How To Photograph Ice bubbles at Abraham Lake
In the deepest, darkest depths of winter photography becomes a bit of a chore. The nights are long and the days cold and even the most committed photography struggles for inspiration. However there is one location that becomes a unique photographic and viewing experience when the temperatures drop and the wind is high. That is of course Abraham Lake and it’s unique ice bubbles!
How are the bubbles formed?
Plants decaying at the bottom of the lake slowly release methane gas over time. When the lake freezes over the gasses leave bubbles of methane frozen in layers suspended below the surface. Abraham Lake is one of the most prominent locations in the Canadian Rockies where this phenomenon occurs.
What time of year and conditions are best to shoot Abraham Lake?
Getting good ice bubbles at Abraham lake consists of a couple of elements aligning. Firstly you need it to be really cold for a couple of weeks to allow the lake to freeze over and ideally we need there to have been no recent snowfall. One of the reasons Abraham Lake is so well known for its ice bubbles is because the valley the lake sits in can be extremely windy. This means the wind often blows off any snow that tries to settle.
As a ball park figure I’d recommend visiting around the middle of January when the winter is often at it’s coldest. Ideally your visit will be before any snowfall or just after a period of high wind to minimise any snow sat on the ice.
Canadian Rockies Escapes have a blog with relatively up to date ice conditions you can find here.
How to Get to Abraham Lake?
Abraham Lake is a little remote so can be a long drive from most towns, however there are also some options to get there if you don’t have access to a car.
SELF DRIVE
Abraham Lake is around 2.5 hours from the town of Banff. To get there you’ll need to drive west past Lake Louise and take the turning on to the 93N or more commonly known as the Icefields Parkway and head north towards Jasper. Around 75 km or one hour of driving up the Parkway you’ll get to Saskatchewan crossing, here you’ll need to take a right. It’s then about another 25 minutes or 32 km to Preachers Point. However if you’re a photographer I’d probably head on a little further just past Aurum Lodge where I’d say the compositions are a little better. There’s some parking at a place called Abraham Slabs or the Hoodoo Creek Trailhead.
GRAB A TOUR
Abraham Ice Bubble Tour
I’d recommend this tour as it offers the best value for money and also offers pick ups in Banff, Calgary or Canmore and they provide micro spikes and a hot drink.
It also takes in Peyto Lake and Bow Lake and other stops along the way season and weather permitting.
Be aware that a lot of advertised tours are self drive but if you’re already there I wouldn’t say a tour is all that worthwhile!
Where to stay near Abraham Lake
Abraham Lake is a super long drive from The town of Banff and equally as far from Jasper but there are a couple of accommodation options if you want to break up the drive.
Stay at Preachers Point
Preachers point is in fact a public land campground so if you have a winterized campervan you can park up and sleep here. You’ll need to make sure you get a Public Land Camping Pass first though.
A great option for camper vans is RVezy essentially the Turo of RVs so you can rent people’s personal RVs when they aren’t using them. This means there’s a wide choice of RV/van style as well as pick up locations with plenty of options in Banff itself.
Accommodation on the lake
Unfortunately there is limited choice close to the lake for accommodation that’s open during bubble season however the town of Nordegg isn’t too far away!
Aurum Lodge
The Aurum Lodge is the closest place to stay near Abraham Lake and offers cosy rooms and great access to bubble viewing.
Nordegg
Is a small hamlet around 40 minutes north east of Abraham Lake, this small mining town founded in 1914 is home to approximately 2,500 people. Although it’s only small it does have a few accommodation options on offer for different budgets so if you’re planning on making a sunset trip to the lake to get some bubble action staying here might be the way to go!
Come Prepared!
Micro-spikes!
I would highly recommend some micro-spikes if you’re planning on visiting. The slope in to the lake can be slippery and good grip can be a life saver!
Get them on Backcountry.com
Photography Tips For Abraham Lake
Now we’ve found out how to get here and where to stay lets talk photography tips whilst out on the lake!
WHAT TO BRING
A wide angle lens will be your go to here along with a tripod with the ability to invert it’s centre column or get really low to the ground. You’ll also want some micro spikes to walk around on the ice, warm boots and plenty of layers. It gets cold pretty fast when you’re standing still!
Be careful with those spikes don’t walk around too much or you’ll ruin your foreground!
LOOK FOR LARGER BUBBLES IN LAYERS AND GET LOW
I feel the best compositions are when you find more distinctive ice bubble patterns with layers to them. If you get lower to the ice you’ll find you can reveal some of those layers below.
MINIMISE YOUR MID-GROUND
The star of the show here are the bubbles and the mountains in the background and if you aren’t careful with your composition you can end up with a large, uninteresting gap between the two. Getting lower and playing with angles will help you negate this issue.
BUBBLE BLINDNESS
Don’t be blinded by the bubbles! The bubbles are obviously what Abraham Lake is famous for but there are also lots of other great possibilities using snow drifts and cracked ice as leading lines and foreground interest.
SUNRISE OR SUNSET
Abraham Lake is really a sunrise location and you tend to get more colour in the sky during dawn. However it is a long drive from most locations so sunrise isn’t always possible. Don’t turn your nose up at sunset as there’s also some great photography to be had then too.
FOCUS STACK
Don’t forget to focus stack. A lot of the bubbles are deeper below the surface so focusing just on the surface bubble may result in out of focus layers. You may need to focus in different planes then you might think to ensure a sharp image.
Watch the video
Abraham Lake is one of many photography locations in the Rockies. My downloadable, offline Canadian Rockies Photography Location Guide has over 100 locations with GPS coordinates!
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