Kevin Palmer

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  • This was my view while I ate lunch on Cloud Peak, the highest point of the Bighorn Mountains. I timed this 25 mile long, 3 day backpacking trip with the hottest day of the year. While the temperature topped 100°F down in the valley, up here at 13,167 feet it was much more pleasant in the 60's. At this high elevation the boiling point of water is 25° cooler than at sea level. In the cirque 1500 feet below lies the Cloud Peak Glacier. It is the only glacier in the Bighorns and is predicted to be gone 20 years from now. As the compressed snow and ice slowly slides down the mountain slope, it grinds up the bedrock beneath it and forms a very fine silt called "rock flour". This flour becomes suspended in the glacial meltwater and gives the lake it's greenish-turquoise color that changes with the lighting conditions. In the hour I spent on the summit I heard the sound of numerous rockfalls. Some of them would cause a chain-reaction lasting a minute or longer.
    Top of the Bighorns
  • For the Geminid meteor shower I snowshoed to the top of the continental divide in Western Montana. From the Granite Butte lookout tower, the views were stunning in every direction. The weather changed by the second alternating between snow showers, gale force winds, freezing fog with zero visibility, clear skies, and brief moments of calm. The tough whitebark pine trees which grow up here are all permanently bent. They point eastward from the prevailing westerly winds which almost never stop. The low temperatures, strong winds, and fog combined to create hard rime ice, which covered every surface (including me and my camera) with a coating up to 2 inches thick. To say that shooting conditions were challenging would be an understatement. My tripod had to be carefully propped up to avoid it blowing over. And with all my batteries dying too soon, I didn't get to take as many pictures as I wanted to. This was one of the brighter meteors which shone through the fog. The lights on the right are from the city of Helena.
    Through the Freezing Fog
  • After reaching the top of Kirkjufell, the trail keeps going until that cliff at the end. This view is looking north out over the Atlantic Ocean.
    Where the Land Ends
  • A soft pink glow hangs in the east as seen from Telescope Peak, the top of Death Valley National Park. The views from this 11,049 feet high mountain are outstanding. Nowhere else can you see both the highest and the lowest point in the continental US. On the upper slopes of the Panamint Range grow bristlecone pines, a tree with a lifespan measured in millennia. The pink glow in the sky is known as the Belt of Venus, and it's caused by the backscattering of reddened light from the setting sun. The blue band beneath it is the shadow of the earth projected out onto the earth's atmosphere. If I had taken a panorama you could see that this shadow is curved, matching the curvature of the earth. This phenomena can be seen on any clear evening in the east after the sun sets (or in the west before the sun rises). But the colors were especially vivid here, above all the dust and aerosols in the lower atmosphere. I wanted to stay on the summit to watch the stars come out, but I still had to hike 8 miles and descend 3600 feet to get back to the Thorndike Campground where I started.
    Highest to Lowest
  • Complete silence surrounded the 11,049' summit of Telescope Peak as the colors of sunset faded away and twilight deepened. This peak at the top of Death Valley National Park is so named because "You could see no further with a telescope." Endless ridges, mountains, sand dunes, and salt flats stretched out in every direction. In the valley on the left is Badwater Basin. Nowhere in North America is lower or dryer, and it lays claim to the hottest air temperature ever measured (134°F). Despite being only 18 miles away, the weather and environment up here at this altitude is vastly different. Temperatures can be as much as 60°F cooler, and a lot more rain and snow falls here than in the surrounding desert. This sustains a forest of bristlecone pines, the oldest species of tree on Earth at up to 5,000 years old. Staying on the summit for the sunset meant descending 8 miles in the dark, but the incredible views were worth the longest dayhike I've ever done.
    Could See No Further
  • For the Geminid meteor shower I snowshoed to the top of the continental divide in Western Montana. From the Granite Butte lookout tower, the views were stunning in every direction. The weather changed by the second alternating between snow showers, gale force winds, freezing fog with zero visibility, clear skies, and brief moments of calm. The tough whitebark pine trees which grow up here are all permanently bent. They point eastward from the prevailing westerly winds which almost never stop. The low temperatures, strong winds, and fog combined to create hard rime ice, which covered every surface (including me and my camera) with a coating up to 2 inches thick. To say that shooting conditions were challenging would be an understatement. My tripod had to be carefully propped up to avoid it blowing over. And with all my batteries dying too soon, I didn't get to take as many pictures as I wanted to. But this was one of the brighter meteors captured, flying in between Orion and Sirius.
    Catching a Gem
  • After hitting the trail at sunrise I made it to the top of Laramie Peak shortly before 9AM and setup my gear. The true summit is littered with towers and communication equipment, so instead I pointed my camera at this subpeak to the south. The weather was perfect and the thick smoke from Montana wildfires that I was worried about stayed to the north. At 10:23 the partial eclipse began, visible only through a solar filter. Anticipation started to build as more of the sun became blocked out. After over 50% of the sun was covered the light became slightly dimmer but it was only noticeable if you've been watching the whole time. The temperature dropped by over 20°F and jackets came out. At 90% the sky became a dark blue and the landscape took on a smoky appearance. At this point the light began to change by the second. The moon moves from west to east, and the shadow approaches at 1700mph from that direction. At 11:45 the last piece of sun disappeared. Some of my favorite effects of totality were the parts I couldn't capture. Cirrus clouds in the west glowed orange like at sunset. It was similar to twilight but instead of the glow appearing in only one direction, it encircled the entire horizon. Venus came out first, then the other planets and brighter stars. It's a very strange feeling looking at the sun in what's normally the brightest part of the day and instead seeing a black hole. The ~100 people around me marveled at one of the most beautiful spectacles in nature. But just like that it was all over. The full disc of the sun returned at 1:11PM.
