Aurora
Category: 20 Mountains
Great Smoky Mountains, Tennessee
As autumn edged to winter in Tennessee, temperatures dropped to well below freezing. The valleys and peaks of the Great Smoky Mountains were constantly shrouded in fog, and conditions were extremely difficult for shooting—but there was one classic tiering mountain range I was determined to capture. After five frustrating attempts at a sunrise shoot that were completely fogged out, I had almost given up hope. On the sixth morning as I sat in the freezing near-dark awaiting sunrise, the first tinges of dawn told me my luck had changed! Daybreak cast a blush-coloured glow over the horizon and the peaks of the distant mountain range were revealed as they emerged, suspended on the horizon. The silhouetted spruce trees in the foreground add a perspective to the shot, which perfectly conveys the strength and subtlety of Nature.
