“That’s weird,” I thought to myself. “I can’t feel my shutter button. Why can’t I feel my shutter button!?” Well, it would’ve helped if I could have felt my fingers to begin with. It was a cold, cold morning in the Wasatch this last week as I hauled a heavier than normal pack (thanks to a hefty new lens!) up 2,000 vertical feet or so to Cardiff Peak in the Wasatch backcountry.

When I left my house I could see the stars. As I parked my car, it was snowing lightly, with spotty clouds. By the team we reached our destination, it was socked in. Great. I love waking up at 5 am and skinning up in zero degree temps to get shut down by Mother Nature. No matter how cold I was–I was waiting. I didn’t care if we had to wait hours for the sun to poke out–it was a waiting game as far as I was concerned. Fortunately, we didn’t have to wait long. Sure enough, the sun manifest itself through brilliant pink light on Mt. Superior, and I knew it was only a matter of time and a meeting of the elements before we saw that light on Cardiff.

I sent two skiers down the ridgeline and kept one with me to work the other side facing Superior. We were greeted with a fleeting moment of warm, golden sunlight and were then forced to wait just a bit more for pockets of light. The day was a success as I came away with several more ski images than I would have, had I not made it up that morning. There’s something to be said for dawn patrols in the Wasatch. They’re often very cold, and sometimes rather questionable as to what sort of light you’ll end up with–but the moment that sun crests the horizon and the mountain-tops are lit by that giant pink spotlight, it’s as magical a moment as any.