Photographing The Devil's Backbone

I frequently hike the Devil's Backbone, a Larimer County Open Space west of Loveland, Colorado on Highway 34. The area offers the hiker unique geological features, sweeping vistas of the front range and of the mountains to the west, and abundant wildlife and wildflowers. However photographing the Backbone area has largely been an exercise in frustration for me. In previsualizing the area, I see dramatic sunrise lighting reflecting off of the Backbone, with wildflowers and lush grass filling the foreground. In practice, I find these conditions to be elusive. Oftentimes it seems the light is quite flat and the vegetation dry and brown, resulting in images lacking in contrast, vibrancy and drama.

This past fall, I made plans to arrive at the Devil's Backbone before sunrise, and to walk in and set up my equipment in time to catch the rich morning sun illuminating the Backbone - just as I had previsualized. The alarm went off at 5:15, and the morning greeted me with gray, overcast skies and a cold breeze. But being awake, I decided to proceed with my plans.

Arriving at the parking lot, the conditions had not changed. But at that point, I had decided to set up on a ridge overlooking the Backbone, and wait on the weather. If it remained socked in, I would hike the Wild Loop Trail, and could still be home by 10:00.

I found the location I wanted, set up the tripod and camera, did a quick hyperfocal distance calculation, and set the exposure and focus. After taking a couple of test images, I was happy with the composition and exposure (assuming the sun ever lit the scene). Then it was time to stand back and wait on the sun.

Based on the time of day and the slight glow through the clouds, I could see that the sun had broken over the horizon, but was still fully obscured by the clouds. Ten minutes, then 15 minutes - I was about ready to pack it up and get on with my hike. But wait - a slight break in the clouds, just to the north of the sun's location at that point. Would the winds blow the break the right direction? Possibly. Suddenly, the sun broke out, and lit the Backbone and the valley between it and the ridge I was on. Four horizontal images, rotated the camera 90 degrees and shot off two or three vertical compositions - and the sun disappeared again for the remainder of the day.

The image above is my favorite of the day. It still isn't the image I have previsualized. That one is waiting for another day. But the dark, cloudy skies above the Devil's Backbone, together with the early-morning light and contrast, did come together to provide the dramatic setting I was hoping for. And the lesson for the photographer is preparation. The sun appeared for no more than a minute or two that day. Had I not set up and dialed in all the camera settings, I would have left empty-handed. But this day, patience and preparation paid off.

A larger version of this image can be seen at the Sherwood Imagery Web Site, or for a vertical-format version of this image, click here to see it.

For a detailed description of this hike and additional photos, see the description on my ColoradoHikingtrails.net hiking trails web site.

Cherokee Park And The Elliott Ranch House

Taking advantage of an unseasonably warm winter afternoon, my son and I recently visited the Cherokee Park State Wildlife Area (SWA) near Livermore, Colorado, about 20 miles northwest of Fort Collins, in search of the Elliott ranch house.
From 1910 until 1943, John and Ida Elliott and Josephine Lamb, three pioneers with an unconventional living arrangement, owned and raised cattle on the land that now makes up a large portion of the Cherokee Park SWA. "Rabbit Creek Country" by Jon Thiem recounts the story of their lives, and intertwines their biographies with the history of the Livermore area. The home that the Elliotts and Miss Lamb lived in, and which plays an important role in the book, was located on Middle Rabbit Creek, now in the Cherokee Park SWA. Dr. Thiem explained that the house has been abandoned, but could still be found on Middle Rabbit Creek. Intrigued by the story told in "Rabbit Creek Country", I had to go to find it.
The details of the hike are recounted in my Coloradohikingtrails.net hiking trails web site; I won't rehash them here.
I didn't intend for this outing to be a "photography" trip, but rather a trip to find the abandoned ranch house, to explore the area, and to teach my son about the history of the area. The photos I captured, some of which are posted in the gallery below, are more documentary in nature than artistic or "saleable". Nevertheless, if you have an interest in the book "Rabbit Creek Country", or in the history of the Livermore area, I hope that these images will help in clarifying your mental picture of the Elliott home by supplementing Dr. Thiem's own photos and narrative. I also hope that they succeed in conveying the beauty and unique topography of the area, even in the relatively drab and dry middle of winter during which these pictures were taken.



If you have any questions or comments about these images, please don't hesitate to contact me or to leave a comment on this page (no registration required).