Mount Rainier Updates, Sunrise and Mowich Lake.

SUNRISE AREA UPDATE:

Mount Rainier National Park Superintendent Dave Uberuaga advises that
Sunrise facilities will be opening on July 2 as planned however, due to
water system issues caused by the cool, late spring, some visitor services
may be limited over the Fourth of July weekend.

Sunrise Ranger Station which is located on the ground floor of the Sunrise
Day Lodge, will open on Friday, July 2. The Ranger Station will be used as
the main visitor contact point this season while the Sunrise Visitor Center
undergoes installation of new exhibits and other renovations.  The
renovation project, which is funded by the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) is scheduled to be completed by late August.  The
Ranger Station will provide visitor information and sales items as well as
Ranger programs.

Concession facilities in Sunrise Lodge will open on Saturday, July 3 and
provide gift sales and limited pre-packaged food service.  Once the water
issue is resolved, normal food service will be available to visitors.

MOWICH LAKE UPDATE:

Due to continued cool temperatures and lingering snowpack, opening of the
Mowich Lake road is being delayed until July 9 (noon).  Much snow still
remains at the lake and campground and the road into the lake is extremely
wet and soft.

NOTE:  Visitors are reminded that a great deal of snow remains on the
ground at the higher elevations of the park (6-8’ at Paradise and Sunrise)
and trails remain snow covered.  Lower elevation trails are relatively snow
free.  Check at the nearest visitor center or ranger station for current
information or visit the Mount Rainier web page at www.nps.gov/mora and
click on the Hiking and Climbing Quicklink for specific trail reports.

                                  -NPS-

Edith Creek Waterfall Memorial Day Picture, Mount Rainier National Park

A few hour break in a two week stretch of major storms.  Edith Creek Waterfall over Memorial Day Weekend.  Out of the house at 2:30 and back in bed by 7:00.

Capture Mount Rainier, a guide to landscape photography in Mt. Rainier National Park.

Need some basic tips for making great landscape images? I've recently posted a free PDF download titled Capture Mount Rainier, a guide to landscape photography in Mt. Rainier National Park.

Nothing overly detailed here, just a short primer to help you get started. Enough to give you a little inspiration, a little technical guidance, and some locations.

You can download the article here.
I look forward to traveling with you.
Adam

The Photographer's Ephemeris - BETA

I simply cannot remain quiet anymore. I must sing it to the world. One of the best pieces of software living on my computer these days is "The Photographer's Ephemeris." Stephen Trainor offers the Ephemeris for free, and it is a Beta version. i.e. "THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND." Take it from me, it works great and is a simple joy to use.

From Stephen's website:

• Landscape photographers typically wish to plan their shoots around the times of sunrise/sunset or twilight, or alternatively when the moon is in a particular place in a particular phase.
• While times of sunrise etc. are readily available on various sites on the internet (direction of sunrise etc. less so, but still readily found), there are fewer programs available which combine such information with a topographical map allowing the photographer to match the astronomical to the location.
• A typical use might be to determine when the sun will set along the axis of a mountain valley, or when a full moon rise will rise across a lake.
• The application uses Google Maps providing users the ability to select a location and determine the time and azimuth of sunrise or sunset for a given date or dates.
• The software displays the combination of the key data together with a topographical map, courtesy of Google, in one program for either Windows or Mac.

I use it daily and cannot imagine going back to the days of compiling this information myself.
Thank you Stephen! Click here to visit his website and download the program. Please support his project!
Adam