Archive for May, 2009

Breakup – Cross Country Skiing

Thursday, May 28th, 2009

Backcountry cross country skiing, along the Kennecott River, near McCarthy, springtime, breakup, Wrangell - St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Cross Country skiing this spring along the Kennecott River. This is why they call this time of year (April)  “breakup”. This spring was probably some of the funnest times I’ve had in a long time. What a great time and place!

You might notice my hip new Karhu 10th Mountain XCD backcountry skis. All I can say about ‘em is these skis ROCK!!! (more…)

Mt Drum and Mt Wrangell Panoramic

Monday, May 25th, 2009

Panoramic photo of Mt Drum and Mt Wrangell, Wrangell - St. Elias National Park, Alaska.
Larger Image.

Hey Folks,

Here’s another shot of the Wrangell Mountains from my recent trip to the north side of Wrangell – St. Elias National Park. The 2 main peaks are Mt. Drum towards the right, and the broad based mound of Mt Wrangell on the left. The small cone shaped dome on the left, touching Mt Wrangell, is Mt. Zanetti. This is a panoramic composition, produced by stitching several tighter frames together using Photoshop – a pretty neat little tool that allows a variety of compositional options not as readily available to a standard 35mm SLR. Cool stuff.

On a clear day, there are few grander sites in North America than the Wrangell Mountains. This was taken right at sunset.

Cheers

Carl

Wendell Berry and Guy Tal.

Thursday, May 21st, 2009

Winter in the Mentasta Mountains, Wrangell - St. Elias National Park.

A winter sunset over the Mentasta Mountains, Wrangell – St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

“The effort to clarify our sight cannot begin in the society, but only in the eye and in the mind. It is a spiritual quest, not a political function. We each must confront the world alone and learn to see it for ourselves”. So says Wendell Berry, one of my favorite writers, in his book “The Unforeseen Wilderness”. The book, a dearly needed plea to save Kentucky’s Red River Gorge from a nefarious plan to dam it, was written nearly 40 years ago. I haven’t read the book completely yet, as I just bought it this afternoon. But I glanced at it, and this passage caught my attention. Berry continues on:

“the figure of the photographic artist – not the tourist-photographer who goes to a place, bound by his intentions and preconceptions, to record what has already been recorded and what he therefore expects to find, but the photographer who goes into a place in search of the real news of it”.* (more…)

Mt. Sanford photo, Wrangell St. Elias

Friday, May 15th, 2009

Mt. Sanford catches dawn light, Wrangell - St. Elias National Park, Alaska.

Hey Folks,

Here’s another photo of Mt. Sanford from a recent trip to the north side of Wrangell – St. Elias National Park, Alaska. The park is basically accessible via 2 roads, one from the west that runs into McCarthy, and the other from the north, that runs south to Nabesna. Generally, I’ve always enjoyed the south side area of the park more, but I think the views along the road are often more impressive on the north side.  On a clear day, the Wrangell Mountains lie to the west and dominate the landscape. Mt. Sanford, pictured here, 16 237′ tall, is a great view. Mt. Wrangell, over 14 000′ tall, is also visible, and even a distant Mt. Blackburn can be seen from the entrance of the park. (more…)