    Fleeting Moment
  • Kirkjufell is said to be the most photographed and one of the most beautiful mountains in Iceland. But not many people get to see the view from the top. The trail going up was the steepest and most exposed hike I've ever done. A system of knotted ropes must be used to make it up some of the cliffs. Once at the summit, the evening sun broke through, and low clouds floated past. The view was breathtaking.
    Kirkjufell Glow
  • Orion shines above snow and rime covered pine trees near the summit of Granite Butte.
    Granite Butte Snowdrift
  • The last light of the day illuminates the summit of the 11,049 feet high Telescope Peak in Death Valley National Park.
    Telescope Summit
  • The last light of the day illuminates the summit of the 11,049 feet high Telescope Peak in Death Valley National Park.
    Telescope Peak Aglow
  • The winter milky way and the zodiacal light were shining brightly in the west after sunset. This view is from Granite Butte on Montana's continental divide.
    Night on the Divide
  • The spine of Kirkjufell is lit up in the golden evening sunlight.
    Kirkjufell Spine
  • Laramie Peak is the first mountain I saw when I moved to Wyoming and ever since then I've wanted to climb it. The views were amazing from the 10,276' summit, with 4 different states visible. It was mostly cloudy while I was up there, but the clouds began to break before I left at noon.
    Laramie Peak West
  • Most of the ice at Piney Creek was covered by a layer of snow. But this portion of the creek was different, and the ice had a beautiful turquoise color. For some reason the water was flowing on top of the ice here. It almost looked like a hot spring was melting the ice in this spot and surging up over the ice. But there are no hot springs in the Bighorn Mountains.
    Water On Top of Ice
  • Rocky Top is the high ridge to the left and Brown Mountain is on the right. This view is from one of the overlooks on Skyline Drive.
    Rocky Top
  • In between the upper and lower Lost Twin Lakes, there is a waterfall. After raining all morning, the sun finally came out at 1PM.
    Top of the Cirque
  • A colorful sunset fills the sky as seen from an unnamed peak in the Bighorn Mountains. To get here required snowshoeing up Red Grade Road.
    Top of the Burn
  • Everything was very green in mid-May in the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains.
    Top of the Two Track
  • I took a few steps onto the Argentière Glacier, but didn't go too far. The top of the ice was covered in a thin layer of gravel, and there were a couple crevasses on both sides of me. The mountain on the top left is Aiguille du Chardonnet.
    Dirty Crevasse
  • I spent the fourth of July chasing tornadoes in Chugwater, Wyoming. Chugwater has a certain legendary status among storm chasers. Storms form over the Laramie Mountains to the west, and the local terrain seems to enhance tornadic potential. On at least 3 other occasions I've seen funnel clouds here. And having one of the few paved, east-west highways also makes it a great place to target. Luckily there is not much around for a tornado to damage. I had to pick a spot either below the bluff or on top. I chose on top, which put me a little over a mile away from the developing tornado. Powerful cloud to ground lightning bolts were dropping during tornadogenesis. My camera was left outside to shoot automatically while I stayed in my car.
    Chugwater Tornado
  • After checking the sunset forecast, this seemed as good an evening as any to climb a peak that I've had my eye on for awhile. I knew there would be a great view of the Cloud Peak massif if I could make it to the top. There was no trail and the route up this forested mountainside was steep. But it was the first 60°F day of the year and enough snow had melted on the south-facing slope to make the going easier. The sun quickly disappeared once I reached the top and the light turned flat. When the sun is hidden on the opposite side of the mountains it can be hard to tell what kind of sunset it will be. Will there be any color or are the clouds too thick? But then a subtle glow slowly began to emerge to the west. It spread across the sky as the wind picked up and the temperature dropped. Minutes later the glow was gone, like it never happened.
    Short But Sweet Sunset
  • The views from the top of Medicine Bow Peak were stunning. This was a fairly easy hike considering the mountain is over 12,000 feet high. The 7 mile loop trail traverses the top of the ridge and descends next to the lakes.
    12,014 Feet
  • Sheep Mountain has been on my list of peaks to climb for awhile. In the summer it's possible to drive to the top of this 9,610' mountain. But that's too easy, so I went in the winter. Snow depths varied from bare ground to drifts 15 feet high. After snowshoeing an exhausting 6 miles while carrying a heavy pack, I made it to the top with barely enough time to pitch a tent before dark. The summit itself is too rocky and exposed to the wind, but I found a nearby campsite that was flat enough and more sheltered. At sunrise the next morning the views were incredible. Looking east, I could see parts of the Black Hills well over 100 miles away. When the sun made it over the horizon, it was only visible for a couple minutes. But this ephemeral light show was worth all the effort to get here.
    Sheep Mountain Sunrise
  • This is the view from the top of Loaf Mountain at 11,722'. There was no trail, so I had to pay close attention to the map while hiking 3.5 miles to the summit. The view from the top wasn't as clear as it could have been because of wildfire smoke from Montana.
    Smoky Summit
  • Early on November 19th the moon passed through Earth's shadow, known as the umbra. Less than 1% of the lunar surface remained lit by sunlight, just missing out on totality. Scattered clouds hid the moon much of the night.  But waiting until 2AM paid off as a brief window to the heavens opened up. One of the best parts of a lunar eclipse is watching the sky darken and more stars come out. At no other time can you see so many stars beside a full moon. This was shot at the nearby ghost town of Monarch. A century ago it was a booming coal mining town, but today there is little evidence of its existence. An old water tower on top of a hill overlooks the mostly empty river valley.
