Rocky Mountains

Morning Coffee with the Emperor

This shot nearly killed me. Not while at the scene, no - it's not like I almost fell over these massive falls. It was the night before. I decided to keep on treking on the Berg Lake trail through the most difficult stretch to get to the Emperor Falls campsite for the night. This was the only way I would get a shot of the Emperor in morning or evening light. Even relatively early in the day, the sun is directly behind the falls.

The four kilometers before Emperor Falls campsite gain 500 metres - which feels like a lot when it's the end of a long day of driving and hiking already with a 50+ pound backpack. My suggestion - climb the Valley of a Thousand Falls after a good rest!

After recovering the next morning by 5:00, I collected the four hiking essentials - camera, tripod, cliff bars and bear spray - and walked from the campsite to the Emperor Falls. The morning light was great. The moon even made a brief appearance behind the clouds for one of my photos. The Emperor is a bit challenging to photograph because this is one of the few angles where you and your camera don't get soaked by the mist.

Mount Robson is above the falls and the snow and glacier covered western face is just becoming visible. To the right is the Robson River Valley, the path of the Berg Lake Trail. Emperor Falls is at kilometer 15 of the trail. Once you reach this point, there is only a little more elevation gain to the Emperor Falls campsite and very little gain the rest of the way to Berg Lake.

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