Peak(s):	Mt. Lady Washington - 13,281 feet
Date Posted:	12/03/2013
Date Climbed:	11/28/2013
Author:	bergsteigen

Film testing a Lady
Thanksgiving Sunrise Mt Lady Washington Mileage: 8.35 Elevation Gain: 3,892' Partner: Solo Camera: Canon EOS M Being thankful for a non-traditional Thanksgiving this year, I decided to make use of the glorious weather and get in an early morning hike of Mt Lady Washington. I have a new camera that I wanted to test out, and what better way than to catch Longs at sunrise! I also was going to meet friends that evening down at Shelf Road for some climbing the next day, and an early start was also needed. So as I got ready at home around 3am, I turned on my slow cooker to BBQ my ribs for lunch/dinner upon my return. Mmmmm! Arrived at the trailhead and got on the trail around 5:30am, a bit later than desired, but hopefully still early enough to get above treeline for sunrise. Only one other vehicle in attendance. The lower trail is fairly boot packed down, that snowshoes are not required, as long as you stay on trail. The sickle moon even provided enough illumination that a headlamp wasn't needed. The lower trail went quickly enough, and the winter cut off trail was packed in as well, so I gladly took the shortcut. I was a little late to the saddle for the 6:56am sunrise, but I still got quite the show! I used my 22mm f/2 lens for the low light ability. So far it seems that the images are crisp as desired. Once the sun was up I switched over to the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens, since light today would not be a problem. There were only thin wispy clouds to block the sun. At Shelf the next day, I would test out one of my lenses from my DSLR setup, to equally amazing results. Glad they figured out that conversion attachment system! First light on the trail The Lady is blushing The Lady is blushing Once at the saddle, it was only a short but steep boulder hike up to the summit, but it took over 2 hours. I must have been tired or something! Nice views of the loft and the north face of Meeker. I found sporadic evidence of a previous hike up the Lady, but as they were on snowshoes, they stuck to the snow. While I boulder hopped. The snowshoes on my back were just training weight today. The Lady's east ridge Pano from saddle Meeker and the Loft route Looking down the ridge Nearing the summit, the pitch increased in steepness, and boulders abound to scramble over. The pockets of deep snow keep things ever more interesting, as I slowly pick my way up the ridge. Even the summit involved a little bit of a scramble to get to with the snowy boulders. Boulder scrambling Approaching the summit boulder scramble I sat on the nearly windless summit for a while, enjoying the views. A couple planes buzzed the summit a few times. I could even hear a team in the Martha Couloir, slowly making their way up (though I left before they topped out). Summit Pano Longs! Looking north Mummy Range Keyhole view Scouting snowy couloirs Soon the call of my Thanksgiving dinner was making me antsy to get downhill. That and the 3hr drive down to Shelf, at least I would have a later dinner all ready! The descent from near Granite Pass was a lot more snowy, and snowshoes could be warranted. I didn't want to bother to take them off the pack, or put them on, but some might find it useful. I just post holed on occasion, until I got back to the trail near the saddle area, where snow cover was either thinner, or better boot packed down. Along the way a ram crossed my path. I tried to get a closer shot, but with a new camera, I was still learning the new features. I was running it in partially manual mode, and the focusing seemed to take forever. The next day I switched to a different mode, and the focusing got faster. More time behind the lens for me to figure this one out! The north ridge of Lady Washington Ram crossing Snowy upper trail Dreamweaver on Meeker Since I didn't know if the Peak to Peak connected to 7 yet, I had to go back through Estes Park and go down 36 on my way home. So I got the nice shot of the Longs Massif along the way. Lower down on the drive, the true devastation of the September flooding became apparent. Up until this point, I had only seen photos of the destruction. But to now see it first hand, made my stomach turn! Even the sections without (destroyed) houses, the erosion of stream banks and the radical change to the entire stream system was eerily visible. Seeing all of that destruction made me even more thankful I went with the more (geologically) conservative choice of a house away from the beauty of the mountains and stream valleys. I would love to have a house up in the foothills, but between the fires and the floods, it's too risky for the views. Parting shot of Longs group And since it was Thanksgiving, here's a shot of my dinner... Mmmmm ribs! Thanksgiving dinner: Ribs! Overall, I am impressed with the images from the EOS-M, as long as I can figure out how to get the focusing fast when I need it. Though today, I think it was user error from not knowing the camera well enough yet. My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload): Login required to view this map... Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Film testing a Lady Google Map Included

Mt Lady Washington

Mileage: 8.35
Elevation Gain: 3,892'
Partner: Solo
Camera: Canon EOS M

Being thankful for a non-traditional Thanksgiving this year, I decided to make use of the glorious weather and get in an early morning hike of Mt Lady Washington. I have a new camera that I wanted to test out, and what better way than to catch Longs at sunrise! I also was going to meet friends that evening down at Shelf Road for some climbing the next day, and an early start was also needed. So as I got ready at home around 3am, I turned on my slow cooker to BBQ my ribs for lunch/dinner upon my return. Mmmmm!

Arrived at the trailhead and got on the trail around 5:30am, a bit later than desired, but hopefully still early enough to get above treeline for sunrise. Only one other vehicle in attendance. The lower trail is fairly boot packed down, that snowshoes are not required, as long as you stay on trail. The sickle moon even provided enough illumination that a headlamp wasn't needed. The lower trail went quickly enough, and the winter cut off trail was packed in as well, so I gladly took the shortcut.