    Monarch Moon
  • I found these wildflowers near the top of a mountain above Red Grade Road. The sunset wasn't very colorful, but it was still interesting watching the fog below. This is looking north towards Sheridan.
    Wildflowers Above the Clouds
  • When the lightning rod at the top of Black Mountain started buzzing, I knew I had to descend to escape the lightning danger. But I'm glad I returned afterwards, because the  sunset was incredible. Mammatus filled the sky as the storm cleared and it took on an orange color as the sun lowered. All the smoke in the air added to the surreal atmosphere. The fire lookout structure was recently closed to the public because it's fallen into disrepair.
    Lookout Above
  • My goal was to get an overview of the Teton Valley with the highest peaks lighting up at sunset. But despite the forecast for clear and sunny skies, I was dismayed when I got to the top and saw that the Tetons were hidden from view and the clouds were not going to lift. So I turned my attention to the west instead, looking towards Stouts Mountain and the Swan Valley. At first the light was flat there too, but then a gap in the clouds slowly began to open up. Sunbeams danced across the ridges and the light became better and better. Finally the sun came out for just a moment, and a pillar appeared above it caused by ice crystals suspended in the air. It wasn't the shot I had planned, but this short-lived sunset view was worth all the effort to snowshoe up this mountain.
    Big Hole Mountain Sunset
  • On this evening I headed up into the hills to watch lightning. The first storm that made me head out the door wasn't any good for pictures, since most of the lightning was intra-cloud. But then I watched another cell pop up to my south. As this updraft exploded into the starry sky, it started producing positive lightning strikes. Positive lightning accounts for 5-10% of all lightning, and is up to 10X more powerful than negative strikes with a peak discharge of 1 billion volts. It originates from the top of a thundercloud and travels through miles of air before striking the ground. Positive bolts can hit up to 25 miles away from the parent thunderstorm. These "bolts from the blue" are especially dangerous because people may assume they're a safe distance away from the storm when they strike.<br />
The night couldn't have been more perfect for watching lightning.A full moon helped to light up the landscape and gave the thundercloud a silver lining. I stayed in the same spot for hours as multiple storms followed the same path.
    Under Jupiter
  • Steamboat Point is a favorite mountain of mine that I've climbed more than any other. But I've never been able to catch a great sunset from the top, until now. The 7,877' peak is close to Sheridan and easy to access year round. On the lower south-facing slope the snow is quick to melt. After the trail bends around into the forest, the snowpack is often a couple feet deep in the winter. But the summit itself is usually scoured clean by the frequent strong winds. I'd estimate winds were gusting to about 80mph up here, making it difficult to stand up straight. But it was these same winds that contributed to the fiery sunset. On warm winter or early spring days it's common to get lenticular or mountain wave clouds over the Rockies. They are caused by oscillations in the air flow after encountering a mountain range. When the sun catches them just right, the color and texture of these clouds can be truly stunning.
    First Sunset of February
  • This tornado near Broadwater, Nebraska, developed almost on top of me while I was attempting to core punch the storm. At the intersection of Rd 78 and Hwy 385 I was close enough to hear the roaring waterfall sound and feel the intense RFD winds. But I couldn't see it because the storm had become HP (high precipitation) and visibility was horrible. As I fled south on Hwy 385 debris started flying past me including sheet metal hitting my car. A semi truck that I passed would be flipped over on it's side and all the sign posts at the nearest intersection snapped in half. Once I made it a safe distance away (about 5 miles) I stopped and took this picture looking north. Visibility was still bad, I couldn't see the tornado and I even missed it the first time after reviewing my pictures. But after enhancing the contrast the twister became visible in the rain shaft on the left.
    Broadwater Tornado
  • Most of the ice at Piney Creek was covered by a layer of snow. But this portion of the creek was different, and the ice had a beautiful turquoise color. For some reason the water was flowing on top of the ice here, with slush in some areas. If I stood on the wet ice for very long my boots would freeze in place.
    Turquoise Ice
  • The temperature was somewhere around 10 to 15 degrees below zero when I went for a hike besides Piney Creek in the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains near Story. There were all kinds of interesting ice formations along the edge of the creek. Delicate frost feathers had formed on top of the clear layers of ice and all the boulders were simply lumps of snow. The water flows fast enough that I didn't see any parts of the creek that were frozen over completely. Standing above snowy trees at the entrance to the canyon is this colorful stained cliff. It doesn't see any sunlight until late afternoon.
    Piney Creek Cliff
  • If you have never seen the aurora, you should definitely make it a goal. This was a once in a lifetime show for me as I have never seen a better geomagnetic storm. I was only in Wisconsin but it felt like I was in Alaska. The aurora was pulsating, moving rapidly and it covered much of the sky. Most of my pictures were taken with a 10mm lens which tells you just how much of the sky was filled with color. This was taken from the top of Blue Mound, which is the highest point in southern Wisconsin.
    Rising Intensity
  • If you have never seen the aurora, you should definitely make it a goal. This was a once in a lifetime show for me as I have never seen a better geomagnetic storm. I was only in Wisconsin but it felt like I was in Alaska. The aurora was pulsating, moving rapidly and it covered much of the sky. Most of my pictures were taken with a 10mm lens which tells you just how much of the sky was filled with color. This was taken from the top of Blue Mound, which is the highest point in southern Wisconsin.
