probably add this hike to my regular set of Wrangell-St. Elias National Park backpacking trips. It’s a flexible route, with a lot of options for detours, sidetrips, basecamps, extended hikes or shorter trips, etc, etc. And the scenery is simply superb.

We also got to see a number of Dall sheep and mountain goats up in the high country, which is always nice. We didn’t see any bears, though last year we saw some in the area. But the mountain views more than made up for any lack of wildlife here.

I shot this photo using the intervalometer on my camera (Nikon D300s). In the past I’ve used the self-timer, but that limits me to just one shot at a time. With the intervalometer, i can program the camera to take any number of shots, in sequence, starting at a given point in time, and also set the timing of the shots.

So, for example, I think here I set it up to start 2 minutes from when I programmed it, and take about 8 or 9 shots, 1 second apart. That allows me to move, turn around, etc, and try some different shots. It’s definitely the best way, IMO, to take this kind of shot without a model or without using some kind of handheld remote shutter release.

I usually take one shot, or 2, using the self-timer, to get a ballpark of where I need to be, what focal length I want, etc, and make sure everything is right. Then I turn on the intervalometer, and away I go. Nikon cameras mostly come with an intervalometer now, while I believe Canon cameras do not (but it’s possible to buy one after market). For shooting images in the backcountry, if you don’t have a model along, they can be invaluable.

I had hiked up this ridge, and was waiting on the folks in the group to join me, so I set up the tripod and took a few images while they were still climbing up. By the time they’d caught up, I had taken the photos and packed up again, ready to hike over the hill to camp. And then, to dinner. 🙂

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Waterfall – Wrangell St. Elias

Here’s another waterfall from our backpacking trip up Hidden Creek, in Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve.

This particular morning, I knew exactly what I wanted to shoot; I’d hiked up to the area here, above our camp, the evening and poked around a bit, looking for some scenes to shoot. As the following morning broke, I stole away from camp, camera in hand, and spent a few hours up here photographing.

For this image, I believe I used a crappy old scratched up 2-Stop Soft Edge neutral Density filter from Singh Ray – knowing I would get back home after the trip to open a box from B&H photo with 2 shiny new scratch-free filters awaiting me.

I still prefer to shoot with a filter, when possible, over taking multiple exposures and blending them together later. But damn if those filters don’t get all scratched up easily.

Not too long after shooting this frame, I was seated in my thermarest chair, enjoying a coffee and Mary Jane’s Farm organic oatmeal – mmhhhmmm!

Quite a nice morning. Sadly, it ended all too briefly, as we had to break camp and backpack up over the pass. Good thing we didn’t linger too long though, as we arrived just in time to get setup before the rains came. It’s nice to have the tents and cook tarp set up BEFORE the rains/sleet/hail/snow come down.

Cheers