Rocky Mountain National Park - Kawuneeche Valley

Kawuneeche Valley

Kawuneeche Valley is located on the west side of RMNP, and is at an elevation of 8,949 feet. Like Moraine Park, this area was formed as part of the Pinedale glaciation period some 30,000 years ago. This area of the park does not get as many visitors as the east side of the park. It is probably my favorite area in the park. The way the Colorado River meanders through the valley, along with the abundant wildlife, and relative peace and quiet, captured a piece of my heart. Don’t tell anyone though, we don’t want it getting too crowded ;)

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I remember spotting this location one evening after sitting and watching a large herd of Elk graze in the valley. It was my first visit to the west side of the park, and I was on my way back to Grand Lake when I noticed a large bull moose not too far from the road. I pulled over to try and capture a shot, but he was too fast for me. But what I did notice was just a perfect scene. The Colorado River leads your eye into the stand of trees, that in turn point you toward the mountain behind. The symmetry of the landscape is something I always appreciate, it makes you think Mother Nature has a plan. I came back the next morning as the sun came up, and just had to press the shutter button.

Valley Sunrise

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Buckaroo Night Light

When I was doing some research for Milky Way locations on the west side of RMNP, I couldn’t believe I found this spot. I came during the day, and realized what a great place this would be for a Milky Way photo. The field of green grass, the barn, the trees behind all make a perfect foreground. When I came back at night, it seemed a much farther walk from the car than during the day. I also realized how much darker the west side of the park is than the east side (the mountains on block the light pollution from Denver and the suburbs unlike on the east side). As I finished taking my photos I heard something, I fumbled to get my headlamp on, and about 25 yards in front of me a female elk was meandering along the path. She stopped, and we stared at each other for a moment. After a few seconds my heart started again, and I went about packing up my gear. The Elk made a slight detour towards the barn, and we both went our separate ways.

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Colorado River Reflections

The first photo I grabbed the night I got the Buckaroo Barn photo above. This one was right near the parking lot. The Colorado River headed toward the Milky Way made this an easy and obvious spot to grab a photo. No wildlife encounters here made it seem almost boring :)

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Mt. Baker Delight

This is probably one of those pictures that just doesn’t do the scene justice. Everything had a lovely, subtle golden hue, the weather was absolutely perfect, and the smell of the mountains was as pure as could be. I spent more time just soaking this scene in than I did taking photos, but I snapped the shutter at least once..

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