Earlier this summer we had the good fortune to produce some hiking and backpacking work in Utah’s canyon country. From the outskirts of Zion, to the soaring cliffs of Cedar Breaks and into the canyons of Bryce and Grand Staircase, we covered a lot of ground. We were thrilled that it looked like a couple hikes that we’ve been wanting to do would make the cut this time around. It was nice to wade through shin deep Kanarra Creek while exploring that canyon on a really hot day.
And touring the spectacular rock formations that make up the Fairyland Loop in Bryce Canyon was like no place else we’d ever seen. We spend a lot of time exploring the deserts, canyons and mountains of Utah, yet it continues to blow us away with every visit. Now if they ever made it so you could get a decent draft beer, we may never leave.
This spring we traveled to Utah’s Wasatch Mountains for a travel assignment with Utah Office of Tourism and Sundance Mountain Resort. Along with local writer Brett Prettyman, we worked on a story to feature the early season fly fishing opportunities on the Provo River and the relatively new guided program offered by the resort. Needless to say the accommodating for this shoot were posh. Everything was top shelf, including the bourbon.
Along with local fishing talent Lani Murakami and Heidi Lewis, we followed Brian Wimmer’s lead for some brisk spring casting on the Provo. Wimmer heads up the fly fishing program at Sundance and can coax a brown trout to the net on the toughest days. And tough it was: we were weeks before the productive blue wing hatch. Regardless, stories were shared, fish were caught and pictures were made. That all adds up to a successful day on the river in my book.
Road Trip! In January we hit the road on a shoot for the Utah Office of Tourism. The mission was to showcase a handful of good reasons to visit the State’s national parks in the dead of winter. This might sound kind of just plain cold at first. But then you drive up into those magnificent red rock canyons flocked with snow and encased in ice. It’s impossibly beautiful.
We started off the week in Cedar Breaks National Monument where the key winter attractions are skiing at Brian Head Resort and the ranger-hosted night sky program. Know what’s challenging about shooting in an International Dark Sky Park? Yeah, it’s pretty darn dark. Needless to say that one cold night put Nikon’s latest camera’s low-light and battery capabilities to the test. Proud to report that it passed the test. end
