Gem State views Jun 9, 2020

Gem State views

Idaho is called the Gem State for its abundance of precious and semiprecious gems, but the moniker could also apply to its many lesser-known, yet spectacular natural landmarks—hidden gems like you see on today"s homepage. This is Upper Baron Lake (foreground) and Baron Lake in the rugged Sawtooth Wilderness of central Idaho. It"s just a snippet of the nearly 5 million acres of designated wilderness that belong to the Gem State. Other highlights include Hells Canyon, the deepest river gorge in North America—at 8,000 feet deep, it surpasses even the Grand Canyon. And in southern Idaho you"ll find Shoshone Falls, which towers 45 feet higher than Niagara Falls, earning it the nickname Niagara of the West.

© Patrick Brandenburg/Tandem Stills + Motion

palette

Today in History

Jun 9, 2018Yarn bombing in the village of Gurnard, England
Jun 9, 2019Crown Fountain by Jume Plensa at Millennium Park in Chicago
Jun 9, 2021Ring of fire
Jun 9, 2022Sweetheart Abbey, Scotland
Jun 9, 2023Cappadocia, Türkiye
Jun 9, 2024Bardenas Reales Biosphere Reserve and Natural Park, Spain
Jun 9, 2025Old City of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia, Croatia
Jun 9, 2026Vernazza, Cinque Terre, Liguria, Italy

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Aug 17, 2025International Lighthouse Lightship Weekend
Dec 5, 2018’Chess on ice’
Apr 1, 2019Unbearable cuteness
Mar 28, 2023The Tre Cime di Lavaredo, Italy
Feb 7, 2024St. James Tidal Pool, Cape Town, South Africa
Mar 11, 2023Marshland, Gloucester, MA
Apr 29, 2024Fujian Tulou, China
Oct 12, 2018Venture into a prehistoric gallery of art
Dec 18, 2025Celebrating 54 years of Capitol Reef National Park
Feb 5, 2026Salt evaporation ponds on the island of Gozo, Malta
Dec 12, 2020What are we looking at?
Jun 30, 2026Giraffes at sunset in the Masai Mara National Reserve, Kenya
Jul 23, 2023Nuwara Eliya, Sri Lanka
Feb 18, 2024World Whale Day
Nov 24, 2019Autumn in the cypress swamp
Aug 24, 2025European fallow deer in England
Sep 30, 2020All eyes on moths
Nov 26, 2021Native American Heritage Day
May 27, 2026World Otter Day
Mar 23, 2020A peak in the clouds
Jan 3, 2023Sandhill cranes, Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge
Oct 7, 2026Puzzlewood, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, England
Jul 18, 2024Coral Reef Awareness Week
Feb 26, 2018A leafy seadragon in the waters off Wool Bay, Australia
Apr 15, 2021Jackie Robinson Day
Feb 5, 2024Western Monarch Day
May 2, 2018Mackerel forming a bait ball to avoid predators
Jul 15, 2018GOAL!
Apr 5, 2019A day of death and rebirth
Nov 1, 2019The National Museum of the American Indian