Welcoming the swans and spring

What a weekend it has been! 

Monday morning I counted 300+ trumpeter swans at the Tagish Bridge while at Marsh Lake the official number was 409.  The swans keep on coming...

We could not have asked for a better weekend - nothing but bright sun, brilliant blue skies and plenty of swans flying overhead.  A perfect weekend to welcome spring. 

Hard to believe that the swan population will swell to more than a 1000 by weeks end.  Let's hope the weather cooperates for us photographers.

Stay tuned -  in the coming days I'll be posting more images and share a few thoughts on capturing these graceful birds with your camera.

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,

Claus

Photo info:  same as previous post

They're back.....

Greetings from the Tagish Bridge Recreation Site in the Yukon.
The trumpeter swans are slowly trickling in - today's count was 82 (with another 18 arriving by late-afternoon).  Meanwhile, at Swan Haven (Marsh Lake), biologists have recorded 350 swans plus a few other migrants including Barrow's and common goldeneyes, mallards, buffleheads, redheads, herring gulls and northern pintails.
Unfortunately, for me as a photographer, the swans were too far for decent photos. Regardless, their arrival was a much needed welcome sign of spring.
Despite their distance, a few flocks did fly overhead providing me with some useful images of the swans  framed against the blue spring sky.  All in all I spent close to three hours wandering back and forth on the bridge waiting patiently for more flybys.
Brilliant blue skies, plenty of sun, a steady breeze and +7 degree temperatures made for a gorgeous Easter Sunday.
Hope you enjoyed your Easter holiday.
Cheers,
Claus

Photo info:  Nikon D700 with Nikkor 300m f/2.8 lens attached.  250 ISO, f/7.1, Aperature priority, -0.7 to -1.0 exposure composition, Vibration Reduction set to 'ON'.  Hand held

Have an enjoyable Easter holiday

Wishing you an enjoyable Easter holiday.
Cheers,
Claus

Photo:  King eider ducklings, Ellesmere Island (Nunavut)

Spring Dance

A recent series of solar flares have triggered some beautiful displays of the aurora.  Last Wednesday evening the northern lights were out in full force as they danced the evening away.  The show began shortly after midnight and continued until the wee hours of the morning.  Forecasters are predicting another show tomorrow night - just in time for Easter!

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,

Claus

Photo Info:  Images shot using a Nikon D700 camera with 14-24mm Nikkor lens f/2.8 attached.  ISO of 800 to 1000, @ f/5.6, 10-17 sec exposure.  Cable release and mounted on tripod.

Swan Report April 6, 2012

The trumpeter swans are slowly returning to the Yukon after spending the winter in warmer climes.  Marsh Lake has reported 123 Trumpeter Swans while I only counted 30 at the Tagish Bridge.  The swans are still too far away to photograph.
I'll keep you posted with another account tomorrow.
Cheers,
Claus

One final show

Greetings once again from the Yukon!

Hard to believe that the 2011/12 season for photographing the aurora is quickly drawing to an end.  Our days are longer (sunset at 8:30pm) and before you know it we will be basking the warmth of the midnight sun.  

Tonight the northern lights put on what may very well have been the final show of the season.  Forecasters were predicting a good show, however, the clouds rolled in before the aurora peaked.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a repeat performance in the coming days. 

The above photos were photographed with a Nikon D700, Nikor 14-24mm lens, f/5.6, 2000 ASA and 10-15 sec exposures.  

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,

Claus

Here's looking at you Jupiter and Venus

Here's something a bit different.
I decided to try my hand as some night time painting using Jupiter and Venus as my brushes and the night sky as my canvas.  With the camera set to BULB mode I focused on both planets and slowly rotated the camera for 6 seconds while the lens remained opened.   I'm pleased with the result (decided to call it "Here's looking at you Jupiter and Venus").
Keep an eye on both planets tomorrow night as these celestial beacons will be mere 3 degrees apart.
You cannot miss them - both are easily spotted in the western sky moments after the sun sets.
Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
Good night,
Claus

Rumour has it....

