Lake Haiyaha (revisit)

If you recall last month I posted up shots from a hike to Lake Haiyaha. We went back Saturday to see what conditions were like. We knew that the forecast had no clouds, and it hadn't snowed up there in over a week. We also picked this spot because The Photographers Epherimus showed us that the nearly full moon would set along the edge of Otis Peak and the sunrise would light up Hallett Peak to the right.

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IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/darkdenver/6970​608177/

Just shows ya that folks work really hard to get some of these excellent photographs. Well done, Jon!

Hot diggity!

I especially like the first shot too. In all the shots, it's amazing how much the ice looks like large chunks of blue glass.

Thanks guys.

Gene, the ice really is quite unique. No other lake in Rocky Mountain National Park (and there are many) shares this phenomenon, nor has anyone I've spoken to about it been able to tell me why or heard of it in any other lake. When you're observing it the color is very inconsistent, and a slight shift in angle may be the difference between full brilliance and none. We could find no discernible pattern though. An angle of view on one area didn't produce similar brilliance in another. Neither did the sun appear to consistently add or subtract from the color or have an impact consistent with what we would have guessed. If anything the sun dulled it more. In the end, we just kept walking around finding area's of color at a particular moment. It was very hit or miss.

Excellent job, Jon! I really like the second one, the subtle pink hue on the ice is just fantastic!

One of these days I'm going to have to go on one of these hikes with you guys.