An early morning alarm clock and a dark takeoff in the early morning air provided some spectacular flying in the heart of Colorado. That brief moment when the sun hits the high peaks was a little surreal. This is something I've experienced hiking 14ers, but I've never been able to see it quite like this from the air.

I love it, Matt. Great stuff!

Cool camera angle, which did a great job of capturing those little moments of magic when the light transforms the picture into something otherworldly.

Sweet. What a beautiful place to fly. The last shot was the best. Nice camera work Matt!

That was awesome!

Am I going blind or is there a bit of goo on the lens that's blurring the rear window of the aircraft?

Nice work! I had the pleasure of flying a Vans RV4 through the Rockies last weekend. Excellent scenery!

Great stuff Matt!

I really like all the pictures your taking while flying . I find myself doing this far to often on short final. Probably a bad habit...

Nice work buddy! I sure hope to see some of you Colorada boys here in October at our fly in!

AKT

Great video! Almost every game is an artistic shoot by itself. Put them all together and it ads up to a flight we all wish we could have joined you for. Thanks for saving some of the magic and sharing it with us.

As usual- Great Stuff

mountainmatt wrote:That brief moment when the sun hits the high peaks was a little surreal.

Definitely nothing else like it. Thanks for sharing, especially after all this gloom and rain.

Beautiful video and awesome scenery.

I have flown over the Rockies hundreds of times and I never tire of their majestic beauty?

What was your maximum altitude?

jealous...

Thanks!

Z, I think I hit a bug or something. But yes, it's a smudge on the lens. Most of this footage happened by accident. I hit record to film going up Independence Pass while taking some pictures for FlyColorado.org, but the camera on the wing never turned off. To my surprise, some of the footage was great and a Flying Pooch Production was underway.

Kevin, I would love to come out to the high sierra fly-in. But, this year isn't looking great for me. I'm hoping a few other CO pilots will attend and come back with some good stories.

MauMau, I was between 12,500-14,000ft for most of that flight.

This cool fall air is a real treat to fly in. Summer flying in the Rockies means your getting bounced around and dealing with a 50mph headwind. haha

Really beautiful, Matt. But it makes me want to whack myself for not recording my return flight from Marble--and the camera was sitting right beside me! I'm often just so busy enjoying the grandeur of the Rockies that I forget to record it anywhere but in my mind. The rain storms here and there, the rugged terrain, the light showing between the tops of the passes and the clouds--all would have been great to record. Oh well--glad someone has the foresight to do it! Thanks.

Cary

Wow Matt, nice job....good on ya for the 180 also, they work so damn good....

Amazing!!!

I HAD to watch it in HD. Well worth the buffering time with DSL, haha!

CamTom12 wrote:Amazing!!!

I HAD to watch it in HD. Well worth the buffering time with DSL, haha!

I agree, HD and the wide screen increases the viewing pleasure.

jomac wrote:Wow Matt, nice job....good on ya for the 180 also, they work so damn good....

Thanks Jo, I agree 100% on the 180 remark!

Cary wrote:Really beautiful, Matt. But it makes me want to whack myself for not recording my return flight from Marble--and the camera was sitting right beside me! I'm often just so busy enjoying the grandeur of the Rockies that I forget to record it anywhere but in my mind. The rain storms here and there, the rugged terrain, the light showing between the tops of the passes and the clouds--all would have been great to record. Oh well--glad someone has the foresight to do it! Thanks.
Cary

Don't be shy Cary, more people need to see this beautiful state from the GA perspective. Many people are weary to see the big mountains of CO (and rightly so), but in ideal conditions, it's an incredible treat!

I'm excited to get back in the air this weekend to head down with the family to La Garita to see some amazing fall colors. The weather forecast couldn't be better.

Nice Work, Matt!

Looks great and like a lot of fun Matt. Keep them coming!

First time I've been on the wifi since you posted this. Great video, Matt. Along with the brilliant scenery, I enjoyed the part just before halfway when you are on video trying to clip a picture. Yoke, view finder, yoke, view fin, yoke. Lot of us can relate to that dance. Well done sir.

Brett

Wow....I'm reminded of Cousteau's reference to the 'raptures of the deep'...nitrogen narcosis. This is must be approaching from the opposite spectrum...Similar effect, but more sublime...Good stuff