Rumour has it that the first of the swans have returned to the Yukon!!   Spring must be around the corner :)
Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
Cheers,
Claus

Image:  Trumpeter Swans, Tagish Lake, Yukon (April, 2011)

Heavenly Triangle

As the sun set this evening the crescent moon, Venus and Jupiter shone brightly through the twilight as a heavenly triangle in the western sky.  The celestial trio will continue their show tomorrow night when the moon flips its vertices to form yet another triangle in the evening sky.

Hope you have the opportunity to witness this incredible sight.

Good night,

Claus

NOTE:  Venus is situated below the crescent moon while Jupiter is positioned in the upper left corner of this image.

Tonight's moon

Tonight, shortly after sunset, the thin waxing crescent moon dominated the western sky.  Keep an eye out on Saturday and Sunday evenings when the crescent moon forms a celestial triangle with the planets Jupiter and Venus.  Here's to clear skies on both those nights.
Hope all is well in your corner of the world.
Cheers,
Claus

Image specs:  Nikon D700, Nikor 300mm f/2.8 lens at f/6, 1000 ASA 1.6 sec exposure

Yukon Quest 2012

Kyla Durham's pups resting in Pelly Crossing 

Kyla Durham departs Pelly at 12:06 Mon Feb 13

Brent Sass and his team depart Pelly 13:57 Feb 12

Brent Sass' team prepares to depart Pelly

A well deserved snooze after 700 miles

Team Marcelle Fressineau taking a rest in Pelly Feb 16

Joar Leifseth's team in Pelly (dogs from Norway)

Misha Pedersen's sled leaves Pelly Feb 14

Pups from Kyla Durham's team

Pelly Crossing - an official checkpoint in the Yukon Quest

The 29th annual running of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race between Fairbanks (Alaska) and Whitehorse (Yukon) is now officially one for the history books.  In what has become the closest finish in Quest history, musher Hugh Neff narrowly beat Allen Moore by twenty-six seconds in Whitehorse during the predawn hours of Valentines Day (total time: 9 days, 16 hrs and 5 mins).  What an accomplishment for both sleds, especially after having raced 1,600km.  Congratulations!

The 1,600km (1000 mile) route retraces the historic winter routes followed by the prospectors, adventure seekers, mail and supply carriers travelling between the gold fields of the Klondike and those in the Alaskan interior during the 1800 and 1900's.  The route runs along frozen rivers, over four mountain ranges, through valleys, dense bush and Northern towns.  Temperatures can range between minus 51 ºC and +8 ºC, while wind speeds have been clocked over 80km/hr.  Due to the difficult trail conditions, extreme weather and limited support between checkpoints, the Yukon Quest has often been referred to as "the most difficult sled dog race in the world".

Along the way there are ten checkpoints and four dog drops where veterinarians and race officials are present to record times, check gear and to ensure the health of the pups.  Mushers are not allowed receive outside help along the route with the exception of when they are in Dawson City, the halfway point.

Mushers, and their dogs, have a mandatory 36-hour layover when they reach Dawson City.  The first team into Dawson and, who later completes the race, receives a four ounce bag of placer gold.  Now, that is cool!

All teams pack aprox 100kg of gear, equipment and enough provisions for the mushers and pups to see them through between checkpoints.  Mushers are permitted to leave dogs at any checkpoint or dog drop but they cannot replace them.  Sleds may not be replaced.

The longest race time recorded was in 1988 when Ty Halvorson took 20 days, 8 hours and 29 mins to finish the race.  The fastest time occurred in 2010 when Hans Gatt completed the race in only 9 days and 26 mins.

Last weekend we had the privilege of welcoming the mushers and their teams to Pelly Crossing, one of the official checkpoints.  What a wonderful experience it was to meet them, their handlers, race officials and veterinarians and, of course the dogs who are the real hero's of the Quest.  Weather during this year's race had been unseasonable mild with temperatures recored as high as +8 ºC.  Due to the warm conditions, many mushers elected to run their teams at night when temperatures, and snow conditions, were more favourable for the pups.

While in Pelly, the mushers had the opportunity to resupply their provisions, have their dogs checked by vets and allow the pups some much needed rest if required.  Bales of hay were made available for the dogs to snooze on.

