In the summer of 1928, the Sierra Club’s annual “High Trip” was an expedition to the Canadian Rockies. The members of the expedition left Oakland, California by train and arrived later in Jasper, Alberta before then taking the rail to Mount Robson Provincial Park in BC.
A young photographer by the name of Ansel Adams was invited to come along. He would be one of the official photographers and his expenses would be paid although he would not be. It was on this trip to Canada that “Ansel began to find his voice as a photographer.”
Mount Robson Peak by Ansel Adams (eBay)
The leader of the expedition, William Colby, wrote about Ansel that he, "…uncomplainingly carried his equipment, weighing unspeakable pounds. His only regret was that the pace required to keep up with the climbing parties did not afford opportunities to photograph all the wonders about him.”
Ansel himself later said, “The Canadian Rockies have a wonderful mood, but it's one of the most infested areas you can possibly imagine — mosquitoes, horseflies; bad trails and very erratic weather.” He wrote that he would, “… unload exposed film and load fresh film with my film holders in a changing bag at dusk, while a friend kept the mosquitoes at bay."
But Mount Robson and the other Rockies he visited on that trip left a lasting impression on him as he wrote to his wife:
“These mountains are breathtaking — utterly different than anything we have seen. The peaks and forests and “tone” fulfill almost every ideal I have had of what ‘my’ mountains could be. The cold ice crashes down tremendous cliffs to the very edge of deep, somber forests. No dust here — all is snow, ice, clean black rock and mossy earth covered with thick vegetation — all cool and calm and very strong in the primal aspect. These are great mountains we dream about.”
Ansel Adams is considered one of the greatest photographers of our time, and he began his remarkable career with the great peak of Mount Robson.
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| Mount Resplendent by Ansel Adams (eBay) |
“A great photograph is a full expression of what one feels about what is being photographed in the deepest sense, and is, thereby, a true expression of what one feels about life in its entirety.” Ansel Adams
Sources & Further Reading:
Ansel Adams in the Canadian Rockies, Little Brown and Company (October 29, 2013)
https://sheldonkirshner.com/ansel-adams-in-the-canadian-rockies/
https://www.sierraclub.org/library/1928-high-trip-photo-album
https://archive.org/details/convanseladams00adamrich/page/279/mode/1up
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