Tag Archives: Fall

The In-Between, Day 1 | Minnesota North Shore #exploremn

October 24, 2013 Dan Traun

Fall 2013 MN North Shore series

Any long-time follower of this blog knows that with Cyndie and I; although destinations are great, it is all about the journey in between those destination that really stand as lasting memories through the years for us. This trip tot the MN North Shore was no exception. The in between was great on the MN North Shore!

Our first day we made it as far as Grand Marais. This is by far my favorite area on the MN North Shore to be. Its close proximity to The Gunflint Trail, Judge CR Magney State Park, Cascade River State Park, Temperance River State Park and all of the back roads, forest roads and loops you can travel are via car are phenomenal. It’s beautiful country.

Along the way to Grand Marais we stopped at Temperance River State Park. Later in the afternoon we made out way out to Honeymoon Bluff. There was no sunset to be had as it was cloudy and overcast, but we made the best of it. It was full day. Even Though the color was 100% or past peak (in most areas), there was still some great color and likely 80% less people than a week ago. Day 1 was pretty smooth sailing; Day 2 though, we were part of a 3 car traffic jam on a forest road. The congestion cleared soon enough though. Here are some shot from day 1.

Destination, Nature, Photography

Grand Portage State Park – Gunflint Trail | MN North Shore #exploremn

October 23, 2013 Dan Traun 1 Comment

Fall 2013 MN North Shore series

A favorite destination along the MN North Shore – actually all the way up to the northern tip – is Grand Portage State Park where the Pigeon River flows over the tallest waterfall in Minnesota. It is a pretty spectacular site. It is one of the destinations along the shore that Cyndie and I very much enjoy photographing. A great attribute of the park is that it is handicapped accessible with a paved trail, boardwalk and ramps to a viewing platform. The path the falls is a short distance through the forest. It was overcast that day, but that didn’t seem to dampen the glow of yellow and orange of the Autumn color – it was quite brilliant.

There is a 3.5 mile trail out to middle falls as well. We found the third waterfall on the pigeon river too (Partridge Falls). Partridge Falls is pretty good size, but it lacks a decent down-river vantage point. More on that later…

Here are two views of the high falls and another of the pigeon river flowing toward Lake Superior.

Destination, Nature

North Shore Abstracts – Gunflint Trail | MN North Shore #exploremn

October 21, 2013 Dan Traun

Fall 2013 MN North Shore series

You can find yourself doing all sorts of things when you are out and about along MN North Shore. We made good use of our midday going to and from locations. The lovely Autumn colors provided some great backdrops for some abstract shots. It is something different to do photographically and some time you get some pretty interesting shots.

For those of you who have never done anything like this, you can get shots like this with a small aperture (f/16 – f/32) and a slow shutter speed. Click the shutter and move your camera either up or down from where you started. Side to side works well to. You can also zoom in or out to create a pretty neat effect. Go nuts; there is no wrong method.

Destination, Nature, Photography, Time-lapse

Sunrise @ Hollow Rock | MN North Shore #exploremn

October 20, 2013 Dan Traun 4 Comments

Fall 2013 MN North Shore series

Hollow Rock

Hollow Rock is located a handful of miles South of Grand Portage, MN on MN North Shore. Hollow Rock Resort is situated in between Hollow Rock Creek and Hollow Rock Road. The rock formation is located right off of the shore from the resort. Cyndie and I stayed in Cabin #5 – Moose; Hollow Rock was right out the cabin’s front door.

Being right on location was certainly nice. All that was needed was to wake up, have some coffee and then set up to shoot. The in-floor heat was a plus; it made the cabin nice and cozy. I was also happy to see the tank-less water heater. It is always good to have hot water. This is what I like to refer to as remote/comfortable. There is no cable TV, cellular service or Internet here. It was quite peaceful. A great place to get lost for a few days.

Here are a few other shots from the cabin and around the immediate area outside the cabin.

At this particular time of year, the sunrise lines up nicely with hole in Hollow Rock. We had a picture-perfect morning for a sunrise. The weather, clouds and color came together quite nicely. Here are four frames from that magnificent sunrise shoot.

I continued to practice my time-lapse photography at this location as well. I had the same issues as before, but I am pleased with the results.

Part One

Part Two

Destination, Nature, Photography, Time-lapse

Honeymoon Bluff – Gunflint Trail | Minnesota North Shore #exploremn

October 17, 2013 Dan Traun 1 Comment

Fall 2013 MN North Shore series

Honeymoon Bluff

There is a very picturesque place not so far away from Grand Marais, MN; just up the Gunflint Trail approximately 30 miles on MN North Shore. Honeymoon Bluff overlooks Hungry Jack lake; if you are lucky you will witness a beautiful sunset. This site is easily accessible by a well-mark and maintained trail. Steep as it was, it is over very soon. A quick 1/2 mile and you are looking out over pristine wilderness.

Our first attempt during our stay in Grand Marais/Grand Portage was met with cloudy conditions – not optimal for a sunset. You come all this way and you sometimes make do with what is available. I took the opportunity to shoot some time-lapse photography. Since we were relatively close the second day we decided to have another go at it.

Time-lapse is interesting to play around with; clearly I need to perfect the process more. The output is a bit crude as I had some dust and dirt issues and I still have the trial version of the software. Sunset I think is easiest as you just end up with a black frame eventually. Sunrise is a whole different thing; more on that in a future post.

Cloudy version

Sunset version

Here are my shots from both days – clouds and sunset. Cyndie and I really enjoyed this spot. It is easy enough to reach if you are in the area and it looks like there may be a good sunset.