Mount Assiniboine

Another negative from the recent trip.... this one a rather noble portrait of the majestic peak.  I shot this from up on the Nublet, on our first full day up at the Lodge.  The shoulder of Sunburst Peak is visible on the right.  This was taken on September 15th at about 12:15PM.  I used my Nikkor 300mm lens, fitted with a six stop neutral density filter and a #25 Red filter.  The red filter provided some added contrast, and the neutral density was just to increase the exposure time.  I was trying to go for a long exposure that would show some movement in the clouds... partially successful I suppose.  This was at F32.0 and a shutter speed of 1 minute.  This particular shot was on Kodak T-Max 100, exposed at 80 iso, and processed in 510 Pyro, 1:100. I tried another shot on Fuji Neopan Acros with the lens stopped down further, to F90.0, resulting in an 8 minute exposure.  Perhaps that will show a more moody, blurry sky.  I have to wait until I get around to processing that one and then compare the two.

I like the contrast between the highlights on the glacier, and the deep shadowed areas.  It's difficult to tell from this crappy scan but I believe there are some subtle details and tonality visible in both the highlights and the shadows, the ultimate goal of film geeks such as myself.

Gog Magog

Here is another of the negatives that I exposed during our trip to Mt. Assiniboine and recently processed.  This one was taken on the afternoon of our arrival at the lodge, on Wednesday September 14th.  Shortly after checking in to our Terrapin Cabin, Margarit and I went for a walk down to Magog Lake.  This lake is at the foot of majestic Mt. Assiniboine, though the peak is not visible in this image.  The lake is immediately below the Lodge complex.  This shot is of Gog Creek, as it fans out and spills the last couple hundred feet down into the lake.  That is Sunburst Peak visible in the background.  I shot this, the first image of the trip, on Kodak T-Max 100, rated at 80 iso.  It was taken on Spetmber 14th at about 2:50 in the afternoon.  I used my Scheneider Super Symmar XL 80mm lens and a #25 Red Filter for added contrast, on my Ebony SV45TE view camera.  The lowest values, the shadows of the foreground boulders, were metered at an exposure value of EV11.  I placed these in Zone III so that they retained a little detail.  The other foreground elements, grass, gravel, boulders and stream were metered between about EV 12-2/3 to EV 14-1/3.  Background Magog Lake was a little lower in value at about EV 13, while Sunburst Peak varied between EV 12 to 13.  The sky and clouds were considerably higher in value at around EV 15 to 16.  Exposure placed EV 13 at Zone V, or middle grey and was at F20.0 for 1/2 second.  The rear standard was tilted back a little to increase depth of field.  The film was processed shortly after our return, in 510 Pyro diluted 1:100 for 7:45 minutes at 24C.  I quite like this image and have reduced the overall values a little in this scan.  This one might be worth spending a little time on in attempting a fine print.

Processing Negatives from the Mt. Assiniboine Trip

In the past I have typically posted scans of some of my negatives in batches, with little comment about the images.  I thought I would change that a little and post some of my stronger images individually, with a little bit of commentary about their making.  Then the more average and mundane images from those batches will be posted in batches, after the fact.

Margarit and I returned from our trip to Mt. Assiniboine on September 18th.  The very next day, anxious to see some of my results, I processed a batch of Kodak T-Max 100 Sheet Film.  These negatives were all from Kodak ReadyLoad film packets. One of the ways in which I was able to lighten my pack was to use these pre-loaded film envelopes, and avoid the need to take along heavy and bulky film holders.  I'm not sure what I'll do once I run out of my current inventory of this format as both Kodak and Fuji no longer offer this format.  This first batch of negatives included a dozen sheets from the Mt. Assiniboine trip.  These were processed in 510 Pyro developer.  This is a formula originated by Seattle based photographer Jay DeFehr.  It consists of developing agents Pyrogallol and Phenidone, in a base of Triethanolamine.  Though many film developers are still commercially available in pre-packaged format, this one is not, and never was, so I mix it from scratch from the raw chemicals.... thanks Jay, for being so generous in sharing the recipe....  I have to admit that my darkroom looks much like a mad scientists laboratory... jars and bottles full of chemicals are all over the place, plus beakers, graduates, thermometers, scales and other such lab apparatus.

