Sunrise over the autumnal Ahornboden

The last glow of the stars fades in the rising twilight. Wisps of fog envelop the autumnally coloured sycamore maples in a milky veil. Behind the Great Ahornboden, the mighty north faces of the main ridge of the Karwendel Mountains rise darkly. The peaks of Eiskarlspitze, Spritzkarspitze, and Grubenkarspitze all lie above 2,600 m, thus towering approximately 1,400 metres above the Engtal valley. Gradually, the first scattered light of the rising sun colours the mountain peaks red, plastically sculpting ridges and couloirs from the formerly dark mass. 

The morning fog, wafting through the groups of trees and clearings, conjures up a special atmosphere that constantly changes. The autumn foliage increasingly takes on colour, whereas the fog is still able to obscure the contours. Even after sunrise, the eastern side of the Great Ahornboden remains in shadow for a long time, due to the valley’s south-facing orientation. Near the Alpengasthof Eng, there are some particularly old and beautiful sycamore maples that I want to photograph.

I am captivated by the gnarled shape, the moss and texture of the bark of the trunk and branches, and the fact that there are still leaves on the trees this year. The contrast between dark rock faces and brightly glowing leaves, the perspectives, and differences in size allow for creative work. However, since the sun only rises above the ridge there around 11 am, I can take my time with other subjects.

The last visit to the Ahornboden in autumn was three years ago now. Every day is different; the colouring of the trees varies over time, and weather and climate have a great influence. You can get an impression of this on the webcam of the Alpengasthof; a look at Instagram pictures with the hashtag #ahornboden also conveys the current situation (provided the filters don’t distort the colours too much).