This is a quick (very quick – only 3 seconds total) timelapse video of a 13 1/2 minute aurora storm from my first of 2 “Aurora Borealis, Winter Landscapes & Wildlife” photo tours – February 26-March 3 of this year. Winter has left us and we are full into spring mode here, in south central Alaska – but the aurora are still whirling overhead. Tonight, in fact, we are predicted to have a decent showing. Hope to view it from my comfy bed – wish I could make it out tonight to film it, but it just isn’t in the cards. Perhaps this weekend…

Stay tuned…

Never heard of Cordova? You’re not the only one! I first visited Cordova 4 years ago, and have since gone back every year to make up for lost time. It is quite literally my favorite place in ALL of Alaska – quite probably the entire world. Yeah, it’s that extraordinary. But what sets it apart?

Photographer in lupine field, Sheridan Glacier, Alaska. ©2010 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D mk 2, 24-105 @ 105mm, 1/200" @ f7.1, ISO 400)

Cordova could easily be called “Hidden, Alaska”. It is tucked back in Orca Inlet, on the eastern edge of Prince William Sound. It is remote, yet logistically fairly simple to get to. It’s just far enough ‘off the beaten track’ so that only the adventurous travelers get to experience its wonders. But we won’t be roughing it while on tour – oh no! We’re staying at one of the best adventure lodges in all of Alaska. In fact, our rooms sit just above the rocky shores of the Inlet. Very comfortable beds, outstanding meals prepared in “The Cantina”, deep history and the pristine location make this an extraordinary place to call home for the 7-day/6-night tour. Warm showers, electricity and wifi – all the comforts of home – just without those pesky neighbors or traffic! A waterfall tumbles off the mountains and through the rain forest, just to the north of our lodge. The lodge itself is an old cannery, and old dock pilings still jut out a bit into the Inlet. It is common to see bald eagles perched right outside our windows, and sea otters or harbor seals patrolling the waters.

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We will use a small skiff to access the protected waters in search of the numerous sea otters nearby. By ‘numerous’ I mean… hundreds! It is not unheard of to see ‘rafts’ of sea otters numbering in the 50′s. On one trip to this area, I saw a raft of sea otters that likely numbered several hundred! Inland, we will walk through the world’s northern most rainforest – The Chugach – and photograph the ancient trees, dripping mosses, and rushing streams of fresh glacial and snow melt as they course towards the ocean. In Alaska, it seems that you are always surrounded by the mountains – Cordova is no different, and they make for a very dramatic backdrop for our photography.

We will also visit 2 glaciers. The first we will actually be able to walk on (safe conditions permitting, of course). It’s leading edge is surrounded by beautiful and dense lupine flowers. It truly is an amazing location, glacier, ice, morraine, flowers, and surrounding peaks. We could probably spend the entire tour here, and never get bored! But Child’s Glacier beckons to us from near the end of the Copper River Highway. It’s face is several hundred feet tall and is usually in a very active ‘calving’ phase this time of year. We will spend several hours photographing this immense glacier from just .19 miles away.

So, just to recap just some of what Cordova has to offer:

Moose, black bear, bald eagles, sea otters, harbor seals, jellyfish, waterfalls, rain forest, glacial streams/rivers/lakes/ponds, glaciers, mountains, the largest river delta on the west coast, trumpeter swans, waterfowl, and immense emptiness! And likely, not another photo tour group in the region. Please check out the dedicated Cordova Tour Description page for more info, and please contact me with any questions or to sign up for the amazing and very unique photo tour. The last few seats are filling quickly!

Wild Lands & Wild Life: Denali Highway Fall Color Tour – 2011

Clearwater Mountain Sunrise, Alaska ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, 70-200L f4 IS @ 200mm. 1/5" @ f/16, ISO 200)

I’m also going to try something new out for the rest of 2011…

Want to make $100? I thought that might get your attention!

Meet the F.R.I.P. – Friend Referral Incentive Program. Don’t you just love acronyms…

5 easy steps:

• Post a link to my Alaskan Photo Tours & Workshops page on your personal blog, website, twitter, and/or Facebook page.
• Refer a photographer friend (or friends) to my 2011 Alaskan Photo Tours & Workshops page
• Have them sign up for a 2011 photo tour with me & mention you as a referral with a way to contact you
• The client must complete the photo tour
• Check your mail for a $100 check

Restrictions?

