No rain for the moment – Hooray!
There was a break in the clouds for a while yesterday afternoon…I actually could see the sun…so I quickly decided to take advantage of it, making a quick drive into Hatcher Pass to look for interesting pictures.
I couldn’t get to the pretty little basin in Archangel Valley that I’d planned on hiking too because the two small streams I needed to cross were greatly swollen from all of the rain we’ve been having. Normally I could have easily hopped across boulders to cross the streams, but that was nearly impossible yesterday.
I managed, barely, to cross the first one but the second one looked a bit to “iffy” to me, as the boulders I needed to step on had two or three inches of swiftly flowing water running over them and were covered with slimy green moss to boot. I stood there looking for a while, contemplating my chances, but then common sense took over and I decided against taking a chance.
In my younger days I suppose I would have hopped across that little stream without a second thought, but now that I’m little older I find myself being more careful when I’m in the mountains by myself.
I suppose that’s a good thing…not quite as much fun…but a good thing nonetheless.
Anyway, seeing that my original plan wasn’t going to happen, I did the next best thing and simply walked the banks of the swollen streams looking for interesting pictures.
Lately I’ve been using a different lens for my nature and landscape photos. It’s an old 50mm manual focus lens manufactured by Nikon over 40-years ago. It’s certainly not as handy as a modern zoom lens, it takes quite a bit longer for me to set up for a photograph, and it causes me to be more deliberate and careful with each shot that I take. But I sure do like the pictures I get with it once I get it in focused and the exposure set properly.
If I do it right my pictures are amazingly sharp from corner to corner, with none of the frustrating distortion that I get with my more modern lenses. I’m really beginning to like that little lens and might even purchase another used one, maybe a beat up 24mm or 28mm. I like using old beat up pieces of equipment when I’m hiking in the mountains. They give me a sense of unbounded freedom. While using ugly equipment I’m much more likely to take photographs I’d otherwise pass up if I was using newer, and much more expensive, equipment.
I like that feeling very much.
I enjoyed walking slowly along the stream banks, listening to the water cascading over boulders and small waterfalls while I took in the rugged mountains looming high above me. It sure felt good to be outside again, walking in the mountains by myself after so many days of staying at home, not doing much except working at the computer. The air smelled good, and felt good against my skin, too.
Even the occasional mosquito was a welcomed diversion.
It just felt good to be somewhere that actually felt like Alaska again, to breathe fresh air and walk in wilderness.
There wasn’t a whole lot of obvious photographic opportunities. With everything being as green as it is it’s hard to find contrasting, or even interesting colors. But the rushing water helped me a little and I was able to bring back a few pictures that showed where I’d been and some of the things I’d seen in the few hours I spent up there in the mountains.
I was a little disappointed that I hadn’t been able to reach that little basin, because there is some pretty spectacular scenery up there if a person looks carefully enough. But it will be better in the autumn, when everything has turned gold and orange and yellow, so I’ll probably try again in a few weeks.
Maybe by then the rain will haved eased up a little bit this old guy will be able to cross those streams a bit more safely.
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Green willow’s against rushing water, and boulders accented with patches of colorful lichen. A simple, yet interesting, nature study.
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This is where I chickened out and decided that I really didn’t need to go to the little basin where I’d planned to go. I could have probably made it across but I’m pretty sure I would have been wet afterwards…maybe very wet.
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I like this shot of a small waterfall with grasses and other vegetation growing on a stream side boulder.
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Another interesting view of water and green vegetation. Because the lens I’m using isn’t exactly a wide angle, and is even a bit of a telephoto, I’m learning to see things from further away. Otherwise I’m much too close and the viewfinder has a tendency to fill up much too quickly.
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Although it looks like I’m standing in the middle of the stream to take this photo I’m really not. I took a chance and, while carrying my tripod, hopped a short distance from the bank onto a flat boulder a couple of feet away. Of course it was coated with wet green moss and I scared myself by slipping and nearly going bottoms up into the rushing water. I recovered nicely though and after taking this photograph was much more careful as I jumped back onto the bank.
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As I walked further downstream I came to the headwaters of the wide, much calmer pool of water, pictured above. I’d sat there for quite some time, enjoying the view, when this beaver appeared and began browsing for it’s evening meal along the shoreline. I quickly ducked down behind a boulder and switched to a telephoto lens to get this shot, along with several others.
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As I watched the beaver this young marmot appeared, also. It too was browsing on the lush green vegetation, occasionally quenching it’s thirst from the still waters of the large pool. I spent well over an hour hidden behind a boulder, watching these interesting mammals as they performed their daily rituals.
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