    Once in a Lifetime
  • A rain squall approaches Peoria, Illinois. The heavy rain was close, but it never actually fell where I was shooting from. The top of a bluff in East Peoria provided a perfect view to the west of this storm.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: June 18, 2014
    Distant Rain
  • A severe thunderstorm approaches over a corn field near Morton, Illinois. A shelf cloud can be seen on the lower left and the anvil extends to the top right.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: June 23, 2013
    Morton Thunderhead
  • My 9-hour flight home was one of the most scenic I’ve ever been on. Taking off from Helsinki at sunset, we chased the sun westward. Meanwhile the full moon emerged to the east and followed the plane. In a state of perpetual twilight, the light remained the same for hours. The moon neither rose nor set and it felt like time was standing still. At the top of the world, just 250 miles from the North Pole, the scene was most striking. 7 miles below was Northeast Greenland National Park, the world’s largest national park. The ice sheet emptied out into the Arctic Ocean between pristine snowy mountains. Moonlight shimmered across fresh sea ice, fractured by undersea currents. The moon was directly in the middle of what’s called the anti-twilight arch. The pink band above is the layer of atmosphere where the sun was still shining, reddened by the backscattering of sunlight. The blue band is Earth’s shadow projected out into the atmosphere. In mid-October the sun sets for good in this part of the high Arctic, not to rise again for more than 4 months.
    When Time Stood Still
  • I stood on the slopes of Mount Hood with this view of 3 Cascade volcanoes to my north at sunrise. After days of smoke greatly limiting the views, it had finally settled into the valleys. Mt Adams is the closest peak on the right. Mt Rainier is the tallest in the middle, although it appears small because it's 100 miles away. Mt St Helens on the left stands out as the peak that's no longer symmetrical, since it literally blew it's top. When St Helens erupted in 1980, a 1300 foot high, 0.7 cubic mile chunk of mountain collapsed in the largest landslide in history.
    Three Volcano Sunrise
  • The sun was only out for a couple minutes at sunrise before going behind a cloud. I didn't want to get any closer than this because the snow looked unstable on top of the cliff.
    Sunstar Dawn
  • The snow was very deep on this part of the Abisko River near the top of the canyon in Swedish Lapland.
    Upper Abisko Canyon
  • It’s a view I came across in early spring: a lone tree on top of a hill overlooking ranches, ponds, a canal, and the Bighorn Mountains. The milky way was the perfect backdrop when I returned to shoot it on a warm night in July. The green stripes in the sky are from a phenomenon called airglow. During the day sunlight ionizes oxygen atoms in the upper atmosphere, and their recombination at night emits a small amount of light. This chemical reaction occurs about 100km up at the same height as the aurora, which is caused by a different process. Ripples in the airglow come from gravity waves, which may originate from the jet stream or a particularly powerful thunderstorm complex. I often find airglow in my pictures anytime I’m shooting under a dark sky. But this night was the strongest I've ever seen it. The wave pattern was very apparent, although the color was undetectable to my eyes.
    Beckton Milky Way
  • I rarely stop to photograph deer since they are so common. But I liked the way these bucks were standing on top of a hill, with storm clouds behind them. Plus I rarely see bucks with antlers.
    Two Bucks On a Hill
  • On this evening I headed up into the hills to watch lightning. The first storm that made me head out the door wasn't any good for pictures, since most of the lightning was intra-cloud. But then I watched another cell pop up to my south. As this updraft exploded into the starry sky, it started producing positive lightning strikes. Positive lightning accounts for 5-10% of all lightning, and is up to 10X more powerful than negative strikes with a peak discharge of 1 billion volts. It originates from the top of a thundercloud and travels through miles of air before striking the ground. Positive bolts can hit up to 25 miles away from the parent thunderstorm. These "bolts from the blue" are especially dangerous because people may assume they're a safe distance away from the storm when they strike.<br />
The night couldn't have been more perfect for watching lightning.A full moon helped to light up the landscape and gave the thundercloud a silver lining. I stayed in the same spot for hours as multiple storms followed the same path.
    Lightning and Moonbeams
  • Steamboat Point is a well-known mountain on the east side of the Bighorns, next to Highway 14. I've watched the sunset from the top more times than I can count. But this time I wanted to capture the boulders which sit below the cliff face. These boulders are massive. They're bigger than houses, more like the size of office buildings. I can only imagine what it would have looked and sounded like when they fall. The rock is a razor-sharp dolomite and the area is popular with rock climbers.
    Big Boulders
  • In December I spent a few days exploring Joshua Tree National Park. Compared to the hustle and bustle of most of Southern California this desert park is roomy, quiet, and peaceful. Even though I grew up fairly close, this was only my second time visiting. A mile above sea level in the Little San Bernardino Mountains, Keys View is one of the best viewpoints in the park and a great place to watch the sunset. A hidden trail leads up to Inspiration Point where this was taken. Far below on the floor of the Coachella Valley the infamous San Andreas Fault is visible. Over 10,000 feet above that is the snowcapped San Jacinto Peak. Few mountains in the US have a steeper rise. Higher still is San Gorgonio Mountain on the far right, which is the very top of Southern California at 11,500 feet.
    Overlooking Coachella Valley
  • With winds blowing over 40 mph, it was not the most pleasant evening for a hike. At first it was sunny, but the weather changed quickly as a cold front blew through. A fiery orange glow appeared at sunset while rain showers moved in over the mountains. I was standing on top of Lodge Trail Ridge, a mile high vantage point overlooking the small town of Story to the west. There's a lot of history here, as this ridge sits in between Fort Kearney and the Fetterman Battlefield. The fort was established to protect travelers of the Bozeman Trail, an offshoot of the Oregon Trail which passed through Indian land. Tensions culminated in 1866 in an ambush led by Crazy Horse that killed 81 soldiers. It was the US Army's worst defeat in the West until the Battle of Little Bighorn 10 years later.
    Cold Front Sunset
  • Skógafoss is a 60 meter high waterfall in southern Iceland. In the evening it is positioned perfectly for vivid rainbows to appear in the mist. I got here at the perfect time, once I made it to the top and back the rainbow was already gone.
