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Northern Mountain Caribou, The Yukon, Canada, Day to Night™, 2023
In 2022, I traveled to the Yukon in the Canadian Arctic to photograph the Northern Mountain Caribou.
My team and I were flown by helicopter to a remote location, where we built a blind to observe and photograph from. Battling 30-degree temperatures (-1°C) and relentless 50 mph (80 kph) winds, we spent four days scanning the vast landscape—only to find it completely devoid of wildlife. Not even a mosquito stirred.
Determined, we returned a few weeks later, only to discover our blind had been blown over. We spent the weekend rebuilding it, but when we came back days later, it had collapsed again. No matter how many times we tried to make this image, nature had other plans.
With three failed attempts behind us, we shifted our focus to another known caribou crossing. We transported our gear up the mountain and set up a single pop-up tent alongside a vehicle. My assistant and I spent more than 36 hours photographing in that tight space, hoping for a break. Finally, on our last day, the caribou arrived, and we were able to capture the image.
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