• Well, you can’t refer yourself. But yes, your wife/husband can…
• The client must complete the photo tour before you get your $100 check
• NO restrictions on the number of clients you can refer, except for tour size limits. Refer 4 people that complete any tour, get $400!
• In order to qualify, you must post a link to my Alaskan Photo Tours & Workshops page on your personal blog, website, twitter, and/or Facebook page.

If you are already a client on an upcoming tour  (or a previous tour) and you refer another new client, you get $200! Again, no limit on the number of people – except until tours are full for 2011. That on top of the already-in-place $200 off for any returning client, and you can really add up some savings!

Not too shabby, huh? Time to start spreading the word!

Aurora Borealis over Alaska Range, Denali Highway, Alaska ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/2.8 @ 16mm. 15" @ f2.8, ISO 3200)

Gathering Aurora Storm, Alaska Range, Alaska ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/2.8 @ 16mm. 20" @ f/2.8, ISO 3200)

I’ve got a BUNCH more aurora images from this trip to post – including a ‘movie’ of the aurora activity… it blew my mind.

Stay tuned…

Rays of light over Alaska Range at Sunrise, on the Denali Highway, Alaska. ©2010 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 7D, 100-400 @ 330 mm. 1/640" @ f/8, ISO 400)

I’m very happy to formally announce the 4th tour of 2011. The “Wild Lands & Wild LIfe: Denali Highway Fall Color Tour”. August 26-September 1, 2011.

I’d like to invite you to join me on an epic, small group, wilderness photo tour into the heart of Alaska.

The Denali Highway – 135 mile long ‘improved’ road, stretching from Cantwell (near the eastern border of Denali National Park) to Paxson at the east end of the road. From 1957 to 1971, this was the only access to Denali National Park. Since ’71 it has become mostly derelict and poorly maintained. It crosses some of the most dramatic and incredible terrain in the United States. Mountains. Glaciers. Rolling tundra. Taiga forest. Kettle ponds. Raging rivers.

And ‘Big Sky’ that Montana can’t even fathom.

Wild Blueberries & Kettle Pond, Denali Highway. ©2010 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, 24-105 @ 28mm. 30" @ f/16, ISO 50. B+W KSM Circular Polarizer)

Then there’s the wildlife. The Nelchina caribou herd passes through this area, every year. 36,000 strong – free ranging, un-penned, wild caribou. Thousands of moose call this region home. Wolves, wolverine, fox, rabbit, lynx, marmot & a wide variety of migrating birds.

It truly is a buffet for the adventurous photographer.

We will spend long days in the field, and our nights at a rustic self-sufficient lodge at the center of all this wilderness. Bring your appetites, you will eat well throughout this adventure. Hearty meals, no frills & no skimping on portions.

Bring your stamina, this is your window seat to adventure. Get ready to be swallowed whole by a landscape so breathtaking that you’ll refer to this photo expedition simply as ‘the trip’ – for the rest of your life.

Most importantly, bring your passion for photography. This is the trip you’ve been dreaming of. The adventure of a lifetime awaits.

Alaska awaits. Where will you be this fall?

Full trip description coming very soon.

If you are interested in this 7 day/6 night all inclusive (meals, guide, instruction, transportation & lodging) epic experience, send me an email now and get on the ‘the short list’. These 6 seats will fill very quickly.

I’d like to thank Scott Slone (of Perfect Blend Media & Alaska HDTV) for producing this very special commercial for the Fall Color Tour. Scott will be joining us again  to film our adventures & has offered a crash course in videography/production and editing to our participants. Thank you very much, my good friend. As always, it is a pleasure and honor to travel with you.

Aurora over the Alaska Range ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/f2.8 @ 16mm. 20" @ f/2.8, ISO 1600)

Here are a few more aurora borealis photos from my recent “Aurora Borealis, Winter Landscapes & Wildlife” Photo Tour. The first was taken nearly 12 miles into the wilderness from our lodge. The mountains in the background are a branch of the Alaska Range. The second image was created by turning the camera skyward – straight up in fact – directly at the aurora’s ‘corona’. From this position, I could capture the direct impact of the aurora overhead. The light spilled from above, scattering and swirling in all directions. What an amazing night!

Stay tuned…

Photographers and Aurora, Clearwater Range, Alaska. ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/2.8 @ 16mm. 5" @ f/2.8, ISO 3200)

Just a quick post here with a few more aurora photos from last week. I’m still trying to catch up on lost sleep. In another 3 weeks I should be around par. Then, of course, I leave for round two.

