The Photographic Dawn Patrol | Portfolio

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Pep Fujas putting skins on at the Alta parking lot after a huge dump, when it probably snowed 7 feet over 2-3 days. We wanted to get a taste of it and Pep had to be at his desk at WNDR Skis by 9 am, so we really did have to dawn patrol. The sun never came out, but it was still worth it.

Pep Fujas putting skins on at the Alta parking lot after a huge dump, when it probably snowed 7 feet over 2-3 days. We wanted to get a taste of it and Pep had to be at his desk at WNDR Skis by 9 am, so we really did have to dawn patrol. The sun never came out, but it was still worth it.

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More sunrise, more powder, and more time to ski on those early winter days when we don’t get that much sun. Noah Howell, still with his headlamp on, about to top out across from Snowbird.

More sunrise, more powder, and more time to ski on those early winter days when we don’t get that much sun. Noah Howell, still with his headlamp on, about to top out across from Snowbird.

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This is just a few minutes after the previous shot. Noah is folding up his skins while getting ready to drop just as the sun is about to come out. There is something special about the 20 minutes of beautiful pink light before the sun comes up – or goes down – and it’s really my favourite kind of light.

This is just a few minutes after the previous shot. Noah is folding up his skins while getting ready to drop just as the sun is about to come out. There is something special about the 20 minutes of beautiful pink light before the sun comes up – or goes down – and it’s really my favourite kind of light.

While humans have long begun outdoor adventures before sunrise, some credit climber Alex Lowe with coining the phrase “dawn patrol”. In the early 90s, Lowe was making early-morning missions into the Wasatch before work at Black Diamond Equipment in Salt Lake City. Today, thousands of skiers around the world wake up at uncomfortable hours and don headlamps to access sunrise turns, but perhaps nowhere is dawn patrolling more prevalent than Salt Lake City, where world-class backcountry skiing is so accessible, entire trailheads can be full at 5 a.m.

Unlike most of these skiers, prolific photographer Adam Clark isn’t dawn patrolling to get online by 8 a.m. He’s skinning in the dark for the fleeting ski and photography conditions that only sunrise can promise: untracked powder and alpenglow.

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Mali Noyes and Kalen Thorien en route to “Red Baldy”. We had to start early for this one, so we were on the skin track already at 3:30 am to get sunrise at 7 am. 10 minutes after we took this photo, the clouds came in and that was it for the day, but it was still so worth it that morning. Really, what’s better than watching the sun come up, on top of a mountain and getting to ski down?

Mali Noyes and Kalen Thorien en route to “Red Baldy”. We had to start early for this one, so we were on the skin track already at 3:30 am to get sunrise at 7 am. 10 minutes after we took this photo, the clouds came in and that was it for the day, but it was still so worth it that morning. Really, what’s better than watching the sun come up, on top of a mountain and getting to ski down?

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Mt. Superior is the prominent peak right across the road from Alta and Snowbird. It’s one of the best backcountry runs in the Wasatch Mountains and with almost 700 meters of fall-line skiing it’s a big run. Superior is the perfect dawn patrol run and if you are only going to get one run for the day, that’s the one. Captured here is an unknown skier hiking up behind me on a perfect day

Mt. Superior is the prominent peak right across the road from Alta and Snowbird. It’s one of the best backcountry runs in the Wasatch Mountains and with almost 700 meters of fall-line skiing it’s a big run. Superior is the perfect dawn patrol run and if you are only going to get one run for the day, that’s the one. Captured here is an unknown skier hiking up behind me on a perfect day

“You never know when it’s going to be gone—that’s part of the magic of skiing,” says Clark. “Once you’re up there and watching sunrise, it’s always worth it. It’s not that I like waking up early—I don’t really. I’m more dusk patrol, but it’s such a part of the culture in Salt Lake. There are a lot of people who have enthusiasm for it—I can always find someone who has the energy.

Through two decades as a professional photographer, 42-year-old Clark has amassed hundreds of magazine covers and spreads, earned commercial clients like Go RVing, Jaybird and Utah Tourism, and photographed expeditions in Greenland and Patagonia. He has also contributed video production work to Red Bull Rampage, Range Rover, Black Diamond and more. But ski photography is where Clark made a name for himself, and where his passion remains.

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A group of unknown skiers across the ridge getting ready to ski into “Days Fork”

A group of unknown skiers across the ridge getting ready to ski into “Days Fork”

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Claire Brown timing it just right for some sunrise turns. There is always a discussion the night before; how long will it take to hike to the run? Because nobody wants to wait around in the cold for the sun to come up, you want to time it just right so that you only have a few minutes to take skins off and make that first run, not too rushed, but you don’t want to miss it. So, it’s nice when you guess right and drop in at the perfect time.

Claire Brown timing it just right for some sunrise turns. There is always a discussion the night before; how long will it take to hike to the run? Because nobody wants to wait around in the cold for the sun to come up, you want to time it just right so that you only have a few minutes to take skins off and make that first run, not too rushed, but you don’t want to miss it. So, it’s nice when you guess right and drop in at the perfect time.

Clark first learned the rewards of rising early while working as a dishwasher at the legendary Rustler Lodge at Alta. If he was working the lunch shift, he’d earn a sunrise session before skiing Alta from 9:30-11:30, feeling like he’d skied a full day before he threw on his kitchen apron.

He published his first photo in Powder Magazine before he graduated high school. When the magazine folded in 2020, Clark had racked up more than 100 published photos and seven covers.

“Adam is mellow, humble and really kind,” says David Reddick, Powder Magazine’s Director of Photography. “That hasn’t changed with his success. He’s extremely talented and professional, but with his calmness and easy-going demeanor, he’s also just a pleasure to work with.”

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Claire Brown’s perfect morning from another angle.

Claire Brown’s perfect morning from another angle.

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Dave McReynolds enjoying the first tracks on Little Superior, a sub-peak to Mount Superior. It was early in the season, so we went for a shorter tour and still got rewarded with an incredible run.

Dave McReynolds enjoying the first tracks on Little Superior, a sub-peak to Mount Superior. It was early in the season, so we went for a shorter tour and still got rewarded with an incredible run.

Clark jumped on his first trip with Matchstick Productions in his early 20s, then shot for Teton Gravity Research for a dozen years. Now, instead of chasing action, he focuses on the overall experience—a bigger picture view of the ski experience as a whole.

As for dawn patrol success, Clark says the most important part of the routine is getting everything ready the night before and set out where he can’t forget a single item. “Basically, just shy of sleeping in ski boots,” says Clark. That, and meeting partners who are in a good mood in those early hours. “Somehow, happy ski partners make early mornings feel warmer.”

The Dawn Patrol