The Fairy Lake Tree is probably the most recognizable tree on Vancouver Island. I visited the Island back in May 2023, spending the second week of the trip in Port Renfrew and capping it off with a two-day private workshop with a prominent landscape photographer.

Having seen images of this tree in many different conditions, the best I could hope for was fog. To my surprise, on my first morning in Port Renfrew, the weather app said fog, but when I arrived, there was no fog, just darkly overcast skies with occasional sprinkles. I had to make do with what I was given. After setting up, a slight breeze picked up and blew across the lake in light gusts, but only in certain areas.

I took advantage of the occasional breezes and put on an ND filter to accentuate the effect. I took many shots, letting the breeze move the water in some places and leaving a nice reflection in others. In my other photos of this tree, the reflection is apparent, but in this one, I liked the location of the blurred moving water, which created a sort of frame around the tree. When I returned home, I thought it was a great candidate for black-and-white conversion.

This Fairy Lake Tree is located in Fairy Lake, an extension of the San Juan River Estuary. The lake is fed by Fairy Creek and Renfrew Creek. It is influenced tidally by the San Juan River, which empties into Port San Juan and eventually into the Pacific Ocean. The lake is downstream from the Fairy Creek Watershed, which was ground zero for recent protests against old-growth logging on the island. This little tree is symbolic of the struggles of these rare trees and the folks trying to save them.