I was a little late to the saddle for the 6:56am sunrise, but I still got quite the show! I used my 22mm f/2 lens for the low light ability. So far it seems that the images are crisp as desired. Once the sun was up I switched over to the 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS zoom lens, since light today would not be a problem. There were only thin wispy clouds to block the sun. At Shelf the next day, I would test out one of my lenses from my DSLR setup, to equally amazing results. Glad they figured out that conversion attachment system!

The Lady is blushing

Once at the saddle, it was only a short but steep boulder hike up to the summit, but it took over 2 hours. I must have been tired or something! Nice views of the loft and the north face of Meeker. I found sporadic evidence of a previous hike up the Lady, but as they were on snowshoes, they stuck to the snow. While I boulder hopped. The snowshoes on my back were just training weight today.

Nearing the summit, the pitch increased in steepness, and boulders abound to scramble over. The pockets of deep snow keep things ever more interesting, as I slowly pick my way up the ridge. Even the summit involved a little bit of a scramble to get to with the snowy boulders.

I sat on the nearly windless summit for a while, enjoying the views. A couple planes buzzed the summit a few times. I could even hear a team in the Martha Couloir, slowly making their way up (though I left before they topped out).

Soon the call of my Thanksgiving dinner was making me antsy to get downhill. That and the 3hr drive down to Shelf, at least I would have a later dinner all ready!

The descent from near Granite Pass was a lot more snowy, and snowshoes could be warranted. I didn't want to bother to take them off the pack, or put them on, but some might find it useful. I just post holed on occasion, until I got back to the trail near the saddle area, where snow cover was either thinner, or better boot packed down. Along the way a ram crossed my path. I tried to get a closer shot, but with a new camera, I was still learning the new features. I was running it in partially manual mode, and the focusing seemed to take forever. The next day I switched to a different mode, and the focusing got faster. More time behind the lens for me to figure this one out!

Since I didn't know if the Peak to Peak connected to 7 yet, I had to go back through Estes Park and go down 36 on my way home. So I got the nice shot of the Longs Massif along the way. Lower down on the drive, the true devastation of the September flooding became apparent. Up until this point, I had only seen photos of the destruction. But to now see it first hand, made my stomach turn! Even the sections without (destroyed) houses, the erosion of stream banks and the radical change to the entire stream system was eerily visible. Seeing all of that destruction made me even more thankful I went with the more (geologically) conservative choice of a house away from the beauty of the mountains and stream valleys. I would love to have a house up in the foothills, but between the fires and the floods, it's too risky for the views.

And since it was Thanksgiving, here's a shot of my dinner... Mmmmm ribs!

Overall, I am impressed with the images from the EOS-M, as long as I can figure out how to get the focusing fast when I need it. Though today, I think it was user error from not knowing the camera well enough yet.

My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload):

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

Dave B	A booty of beta and conditions 12/03/2013 21:36 Thanks for trying out your new camera in the cirque and on Longs, I've been wondering what several things up there are looking like right now and, now, I know! Glad you like your camera, dusted off my ol' d70 the other day. I miss shooting with a DSLR, I just don't miss carrying the damn thing, so the new fangled mirror less contraptions are looking pretty cool.
Jvinro	Just curious! 12/04/2013 01:57 Ribs for thanksgiving? So,what's for dinner on Christmas?
Bean	Handling with gloves? 12/04/2013 18:42 How's using it with warm winter gloves? One of the advantages of the big 7D is that mittens are almost a non-issue thanks to nice big controls. Just hate carrying the damn thing. I think slow focusing is a problem with the type of camera and isn't likely to get better just by using it more.
Brian C	Camera! 12/04/2013 19:12 I bought a Sony NEX a few years back with the intention of having a nicer camera that was still carryable. I've become convinced I'll break and almost never use it now! Blah! I need to start using it more again. Nice photos!
MtnHub	Pics! 12/04/2013 19:37 The lovely cloud sculptures in #9 & #10 really accentuates Longs! Thanks for your post!
bergsteigen	Thanks! 12/04/2013 20:27 Dave B - I figured this lil hike would be useful to someone! I miss my DSLR as well, just not the weight! Jvinro - I think I'll go with something more ”traditional” in my family: Saurbraten! Mmmmm Bean - I don't think it will work too well with big gloves. If you can set up the autofocus to detect, then it may not be too bad. But if you want to play with the settings or use the touch screen interface, it's a gloves off device. I did notice a speeding up of focusing on a different setting the next day. But the way I was running it for MLW, was slooow. I have heard that complaint on the reviews, so it wasn't surprising. I just want the ability to change lenses and zoom without taking my finger of the shutter for ski shots! So I was tired of my S100 Brian - I probably won't use this while climbing, as it's just too bulky and heavy for that. Though cragging isn't too bad with being able to put on my pro zoom lenses. But for skiing and hiking it should work pretty well. MtnHub - I definitely cherry picked the forecast for this hike! I've had the camera for a couple weeks, and wanted a good first outing with it.
barbiesue53	Great report!! 12/10/2013 19:28 Beautiful pics...makes my ”dream” of seeing the Diamond from that view again all the more needy!! Thanks for posting some good encouragement!

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