Mountain and Orb - a photo on Flickriver

Mountain and Orb

            The Full Snow Moon hovers over the twin summits of Mount Meeker (left; 13,868 ft, 4,227 m) and Longs Peak (right; 14,259 ft, 4,346 m) in Rocky Mountain National Park as sunrise glances off exposed sandstone cliffs outside of Lyons, Colorado.

On the night before I made this photo, a friend and I and the mutt left the vehicle at 8,600 ft and attempted to climb above timberline to 11,000 ft near Meadow Mountain on the southern border of the Park. The route gained that elevation in a little over 3 miles. We thought to peer into Wild Basin by moonlight in February, which seemed both intriguing and appropriately daft. 

The trail winds through aspen and Lodgepole Pine, which give way eventually to spruce and fir in the higher reaches. The way follows a small creek steeply up toward the summits that form the southern Park boundary, and it is evidently popular enough that there were a number of ski and snowshoe tracks to follow. However, we were unable to break through the trees and gain the ridge, due to the accumulation of deep, unconsolidated wind-driven drifts of snow in the forest just below tree-line. After sinking to my waist several times and struggling to keep moving steeply upward, the effort required to keep making forward progress became too great, and my friend and I decided we had come far enough. 

It was with some measure of resolve and still-aching legs that I awoke in the morning several hours before dawn to determine whether a sunrise and moonset walk and photographic adventure with my wife and the dogs might be enjoyable and more successful than the prior night’s attempt. There must have been clouds on the distant eastern horizon because there was no alpenglow to speak of on the peaks, and the sandstone cliffs in the foreground first caught the light at what seemed a later stage of the sunrise color progression. The coffee was warm, the company was good, and the mutts enjoyed themselves sniffing about the rocks (there is now a puppy who did not accompany me on the evening snow-climb sufferfest). I took a seat in the front pew and watched the moon as it rolled behind the ridge extending northward from Longs Peak.

Taken in: United States / Colorado / Lyons (show map)

Taken on: February 25, 2024

Tags:

Boulder County

Colorado

Full Snow Moon

Landscape

Longs Peak

National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountains

Snow Moon

Southern Rockies

U.S. National Park

Winter

alpine

dawn

full moon

high country

high elevation

magic hour

moon

moonset

morning

morning light

mountains

snow

sunrise « less

Sets appears in: • Colorado • Crepuscular Light more » • Front Range • Moon • Mountains and Sky • Personal Favorites « less

Groups appears in: • Colorado! • The Light Fantastic more » • U.S. National Parks • Mountains • Landscape photography • Landscape Exploration • The Nature Conservancy • Landscapes!!! • Geotagged: Colorado • Moon Full or otherwise • Rocky Mountains Landscape & Wildlife Photos • Landscape Beauty ! • Un-enhanced American West • ☯ la quinta essenza ☯ • HIMMELSBILDER - SKY • * Sunsets & Sunrises * NOT B&W Photos • Absolute Quality Gallery ~ Invite only • in explore • Colorado - Arizona - Utah Landscapes • A NATIONAL PARK • Mountains and Forests of the U.S. and Canada • My favourite Photographers • Brain Vision. Art. • ☆The Power of Now / Die Kraft der Gegenwart ☆ • A Picture, A Story, A Pearl • WONDERS OF PHOTOGRAPHY IN GENERAL.MARAVILLAS DE LA FOTOGRAFIA EN « less

Camera: Nikon Z 6, f/11.0, 1/40 sec, 120mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon Z 6
Lens:	80.0-400.0 mm f/4.5-5.6
Aperture:	f/11.0
Exposure Time:	0.025 sec (1/40)
Focal Length:	120mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Manual
Exposure Mode:	Manual
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Saturation:	High
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Lightroom Classic 13.2 (Macintosh)
Show full info

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