Buttle Lake Photography

I drove to Buttle Lake since the weather was fairly decent. This is one area that I really like and is very accessible. The weather started out rainy but was supposed to improve so the transition between clouds and sun is what makes for good photography.

The weather started out as rainy and with all the clouds in the sky, it appeared a bit dark still at 8:30 am. The few days of heavy rain has created a lot of waterfalls coming down from the steep banks along the road beside Upper Campbell Lake. The drainage was overwhelmed and water flooded parts of the road. It was passable and there was a crew in the process of fixing the problem. The rain was heavy at times during the drive down Buttle Lake. I stopped in at the snow covered parking area near the boat ramp and waited until the rain abated before I headed out to photograph.

One area of the road down Buttle Lake had some minor flooding and debris washed onto the road. I planned to stop in at the Lupin Falls parking area but it was snow covered and looked a bit deep. Not wanting to get stuck, I drove south and encountered a lot of waterfalls tumbling down from the steep cliffs at roadside. Normally there are quite a few falls which flow but not the volume of water seen today. The further south I drove, the snow disappeared so I stopped in at Karst Creek parking and headed up the short trail. I could hear the water thundering down the creek bed. On my previous visits the creek was all but dried up. Today, it was too dangerous to cross the creek to the other side.

I spent my time near the shore of Buttle Lake and managed to photograph a nice rainbow as the conditions were just right. The sun was shining and the showers were falling in the distance to give the rainbows across Buttle Lake. The clouds drifted across the sky blocking out the sun at times. At times, it sprinkled lightly then the sun would appear followed by dark clouds. This changeable weather provided dramatic lighting that one can stay in one spot and get a variety of different photos.