One of my favorite images, so far..., from the trip is this one.  It is of Gog Creek, along the trail up to Wonder Pass.  As Margarit and I set out on our hike in the morning, the late summer backlight on the rocks of the creek was remarkable.  I could not help but stop to make this photograph.  This image was taken on September 16th at about 10:35AM.  I used my Ebony SV45TE view camera with a Schneider Super Symmar XL 80mm lens.  I fitted the lens with a #25 Red Filter for increased contrast.  The camera was tilted down, and I tilted the rear standard back to control depth of field.  Exposure was for 1/4 second at F18.0, which included a filter factor of three stops.  The negative was processed in the 510 Pyro formula, diluted 1:100, for 7:45 minutes at 24C.  

I am quite impressed with the way that the negative held the mood of that morning, with the crisp sparkle in the light.  When I lightened my pack for the trip, one of the things that fell by the wayside was my bellows lens shade.  I thought that with the crisp backlight that this negative would suffer from some flare, but that was not the case.
While up at Mt. Assiniboine I shot both on Kodak T-Max 100 in ReadyLoad film packets, as well as duplicate images on Fuji Neopan Acros 100 in QuickLoad film packets.  My Acros negatives will be processed with Rodinal developer.  It remains to be seen whether the T-Max or the Acros negatives will be better.  I will reserve judgement until I see them side by side.  In the mean time I will post some of my favorites and welcome any commentary from those viewing my blog.

Winter Hockey - Game FOUR

The Renegades Hockey Team just played game FOUR of our 30 game winter season.  I have managed the team for about a dozen years now.  I also play defence, but struggle to keep up with all the young guys.  I am the oldest guy on the team, by quite a bit, and try not to be too big a liability on the ice.

I made it out to our first game, back in early September, when we defeated the Canadian Mooseheads.  I missed the next two games, both victories, while Margarit and I were away at Mt. Assiniboine.  The guys defeated the Turnkey Studios Penquins and the Rack Monkeys.  Tonight we played the Ice Ninjas at the old Donnan Arena.  This old rink is scheduled to be shut down for refurbishing at the end of October.  It was the first time I had ever played there.  We had a short bench with only 11 skaters and a back up goaltender but managed to play a solid team game and hang on for a 8-6 victory.  Our record is now FOUR wins to ZERO losses, good for a tie for first place in our South Side Division Seven.  The division seems to be really well balanced and all games so far have been close, and competitive.  Hopefully the league considers this realistically when they look to re-align the divisions in the next week or so.  We would like to stay here for the remainder of the winter season, which runs until the end of March.  Stay tuned for more updates as the season moves along...

Snapshots from Assiniboine

I didn't take a digital camera along with me on our recent trip to Mt. Assiniboine.  All the images in my previous blog posts were just taken with my iPhone.  Due to weight restrictions on the helicopter flight in and out of the lodge I was only able to take my 4x5 view camera with limited lenses and accessories, and some clothes.  Margarit brought along her older Nikon D80.  She took a bunch of photographs during the trip.  While we were in the helicopter, as I had a window seat, I took a few of the aerial shots.  Since we returned home last Sunday night I have made that dreaded return to work, and nearly a week has passed.  I did manage to get into the darkroom once and began the task of processing the negatives that I exposed during the trip.  In no particular order here are a bunch of the digital images from the trip....

Last Day at Mt. Assiniboine Lodge

Sunday Septemer 18th was our last day at Mt. Assiniboine Lodge.  We got up with our 7:30AM water delivery, but were asked to pack up our stuff before coming to breakfast.  This was our departure day from Mt. Assinboine and there was to be a complete turnover of all 30 guests.  The housekeeping staff wanted to change over all the bedding in advance of the next 30 guests arriving so that all the linens could be flown out for laundering.  So needless to say we were again a little late in getting to the dining room for breakfast.

