Rocky Mountain National Park Winter
Within the wilds of Rocky Mountain National Park lie alpine lakes, breathtaking valley views, aspen groves and stars so radiant that you’ll feel you could reach to the sky and brush them with your fingertips. We will venture together into the mountains to photograph all this and more, in one of the most wondrous landscapes in all the national parks. And we will do this mid-winter, when the world of the Rockies is covered in the quiet of snow.
Workshop Details
March 16-21, 2026
This is a 6-night, 6-day workshop. Your adventure begins on the morning of March 16, and ends after a final night shoot on March 21.
$2,745 + applicable taxes.
Skill level
Intermediate and above. Participants should have a firm grasp of the basic principles of photography and of their cameras, and have a comfortable understanding of night photography fundamentals.
Group size
14, with 2 instructors — 7:1 ratio
NPS website
Workshop Leaders
Registration
| • Deposit of $TK is required to reserve your spot at the workshop. |
| • Balance of $TK is due on TK. —> Pay balance here. |
| • You may choose the “Pay in Full” ticket if you desire to pay all at once. |
| • Last day for a cancellation request is TK (see cancellation and refund policy). |
| • You may choose the “Pay in Full” ticket if you desire to pay all at once. |
| • The workshop fee does not include lodging, food, airfare, entrance fees, or transportation to or during the workshop. |
The Rocky Mountain Winter Experience
The Rocky Mountains range rises between the plateaus of the Midwest and the shores of the Pacific, and is one of the most awe-inspiring sights in North America. One of its showcase locations is in the heart of Colorado: Rocky Mountain National Park. The entire region teems with beautiful subjects for photography: alpine lakes and tundra, clear ponds and lakes, rippling rivers and majestic waterfalls, and of course mountain landscapes that recede miles into distant horizons.
All of that takes on an extra-special kind of magic in winter. And winter takes on an extra-extra-special kind of magic at night.
Thus our adventure to pursue night photos among the winter landscapes of this beautiful national park in Colorado. The workshop will be based in the mountainside village of Estes Park, giving us easy access to food, supplies and quick routes to our shoot locations.
The winter weather will make for beautiful scenes, but we recognize it can also disrupt plans. Our main goal will be to photograph snowscapes below starry skies, so when the evening forecast is clear, we’ll schedule classroom sessions for daytime and shooting for night. But if clouds and blinding snowfalls are predicted for evening, we’ll shoot during the day and stay inside for instruction and warm meals at night. To maximize our chances of seeing those starry skies over the winter landscape, we’re running this trip for six nights.
All of the shoot locations will be on the east side of the park, due to the tundra pass being closed for winter. Most spots we can access from close to the cars, requiring minimal effort. Additionally, one location will require navigating a trail around a lake, and another will require trekking 2 miles round-trip to another lake and a breathtaking valley view. Those two trips will likely involve snowshoeing to reach our spots!
As if all of that isn’t fun enough, we will level up the experience by staying at one of the go-to spots in Estes Park, The Stanley Hotel. This stately, century-old lodge is most famous as the inspiration for Stephen King’s novel The Shining, as well as the filming location of the 1997 miniseries based on the book. But don’t worry! You’ll be so excited about all the winter photography that you’ll barely even notice the ghosts.
What You Should Know
Participants must have at least basic photo skills, know their cameras well, and be comfortable shooting raw in manual mode with a DSLR or high-end mirrorless camera. Being out in the mountains at the edge of a frozen lake on a 15-degree night is not the time to be learning your camera controls and manual exposure.
If you would like to join us on this trip but are unsure whether you have adequate night photography skills, we can offer pre-event tutoring to get you ready for your adventure with us. Additionally, a few of us have written books that may be productive pre-trip reads.
What You Will Learn
This should definitely push you outside your comfort zone. We will be testing the limits of what you and your camera can do. You’ll go home after the workshop with a solid grasp of photographing at winter night in an alpine environment.
TOPICS COVERED WILL INCLUDE:
shooting and blending snowscapes with night-sky exposures
preparing and planning for a winter night shoot
optimizing and caring for your gear in cold environments
star points and star trails
and more …
Night Conditions
Logistics & General Info
Travel
You are responsible for arranging and paying for your own transportation.
Nearby Airports:
Denver (DEN) — 1 hour from Estes Park
Cheyenne (CYS) — 2 hours
Rental Car
You will need a rental car to get to the workshop and to the shoot locations.
