Running to Stand Still
Washington · USA
Backlit by a setting sun, Mt. Rainier looms like an apparition over the easternmost of the Reflection Lakes. This view was my reward after a three-hour drive, an afternoon spent weaving through the hordes at Paradise Park (on a Tuesday, no less! I shudder to think what that place looks like on a fair-weather weekend...), and a stiff hike up to Pinnacle Saddle situated due south of the mountain and lakes. I timed things just well enough to be able to enjoy a leisurely and breezy stroll along Stevens Canyon Road as I looked for a decent vantage point, since much of the lakeshore was off-limits to protect the fragile meadows. Not wanting to be part of the problem, I opted to respect this restriction even though it meant most of the good reflection shots wouldn't be possible. Likewise, instead of cursing the wind for tarnishing the lakes' mirror surfaces (probably calmer at sunrise) and constantly rustling the foreground leaves, I embraced the movement and slapped on my Big Stopper to see what kind of artistic opportunities an ultra-long exposure would afford. This ended up being a 4-minute exposure, during which I enjoyed some of my well-earned dinner sitting atop one of the many large boulders lining the roadside. Cars drove by in both directions, most slowing down some to take in the beautiful scenery before them or perhaps wondering what I was up to, and though I knew I was in for a long and late drive home that night with work looming the next day, I didn't really care much about any of it. Back in the car after night finally fell, I simply loaded "Joshua Tree" into the CD player and let the music and lyrics drift over me...
And so she woke up
Woke up from where she was
Lying still
Said I gotta do something
About where we're going...
