"Island in the Sky" - Clingmans Dome, Great Smoky Mountains N.P.

Island in the Sky

While hiking up to Grotto Falls in rain and fog, I came across a park employee on his way down from the summit of Mount LeConte (the second highest summit in the park). Jokingly, I said to him  “socked in fog up thier eh”
To which he said, ” nope, crystal clear on the summit “. I turned around on the trail, ran back to the car, broke about 15 traffic violations while racing to the summit of Clingmans Dome. I made it to the summit and it was indeed clear and the clouds were rolling across the ridges. I waited until the last light of dusk to make this image. No filters, single exposure of 45 seconds @ ISO 100 at f16.

2 more versions:

Between Heaven and Earth

Layers of Light