Winter Photography Safety
One day during the winter (before sunrise) I was setup near the summit of Mount Pierce photographing the moon. Temperature was around 0-10 degrees. As I was doing this I watched a hiker come up out of the brush on the eastern side of Mount Pierce completely off track and no where near any trail.
Hikers not familiar with the Crawford Path on their way to Mount Eisenhower(on left in above image) always seem to drift off the trail a short ways after its junction with the Webster Cliff Trail(above image) and start circling around Mount Pierce towards the east like this hiker did. This seems to happen even more when there is no snowshoe track for them to follow.
After talking to me briefly he proceeded down near a rock cairn(you can barely make him out in the above image). As I watched him from my vantage point, it was clear he was very cold and completely out of his element. I actually started to wonder why he was even on the ridge? Maybe a first timer winter hiker? Not really sure, but experience was not on his side.
With the amount of jumping around he was doing it was clear how cold he was. He was ignoring all the warning signs (or didn’t notice them) that he was beyond his comfort zone. The cold was taking him over. He had already drifted off trail and was lucky to have recovered from that mistake. First time winter hikers should checkout HikeSafe.com for some great information.
I got a good laugh when I realized he was hand-holding sunrise shots(GWC).
Photographing along the ridges is no easy task during the winter and can be harmful to one’s self if not done correctly. A simple process like putting a lens cap can turn into a five minute nightmare. Perfect days are almost unheard of! Whiteout conditions are normal.
You can easily get a case of frostbite on the fingers or destroy a piece of camera gear if things go wrong. I have dropped rolls of film, lenses and other pieces of camera gear into the snow, which ruins a perfectly good day.
Everyone wants to capture the extreme weather of the mountains. Who doesn’t? It is awesome to hike in and even better to capture these conditions on film(digital).
To be successful photographing on the ridges I have always looked at it as a two step process. Here are two simple steps / suggestions.
1) Practice using your camera during winter conditions at lower elevations.
Know your camera inside and out. Practice taken off the lens cover and using a tripod with gloves. Don’t worry about changing lenses because you won’t be doing it in extreme conditions. In bad weather I use the same lens from start to finish. Getting a snowflake on the sensor will end your day.
2) Become comfortable hiking in winter conditions.
What jacket, boots, hat, and glove combination works best. A good glove set-up is important and I find a jacket with a large pocket in the front works excellent for storing camera gear.
After you get comfortable with both the above steps slowly join the two steps together and in time you will be bringing home great shots. You will also have a much better experience on the ridges when using your camera.
Shooting safely on the ridges is very important and great images can be made, but the most important part of winter is making sure you are safe.
Be Safe…..
Black Bears – White Mountains, NH
Bluff charges and tent ransacking are the topic of discussion these days. There have been reports of bears causing trouble for hikers and campers throughout the White Mountains, New Hampshire.
Recently bears raided the Thirteen Falls Campsite in the Pemigewasset Wilderness. They entered hiker’s tents and got away with food. A couple that experienced the raid stated the bears were not frightened by humans.
Many hikers carry Bear Spray by Counter Assault which works on all animals.
Be careful out there!