The weather had taken a turn over night and the skies remained very cloudy.  It was considerably cooler than it had been, and there was a stiff breeze.  The mountain tops were all dusted with a frosting of fresh snow.  Had it been a nice day we probably would have considered going out for a short walk.  But as conditions were somewhat miserable we just hung around the lodge for a while, visiting with the other guests, and then got ready to fly out.  There were about a dozen flights going out that day, and probably just about as many coming back in.  We lucked out and were scheduled on the first flight, at 11:30AM.  We were up at the helicopter pad with our gear, a little bit in advance, waiting for that first flight to arrive.

The second helicopter flight was not as nerve-wracking for Margarit as the first one had been.  Mostly we just enjoyed the scenery on the short 10 minute flight out.  We packed our gear back over to the truck, and prepared to hit the road.  The bags seemed a little heavier than they had going in and later I realized that Margarit had brought out a couple small rocks for her flower bed.

By about noon we were on the road.  We made a brief stop for fuel in Canmore, and then continued on our way.  We had to make a side trip over to Invermere, British Columbia.  Had there been a direct route there, it was actually not all that far from Mt. Assiniboine.  But by road we had to circle up through Banff to Castle Junction and then down through Kootenay National Park to Radium Hot Springs and Invermere.  This was about a three hour drive.

We arrived in Inveremere at about 3:30 and eventually found the Pyne Logs Gallery.  We were picking up the prints from my photo exhibition that was ending that afternoon.  We spent about an hour taking all 20 prints down off the walls, packing them into my crates, and loading them into my truck.  By around 4:30 we again hit the road, this time for the long drive home.  We elected to travel up through Lake Louise to Saskatchewan Crossing and then on out to Nordegg, Rocky Mountain House and back to Edmonton.  It kind of felt like home just passing through Nordegg and seeing Coliseum Mountain and all the familiar surroundings. 
I was surprised to see the water level in Abraham Lake as high as it was.  But upon reflection and in consideration of all the rain that fell over the summer, it should not have been all that surprising.  The water level was right up into the trees all around the lake.  As we continued on towards Nordegg we again saw the herd of wild horses that hangs around the area.  We made a brief stop at our lot just to walk around and stretch our legs a bit.  We switched drivers at this point and Margarit drove the rest of the way back into the city.  Once we arrived home we had to make a quick side trip over to the shop to drop off the crates full of prints, and then return home.  It was around midnight when we were finally able to lie down and get to sleep.  A very long day to say the least.....

Aside from the experience of exploring the Mt. Assiniboine area and having some time to ourselves to really experience it, this trip taught me something else.  Virtually all of the guests that were up at Mt. Assiniboine were avid hikers.  Most were our age... or older... and virtually all were very physically fit.  Not surprisingly, hikers are there for the hike.  They have a destination in mind and push themselves to get there, and then to return.  I learned that I, as a photographer and artist, take quite a different approach.  For me the hike is necessary to enjoy the experience, but not the purpose of my adventure.  I was quite content to stop along the way and then spend an hour or more, experiencing and exploring a specific location... really absorbing the atmosphere of it... before moving on.  It did not matter to me that we often ran out of time and never got to the final destination.  It was the journey and the experience that were important to me personally.  I'm not trying to be critical of hikers as I fully understand their interests and purpose.  I've just learned that I'm really not a hiker, and my appreciation of a place is very different.

Day Four at Mt. Assiniboine Lodge

Day Four at Mt. Assinboine Lodge was Saturday, September 17th.  This time around we heard the hot water delivery at our cabin door at 7:30AM and got up on time.  We were actually over in the dining room in advance of breakfast being served.  This brought on yet more teasing from many of the other guests, in light of our tardy arrival the past couple of mornings.

We had been really fortunate in that up until this day, the weather had been wonderful.  But, it had cooled off and clouded over the night before, and this day brought rain.  It was cool and drizzly as we went for breakfast in the dining room that morning.  

