WINTER
2012
March
7-9, 2012
I went up to the North Shore to photograph
the full moon and probably do the last of my winter camping this season.
A week ago I was up here during this year's biggest blizzard. I intended
to drive to Grand Marais, but with overcast skies and no chance of seeing
the full moon, I decided to stop at the Split Rock Lighthouse. I got up the
next morning and drove up to Tettegouche State Park. There were still a lot
of clouds and no sunrise. After a hearty breakfast I went skiing for two
hours. There was over two feet of snow in the woods. Earlier this week there
was a huge solar flare, which means there could be northern lights, but only
if the skies cleared. Later in the day the skies did clear and I was again
hopeful. If there were going to be northern lights tonight, I wanted to be
at the Split Rock Lighthouse. I have been trying for years to capture northern
lights at the lighthouse. I went down to pebble beach and got set up for
a night of shooting. Just before sunset the clouds started to roll in and
it snowed for the next three hours. Around 11:00 PM the skies started to
clear and I could faintly make out the northern lights. Within minutes
the colors intensified with vibrant greens and even some purples. The northern
lights banded and wrapped around like a ribbon. Directly overhead the lights
pulsated in waves and there were columns of light shooting up into the sky.
This was one of the best displays I had seen in years. The northern lights
continued through most of the night and in the morning I decided to head
home. I didn’t get my full moon shot, but I came home with some amazing northern
light images.
March
4, 2012
On Sunday my wife and I went up to Spirit
Mountain in Duluth to watch two of her cousins competing in a snowboard contest.
These two brothers have been competing for years and usually place high in
their division. Conditions were a little slow, but they still managed to
throw down some tricks.
February
28-March 1, 2012
A major winter storm was bearing down
on Minnesota. Blizzard warnings were issued with 10-20 inches of snow forecasted
for the North Shore with high winds. This is the storm I have been waiting
for all winter (it is about time). I decided to head up to the North Shore
before the storm came. I arrived at my destination, set up my tent, and prepared
for the worst. During the night the winds picked up and I could hear the
Superior shoreline getting pounded. I woke the following morning, but there
was no snow. Did the storm miss us? I went to the Split Rock Lighthouse and
photographed the big waves crashing against the island. Soon after that the
snow started to fall creating zero visibility. Next I drove up to the old
Tettegouche Arch and then hiked up to shovel point. It was now becoming extremely
difficult to take pictures. The radio announced the city of Duluth was shutting
down, and was advising no travel in the area. To celebrate this good news,
I decided to drive down to Gooseberry State Park and take a lunch break while
I waited for the snow to let up. Snow was coming down at a rate of two inches
an hour, and the winds were 65mph with wind gusts near 75mph. After lunch
I drove up to Crystal Cove and captured the big waves crashing against the
cliffs. This is one of biggest storms I have witnessed in quite a few years.
It was now getting to dark out, so I decided to call it a day, and set up
camp for the night. In the morning the snow and the winds started to let
up, so I packed up my gear and headed back home. Duluth picked up 18 inches
of snow, and I dubbed this storm the “Leap Day” Blizzard.
February
24-26, 2012
There hasn't been enough snow to ski
where we live, so my wife and I decided to head up to the North Shore for
the weekend and do some cross country skiing. We stayed at Hollow Rock Resort
in Grand Portage. Our cozy cabin had a spectacular view of Lake Superior.
Saturday morning I drove down to Hovland and photographed a small island
at sunrise near Horseshoe Bay (a few weeks ago I shot the same island under
moon lit skies, now I wanted to revisit the same location at sunrise). The
clouds started to roll in so I went back to Hollow Rock for a few more images.
After a hearty breakfast we headed to Grand Marias and skied the Pincushion
Mountain area. After about ten miles of skiing, we decided to take a lunch
break. We grabbed a Sven and Ole's Pizza and ate it back in our cabin. During
the night the winds picked up and I could hear the waves pounding against
the shore. There was no sunrise, just thick clouds. A winter storm was quickly
approaching so we decided to pack it up and head home early. Within minutes
we were driving in a full scale blizzard with zero visibility. It was slow
going, but we eventually made it home safely. The Silver Bay area picked
up over ten inches of snow.
February
11, 2012
This weekend we spent some time at my
in-laws in central Minnesota. Last year at this time we were digging snow
caves for our two nephews, but this year is a different story. We cleared
off a pond and went ice skating. It was a little chilly, but we all warmed
up once we started skating.
February
6-8, 2012
I heard rumors there was snow up near
Grand Marais, and with a full moon this week, I decided to go up and do
a little winter camping. There was very little snow from Duluth to Silver
Bay. It is weird to not see any snow along the shore in February. Monday
night I went to Hollow Rock near Grand Portage in search of the full moon,
but it wasn’t going to happen with overcast skies. I camped down by the lake
near Hovland and photographed the moon through the clouds over Lake Superior.
I woke up the following morning to -5 and a wind-chill near -20. I drove back
up to Hollow Rock for sunrise. Usually the shoreline is covered in ice, but
this year with mild temps and few storms, much of the shoreline is ice-free.
Skies were clear and the wind was blowing in the waves from the north east.
As waves crashed into shore, steam rolled off the frigid Superior water.
There is only a small opportunity during the year to capture the sun through
the hole at Hollow Rock. Today the sun broke through the hole and illuminated
the steam. This was the highlight of my trip. After breakfast I went in
search for some snow. I finally found some snow inland and went for a ten
mile ski. Towards evening I went down to “lake walk” and shot the full moon
rising just after sunset. The next morning I drove into Grand Marais and photographed
the sunrise along Artist’s Point, where I found some nice ice that resembled
large slabs of broken glass.
February
1, 2012
Still waiting for winter. With all the
extra time I have because I am not out taking winter pictures, I have
been going through some unprocessed pictures. I had been wanting to take
this image for about two years. Finally back in December, 2011, I did it.
I left the camera open for about one minute. During that time all the car
lights blurred their way through the image. This was taken during rush
hour just after sunset on a Friday night.
January
21-22, 2012
Winter is my favorite season and each
year I look forward to snow, cold temps, and ice. So far this winter
has been a huge disappointment with unseasonably warm temperatures, no
major blizzards, no significant snow, and no ice. I have been unmotivated
to get out and take pictures. Nothing like brown grass everywhere I look
to inspire me. We did pick up a half inch of snow yesterday, so now I can
only see just the tops of the blades of grass in my yard. This weekend St.
Cloud was hosting their first annual pond hockey tournament. The temperature
was zero with the wind chill near -20, so I was a little excited to get outside
and do some shooting. It may not look like winter outside, but it sure feels
like it. I drove over to Lake George and shot the action for about two hours.
Winter is not over yet, so I will remain optimistic.
December
9-11, 2011
My wife and I went up to the North Shore
this weekend. Friday night I captured some images of the Bentleyville
holiday light display in Duluth. There also happened to be a full moon
the same night. There was not a lot of snow on the ground, but everything
was still festive. The next morning I went out to photograph the sunrise
in Canal Park. There is already a lot of ice starting to form on the rocks
along the shoreline. The next day we drove up the shore and spent some time
in the Silver Bay area. Saturday night we drove to the Split Rock Lighthouse
and waited for the full moon. There were a few clouds on the horizon, but
eventually the full moon appeared from behind the clouds. There is nothing
more surreal than watching a full moon rise above Lake Superior.
