Jules Renard once wrote, “On earth there is no heaven, but
there are pieces of it.”
Thats exactly how I feel about Tombstone Territorial Park,
Kluane National Park and many of the areas in-between that we will stop at, and
photograph. The beauty that exists in some of the Yukon's back country areas
are areas that I would compare to any other location on the planet for the
landscape photographer of any level
Details of Photography Workshop
Date of the Trip: August 26, 2018 to September 2, 2018
Maximum number of participants is 4 (3 spots left)
Included: Private helicopter has been chartered to take us
out to Tombstone Territorial Park and pick us up. Shared Accommodation at
hotels, Shared tent in Tombstone. Use of tent, use of sleeping pad.
Transportation via an approved Dempster highway certified vehicle. Camping
fees. Park permits are secured and Photography permits will be securedMeals
while camping. Satellite phone with group while camping and traveling in
Tombstone Territorial park.
Not Included: Extra nights if required, sleeping bag (please
bring your own), traveler insurance, meals when not camping, items of personal
nature, anything not listed as included above.
Flight Information: You will be arriving into Dawson, Yukon
Airport (airport code YDA), you will be departing from Whitehorse Airport,
(airport code YXY)
Cost of Workshop: $5995USD
Single Supplement: $500USD (does not apply to camping as
space is limited at the campsite)
Deposit Information: $1000USD to secure your spot and
balance due May 25th, 2018
Packing Information: Your personal equipment must be
carefully chosen to be durable, weather resistant and insect-proof. Layered
clothing for temperature control is best. Outer garments such as cotton or wool
are advisable. Synthetic lining in the bag that we take to Tombstone is a good
idea. Boots should be worn and suitable for hiking off trail over sand, rocks
and wet terrain. You should have waterproof rain gear that you can comfortably
hike in. A daypack suitable to carry your own camera equipment and bag lunch
for our hikes is great.
Recommended Photography Equipment:
• Wide angle lens such as a14 to 24mm and an aperture of
F2.8 or faster
• A medium telephoto lenses in the range of 24-105mm and a
70-200mm
• Sturdy Tripod
• Remote control for your camera for landscapes and aurora,
ND and polarizers
• Two camera bodies, sufficient memory cards, chargers and
batteries for each body
‘Quicklist’ of Things to Bring:
• Day pack (for camera equipment, two days clothing while
camping, lunches etc.)
• Personal items such as sunglasses and sunscreen
• Warm jacket
• Insulated pants
• waterproof hiking boots
• Water bottle
• Warm clothing that you can layer, winter hat and liner
gloves.
• Quality rain gear for you and for your camera
• Flashlight
• Sleeping bag
A more detailed list, and suggestions on how to travel with
this gear will be supplied prior to the trip.
Itinerary of Photo Workshop
Day One – August 26, 2018 – You arrive in Dawson City on Air
North flight 4N307 in the morning. I will pick you up at the airport and take
you to our hotel in Dawson where we can drop our luggage and we will spend the
balance of the day exploring the history of Dawson City before dinner.
After a group dinner we will head down the Dempster Highway
and stop at different locations to photograph the area from different locations
in order to give you a glimpse into the landscapes that we will be flying
behind in the coming days.
Physically, Tombstone is just north of Dawson City, easily
accessed by the Dempster Highway… as we will see today. But tomorrow we will
enter the “Patagonia of the North” and return to the time when the only people
here were the First Nations: the Tr’ondek Hwech’in, Na Cho Nyak Dun, Gwich’in
First Nations, and the Inuvialuit people. Everything else was wildlife:
Caribou. Moose. Dall sheep. Bears. Wolves. And the beautiful gyrfalcon and
Ptarmagen.
This is the land where craggy, black granite pinnacles point
to the sun. Where hidden valleys are settings for crystalline lakes. Where
every summer the tundra explodes in a crazy carpet of colours that delight the
eye and confound the camera. And where the only forces that have truly touched the
landscape are wind, water, and glaciers—except in the northern Beringia areas
where the glaciers did not form, and where mammoths, steppe bison, scimitar
cats and other giants of the ice age roamed.
The unique landforms, life, and heritage found in this 2,100
km2 are now protected for all time.
Stay at Aurora Inn in Dawson City.
