The Canadian Rockies: Day 7 – Medicine Lake at Sunrise, More Wildlife, Palisades Picnic Area, Celestine Lake Road, Glory Hole and Miette Hot Springs Road

As documented in my account of Day 6, I scouted Medicine Lake,in Jasper National Park, at midday.  As a function of that experience, I decided to try my hand at sunrise from this location on Day 7, which was to be my last full day at Jasper.  I got a little bit of a late start that morning, with no particular expectation of a brilliant sunrise, but as I was turning onto the Maligne Lake Road–the access route to Medicine Lake–I could see that something noteworthy was underway.  I sped to the shores of Medicine Lake as quickly as possible, pulled into the empty parking area, grabbed my things and quickly raced down the stairs from the lot to the meadow that surrounds the lakeshore.

It was another very chilly morning–about 25 degrees F, at daybreak–but I hardly noticed given what was going on in the sky.  Fortunately, based on my scouting session the previous day, I knew almost exactly the spot where I wanted to set up and I was able to catch some of the best color in the sky that morning.  I deliberated wanted to include some of the rocky meadow as a foreground.  Besides, the lake itself was full of ripples–colorful ripples, admittedly, but there was no glass-like reflection to serve as a foreground.  Regardless, I was quite happy with the fruits of this day’s sunrise shoot.

Sunrise, Medicine Lake, Jasper National Park, Alberta

The light show was over quickly, and I prepared to head toward my main objective that day–a variety of sites along the Yellowhead Highway, which provides access to areas in the park east of the town of Jasper.  Before I made it off Maligne Lake Road, I stopped at a roadside pullout and spent a bit of time photographing details in the Maligne River, including those rendered in the image immediately below.

Maligne River Details, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After I left the riverside, I returned to the point where the Maligne Lake Road junctions with the Yellowhead Highway and almost immediately saw a “wildlife jam.”  A small herd of elk was right along the side of the road, so I joined the gapers and grabbed my camera with the long lens attached.  There was one bull elk with his “harem,” and I concentrated on him.  I was fortunate enough to benefit from some very nice angular light.

Bull Elk, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bull Elk, Jasper National Park, Alberta

The elk herd finished its collective foraging and headed the short distance south from the grazing site towards the Athabasca River.  I followed at a discrete distance, camera in tow, of course.  I didn’t want to get too close, so I spent part of my time zooming out and photographing the elk in its environment.

Bull Elk, Athabasca River, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bull Elk, Athabasca River, Jasper National Park, Alberta

I also zoomed in and got some tighter shots as the elk forded the river.

Bull Elk, Athabasca River, Jasper National Park, Alberta

It was still pretty cold at this point in the morning, as you can see from the frosty breath of the elk in the image below.

Bull Elk, Athabasca River, Jasper National Park, Alberta

From here, I moved down the Yellowhead Highway.  I stopped and scouted the Palisades Picnic Area, with the intention of returning later in the day and doing some shooting.  I then headed down the little-traveled Celestine Lake Road, stopping first along an old burn area on the east side of the road to photograph the skeleton forest.  I saw a pleasing cloud formation on the move and simply set up and waited for it to drift into position.

Conifer Forest Remains, Celestine Lake Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Further along the Celestine Lake Road, I wandered into a campground that was closed for the season, and photographed the Snaring River Bridge from a spot I found alongside the Snaring River shore.

Snaring River Bridge, Celestine Lake Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta

When I returned to the Yellowhead Highway, I quickly found another wildlife traffic jam.  This time it was a herd of juvenile bighorn sheep and, again, I pulled out the long lens, working–as before–with somewhat wider, habitat shots as well as portraits.

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

It was fascinating to watch the sheep as they navigated the narrow ledges along the nearby steep bluffs.

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Bighorn Sheep, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Eventually I moved farther east along the highway, and stopped at a spot that was mentioned in the e-book I purchased for Jasper National Park–Glory Hole.  The place is unmarked, but I was able to locate it and was I ever glad I did.  Although the place is just off the highway, it’s phenomenally beautiful and, despite the fact the light wasn’t ideal, I felt the urge to photograph it.

