Swirling out from among the titanic trees of the rainforest, a river of fog flows down from the ragged peaks of the mountains to pool in valleys to mix with the tendrils of salt spiced mist pooling on the shores of the ocean. The summer sun soon burns through the shining veil and sends the fog sliding back into the secret mossy hollows from which it emerged.
The idyllic ponds of Schwabacher Landing in Grand Teton National Park are famous for their spectacular views of the towering mountain peaks that loom overhead. It's the perfect spot to capture the sunrise, and also the perfect place for a Greater Scaup to raise her ducklings. Wildlife thrives in this slice of paradise.
The great shining band of the Milky Way flows like a river of light from horizon to horizon, bisecting the dark sea of night over the Pacific Northwest. The ocean of stars glimmers fitfully over mountains, lakes, and sagebrush plains, it's inky depths plied by satellites and shooting stars, the latter flaring in fleeting glory before dissolving silently into infinity.
The Palisades are a spectacular columnar basalt canyon deep in the Cacade Mountains. Rising about the wild Cowlitz River they tower as an imposing wall of stone hundreds of feet tall. Only with a drone can the true scale of this place be truly appreciated.
The Bob Bammert Grove is a stunning remnant of the ancient forests that once blanketed the Capitol Hills, but of which precious little remains. This lush, legacy forest and the work of its namesake DNR manager who fought to save it from destruction should serve as inspiration for the current leadership of the state agency to preserve the handful of other places like it that still exist on our state trust lands. It's vital that our government act to save legacy forests before it is too late.
To learn more and find out what you can do to help visit: https://www.c4rf.org/