49.7

I'm really glad I got this last shot looking down valley at the ski areas of Summit County right before the battery said good night. In fact, this was one of the reasons I decided to return to the spot high up on the Continental Divide. I'd come to Cupid under a quarter moon in March and hoped to get one more opportunity with another quarter moon in April before the alpine snow started to melt.

I really wanted to capture a wintry scene with the rugged peaks and cornice on the left transitioning over the Continental Divide to the ski resorts of Summit County on the right - of course, with a starry night sky up top. Besides that, the left side faces east toward Denver meaning we'd see some glow from Denver's city lights some 50 miles away. I think that little bit of extra glow on the horizon (left side) makes the scene even more unique.

Sure, I would have liked more time to dial in the image quality and go after a really good comp but I'm not complaining. I feel a bit lucky to have come away with this one considering that once the stars appeared, I had only 6 clicks of the shutter before the battery died. I think it's a fluke to have that happen on a DS3 battery (rented or not), but I still consider myself very happy to have come away with this one.

This 30 second exposure was taken at the top of a peak named Cupid (13,117 feet) after a cold, windy hike from Loveland Pass, Colorado.