    Rainbow of Skógafoss
  • These colorful wildflowers were blooming near the top of Big Pryor Mountain.
    Pryor Wildflowers
  • After a rough 35 mile drive on rocky dirt roads, I reached the Dry Fork Overlook at the top of the Pryor Mountains just before sunset. There was a large thunderstorm to the south in Wyoming, which lit up with color.
    Pryor Experience
  • When I left Highland Park I went off trail and climbed higher to avoid a very snowy section of trail. I decided to climb an unnamed 11,370' peak since I was so close. This was the view from the top.
    Peak 11370
  • Snow covers the granite summit of Black Mountain. The fire lookout can be seen perched at the top of the 9500 foot peak.
    Snowy Granite
  • Snow drifts blow across a treeless meadow in the Bighorn Mountains. In the distance is Medicine Mountain. The Medicine Wheel at the top was built by Native Americans thousands of years ago, and there is also an FAA radar used to track flights.
    Medicine Mountain Drifts
  • Crepuscular rays emerge from a cloud as the sun sets beyond Tongue River Canyon. This was the view from the top of Steamboat Point.
    Tongue Canyon Sunbeams
  • A colorful pink sunset fills the sky on the evening of Summer Solstice. This scenic view is from the top of Blue Mound, the highest point in southern Wisconsin.
    Blue Mounds Sunset
  • Vivid fall colors fill the valley of the Porcupine Mountains in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. This state park preserves one of the largest areas of wilderness left in the Midwest The steep cliffs known as The Escarpment rises 500 feet above the Lake of the Clouds. It is a fitting name since I never did see this lake without a cloudy sky above it. On the other side of the cliffs is Lake Superior. It can just barely be seen in between two hills at the top of the picture. This picture was taken at the beginning of a 28 mile backpacking trip into the wilderness.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: 9/30/14
    Escarpment View
  • A rain squall approaches Peoria, Illinois. The heavy rain was close, but it never actually fell where I was shooting from. The top of a bluff in East Peoria provided a perfect view to the west of this storm.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: June 18, 2014
    Peoria Rain Squall
  • I find it hard to sleep while backpacking when this is above my head. This part of Missouri has very dark skies, the only problem is the thick forests leave few places to see the stars clearly. But the top of Bald Knob in Buford Mountain Conservation Area was the perfect place to spend the night and photograph the stars.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: May 6, 2014
    Sleep Eludes Me
  • On the northwest side of the Bighorn Mountains are at least 6 named waterfalls. Some of these waterfalls are an easy hike. Crystal Creek Falls however was not. Located near the top of a valley at 8,000 feet, it's not the distance that made it hard to reach. There is no trail here, and the waterfall is surrounded by cliffs and steep terrain, dense forest, thorns, and large amounts of deadfall. While not as bad as many other areas, pine beetle damage was evident around here as well. Despite the scenic views, by the time I got back I vowed to never go this way again. The terrain and climate in this area varies significantly in a very short distance. About 35 inches of rain falls annually at this elevation, but the dry basin just 10 miles to the west sees only 1/5 of that amount.
    Crystal Creek Falls
  • The Big Snowy Mountains are one of several island ranges found in central Montana, rising straight out of the prairie. But unlike the surrounding mountains in a mostly dry climate, this one has it's own lake. Crystal Lake is interesting for several reasons. It is very shallow and fish do not survive the winter when it freezes solid. The lake bed is made of porous limestone. The water level reaches it's maximum depth in early summer when the snow finishes melting. But then it starts to drain. As I walked along the shore I noticed the water bubbling away in certain spots as it seeped through the ground. By early fall the lake is significantly smaller and in some years it's not much more than a puddle. The color of the water also changes quite a bit depending on the direction and intensity of the sunlight. I liked this turquoise color the best as seen from an overlook called Promontory Point. Next time I visit I want to check out the perennial ice cave which is located at the top of the 8,000' ridge in the distance.
    Turquoise Crystal
  • On this evening I headed up into the hills to watch lightning. The first storm that made me head out the door wasn't any good for pictures, since most of the lightning was intra-cloud. But then I watched another cell pop up to my south. As this updraft exploded into the starry sky, it started producing positive lightning strikes. Positive lightning accounts for 5-10% of all lightning, and is up to 10X more powerful than negative strikes with a peak discharge of 1 billion volts. It originates from the top of a thundercloud and travels through miles of air before striking the ground. Positive bolts can hit up to 25 miles away from the parent thunderstorm. These "bolts from the blue" are especially dangerous because people may assume they're a safe distance away from the storm when they strike.<br />
The night couldn't have been more perfect for watching lightning.A full moon helped to light up the landscape and gave the thundercloud a silver lining. I stayed in the same spot for hours as multiple storms followed the same path.
    The Hills Are Electric
  • Over Labor Day weekend the Earth's magnetic field was battered by a solar wind stream from a coronal hole on the sun, which reached speeds of up to 800km a second. This led to the aurora dipping down to lower latitudes and I was able to catch it 4 nights in a row. I'm always in search of new north-facing viewpoints for picture opportunities. This night I spent at the top of the Judith Mountains in central Montana. Montana always has a better shot at seeing the aurora and being at a high elevation helped even more. The views reached far and wide out over the plains with more mountain ranges than I could count. As it got dark flashes of lightning were visible 250 miles away in Saskatchewan which I didn't even know was possible. The aurora danced all night long, preceded by a fiery sunset and followed by a stormy sunrise. It couldn't have been a more colorful stay on this mountaintop.
