Aerial photographer recording Kain peaks

Aerial photographer John Scurlock dropped in, literally out of the sky, during a photographic flight through the Rockies and Purcells in his tiny hand-built aircraft. He spent the night in Wilmer with CKCS members Pat and Baiba Morrow before returning to the sky on his quest to photograph peaks that Conrad Kain had made first ascents of in the Purcells and Rockies. 

John is a longtime pilot and “gentleman” climber who lives in Concrete, Washington, on the banks of the Skagit River, with his wife Karen Nolan. He began photographing the North Cascades in late 2002 and later expanded into the Coast Range of British Columbia. His collection contains approximately 60,000 digital images, all shot through the Plexiglas canopy of his home-built Van’s RV-6 airplane.

John’s interest in Conrad Kain followed a contact by Society member Barb Neraasen, who viewed his outstanding photographs of Mount Robson on-line last summer and ordered a couple of prints from him. He already knew of Conrad by reputation and soon became fascinated with the prospect of recording his mountains from the air. In addition to two very productive photographic flights this September, John plans on returning to the area to fill out his portfolio

John Scurlock’s aerial photos, including a selection from his flights to the Bugaboos, the Purcells, and the Rockies, can be viewed atwww.pbase.com/nolock.