Anza-Borrego Desert State Park The air was perfectly clear, allowing the sun to add warmth to the colors of these desert plants growing at the top of a sand dune.
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California View to the west, looking toward Ysidro Peak from the dunes off the Thimble Trail. Taken about half an hour after sunrise. I enjoyed having this part of the world all to myself for several hours before, during and after sunrise.
El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico The sandstone bluffs of El Malpais National Monument provide a panoramic view of the volcanic landscape in the high desert below. But I was particularly taken with this pine tree growing out of a crack in the sandstone. The soft lighting seemed to accentuate its loneliness. There were lightning storms off to the west, and the cliffs are susceptible to lightning strikes, so I kept a close eye on the storms’ movement while I took this photo.
