Double Rainbow at Eagle’s Point Buttress
After a heavy summer rain, a brilliant double rainbow appeared over the Red River Gorge from Eagle’s Point Buttress Overlook. Already preparing for a Sheltowee Trace thru-hike, Ryan experienced the moment as assurance that he would be able to complete the journey.
Clifty Wilderness, Red River Gorge, Kentucky · Summer storm · Signature panorama
The story behind the photograph
On July 19, 2025, Ryan camped near Eagle’s Point Buttress while testing gear for a Sheltowee Trace thru-hike he was already preparing to undertake. The evening was extremely hot and rainy. After a heavy rain, during which he kept a campfire going and watched a group of hikers descend the mountain, the weather cleared quickly. Ryan called home to say goodnight to his daughter Lilianna and was speaking with his partner Charlee as he walked onto the lower overlook. A brilliant double rainbow appeared over the clearing landscape, and Charlee urged him to get off the phone and photograph it. Ryan regards the resulting panorama as his signature image. He experienced the rainbow not as a call to begin the Sheltowee Trace, but as a deeply personal assurance that he would be able to complete the journey he had already chosen and was preparing for. He later completed the thru-hike.
- Photographed
- July 19, 2025
- Location
- Clifty Wilderness, Red River Gorge, Kentucky
Photographs © Ryan D. Lewis. All rights reserved.