Cold Rain and Snow.
This entry was posted on 1/21/2008 9:31 AM and is filed under Photo Trips.
The snowcat on New Hampshire's Mount Washington.
We've had a nice snowy winter in New Hampshire so far, but we also had a classic week of January thaw, with temps near 60 degrees at times. This warm spell coincided with a two-day workshop I led on the summit of Mount Washington a couple of weeks ago. As you can see from the above photo taken on the trip up, there was not a whole lot of snow up high on the mountain. We were however blessed with great visibility for much of our first day.
Rime Ice on the summit of Mount Washington.
Those high cirrus clouds in the above photo were accompanied by 65 mph winds (which reached 80+ after dark,) and followed by freezing rain and 100 yard visibility the following day. Needless to say, this kind of weather creates all kinds of challenges for a photographer. Shooting sharp images is tough with the wind blowing that hard, even with a tripod. To keep the above image sharp, I shot it at ISO 200, F11, and 1/400th of a second while hand-holding the camera and bracing my body against a railing on the Mount Washington Observatory's observation deck. If you are curious about experiencing the worst of mountain weather, but doing it in a safe way (we stayed in the warm and cozy living quarters of the Mount Washington Observatory,) participating in an observatory "EduTrip" is a great way to do it. For more info about experiencing the "Worst Weather in the World", visit www.mountwashington.org.
Sunrise at Creek Farm in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
The above spot on Sagamore Creek is only about a mile from our home in Portsmouth. It is a beautiful property preserved by the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests.
Until next time...
-Jerry