Stay tuned…

Aurora #1, Clearwater Range, Alaska ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/2.8 @ 16mm. 20" @ f/2.8, ISO 3200)

I’m just back from nearly a week deep in the heart of the Alaskan wilderness. I spent six days with 9 very talented South Korean photographers at an exclusive lodge 65 miles from… well, anywhere.

I’m heading back in just 3 weeks for a repeat. Yes, Jena. I promise to start packing earlier for this trip. This exploratory tour turned out to be much more an expedition, than a simple photo tour. We were confronted by extremely cold temperatures (-35 at times), and highs just over 0. The group never once complained about the adversity though – they just kept shooting and producing tons of incredible images!

We went 5 for 5 with the aurora; every night of the tour we lucked out with ‘the best show above the earth’. 3 of the 5 were ‘quite good’ shows, 2 were fantastic, and very early Tuesday morning was… well, unequivocally incredible.

We moved our group to a small knoll a quarter mile from the lodge. Above us and rising over the lodge were the Clearwater Mountains, just south of the mighty Alaska Range. Towering over them was a single band of green. It started around 10 pm Monday evening and developed over the next 2 hours. Just after midnight, it erupted and the sky caught fire. We had every classic auroral formation known: curtains, arcs, striations, pillars and a writhing corona directly overhead. We witnessed green, burgundy, yellows and reds. It lasted for about an hour, and then waned. A bright green haze covered the majority of the sky for several hours afterward.

For the most part, the Koreans in my tour were quiet and reserved people through much of our time together. That changed dramatically when the aurora formed that night. Cheers and a tangible awe rose from that small knoll in the middle of a snow covered wilderness. They reverberated off the mountains and climbed up to greet the incredible light show far above.

It was a night I will never forget. A moonless night where the brilliance in the sky made the ground at our feet glow a soft electric green.

I’d be terribly remiss to not thank my good friends, Claude & Jennifer Bondy (owners of Alpine Creek Lodge and our hosts for the 6 day tour), their lodge employee Kyle (I’ve rarely met a harder worker, especially at such a young age!), and of course my good friend Scott Slone of Alaska HDTV – I couldn’t have done it without your help, buddy.

All the seats have been filled for my upcoming Aurora Borealis, Winter Landscapes & Wildlife Photo AdvenTour (March 26-31), but I am starting a list for next years offerings. So, after the success of the first tour, it is never too early to get on the list for March of 2012 – people are already looking to sign up. This is a destination adventure that you don’t want to miss. Click this link to send me an email to join the list!

Aurora over Alpine Creek Lodge, Alaska. ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, Tokina 16-28/2.8 @ 16mm. 5" @ f/2.8, ISO 3200)

Stay tuned…

Yesterday was one of those days.

After a full day that started at 5 am, Jena and I got home around 6:30 pm. We grabbed a quick bite to eat, took a 45 minute nap and headed right back out again. What for? Well, the aurora were forecasted and skies don’t get any clearer.

The aurora that we were able to chase earlier this year were not substantial. Don’t get me wrong, anytime you see the aurora is substantial. But the storms never climbed high in the sky, they just hovered over the mountains. There was little movement and very little variation in color.

But yesterday, a semi-suprise auroral storm sounded fairly promising. So Jena and I set out before 9 pm to drive out to one of my favorite locations for photographing the aurora; the Glenn Highway. Now, when people from the ‘Lower 48′ hear “highway”, they think of busy roads, headlights, traffic, noise, smog, congestion, street lights, road signs, etc. The Glenn Highway is not your father’s ‘Lower 48′ highway. Once we got past Palmer, Alaska (which takes all of 45 seconds), we were plunged into darkness.

No streetlights. No cars or other headlights. No noise except for the studded tires of my SUV rumbling across the icy winter roads. Smog? What’s that? A road sign appeared out of the thin black air – it read “Glennallen – 134 Miles & Tok – 274 Miles” – and vaporized back into the dark just as quickly. That’s one of the (many) great things about living in Alaska, it doesn’t take much time to remove yourself from civilization.

(Side note) – As I write this, at 11:30 Saturday night (why am I still up…?), the aurora is dancing outside our bedroom window. It’s ok, jealousy is an appropriate response to this statement. I won’t hold it against you.

We wound through corner after corner, the narrow two lane highway rising and falling around a glacially fed river and past mountains and cliffs. Repair bills for cars always rack up over time, but now I’ll have to replace the passenger side door handle from Jena’s death grip. She may be small, but she is strong!