After breakfast we set out with a number of the other guests on a hike.  Two groups were heading out again on this day.  About half were going with Claude, to the east past the lakes and on to a ridge.  The rest of the group, which included Margarit and myself, were setting out to climb the Niblet.  Our guide on this day was a Swiss lady named Marie-Therese.  By the time of our departure the clouds had lifted a bit and though it was still cool and breezy, it was no longer raining.  We set out to the Niblet, which afforded some wonderful views of Sunburst Lake, Sunburst Peak and Cerulean Lake.  

The French couple from Quebec that had arrived the night before were with the group and were very friendly. It turned out that Pierre, a monster of a man at 6'-5", was a freelance writer working on some magazine articles for a French-Canadian outdoor magazine.  The American couple from Kansas City were also very friendly but they had set out on their own up to Wonder Pass.  Gail, was struggling a bit with the outdoors but husband Robert was an avid digital photographer.  He and I carried on some photographic conversations over the time we were together.  We were totally outnumbered by all the women and so we sort of retreated into our own little world when the guests all got together in the evenings.

Once we made it up to the Niblet that morning I set up my big camera on the outcrop and proceeded to make some photographs.  As in the past, the other hikers moved on long before I finished my pictures.  Margarit enjoyed herself photographing a chipmunk while I continued with my landscape work.  We soon grew tired of the strong wind that was blowing and eventually made our way back down to the meadow below.  We stopped for lunch at a couple of small water holes and explored the animal tracks and the diveristy of the alpine meadow.  We found it unusual that two of the three water holes were full of snail shells while the third was barren.  We met up with a photographer from Montreal leading a workshop, and one of his guests, from the Oregon Coast.  They were staying in the nearby campsite.  Later still we wandered over to the shore of Magog Lake.  The grand landscape was not really in the cards as the peaks, particularly Mt Assiniboine, were shrouded in clouds.  Mostly I did some detail shots along Gog Creek near where it spilled into the lake.

We finished up here in the late afternoon and made our way back over to the cabins.  Margarit made it over to the shower building before the big rush of hikers came back in but I did not.  As a result I had to wait for a while to get into the showers.  Once that was over with we headed over to the Lodge, had a beer, and then enjoyed a fabulous dinner, the best of the stay by far.  This one included roasted beef tenderloin with rosemary, roasted baby potatoes, salad and grilled red peppers with steamed veggies.  It was wonderful and satisfying, particularly after such a chilly day.  There was yet another dessert that everyone raved about yet again, but I can't recall what it was as I didn't try it.

That evening, after visiting for a while, it was with somewhat heavy hearts that we returned to our cabin.  We knew that this would be our last night here and that in the morning we would have to pack up for our trip out.

 

Day Three at Mt. Assiniboine Lodge

Margarit and I did not hear the knock at our door at 7:30AM when the hot water delivery was made to our Terrapin Cabin.  As a result we slept in and were awakened shortly after 8:00 when the housekeeping staff came by.  We quickly got dressed and rushed over to the dining room for a late breakfast.  There was a lot of teasing from the other guests about our late arrival for breakfast.

After breakfast Claude and the staff outlined the hike that would be undertaken on this day.  It was a longer one, with fairly significant elevation gain.  The Lodge itself sits at about 7150 Feet above sea level.  I checked the elevation on my GPS when we were on the shoulder of the Nublet on Day Two and it was 8050 Feet.  The top of Nub Peak sits at about 9000 Feet, though we didn't make it that far.  On this day the group would be hiking up to the top of Mt. Cautley, which is about 9400 Feet.  I struggled a bit getting my heavy camera gear up to the Nublet and thought that today's hike would be a little too much.  As there were limited guides available on this day, there was only the one organized hike planned.  Margarit and I decided to pass and set out on our own.

