Road Trip Continues; Colorado Part III

Black Canyon of the Gunnison (click to enlarge)
Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens @ 12mm; 1/80th sec. @f/9; ISO 200

Montrose, Colorado is a lovely city in a wide valley surrounded by mountains to the east and west.  I have a good friend, a retired professional photographer from Virginia, who has been very ill.  He is finally out of the hospital and in rehab.  My primary reason for driving to Montrose was to visit him as he is 84 years old and I haven't seen him since 2012.  I'm happy to report that he is recovering and we're hoping that he will be home in a few weeks. Back in Virginia he spent 30 years getting to know the people of the Appalachian Mountains of Virginia and has produced remarkable work of their lives.  It took years for them to "let him in," so to speak.  They don't trust outsiders.

While in Montrose, we wanted to visit the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (BCOTGNP).  Back in 1996, I visited this remarkable geologic feature but only on its periphery.  We drove the 12 or so miles east out of Montrose and entered the park.  The ranger at the entrance was about as chipper as a person I have ever met!  Also very informative and helpful in answering questions.

Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens @ 15mm; 1/400th sec. @f/8; ISO 200

I've been to the Grand Canyon three times.  It is magnificent and if you never have seen it, put it on your bucket list.  But the BCOTGNP!  My wife and I both came to the conclusion that the BCOTGNP is more spectacular and more impressive than the Grand Canyon.  I can't adequately describe it to you but the canyon is 48 miles (77 km) long and consists of canyon walls that are straight up and down, some as deep as 2250 ft. (685 m).  In places at the bottom, though which the Gunnison River runs, it is only 40 ft. wide!  Picture a canyon a thousand feet high, blackish rock, straight up with places the sun never reaches and you get an idea of how spectacular the BCOTGNP is.

We spent several hours there.  While there we heard some "booming" in the far distance and looked to the west and saw ominous dark clouds and sheets of rain.  It did start to rain while we were visiting the various vistas and while I was making images.  In this case I had the E-M1 Mark II with the 12-100mm lens attached and both are really water and weather resistant and I didn't worry at all. They got wet, but no problems at all.

Olympus E-M1 Mark II, 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens @ 29mm; 1/500th sec. @f/8; ISO 200

I was told it hadn't rained in a long, long while but chose to rain on that particular day.  Fine with me.  Bad weather makes for good photography.

If you haven't had an opportunity to visit the Black Canyon, I suggest you do, especially if you are a photographer.  There are many, many differing views and I am showing only three.  I'm sure I'll post more after returning home.  Also, there is road that goes to the bottom of the canyon, which you can drive.  However, a ranger told me the road is winding, narrow but paved and is on a 20 degree slope.  I passed.  I think if I would have had a manual transmission vehicle I would have driven down.  You can proceed at your own risk!

So far, all of my gear has functioned perfectly.  Whichever I grab works perfectly and has produced sharp, detailed and contrasty images. I still prefer the colors and controls of the Fujifilm gear but I prefer the convenience of the E-M1 Mark II with the 12-100mm f/4 PRO lens.  If Fujifilm would only make the equivalent, a 16-140mm f/4 lens (I'm not impressed with the 18-135mm Fujifilm lens), I could be a very happy wanderer!  But as we know, sometimes you just can't get what you want.

The next post will highlight a drive along The Million Dollar Highway. The drive itself was spectacular but the fall foliage and geography was stunning.

Join me over at Instagram @dennisamook or my website, www.dennismook.com. 

Thanks for looking. Enjoy! 

Dennis A. Mook 

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