We passed the Matanuska Glacier after about an hour of driving due east. The glacier, despite being almost 4 miles wide at it’s terminus and laying at the bottom of a valley only 2 miles from the road in clear line of sight, was nowhere to be seen. The darkness swallowed it whole, along with the towering mountains around it.

Not long after, the mountains spread further on the horizon, to the north and south of the road. This leaves an open valley with excellent views in almost every direction. We arrived around in this area around 10:30 and waited. Pale green aurora were drifting slowly over the eastern horizon, but showed little activity. After a few test shots and a mild burst of intensity, we moved on to another location and decided to wait to see what would happen.

We didn’t have to wait long. Over the next few hours we were treated to one of the most spectacular auroral storms I have witnessed. Brilliant greens, yellows and whites, deep purples and even very subtle reds shifted from horizon to horizon, arching high overhead and spilling their mixed light over the landscape. Billions of stars dotted the sky beyond the northern lights – it was as if we had been placed below a river of light. This river changed course, separated and converged over and over again, rippling and washing overhead.

Alaska Aurora over the Chugach Range ©2011 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, 24-105 @ 24mm. 20" @ f/4, ISO 2000)

It was, simply put, magnificent.

Stay tuned…

We were disheartened, and immediately started to consider backup plans. None of which included the large expanse of beauty surrounding us. We thought of hiking all the way back to the car and driving further south to scout other locations. But we both hesitated when we saw another trail branching off. It hadn’t seen the same use as the main trail, but as Robert Frost once beautifully wrote,

“I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.”

No, this image wasn’t created while taking this less used trail. It happened because we stuck around and explored. Instead of packing up our gear and heading for a different location, we settled in and embraced our surroundings. In turn, Winter embraced us.

This seems to be a recurring theme with me. I’ve taken paths less traveled throughout my life. Sure, I went to college. And like many others, I dropped out. But I did it with style, I did it twice. I got a great job with a great group of people in my hometown. It was where I was comfortable, the job was comfortable, the future I saw was… comfortable. I saw myself in five years with a wife, a nice 3 bedroom ranch-style home, two and a half kids and a mortgage. Very soon, that future became less comfortable. In it’s predictability it became dull. Early on I adopted the writing of another writer, Marcel Proust,

“The voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

But I needed new landscapes. I needed a new voyage. And perhaps I reasoned that those landscapes needed to be seen with my new eyes. So I set my eyes on Alaska, and upon developing my photography in “The Great Land”. Marcel Proust also wrote about dreaming,

“If a little dreaming is dangerous, the cure for it is not to dream less but to dream more. To dream all the time.”

I decided to stop dreaming of Alaska and a career in photography and take a chance. My dream became my reality. I took a path that may not have been as comfortable for me, or my parents. But they grew to accept it and have always supported my path. It was a path less traveled by. And it, like my families support, has made all the difference.

"Winter's Embrace", Chugach National Forest ©2010 Dave Taylor/Sixtyone North (Canon 5D Mk 2, 24-105 @ 24mm. 1/13" @ f16, ISO 200. Singh-Ray 2 Stop Soft-Edge Grad ND)

Although this particular image is only a few days old, this scene has been acting out each winter for ages. I just happened to stumble upon it this go around. As day gave way to night, the forest closed in and embraced us once again.

How many times has similar light settled in across this valley, brushed across those trees, glanced upon that mountain, and bathed that cold sky in warmth? Certainly it has done so before and will do so again. Some sunsets are more spectacular, some less – these are “The Challengers”, and they always return.

This was a good afternoon, and if for no other reason than to see “The Challengers”, I will return too.

Consider your path through life. Are you “comfortable” in it? Or is there a path that would make all the difference?

This image has been added to my “Best Nature Photos of 2010″ Gallery.

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“Paths Less Taken”

I have a 2 seats left in the “Aurora, Winter Landscapes & Wildlife Photo AdvenTour” from March 26-31, 2011. So if you are looking for a path definitely less taken, this might be right up your alley. Click here to view the aurora photo tour description page.

Also available are a few seats on my “Cordova: Wild Lands & Wild Life” Photo Tour. This is a one-of-a-kind Alaska destination. It is less visited and holds an amazing variety of subjects that have not been shot to death like so many other places. Imagine, just a small group of like-minded photographers around you, surrounded by an amazing wilderness of glaciers, mountains, rainforest, ocean and sky. All while staying at a beautiful coastal adventure lodge… How does that sound? Click here to view this unique Alaskan photo tour description page.