    Pillars Rising Above
  • In the Pryor Mountains of Montana lives a herd of about 120 wild horses. Thought to be descendants of Spanish colonial horses, these mustangs were the first to be federally protected after nearly being removed in the late 1960's. The foal pictured here (named Renegade) was less than 4 weeks old. He is 1 of 5 foals born this year, although 2 didn't make it. This wild horse range is not easy to access. It requires a long 40-mile drive on steep, rough, and rocky dirt roads, where navigation can be tricky. It's not a place to go unprepared. After I couldn't drive any further, I walked the rest of the way since I finally spotted the herd in the distance. I counted a total of 22 horses near the top of Sykes Ridge at 8,000 feet.
    4 Week Old Foal
  • In the Pryor Mountains of Montana lives a herd of about 120 wild horses. Thought to be descendants of Spanish colonial horses, these mustangs were the first to be federally protected after nearly being removed in the late 1960's. This wild horse range is not easy to access. It requires a long 40-mile drive on steep, rough, and rocky dirt roads, where navigation can be tricky. It's not a place to go unprepared. After I couldn't drive any further, I walked the rest of the way since I finally spotted the herd in the distance. I counted a total of 22 horses near the top of Sykes Ridge at 8,000 feet.
    Chasing the Mare
  • Water gushes over the top of Manido Falls right before the larger drop. The wooden overlook can been on the other side of the river.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: 10/3/14
    Manido Falls
  • The sun had not even been down an hour yet when the first green curtains overspread the blue twilight sky. Why am I not on the summit already? As I hoofed it up a mountain in Greenland, I barely needed my headlamp as the lights above illuminated my way. Route finding can be tricky at night, but I had scouted out this peak the previous day so I knew where to go. Finally I reached the top, and all body heat generated from the strenuous climb was quickly stolen by the icy wind. Below stretched out the Nuuk Fjord, 2nd longest fjord system in the world. Rising nearly 4,000 feet above the sea is Sermitsiaq, the iconic island peak which dominates the skyline of Greenland's capital city. While Mars cast its reflection across the water, ribbons of green, purple, and red shimmered overhead. Oddly the northern lights seemed to prefer every part of the sky except north. For hours the show continued, in waves of varying intensity. It was a night I'll never forget.
    Nuuk Fjord Aurora
  • The aurora dances between the lingering twilight and the city lights of Nuuk. This view is from the top of Lille Malene (or Quassussuaq).
    The Lights of Nuuk
  • I got to Hulett just in time to watch two supercells pass to the north and to the south. Both of them had tornado warnings, and both produced very large hail. From the top of this bluff I had an excellent view of Devils Tower and the Missouri Buttes. It was almost a once in a lifetime chance to capture a tornado over the tower, but it didn't happen. It was still an awesome sight though.
    Making the Tower Look Small
  • In early January is the annual Quadrantid meteor shower. Meteor rates weren't nearly as prolific as the Geminids of December. But I still wanted to photograph it since the moon phase was favorable and few pictures of this astronomical event exist. With decent weather in the forecast, I climbed to the top of a 9,477' mountain and spent the night there. The expansive views to the north included Meadowlark Lake, the tallest peaks of the Bighorns, and the High Park meadow. After chasing a mouse out of my backpack I set my camera to take pictures for most of the night. The shower seemed to be most active between about 10PM and midnight. That's when my camera captured these 8 meteors, although 3 of them were halfway out of the frame. I stitched together a few images for the bottom half of the picture, this allowed me to correct the distortion in the trees.
    8 Quadrantid Meteors
  • I was hiking in the Bighorn Mountains when it started to rain and the sun threatened to peak out at the same time. It was late enough in the day to make it perfect rainbow weather, I just had to reach the top of the ridge before it happened. A 2nd shower rolled out of the mountains after I reached this view, and a partial rainbow appeared. The trail conditions were very changeable, ranging from soft thigh-deep snow, to packed ice, to mud, to dry ground. Even though the Red Grade Trail system isn't very long, I definitely had to earn the view on this day.
    First Rainbow of Spring
  • After a 35-minute ride on a chairlift in the dark, I arrived at the Aurora Sky Station, 1000 meters above sea level near the top of the mountain Nuolja. Below stretched out a panoramic view of the lake Torneträsk, the lights from Abisko village, and other peaks of the Scandinavian Mountains. The weather was ideal. Even though temperatures were at the lower limit in which the lift is allowed to operate, the skies were clear and the wind was calm. Unfortunately the aurora was calm as well. The northern lights danced a little on the ride up, then faded to a weak glow barely perceptible for the rest of the night. But I tried to make the most of my time up here by shooting this startrail image. I processed it in a way to fade the trails into the background while bringing out the colors of the faint green aurora band. Even though my camera was pointed due north, it was not possible to include the North Star in the shot, at least not without shooting vertically. In Arctic latitudes the North Celestial Pole is too high up in the sky.
    Nuolja Star Trails
  • The jumbled mess of giant boulders known as the Fallen City can be seen from Highway 14 below. I've always wanted to climb to the top of this peak and see them up close. Some of the boulders are the size of houses, others are the size of office buildings. Deeper snow past this point kept me from getting closer, I will have to come back another time.
    Fallen City Sunset
  • There were no trails to this spot, but I knew if I could reach the top of the cliffs there would be a scenic view of the Powder River below. But I nearly got bit by a 4.5 foot long rattlesnake since I didn't see it sunning itself.