This year the race attracted teams from Norway, Siberia, across Alaska and from the Yukon.  Twenty-three teams began the Quest in Fairbanks, Alaska, on February 4th.  As of 7:40pm this evening, seventeen teams have crossed the finishline in Whitehorse with the final two teams expected to complete the race later tonight.  Five teams either scratched or withdrew from this years race.

Congratulations to all mushers, their pups and handlers, race officials and veterinarians for a fabulous race.  See you next year when the race kicks off in Whitehorse.

In the meantime I encourage you check out the official website of the YUKON QUEST for more information, race updates, images and bio's of the mushers and their dogs.  You can also check out a video of this year's Quest

Here's a neat tid bit of info - Brent Sass, one of the mushers, mentioned that he purchased 4,000 pairs of booties for the Quest (apparently many are lost along the way).

More pictures from Checkpoint Pelly available shortly.  Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,
Claus

UPDATE:   21:34 (Feb 19) - the final two teams have crossed the finish line in Whitehorse.  Congrats!!

An orange sky at night, a Yukoner's delight

The other night, shortly before the northern lights rippled across the evening sky, a thick cloud of smoke (from all the wood stoves burning) descended upon Pelly Crossing.  The lights from the houses and from the street lamps were absorbed by the smoke and, for few minutes that night, ignited the otherwise moonless sky into a fiery orange blaze.  Very eerie indeed!

Thankfully the cloud lifted in time to reveal the northern lights dancing overhead.

Valentine Lights

Today, shortly after 7pm, the clouds lifted in time to unveil tonights celestial show - A Valentine Dance of the Aurora.  What a show it was as the northern lights rippled and danced their way across our evening sky.  The show continued for hours. 

The above images were photographed with a Nikon D700 camera (Nikkor 14-24mm f/2.8 lens, ISO 4000, f/4 and an exposure between 8-10 secs.).

Happy Valentines Day from the Yukon!

Perfect ending to the day

Crescent Moon and Venus

Tonight, shortly after sunset, the thin crescent moon and Venus shone brightly through the twilight of the western sky.  Thankfully, for us here in Pelly, the clouds lifted in time to reveal tonights celestial show.  Now, let's hope the northern lights make an appearance as well.

Enjoy your evening!

Cheers,

Claus

The end of the deep freeze

Pelly Crossing in -45 degree temps - full moon light

My God it chilly!!!  Yesterday morning, my students reported that their thermometers had dipped to -50 ºC, a record low for this season.  Didn't know that our thermometers could read such low temperatures!  Thankfully, the end of our cold snap is in sight.
What a week it was as the temperature barely made it over the -40 ºC threshold.  Throughout the week school bus pick ups were cancelled, the day care was closed, our travelling doctor could not make it into Pelly and many folks postponed road trips to Whitehorse because it was far too dangerous to drive the 4hr journey in minus forty degree temps.  Many here went to bed for the night forgetting to stoke their wood stoves with enough fuel.  Sadly, they awoke the next morning to frozen pipes.  Zippers were frozen shut, fingers and toes numbed far too quickly and I was shocked at how little time it took for frost bite to grab hold of the tip of my nose.  Boy, it was cold - so cold that even the our ravens were spotted bundled up together with feathers ruffled trying to conserve as much body heat as possible.  Not a bird song was heard throughout the week.
For much of the cold snap a thick blanket of wood smoke descended upon much of Pelly Crossing.  The haze certainly created some classic winter scenes as the sun rose behind the spruce trees with its gold rays radiating in every which way.  The evening sunsets were equally brilliant as the skies were ablaze in gold, yellow and reds.
One a positive note - the evening skies were crystal clear as billions upon billions of twinkling stars lit up the otherwise dark winter sky.  Unfortunately for us, it seemed that even the northern lights were too cold to dance for us this past week :)  Just kidding!  Solar activity was minimal the last few days, hence the lack of northern lights.  NOAA forecasters are predicting a 25% chance of spotting aurora over our area this weekend as an incoming CME (coronal mass ejection) is expected to hit the Earth in the next 36 hours.  High latitude sky watchers should remain alert for auroras.  Unfortunately for us here in the Pelly, the weekend weather calls for cloudy conditions and snow flurries. Think positive Claus, the clouds will bring along warmer temps :)
Hope all is well in your corner of the world!
Cheers,
Claus