We packed up our gear and set out to Wonder Pass.  This is an easier and shorter hike with less elevation gain.  The top of the pass which is on the continental divide and forms the boundary between Mt. Assiniboine Provincial Park on the BC side, and Banff National Park on the Alberta side, was only about 7600 Feet above sea level.  This was the elevation at the saddle of the pass and here we would be just at the tree line.

There was a small creek just below our cabin that emptied into Lake Magog, at the foot of Mt. Assiniboine.  The creek, called Gog Creek, originates up in Wonder Pass.  A few small little streams merge and become the creek, which spills through a narrow canyon and over a couple of waterfalls before forming Gog Lake.  The stream outlets Gog Lake at the west end and continues its path down to Magog.  The trail up to Wonder Pass follows Gog Creek most of the way.

It was another beautiful day with clear sunny skies and only a few clouds.  I think the temperature probably got up to something around 15C.  We really enjoyed our walk along the creek up to the pass.  At one point we branched off the main trail and followed a faint game trail up the west side of the canyon.  We eventually made our way up to the top where we broke out of the trees into an open meadow.  There was a small waterfall here, and with the mild weather and sun all the alpine larch trees were breaking into full color.  It was a wonderful day and we relaxed and had our lunch here.  Once again there was evidence of bears digging all over the open meadow though on this day we didn't see any.

After lunch we pushed across the ridge through the open scattered larches and made our way back to the main trail.  We made the final push up to the top and admired the beautiful views in all directions.  At several times during the day were were able to see the speck-sized hikers of the main group up above us on the ridge of Mt. Cautley.  We eventually followed the main trail back down in the direction of the lodge.  It turned out that the main trail followed the opposite side of the same canyon that we went up.  This afforded us a good view of the moderate cascade in the canyon.  We stopped to explore and photograph in numerous places along the way.  As we got further down the valley we made a side trip to another waterfall, this one tumbling down into the end of Gog Lake.
By mid-afternoon we made our way back to the Lodge, off-loaded our gear, and had a shower.  We retired to the sitting room for a while and enjoyed a cold beer, just as the other hikings were returning from their longer hike up onto Cautley.
Five of the guests flew out at around lunch time on this day, as they had only booked a two day stay.  This included the single lady from Calgary, and two of the couples from Ontario.  That afternoon there were some new guests that flew in to replace them.  This included two ladies that we never did get around to talking to, a nice couple from Quebec, and a couple from Kansas City.  We got to know some of them a little bit over the remainder of our stay at the lodge.
In the evening we enjoyed yet another fabulous meal, this time around an entre of chicken with some side dishes.  There was chocolate cake for dessert this time, which everyone raved about.  By evening it had begun to cloud over and the forecast for the next day was not great.  It cooled off and rained overnight but we were hopeful that there would be enough of a break in the weather for us to get out again on Day Four.

Day Two at Mt. Assiniboine Lodge

Lodge staff knocked on our door at 7:30AM and delivered a bucket of hot water for washing.  This got us up, but we were a little slow and groggy and by the time we got dressed and over to the dining room for breakfast, all the other guests were already seated.  This would set the trend for the rest of our time here.  We enjoyed a hearty breakfast and then packed a lunch for the day of hiking.

The two guides for the day would be Claude, who was taking a group up to the Nub and Andre who would take a second group up to Wonder Pass.  We decided that we would start out with Claude and his group. Right after breakfast we made ourselves a bag lunch, as did all the other guests, and then we gathered our gear for the hike.

The Lodge faces Magog Lake, with Assiniboine and the other peaks in a semi-circle behind the lake to the south.  To the west there is a ridge with a couple of outcrops that eventually rises up to an exposed peak call the Nub.  The lowest outcrop is called "The Niblet", while the second one is called "The Nublet".  To the north of this rises a rocky mountain that breaks above treeline.  This one is called "The Nub", or "Nub Peak".  Our group of hikers was going off trail to climb up to the Nublet from the back side.  From there the more energetic hikers would continue on up to the Nub, while part of the group would continue with a second guide down to the lakes below.  These are Sunburst, Cerulean and Elizabeth Lakes nestled around the base of Sunburst Peak, and immediately beneath the Niblet, Nublet and the Nub.  A very scenic place to say the least.

