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A Saskatchewan couple is getting national recognition for stunning photography.
Arlene and Robin Karpan’s photograph of the Athabasca Sand Dunes will be featured in Canada Posts “From Far and Wide” 2020 stamp series for “nine must-see Canadian sites.”
The travel writers and photographers have some experience with Saskatchewan’s landscapes. The duo has published nine books detailing Saskatchewan’s beauty. From scenic drives to jaw-dropping landscapes, the Karpan’s have seen most of what the province has to offer.
Those adventures include a number of trips to the Athabasca Sand Dunes, where the photo catching the attention of Canada Posts was taken.
“I think we can come right out and say it’s our favourite place in the world,” Robin Karpan said of the dunes.
“What’s really different about it is that most major sand dunes around the world are in deserts or at least dry areas, and this one is right next to one of Canada’s largest lakes, Lake Athabasca, and there’s rivers that run through it.”
Getting to the William Dune Field, where the shot was taken, proved to be a difficult journey for the couple. The southern shores of Lake Athabasca can only be reached by a floatplane, where the couple hops into a canoe to paddle upstream.
“There’s about 18 kilometres that you can go upstream if there’s enough water to the last of the rapids. Then from there, it’s a minimum two-hour hike across pure sand to get to some of these big dunes,” Karpan said.
The goal for the Karpan’s was to get to the massive dunes for sunset, approximately 10:45 p.m. in early July, to get a photo of the sunset casting across the dunes.
“You can never get the same conditions twice,” he said. “You could easily get caught in a sand storm there. You can get sand, you can get wind, you can get forest fire smoke. This one time everything came together.”
Karpan described the shot as a combination of planning and luck. They hiked to the top of the dune, stuck around until the sun was low in the horizon so a shadow would be cast on one side of the dune as the other lit up brightly.
The Athabasca Sand Dunes is home to the largest active sand surface in Canada, as well as the largest active land surface in the country.
This year marks the second consecutive year the couple’s photography was chosen for a Canada Post national stamp.
Karpan said return visits to the area are always a joy, but they can’t produce the same results as their nationally recognized photograph.
“We’ve never been able to duplicate the light conditions. No regrets, that one everything worked out well. Just being up there, even if you don’t get the perfect shot, is rewarding in itself,” he said.