Due to the snowy conditions, we highly recommend four-wheel-drive. You may rent whatever you like, but we will insist that all attendees carpool in four-wheel-drive vehicles to the shoot locations.
If you are interested in carpooling or sharing a rental car, let us know and we will try to connect you with another attendee looking for the same.
Lodging & Food
You are responsible for arranging and paying for your own meals and accommodations.
Lodging
For a little extra fun, we will be staying at The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, the inspiration of the lodge in the Stephen King book and film The Shining. You are not required to stay at the official workshop lodging, though doing so does make it easier to meet with the group each day.
Info and group code will be sent once our lodging partner is ready to begin taking reservations.
If you are interested in sharing a room, let us know and we will try to connect you with someone like-minded in the group.
Food
Estes Park has plenty of good food options.
We encourage eating two meals per day—a good breakfast and a great late lunch.
When on the night shoots, you may wish to bring snack food or a sandwich, a thermos with a hot beverage, and plenty of water.
Weather
Expect daytime highs in the 40s F, and nighttime lows in the teens-20s.
Recommended Attire
Winter wear.
Quality base layers (both tops and bottoms) are a must.
A rain/snow-proof winter jacket, plus rain or ski pants, will offer you the best protection from any wind or weather.
Wool socks and waterproof hiking boots will keep your feet warm, and Yaktrax, IceTrekkers or Microspikes will keep them planted if you’re walking on ice.
Hats and warm gloves are also highly recommended.
Snowshoe rentals are included in the cost of the workshop, though you are welcome to bring your own.
Exertion Level
The exertion level of this workshop is Moderate. (See more about our classifications.)
Please consider your physical abilities prior to registering. We will be working outdoors, at night, in wilderness, in the snow. Most shoot locations will be close to the cars, but two will involve trails: one shortish trail around a lake, and another more than 2 miles round-trip, both of which will likely happen in snowshoeing conditions. You should be comfortable carrying your own equipment in the snow in the dark.
Rocky Mountain National Park ranges between 7,600 and 14,200 feet in elevation. We will not be going to the high points, but altitude sickness can become a concern at over 8,000 feet, and some people can experience it at elevations as low as 6,000. We will schedule our shoot locations accordingly, by placing higher-exertion locations later in the trip. Still, if you are generally sensitive to high elevations, or if you are coming from a sea-level region, we advise arriving in the area a day or two early to acclimate by going on some short hikes at altitude. We also advise staying well hydrated.
Considerations
IMPORTANT: We encourage reading our FAQs page for more information about skill and gear requirements, and other information that pertains to all our workshops.
If you have questions, please contact us—we're happy to talk it over with you.
A little Piece of Heaven in the Mountains …
“Before us appeared a vast valley, miles across. A snow-laced forest wonderland, bordered by magnificent mountains on all sides.”
Some of my favorite national park memories involve my brother. We’ve toured and photographed Yellowstone together, and Grand Teton, and Great Sand Dunes, and Bryce Canyon, and Acadia. We have also, more than once, hiked the trails of Rocky Mountain National Park.
When he lived in Denver, we ventured into the park a few times when I visited. We’ve experienced Rocky Mountain together enough so that I have multiple memories of sharing the park with him. One in particular stands out as one of my most cherished national park moments.
In the winter of 2017, we spent a bit of time in the park so I could work on snow photos in the mountains. We trudged through the snow to a few places, then began meandering on trails that weaved between lakes and ponds in the lower-elevation forests. Or, I thought we were meandering.
Upon visiting and walking over the fourth or fifth frozen lake of the day, the light was growing dark. Clouds blocked any view of the sky, and snow was quietly falling all around us. We began hiking back down the mountain, backtracking in what remained of our own footprints, now just light impressions in the surface of the freshly snow-filled landscape. Suddenly but surely, my brother pushed aside some tree branches and began to walk off trail. I called out that the way down was to the right, but he just motioned for me to follow him.
We walked through some pines, trudged over some drifts, and angled up a large boulder jutting from the land. And suddenly before us appeared a vast valley, miles across. A snow-laced forest wonderland, bordered by magnificent mountains on all sides. The falling snow made the distant features just barely visible and nearly devoid of color. I felt as if I was looking at a Thomas Moran painting, or an Ansel Adams masterpiece.
The light was fading quickly, and we still had to accomplish an additional 2 miles of hiking over snow to get back to the car. But all I could do was stand there and look, feeling the wind and the snow swirling around me, to gaze at a piece of this world so beautiful that even in that very moment, I knew I would never forget.
