Tent aglow along the Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. I did not actually use the tent that night, but slept under the stars instead a little lower on the ledge. But I liked the scene overlooking the river at dusk. I used a small candle to light the tent. Canon 5 D Mark II, 17-40mm f/4 L, 15 sec. @ f/7.1, ISO 800
After one month of camping along the 280 miles of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon, the first night in a hotel room in Flagstaff, AZ left me feeling claustrophobic; the hot shower however, was both real and surreal. I bit on an invitation for this journey since I’ve heard for years of the epic nature of this natural wonder. It was indeed an epic journey and a shaped and carved landscape difficult to apprehend through words. I knew that it would be a very challenging place to photograph, due to extreme shadows and the inability to be at key locations during the magic hour of sunrise and sunset.
Circumstances dictated that hiking was somewhat limited, but I did manage to get a few images. Contextually, I shot very few photos compared to my normal trips. This was partly by choice, partly due to conditions and largely due to the fact that there is a significant amount of work required just on the day to day basis getting down the river. I used my pack raft about half of the time, which was great fun, although a hitched a ride on one of our 5 rafts through the big rapids.
Sleeping under the stars for weeks is quite the contrast to the snow filled landscape of my Fairbanks home. Both locations are equally fantastic and I’ll be sharing a few photos from the trip in the next week or two.
