El Dorado Sunset
For three long years, I dreamed of this moment. The perfect sunset where the South Fork American River feeds into Folsom Lake near El Dorado Hills. I visited this spot ten times over those years, always hoping, waiting for the sky to deliver what I knew it could. Each visit ending in disappointment. But today… today was different. As I hiked down the familiar path, the air felt cooler than usual, with a slight breeze carrying the scent of damp earth. The rustle of leaves from the surrounding trees mingled with the low murmur of the river as it lazily flowed into the lake. There was a strange stillness, as if the landscape itself knew something spectacular was coming. I set up my camera, as I had so many times before, watching the sky begin its evening dance. The sun dipped lower, casting its golden rays across the water, and my heart raced a little—was this the moment I’d been waiting for? And then it happened. The sky exploded in a riot of color, fiery oranges and deep purples bleedin