手つかずの大自然を写真に収める

　The window of opportunity has finally arrived. After waiting and waiting for what seemed like hours, the perfect light strikes the scenery. I take a deep breath and press the shutter of my Nikon camera, taking two exposures: one for the highlights, one for the shadows.

　That’s exactly how the legendary U.S. landscape photographer Ansel Adams* did it more than 60 years ago when he wandered these majestic grounds of Glacier National Park.

　Located in Montana, and also bordering the Canadian provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, Glacier National Park is the ideal place to go if you enjoy photographing nature and landscapes. Just ask Adams ― some of his best work was taken here.

　Much less crowded ― and if not more beautiful than its cousins Yosemite and Yellowstone parks ― Glacier National Park was named for the glaciers that carved, sculpted and formed the landscape millions of years ago. As inspired by Adams and his work here, it provides the perfect natural environment for photography buffs like myself to practice our hobby.

　The highlight of a trip to Glacier National Park is the famed Going-to-the-Sun Road, completed in 1932, an internationally recognized engineering feat. Driving along the 80.5-kilometer road that traverses through the heart of the park and crosses the Continental Divide, I witnessed breathtaking views of the rugged Lewis and Livingston mountain ranges, as well as dense forests, alpine tundra, waterfalls and two large lakes. The road is literally carved into a cliff and gives a thrilling and scary ride with the outer edge of the road dropping off hundreds of meters into the valley below. The various overlooks make for great photo opportunities of the valley. I mounted my camera on a tripod next to an elderly man with a field camera that looked like it belonged in a museum.

　“You came at a good time,” he said to me, coming out from under a black cloth attached to the camera. “The light’s not too harsh right now,” he said, as he offered me tips on where I should be metering. It turns out that he was a local photographer who has come to Glacier every summer for the past 15 years.

　Two of the most beautiful lakes are Lake McDonald and St. Mary Lake, which make for gorgeous views from your room window. The Apgar Village Lodge, where I stayed, is at the south end of Lake McDonald and situated at the foot of the lake. The lodge’s front and back doors open onto McDonald Creek, where I could fish right from the door!

日の出の瞬間を撮影

　I got up a good 30 minutes before sunrise to have ample time to wait for the right moment, and did my best to recreate Adams’ photograph of Lake McDonald at sunrise, shot in 1942. Afterward, I rented a kayak to roam around the lake, and enjoyed breathtaking 360-degree views of the magnificent surroundings.

　Much of Glacier’s backcountry is inaccessible to hikers until June since the snowpack poses an avalanche risk, and many of the higher altitude trails remain snowpacked until July. The flower-adorned trail to Iceberg Lake is relatively easy, and offers breathtaking views of sweeping valleys and snowcapped peaks all the way to the lake, where tranquil melted glacier water provides a serene and calm atmosphere.

　Since there are many fewer visitors to Glacier compared to other U.S. national parks, one can set up a camera on a tripod and have time to capture the appropriate exposure without worrying about people getting in the way of your shots.

　Another recommended trail is to Hidden Lake at Logan Pass. Lying near the top of the Continental Divide, the overlook onto the lake is easily reached by a relatively flat hike of about two kilometers. The view from the Hidden Lake Overlook provides a magnificent example of the power of glaciers from the Ice Age.

　This bowl-shaped amphitheater was carved out of huge glaciers tens of thousands of years ago. With it being almost impossible to capture the entire lake without a super wide-angle lens, you can practice your panoramic framing here and stitch the photos together later in post-processing on your computer.

　A short train ride took me to the Kicking Horse Resort on the Canadian side of the park, which in the summer is a mountain bikers’ heaven. In the winter it is a world-class ski area, but in the summer when the snow has melted, the same slopes serve as the longest descent in all of Canada for mountain biking. Taking a gondola up to the peak, I enjoyed the awe-inspiring backdrop like one can only dream of.

　Glacier National Park is where time seems to slow a bit and the nature is, well, still natural. Some good shoes and your favorite camera are all you need to enjoy the same photographic opportunities that Adams himself enjoyed decades ago.