Must-have Northern Lights Above Paradise, Emigrant, Mt (oe) Holiday Cheer Edition [wD1TG8Od]

Northern Lights Above Paradise, near Emigrant / Pray, MT (OE)
OPEN EDITION

Last night, or early this morning I should say, was a beautiful site unlike anything I've seen.  On an evening with no moon to be seen, and not a cloud in the sky, it was a warm, crisp and clear night that only those who have been to Montana to see it could grasp the shear immense scope of the stars and the sky.

I had just finished a wonderful 2 day shoot at a ranch South of Big Timber on the Boulder River when I decided I should stop in at a favorite spot in the Paradise Valley on the way back home. It was 1 in the morning, and I figured I could get a few good sunrise shots of the recently baled hay along the river. But when I stepped out of the truck ready to climb in to the camper for a couple hours sleep (my sunrise alarm always set for 4:00 am) I could see glimmering shades of green, purple and reds dancing along the horizon over the valley. It was the Northern Lights!!!

Needless to say, I stayed up all night watching and capturing a natural show unlike I've ever seen. I opened a window on the nearby truck, and put on a little late night Yellowstone Public Radio. With a classical masterpiece in the background, combined with the slow roaring of the Yellowstone River far below, the inspiring light show over Livingston and the Paradise Valley made me feel insignificant, and part of everything in a timeless way that words are inappropriate to explain…