Advertisement

Hiker Captures Bizarre Rainbow Halo Illusion in Washington's Olympic National Park

A hiker captured a stunning natural phenomenon known as a Brocken specter in Washington’s Olympic National Park on October 11.

Nikki Klein said she was hiking along Hurricane Ridge and had stopped to sit when another hiker pointed out a rainbow behind her.

“I stood up to see the specter, having never witnessed anything like that in my life. Thinking it would disappear in a second, I snapped as many pictures as I could,” Klein told Storyful. “To my joy, it stayed for me to play with for about 30 minutes. I went from feeling completely terrible to feeling completely amazing. To be given such magic! I’ve been a hiker and backpacker for 30 years and never seen anything like this. It was such a gift and a treat.”

A Brocken specter, named after Brocken peak in Germany’s Harz Mountains, according to EarthSky, is a type of glory – a phenomenon that occurs when light shines on mist or clouds to create a halo effect of colorful rings. The Brocken specter appears to show an amplified shadow of the observer inside the glory. They are sometimes seen from airplanes as well as mountaintops. Credit: Nikki Klein via Storyful