    Moorhead View Panorama
  • In this part of Montana there’s a whole lot of nothing. The sprawling ranches have more acreage than many towns. I’ve previously driven hours along this road east of Decker without seeing another human. You're more likely to encounter wildlife such as pronghorn antelope, which I've raced across these plains and found that they really can run 60 mph. On a warm August evening I followed this storm for awhile. The radar showed it was producing hail the size of baseballs. But since the core passed through a roadless area, any severe weather went unseen and unreported. Abandoned houses are not hard to find as they are more common than lived-in houses. By now I know where most of them are so I kept driving until I could shoot the storm above this one. When the evening sun came out it highlighted the puffy cumulonimbus clouds receding into the distance. The white containers next to the tree are bee hive boxes. I've noticed them popping up more and more across Montana as it's one of the top honey-producing states.
    Home On the Range
  • On this evening I headed up into the hills to watch lightning. The first storm that made me head out the door wasn't any good for pictures, since most of the lightning was intra-cloud. But then I watched another cell pop up to my south. As this updraft exploded into the starry sky, it started producing positive lightning strikes. Positive lightning accounts for 5-10% of all lightning, and is up to 10X more powerful than negative strikes with a peak discharge of 1 billion volts. It originates from the top of a thundercloud and travels through miles of air before striking the ground. Positive bolts can hit up to 25 miles away from the parent thunderstorm. These "bolts from the blue" are especially dangerous because people may assume they're a safe distance away from the storm when they strike.<br />
The night couldn't have been more perfect for watching lightning.A full moon helped to light up the landscape and gave the thundercloud a silver lining. I stayed in the same spot for hours as multiple storms followed the same path.
    Moon Behind the Anvil
  • After watching the northern lights for hours, I finally went to sleep at 3AM. Just 3 hours later I awoke to this view. It doesn’t get much better. I knew this was a risky spot to camp near the top of the Judith Mountains in Central Montana. If a storm popped up it was very exposed to wind, rain, and lightning. There was only a 20% chance of storms, but this was the lucky day out of 5. Rainbows are always biggest (84° wide) when the sun is at the horizon. The rainbow and amazing sunrise only lasted about 10 minutes. After this I hastily packed up my tent and took shelter in my car as a 2nd thunderstorm threatened behind this one. There’s a reason the Air Force built an early warning radar station on this mountaintop during the Cold War. The views out over the plains seem to go on forever, no matter which direction you look. This small but scenic mountain range north of Lewistown also contains gold deposits and two ghost towns. Even though I was still tired, I couldn’t complain. Rarely are the most memorable days the ones in which I get plenty of sleep.
    Sunrise Rainbow
  • Of the 3 waterfalls I stopped at, I liked the foliage around Spearfish Falls the best. The upper viewing platform can be seen at the top.
    Fall at Spearfish Falls
  • Steamboat Point is a favorite mountain of mine that I've climbed more than any other. But I've never been able to catch a great sunset from the top, until now. The 7,877' peak is close to Sheridan and easy to access year round. On the lower south-facing slope the snow is quick to melt. After the trail bends around into the forest, the snowpack is often a couple feet deep in the winter. But the summit itself is usually scoured clean by the frequent strong winds. I'd estimate winds were gusting to about 80mph up here, making it difficult to stand up straight. But it was these same winds that contributed to the fiery sunset. On warm winter or early spring days it's common to get lenticular or mountain wave clouds over the Rockies. They are caused by oscillations in the air flow after encountering a mountain range. When the sun catches them just right, the color and texture of these clouds can be truly stunning.
    Vertigo Inducing Sunset
  • Over the last month I've been staying closer to home for obvious reasons. But I'm grateful to have places like this nearby. Lately I've been visiting blocks of public land out on the plains where the snow has already melted. From here I set off cross-country, not following a specific trail. There's a certain freedom that's felt when exploring without a destination in mind. With expectations low, I simply head wherever looks most interesting. From the top of a high hill this is the stunning view I found looking west. The town of Buffalo is tucked away behind the hills but this perspective makes it look like there's nothing around. Cloud Peak at 13,167' is the tallest in the Bighorn Mountains, and it holds the last remaining glacier in the range. The summit is also the 3rd most topographically prominent in the entire Rockies. The flat-topped mountain is flanked by the more jagged Bomber Mountain on the left and Mount Woolsey on the right. I rarely create black and white images, but some scenes are just meant for it.
    From the Hills to the Mountains
  • Scattered rain showers were moving across the mountains as seen from the top of an unnamed peak.
    May Showers
  • Crepuscular rays shine on the high plains of Wyoming shortly after sunrise as seen from the top of Sheep Mountain.
    Sheep Mountain Rays
  • Grasslands National Park is located in Southern Saskatchewan right next to the Montana border. They are known as Land of the Living Skies, and Big Sky Country respectively, and it's easy to see why. This was the view from the top of 70 Mile Butte outside of Val Marie.
    Big Living Sky Country
  • Since I was camping near Seljalandsfoss, I went over to get a few shots of the aurora above the falls. I wished I could have turned off the spotlights, since they were a bit too bright. The moon was positioned at the top of the falls.
    Seljalandsfoss Aurora
  • Kirkjufellsfoss is one of the most iconic scenes in Iceland. Just Google "Iceland" and see how many times it shows up. The name translates to "church mountain waterfall" because of the peak's nearly perfect symmetrical shape. There is a trail (if it can be called that) leading to the top of Kirkjufell which is one of the steepest I've ever hiked. In the evening, tour buses stop here and this small spot is filled with hordes of tourists and photographers lined up tripod to tripod to capture the sunset. But I wanted to avoid that so I came back in the morning when it was much quieter. There was a storm moving in and the sunrise didn't look very promising. But the eastern sky took on an orange glow for a short time.
    Kirkjufellsfoss Sunrise
  • The Peak to Peak bridge on top of Scex Rouge isn't very long. But the other side became completely obscured by fog as the clouds lowered.
