Monthly Archives: November 2020

Night Sky, Photos, Troy's Blog

Stargazing

Whenever I’m in a dark sky area I try to take some time to enjoy the night sky. Part of that involves doing some astrophotography. Something I really enjoy and keep trying to improve on. There aren’t a lot of opportunities throughout the year to do this but when they appear, it’s a lot of fun. Early in the summer I was in Northwestern Minnesota searching for orchids. During the night I was hopeful fireflies would be scooting across the sky providing some nice entertainment as they flash their little green lanterns in addition to doing some stargazing. As you can see in the first photo there were some fireflies illuminating beneath the beautiful Milkyway. These were some of the darkest skies I’ve seen producing a sky filled with twinkling lights.

Watching the sunset

After a day of orchid hunting it was time to slow down and enjoy the evening with a quick dinner followed by a scouting trip to find some potential spots to take in the night sky. Exploring nearby Hayes Lake revealed some possibilities for a clear view of the beautiful night sky while providing some nice reflections in the calm water. With that accomplished, relaxation was on the schedule as the sun dipped lower and lower towards the horizon on this calm, comfortable summer evening. If only the mosquitoes would relent it would be a perfect end to such an enjoyable day. As I watched the sun prepare to set, I searched for a few different ways to capture it with the camera while watching people as they caught a few fish from a nearby dock. This seemed like the definition of what a summer day in Minnesota should be.

Storms out on the horizon

As the sun slipped below the horizon, its light began to shine on cloud tops off in the distance. Storms where in the area. Fortunately they stayed south for the night. A little more time enjoying twilight and I returned to camp to for a small fire while the sky grew darker and darker around me. Tempted to retire for the day, or at least take a nap, I resisted becoming lost in the flames dancing from log to log in my campfire. Almost three hours had passed since leaving the setting sun and the sky had turned from a light blue to almost black filled with billions of twinkling lights above. The fireflies began their nightly courtship display darting from one place to the next. Energy was again returning as I gathered my equipment for a night of star picture taking.

_DSC2213

Arriving at the first spot I scouted earlier, I set up the camera and began to work on focusing the lens while tweaking my composition capturing the night sky. I couldn’t believe how incredible it all looked with the first couple of pictures. How could I decide between looking up at all these magnificent stars, fireflies, meteors shooting across the sky, and satellites or remaining focused on capturing all of this with the camera? While the camera was taking the picture I would just look up to take it in as the camera needs about a minute while the shutter was open. Then I looked at the shot just captured before adjusting and taking another one.  The night was flying by and before I knew it, several hours had passed. My time capturing the bright lights shining above came to an end as fog began to rise from the water hiding the landscape from the camera. I didn’t want this night to end but was very thankful for the time available. Only a couple of hours now until the sun returns.

Fog was beginning to rise from the lake

State Parks, Troy's Blog, Waterfalls

Waterfalls Along the North Shore of Minnesota

A trip to the North Shore of Minnesota would not be complete without hiking to some of the beautiful waterfalls that line the shoreline near Lake Superior. During our weeklong vacation to Northern Minnesota, my wife and I set some time aside to see a few waterfalls that we’ve never visited before. I always enjoy stopping to see the larger and more popular waterfalls in Gooseberry State Park and along the Baptism River in Tettegouche but this seemed like a good opportunity to explore a few different areas. The first excursion was on a trail in Split Rock Lighthouse State Park to see the falls along the Split Rock River.

Some of the beautiful fall colors near the waterfalls

It’s about a mile from the nearest parking area so we set out mid morning in search of some waterfalls. It was a beautiful fall day with the sun shining and temperatures perfect for wearing a sweatshirt to wonder through the north woods of Minnesota along the river catching glimpses of water rushing by on its way to Lake Superior. We arrived at the falls and questioned how close to get to them as the climb from the trail was quite steep. Eventually we decided to work our way carefully down the quickly descending riverbank and found ourselves standing on rocks watching the water moving around them in no time at all.

One of the many cascading waterfalls along the North Shore

These falls were a nice cascade of water hugging the rocks carved over centuries as it continued on by. The lighting wasn’t great for photographing here at this time of day but a beautiful place to explore and enjoy. Mid day was approaching so we took one final look at the beautiful landscape before climbing back up the hill and on towards the trailhead where we began. There was a little time enjoying the shores of Lake Superior before heading off to get a bite to eat.

Water rushing around stream boulders

Later during the week, my wife and I continued further north to see the fall colors and more waterfalls. Our journey brought us to the highest waterfall in Minnesota on the Pigeon River in Grand Portage State Park. This river separates the United States and Canada as part of the northern boundary. With rain in very short supply during the summer this river was not running as high as in most years. It was still impressive to see the water crashing over the ledge into the pool below before it continued on towards the big lake. It’s an easy hike on a paved trail to get to the viewing area of this waterfall with the sound of large volumes of water rushing over the edge becoming almost deafening as you turn the corner towards a platform built for gazing over these falls. This is one I’d seen before but continues to be impressive each time.

The High Falls on the Pigeon River

Another area I’ve never been to was Judge C.R Magney State Park which hosts Kettle Falls where half of the river disappears into a large hole carved into the solid stone it glides over. This is a place I’ve read about as many wonder exactly where this water goes to. I’ve still not found a clear answer to that question but these waterfalls are unique and interesting to view. The hike to get to them is a bit more strenuous than to High Falls in Grand Portage. There are a lot of stairs going down and back up requiring many adventurers to stop for a breather from time to time. For me these are well worth climbing as Kettle Falls is beautiful and the landscape surrounding is very peaceful. Especially with the fall colors beginning to show up.

