The specific orientation of Sinanitsa Circus plan my visit during the summer solstice. I did not expected to encounter such a significant amount of snow but, as often happens in the mountains, the reality was quite different. A cold rain greeted me on the ascent, setting the stage for what would come. At this time of year, the water level is typically high preventing a full walk around lake perimeter. Only two viewpoints were accessible, each one extended to 10 meters into the lake, resting on precarious peninsulas of unmelted snow, which could easily break apart turning any photographer into a voyager adrift on a dissolving snow island.

As sunset approached, the freshly soaked ground began to warm. The rapid warming created so-called “thermal chimneys” or simply “thermals.” These vertical currents added an unexpected dynamism to the stillness of the scene. Meanwhile, the junipers along the lake’s edge remained partially submerged, waiting for spring to release them from winter’s icy grip. Only the occasional muffled cracking reminded me not to test the limits of the snowy islands, since it would not have been the first time I had to retrieve myself and my equipment from a cold mountain lake.