I am lucky to have friends insane enough to follow me. On a recent trip to the Canadian Rockies, I somehow convinced two of my friends to do a two-day fastpacking trip to the Tonquin Valley in Jasper National Park. As we drove into Jasper the night before we were supposed to leave, smoke filled the sky. Wind had blown thick wildfire smoke into the park. I was worried that similar conditions would await us in the Tonquin Valley. As we drove to the trailhead, the skies began to clear - giving us nice weather for our hike in. Both days were long days - each requiring about 20 miles of total hiking. While the terrain is beautiful, there are two major downsides to hiking the Tonquin Valley in July: mud and mosquitoes. The valley is very flat and full of moisture. This bog-like terrain is the perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes. While shooting this photo, I was wearing a rain jacket and rain pants - not because it was raining - but instead to keep the mosquitoes from biting me through my shirt. I had come to this spot to find several compositions for sunrise the next morning, as the sunrise light is typically better on the Ramparts. As I was discovering some nice compositions, the rays of sunshine from the setting sun began to illuminate the smoke particles high in the sky, creating the beautiful light seen above.