Kettle Falls

State Parks, Troy's Blog

Fall Is Arriving at Split Rock State Park

One of my goals while staying at Split Rock State Park this fall was to explore some areas I didn’t see the last time I was here. There was so much more to this park than I realized while camping the year before. And even more to explore for another trip here someday that I didn’t see this time. Fall was arriving quickly and painting the landscape in beautiful reds, oranges, and yellows combined with the evergreens contrasting nicely. This was the first time I had the opportunity to witness the North Shore transition from summer to fall. With exceptional weather over several days it was truly a relaxing adventure.

Fall asters in full bloom

Asters were one of the last plants still blooming giving a nice sight along the trails and much needed food for the insects still buzzing around. I could have spent the rest of the day just basking in sunlight listening to the waves of Lake Superior gently splashing against the rocks while taking in the leaves. Other trails called though and I didn’t have lunch with so after a short break it was off to another destination.

One of the beeches along Lake Superior showing nice fall colors

There was no reason to hurry from this spot or while on the trail. A casual stroll was a great way to take in the landscape while watching animals dart back and forth preparing for winter. There were several other people around but this seemed to be a slow time on this trail encountering only another couple doing the same thing…enjoying a beautiful fall day along Lake Superior!

<Fall colors along the trail

Photos, Troy's Blog

An Early Fall Snowstorm

Winter began its annual battle with Fall earlier this year than has ever been recorded in Minnesota. The cold air came pounding down from the north teaming up with moisture from the south to blanket the area in tiny little white crystals bringing the beautiful fall colors to an abrupt end. Some plants managed to hold on to their brightly colored leaves through the snowstorm allowing me to capture a few pictures typically unavailable during the winter. While the snow was falling, the temperature remained near freezing. Most of the plants were holding on to what little heat they could causing this fresh snow to melt early in the storm. This allowed me to capture snowflakes and at the same time melted snow dripping from these leaves.

From snowflakes to waterdrops

Because these ice crystals were melting quite rapidly I had to take these freehand. There just wasn’t enough time to set up a tripod and get the camera focused from the time a snowflake landed to the time it started to disappear. Fortunately it was daylight allowing me to accomplish this  by hand holding the camera and squeezing the shutter button. Often in the time it took to take 10 photos of the same flake, it would begin to deteriorate. I have figured out techniques to photograph snowflakes in these types of conditions but I typically use them in the spring, not the fall so that wasn’t an option on this day. Some of those techniques include placing the cloth to be shot on in the freezer ahead of time to make it colder than the surrounding air once the snow begins to fall. In addition, I may place ice packs underneath that cloth to keep it cold preserving a particular flake even longer. The heat from the camera can still be an issue which I haven’t really figured out a good way to deal with yet during warm snowfalls. In any event, I wasn’t able to use those aides for this snowfall which worked out fine as the fall leaves provided a different opportunity. I enjoyed combining the textures of these leaves with the shapes of each unique ice crystal. It’s just beginning and I hope to have several more opportunities to photograph the beautiful ice and snow.

_DSC5680

Seasons, State Parks, Troy's Blog

Getting Up to See Fall on the North Shore

There have been a lot of spectacular photos shared this fall of incredible Autumn colors and with good reason. It has been one of the most spectacular displays in many years. And it came right after the Fall equinox during some very nice days. My wife and I planned a week long trip to the North Shore last winter and couldn’t have asked for much nicer conditions with warm, sunny days and cool nights for sleeping for the first portion of the week. We’ve visited Northern Minnesota on several occasions during this same time in September and have never experienced the explosion of reds, yellows, and oranges as we did this year which made this trip even more memorable. I tend to wake up earlier than my wife so in an effort to keep from disturbing her I would head out with the camera and watch the morning light enter the horizon over Lake Superior. During these mornings I often encountered others wanting to grab a sun rise shot of Split Rock Lighthouse. We would exchange words and from time to time short conversations as they meandered up and down the shore looking for different angles. I set up my camera in one location on a tripod and just watched as night turned into morning taking a few photos as this light changed.

Colors are changing along the North Shore

From time to time I would get up and photograph a different view always returning to my original spot until I felt it was safe to return and join my wife to begin the day. Early morning can be such a peaceful time as the air is quite with little wind. The nighttime creatures have returned to their daytime hiding places while the daytime animals haven’t started moving much yet. Many people are still sleeping or just beginning to wake up. Eventually the sounds of birds begin to enter the quite landscape with light increasing all around you. As the sun finally reaches above the horizon, its rays begin to reach you allowing the warm light to penetrate through to your bones beating back the chill that has been slowly creeping in since you got out of bed. The world around you begins to wake up now as the squirrels forage for a morning meal and the birds take flight while people begin their days as well. It is at this time I return to join my partner so we can spend the day exploring together.

Maple leaves beginning to turn red

As daylight became brighter we could see the colors of fall and how much they changed from the morning before. There were so many beautiful scenes to take in and the day was just beginning. Even the animals seemed to take a little time to see the splendor surrounding them as they prepared for what is still to come.

A Blue Jay out enjoying a fall morning also