Nebo Lake Dawn

I had planned this shot for many months, using topographical maps and google earth. I had an old hiking book of the Weminuche Wilderness that... more

by Brian VanDenzen

Title

Nebo Lake Dawn

Artist

Brian VanDenzen

Medium

Photograph - Photographic Print

Description

I had planned this shot for many months, using topographical maps and google earth. I had an old hiking book of the Weminuche Wilderness that featured a photo of Nebo Lake (or Donut Lake, as it is sometimes referred to) in the fog. That image inspired me to backpack to this place along the Continental Divide Trail in the Weminuche Wilderness to watch sunrise. After a long day of driving to Beartown, then hiking over Hunchback Pass to Nebo Pass, I arrived shortly after sunset to set up camp. Overnight, around 1:00 am, I heard an angry bull moose somewhere close to my tent, which kept me awake for most of the rest of the night. The next morning, I hiked up to the side of the pass to get this view of Nebo Lake, Mt. Nebo (left to right), and the distant Guardian Mountain, Mt. Silex, Peak Nine, and Storm King Mountain. The planning and effort were worth it for this wonderful sunrise, as the destination and the sunrise did not disappoint.

In preparation for the trip, I upgraded much of my backpacking equipment to lighter gear. When carrying 15-pounds of photo gear backpacking, everything else needs to be lighter. So for many months I researched gear and purchased and replaced lighter gear. This was supposed to be a 3-night trip, with other possible locations to explore. However, on this first sunrise morning, after hours of angry moose induced no sleep, I bumped my tripod while scrambling for an angle among some rocks, knocking my camera and lens into other rocks. The camera was fine, but the front element of my main, wide angle lens cracked, ending my trip early. I packed up my gear, raced to get back over Hunchback Pass before the early afternoon mountain storms, and sadly returned to civilization before I had fully explored this magical area of wilderness in the San Juan Mountains.

Uploaded

May 4th, 2020