There were about a dozen of us that clambered up the mostly open slopes on the back side of the Nublet.  This was just at treeline and there was a scattering of alpine larches, beginning to turn color, as well as some stunted krummholz of gnarled Engelman Spruce.  The weather was spectacular with blue skies, whispy fair weather clouds, and mild temperatures.  Despite the fact that I had lightened my camera pack for this trip, it was still over 25Lbs with the tripod and at this high altitude it was physically exhausting to make it up to the Nublet.  Once at the top I set up my big view camera and began to take photographs of the stunning view before us.  Long before I was finished, the hikers were ready to move on and so they did.  Margarit and I were soon on our own.  We spent a couple of hours up there photographing, exploring and soaking in the experience.  By the time we were ready to move on it was getting around to afternoon and we decided not to hike higher or further out.  Rather we began to work our way back down off the Nublet, to the valley below.

The hillside was riddled with the diggings of bears.  Big holes dug all over the hillside were the result of bears digging out ground squirrels.  **Correction**  I originally thought that the bears were digging out squirrels but following discussions with some friends it may in fact have been roots that were being excavated.  In any event the evidence of bears was all over the place.  As we made our way down the slope it wasn't long before we came across one of these diggers.  A large grizzly bear was furiously tossing aside large clumps of dirt in pursuit of a meal.  The bear was about a hundred yards away so we didn't feel as though we were in any particular danger.  We just marveled at the size and power of the bear and watched him work for a little while.  The bear seemed indifferent to us, but we wanted to make sure it was aware of our presence, so I let out a whistle.  He stopped briefly and looked around, and then just kept digging.  We gave him a wide berth and continued on down the slope to the trail below.

By the time we bush-whacked through the forest, found the trail, and made our way back to the Lodge, it was getting to be about 3:00PM.  We dropped off the camera gear back at the cabin and went for a nice hot shower.  Then we made our way over to the Lodge for an afternoon snack and a beer.  About this time and over the next hour or so, all the other hikers began straggling in from various directions.  We hung around at the Lodge for the afternoon, visiting with some of the other guests.  At 6:30 the dinner bell rang and we all trooped into the dining room for another fantastic meal.  This time it was soup followed by Pork Tenderloin with Quinoa and Mashed Yams, followed by a dessert of Blueberry Crumble.  As usual I passed on the dessert, but everything else was exceptionally good.  With all the fresh air and exercise everyone pretty much ran out of gas and it was about 9:00PM when most of the guests retired to their rooms and cabins.  We did the same, looking forward to the next day of our adventure.

This Panorama shows Terrapin Mountain and Mt. Magog on the left.  Mt. Assiniboine is the tallest, Matterhorn like peak, with Lake Magog below.  The dark central cliff is Sunburst Peak, with Cerulean Lake below it to the right.  The large grassy rise to the right is the crest of the Nublet, with this photo taken from it's shoulder.  The tip of the Nub is visible just above the crest on the right.  The rocky outcrop down below, at the base of Sunburst is the Niblet.  The Niblet is obscuring Sunburst Lake which is just below.

 Mt. Assiniboine, Sunburst Peak and Cerulean Lake, with the Niblet in the foreground.

 The Assiniboine Pass to the east of the camera position here on the Nublet.  The helicopters came in and out to the lodge through this pass.

 Upper slopes of the Nublet, just at treeline.

A panorama from the Nublet showing Assiniboine Pass in the center, Mt Cautley, Wonder Peak and Wonder Pass, then The Towers, Naiset Peak, Terrapin Mountain and Mt. Magog at the right.

 Left to right...  Wonder Peak, The Towers, Naiset Peak, Terrapin Mountain, Mt. Magog, Mt. Assiniboine, Wedgewood Peak and Sunburst Peak, with Magog Lake below.

 Wonder Pass and Magog Lake, with background mountains, from the Nublet.