… When You Come Across a Beautiful Valley View Like This!
After 3 days of photographing on the west side of Glacier NP, it was time to move to my eastern position for the remainder of the trip. To get there, I drove the wonderful “Going-to-the-Sun Road”. Seemingly high into the clouds, it is easy to figure out how it got it’s name. I took my time driving, stopping at several pullouts along the way. In particular, I enjoyed this view of the mountainside, while Fireweed wildflowers framed the view along the roadside:
But repositioning myself, by only a few feet, I got an incredible view of the valley below me, covered with Fireweed:
This was my first trip late in the summer to Glacier NP. I had researched that it was one of the best times for wildflowers … I think I have to agree!
I had traveled to the park to photograph the Perseid meteor shower over the mountain lakes. But due to the nearby wildfires, I had “Zero” luck! And a couple of days after the above images were captured, the Going-to-the-Sun Road was closed due to a fire starting on the west side (where I had been the first 3 days), caused by a lightning strike during a nighttime storm.
But even though I captured no meteors, I hiked a lot of trails and will be featuring some of the wonderful landscapes and waterfalls I encountered in the park … stay tuned!
Photographic Equipment Used:
- Canon 5D Mark III body
- Canon 28-135mm IS lens, shot at 115mm (top photo) and 135mm (bottom photo)
- Handheld, with IS “On”
- ISO 200 (both photos)
- Aperture f/22 (top photo) and f/16 (bottom photo)
- Shutter 1/180 sec. (top photo) and 1/250 sec. (bottom photo)