Under the Arch at Crater Lake
The bright band of the Milky Way stretching across a clear night sky is an awe-inspiring sight. The experience is even more compelling under a new moon in springtime, when the galaxy forms an arch above the southern horizon. For several months in 2026 I had hoped and planned to photograph the arch over Mount St. Helens and Crater Lake, realizing that clear skies in the Pacific Northwest during springtime are a rarity. In April, I was fortunate to capture the event at Mount St. Helens (see previous post). The following month at Crater Lake, I took advantage of an unusually low snowpack to access The Watchman and Merriam Point by bicycle along West Rim Drive. Two magical nights spent under the stars, during which I encountered only one other human being - a fellow night sky enthusiast - are indelibly imprinted in memory.
Timelapse video from The Watchman viewpoint of the Milky Way Arch rising over Crater Lake, Oregon, on the night of May 19/20, 2026. Actual time elapsed was 6 hours starting at 20:00 local time. Nikon Z8 body, 7Artisans 10 mm lens, f2.8, ISO 3200, 15 sec exposure every 17 sec. Processed with Adobe Photoshop, CapCut PC, and Microsoft Clipchamp software.