Day Two – August 27 - Today we must have a mandatory meeting
with Yukon Parks staff to discuss camping in the back country.
But we will also visit the abandoned Bear Creek gold mining
site today. This town, once pinnacle to the local gold mining was left
abandoned. The buildings and machinery left and has been over taken by nature
over the last half century.
We will then head back to Tombstone Territorial Park to walk
some hiking trails to give you some further views of the Tombstone Mountains
surrounded by the fall colour ground cover.
Stay at Aurora Inn in Dawson City
Day Three and day four – August 28 and August 29 - After
breakfast on day three we will head to the airport to meet with our private
helicopter charter that will take us deep into the Tombstone Mountain range.
Our destination is the Talus lake and the Grizzly Lake area of Tombstone
Territorial Park.
This pristine area is in the center of Canada’s version of
Patagonia. The landscapes are otherworldly and the silence is deafening.
Because we are sleeping under the stars tonight we can keep
our eye out on the skies for our very short window for northern lights. Sunset
is at 11pm and it will not be dark until after midnight… Sunrise will not be
until 5:45pm, which means twilight will be an hour before that. This gives us 3
½ to 4 hours of dark enough skies to watch for northern lights while in one of
the most remote areas of Canada, just a few degrees from the arctic circle.
For the next two days will hike to different vantage points
through numerous side trips we can do from the lake, including Grizzly Pass and
Mount Monolith / Twin Lakes viewpoint.
Our hiking trails will take us into different valleys to
photograph some of the iconic mountain ranges that are part of Indian folklore
before humans were keeping records.
Because we are sleeping under the stars during these nights
we can keep our eye out on the skies for our very short window for northern
lights. Sunset is at 11pm and it will not be dark until after midnight… Sunrise
will not be until 5:45pm, which means twilight will be an hour before that.
This gives us 3 ½ to 4 hours of dark enough skies to watch for northern lights
while in one of the most remote areas of Canada, just a few degrees from the
arctic circle.
Remote camping in tent.
Day Five – August 30 - After one last sunrise photo shoot we
will get picked up by our private helicopter charter and taken back to Dawson
City over the mountain ranges of Tombstone Territorial park.
We will return to Dawson City and check back into the Aurora
Inn where you can clean up, grab a shower and we can grab some lunch.
This will give us time to go through your images and I can
help you with composition and editing.
After dinner you will have one final photo shoot as the sun
descends over the meadows of the Tombstone area at one other location I know
along the Dempster Highway.
There is still more area to explore in the Tombstone
Territorial Park. After a hearty meal we will head back to the Dempster Highway
and head farther into the Park.
Long into the night we will stay in the area to photograph
into the Golden hour.
As we depart back to Dawson, keep your eyes on the skies. We
will arrive back in Dawson after dark and there is always a chance that the
aurora will be dancing over head.
Day Six – August 31 – We rise very early and head south.
Today its time to switch gear and grab our luggage and head south towards
Whitehorse.
This will be a lengthy drive with frequent stops that will
take us most of the day. Our destination lodge is 45 minutes north of
Whitehorse.
Later today and into the night we will focus on one of my
favorite areas, the Fox Lake area. Here, you will be focused on photographing
the mountain reflections and the fall colours. After we check into our
accommodation mid afternoon, expect to be out taking images. Hopefully staying
out for the northern lights over one of the area lakes.
Stay at Lodge outside of Whitehorse
Day Seven – September 1 – Kluane – Today we head west for
Kluane National Par. If you’ve ever imagined standing amidst a sweeping
landscape of mountain valleys carved by glaciers and sprinkled with vibrant
fall colours, you will get to live your dream in Kluane National Park and
Reserve of Canada. An icon of North America and the center piece of the Kluane
region in Yukon, Kluane National Park and Reserve is one of our natural
treasures and was declared a World Heritage Site in 1979.
We will visit four or five different vantage points in the
Haines and Kluane area, ending our day back in Whitehorse.
But, as we always do on my Yukon trips, we pay attention to
the sky. If the northern lights are out, and the cloud forecast is
accommodating, we will have the option to be out one last night hunting down
the northern lights.
Stay at WestMark Inn in Whitehorse
Day
Eight – September 2 – You depart for home
Contact me for all the details. kevin@kevinpepperphotography.com