Glory Hole, Jasper National Park, Alberta

At another spot along the highway I noticed a step-wise group of conifers, with a thickly clouded sky as a backdrop.  I converted the image to black and white.

Conifer Trio Black & White, Yellowhead Highway, Jasper National Park, Alberta

By early afternoon I had made my way to the Miette Hot Springs Road, which leads south from the Yellowhead Highway.  My first stop was at the Pocahontas Trail, which circumnavigates an old, long-abandoned mining site.

Mine Building, Pocahontas Trail, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Old Mine Entrance, Pocahontas Trail, Jasper National Park, Alberta

The trail eventually meanders away from the old mining site, through a thick stand of aspens.

Aspen Forest, Pocahontas Trail, Jasper National Park, Alberta

On the other side of the aspen forest lies a wide meadow, looking towards the southwest.

Meadow, Pocahontas Trail, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Pocahontas Trail Black & White, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After completing the Pocahontas circuit, I moved along the road to the site of Punchbowl Falls.  Because it’s so narrowly constrained by canyon walls, this waterfall is really only photographable by climbing under a fence and moving down a narrow path that runs along the rim of a fairly deep chasm.

Punchbowl Falls, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After Punchbowl, I continued down the road and stopped at Ashlar Ridge, to photograph the valley to the south.

Ashlar Ridge, Miette Hot Springs Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Shortly below the pullout for the ridge, I noticed a stand of aspens along the hillside to my left.  There are very few “unofficial” pullouts along the Miette Hot Springs Road, but I found one–designed, I believe, to service the utility lines that run through the area–and utilized it to capture a couple of images.

Aspens, Miette Hot Springs Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Aspens, Miette Hot Springs Road, Jasper National Park, Alberta

I finally reached the end of the road, at Miette Hot Springs itself.  The anticipated attraction there was the opportunity to photograph Sulphur Creek, the source of the hot springs, but before I even left the parking area I had the opportunity to do some close-up work with another small herd of juvenile bighorn sheep.  These animals are extremely acclimated to people and frequently wander in and around the picnic area that abuts the parking lot.

Bighorn Sheep, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Baby Bighorn Sheep, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After the sheep wandered off, I made my way down the trail, approximately 1/4 mile, to the creek.  It was entirely cloudy by this time and there were an almost limitless number of compositions to be mined.

Sulphur Creek, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Sulphur Creek Black & White, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

This is the kind of scene that conjures up some of the concepts that I mused upon a few posts back in this series.

Sulphur Creek, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

The scene reminded me, instantly, of many creekside shoots I’d engaged in in the Midwest and in the Smokies.

Sulphur Creek, Miette Hot Springs, Jasper National Park, Alberta

After a long time spent at Sulphur Creek, I got back in the car for the long drive back towards Jasper.  I planned to stop back at the Palisades Picnic Area in the hope of shooting sunset, but it was almost completely cloudy, and getting darker by the minute as I approached the turnoff.  Still, I pulled in, and decided to see if something would happen.  The scouting session that morning had yielded some marvelous stands of aspen in open meadows, and I wanted to try to make something of this lovely setting.

Approaching Storm, Palisades Picnic Area, Jasper National Park, Alberta

The wind kicked up while I was on site and I was certain that it was going to pour but, while a few drops fell, it didn’t materialize into much.  Still, I did get some storm light, as you can see.

Approaching Storm, Palisades Picnic Area, Jasper National Park, Alberta

There was no amazing sunset, but I did get a peek at a bit of color in the clouds.

Palisades Picnic Area, Jasper National Park, Alberta

Palisades Picnic Area at Sunset, Jasper National Park, Alberta

I finally packed my things up after the blue hour had peaked.

Palisades Picnic Area at Sunset, Jasper National Park, Alberta

It was yet another very long–pre-sunrise to post-sunset–day of shooting, but a productive and satisfying one.  I had one more early morning in Jasper before I made my way back down the Icefields Parkway towards Saskatchewan Crossing.  The rest of my time in the Rockies would be spent as part of a small tour working (mostly) in David Thompson Country, situated in the eastern front range of the Rockies, not far from the tiny town of Nordegg.

Next:  The Canadian Rockies: Thematic Interruption – The Tour Experience

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