    Bridge to Nowhere
  • The solar eclipse was absolutely incredible. There's no way to capture it in 1 picture or 1,000 pictures and there's nothing really to compare it to. During the minutes surrounding totality the light changed so fast and there was so much to observe and photograph that it was overwhelming. It felt like time stood still and yet it was all over in an instant. I listened to the dozens of people around me who also climbed the 10,276' Laramie Peak to observe this eclipse. Cheering and exclamations of "WOW" were an almost involuntary reaction.<br />
<br />
This is a composite showing 3 partial phases of the eclipse with a solar filter, as well as 3 of the features that are visible during totality. A group of sunspots was visible before being hidden by the moon. The red fringes on the left are solar prominences. Bigger than any planet, prominences are made up of dynamic loops of hot plasma and will often explode. This outer atmosphere of the sun is sculpted by it's magnetic field. The temperature of the corona is up to 450 times hotter than the surface of the sun and no one knows why. At the top right is an effect known as the "diamond ring." It is the moment the first bit of sun emerges from behind the moon. I was surprised by just how suddenly it popped out, with all the brightness of the sun concentrated into a single point.
    Multifaceted Eclipse
  • In the Pryor Mountains of Montana lives a herd of about 120 wild horses. Thought to be descendants of Spanish colonial horses, these mustangs were the first to be federally protected after nearly being removed in the late 1960's. The foal pictured here (named Renegade) was less than 4 weeks old. He is 1 of 5 foals born this year, although 2 didn't make it. This wild horse range is not easy to access. It requires a long 40-mile drive on steep, rough, and rocky dirt roads, where navigation can be tricky. It's not a place to go unprepared. After I couldn't drive any further, I walked the rest of the way since I finally spotted the herd in the distance. I counted a total of 22 horses near the top of Sykes Ridge at 8,000 feet.
    2017 Mustang
  • In the Pryor Mountains of Montana lives a herd of about 120 wild horses. Thought to be descendants of Spanish colonial horses, these mustangs were the first to be federally protected after nearly being removed in the late 1960's. The foal pictured here (named Renegade) was less than 4 weeks old. He is 1 of 5 foals born this year, although 2 didn't make it. This wild horse range is not easy to access. It requires a long 40-mile drive on steep, rough, and rocky dirt roads, where navigation can be tricky. It's not a place to go unprepared. After I couldn't drive any further, I walked the rest of the way since I finally spotted the herd in the distance. I counted a total of 22 horses near the top of Sykes Ridge at 8,000 feet.
    Renegade
  • It rained most of the morning at my campsite on Lost Twin Lake in the Cloud Peak Wilderness. The cold rain was at times accompanied by thunder and lightning, gusty winds, and graupel (snow pellets). Nearby waterfalls grew louder and the sound of a distant rock slide echoed across the lake. My plan of summiting Darton Peak would have to wait for another day. After the last rain shower, the clouds descended and obscured the highest peaks. I took this picture while enjoying a cup of hot coffee as the rain finally stopped. It's difficult to convey just how massive these cliffs are. The sheer granite walls rise 1-2 thousand feet above the lake. If you can see the white speck at the base of the cliff on the right, that is a tent. The top of this bowl-shaped valley, known as a cirque, was carved out by glaciers long ago.
    Clouds Descended
  • Sharp granite spires protrude out of the Black Hills as seen from the top of Harney Peak. The mountain was recently renamed to Black Elk Peak, and it is the highest in South Dakota. The jagged rock formations seen here are known as the Needles, and the Needles Highway winds around them with sharp switchbacks and narrow tunnels. This was the original location proposed for the Mount Rushmore carvings, but the sculptor rejected it because the granite was too soft. In the distance a forested hillside can be seen, scarred by the pine beetle infestation. In the last 20 years, 25% of the trees in the Black Hills have been killed by this destructive beetle.
    Needles Black and White
  • On a September morning the Bighorn Mountains were shrouded in clouds. But this was the view from the top of Black Mountain.
    Waves of Clouds
  • Steamboat Point is located in the Bighorn Mountains west of Dayton and there is a trail that leads to the top.
    Up to Steamboat
  • Colorful clouds light up the sky over the Loess Hills at dawn. On this morning, the best colors happened before the sunrise, the sun came out for a few minutes, and then the light went flat as it went behind the clouds. This view is from the top of Murray Hill.
    Loess Hills Sunrise
  • This was the 3rd time I've been to Chino Hills State Park and I've never seen it this green. Fresh snow on the mountains and clear air made for some great views. This was taken from the top of San Juan Hill.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: February 24, 2015
    Chino Hills Panorama
  • This part of the Missouri Ozarks has very dark skies that allow for a stunning view of the milky way. The thick forests can make it hard to find a clear view. But the top of Bald Knob was the perfect place to spend the night and see the stars above the small town of Belleview in the valley below.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: May 6, 2014
    Belleview Milky Way
  • These natural steps are on the top of Bald Knob in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri. The newly green trees were catching the golden rays from the setting sun.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: May 5, 2014
    Stone Steps
  • This rocky, treeless area is known as a glade. This glade is on the top of Bald Knob and provided the perfect place to watch the sunset while on a backpacking trip.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: May 5, 2014
    Ozark Sunset
  • The northern milky way shines bright above the Kelso Sand Dunes in the Mojave National Preserve. At the top left is the Andromeda Galaxy. Clouds were moving across the sky quickly on this windy night.<br />
<br />
Date Taken: 1/30/14
    Kelso Night
  • The top of Lille Malene (Quassussuaq), had an amazing view of Nuuk Fjord. The sunlight came out in the evening and touched Sermitsiaq Mountain.
    Sun Over Nuuk Fjord
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