One of my favorite photo ops is any cross-country ski trail. People who follow me probably grow a little tired of my pictures of two rutted tracks in the snow that trail off into a wintry white wonderland. I never tire of taking and sharing these pictures. This last winter I saw a little pine grove and decided to venture off the trail and check it out, and what I found was a beautiful golden forest.
Golden forest in Devil’s Lake State Park in Wisconsin
I was cross-country skiing Devil’s Lake State Park in Wisconsin, one of the most popular state parks in the country. The reason for the popularity is mainly for the rocky overlook that gives visitors an iconic view of this northwoods lake.
You can see why Devil’s Lake is so popular winter, spring, fall, or summer
I did climb up to the vista on this day and it was extraordinary as usual; however, my favorite picture of the day and one of my favorites that I took all winter was from the woods abutting the cross-country ski trail, which was miles away from the lake. Many who visit Devil’s Lake do not know the park has some fantastic trails on the other side of the park and even a cross-country ski trail at Steinke Basin.
A photo from the Steinke Basin parking lot, where the trail to the golden forest began
Entering the golden forest in Devil’s Lake State Park
I entered the forest and the trees were planted so closely together that it was difficult for light to get through. Today was a brilliant sunny day without many clouds in the sky and the sun was at its peak, so the sun was beating down on the forest creating a golden glow as the sun’s rays filtered through the trees.
For this picture I used my Apple iPhone 6. I use an app called ProHDR. It takes one light picture and one dark picture and then fuses them for an HD effect. All three photos in this post were taken with this app.
One of the golden rules of camera and light is to take a picture with the sun at your back. Another golden rule is to sometimes break the rules.
This is what I did here and took this picture with the camera facing straight into the sun. Because the light from the sun was dulled by the denseness of the forest, the picture turned out great in my opinion. I just found out about this compact camera from a company called Light, that combines 16 lens into one pocket-sized camera that can be a great way to get quality shots while cross-country skiing.
Check out this post on Wisconsin State Park fees: Wisconsin State Park sticker and trail pass
Adventure on!
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