With these dramatic clouds, the shardlike pinnacles of the Aiguille du Midi (Needle of Midday) resemble the spires of a ruined Alpine cathedral. This is just one of the many spectacular peaks of the Mont Blanc massif, the storied Alps range in eastern France that stretches across the border into Italy and Switzerland. It was here in France"s Chamonix valley that mountaineering became a sport in the mid-1700s. This dramatic peak was first summited in 1818, a feat that helped to popularize mountain climbing throughout Europe.
Atop the Needle of Chamonix
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
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New beginnings
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A swim in the sky
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A silent witness to history
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It’s Opening Day for Major League Baseball
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Audubon Christmas Bird Count
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Meet our fuzzy Earth Day mascot
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Vancouver Coastal Sea wolves, Great Bear Rainforest, Canada
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A glittering diamond in the rough
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SantaPark, Lapland, Finland
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Hemingway’s Keys
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Astronomy Day
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Observing a squirrelly day
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Memorial Day
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A history of Vinland
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International Archaeology Day
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The first ascent
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Celebrating the UN’s International Day of Families
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Welcome to the Hoh
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World Migratory Bird Day
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National Park Week begins
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For the love of bikes
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Overlooking the Douro
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Big Bend National Park turns 78
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Ostuni, Apulia, Italy
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Spine-cheeked anemonefish in Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea
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Taking the forest to the cloud
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Vacuum Chamber 5 at Glenn Research Center
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Seattle Central Library, Seattle, Washington
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Siblings Day
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The Colosseum of Rome, Italy
Bing Wallpaper Gallery

