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May 25, 2018Cheers! It’s National Wine Day

We heard through the grapevine that it’s National Wine Day, a celebration of vino near and far. To celebrate, we’re featuring an image of the vineyards in Vaud, Switzerland, on the shores of Lake Geneva near the French border. France, Italy, and Spain are among the world’s top wine producers, but the United States has become a major winemaking country as well, thanks largely to California, which produces about 90 percent of American wine.Desktop Version

Oct 8, 2018Float on

We’d like to trade our usual Monday morning experience in for this one, please. Welcome to the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in New Mexico. The festival continues through October 14, with plenty of on-the-ground entertainment beyond those balloon rides that might take you east of the city, to the foothills of the Sandia Mountains, seen in this photo. Many hot air balloon rides offer a champagne toast as part of the experience. The champagne tradition may have sprung from early balloon pilots having to land in farm fields on private property. Aeronauts began carrying champagne or other drinks with them to offer to the confused and sometimes angry landowners. You’re welcome to land in our backyard anytime, balloonists!Desktop Version

Feb 4, 2021Where is this wintry road?

This wintry, wooded scene comes from Northern Vosges Regional Nature Park in northeastern France, one of the country"s most beautiful and pristine examples of natural beauty. The park, established in 1976, is over 322,000 acres in size, 65% of which is covered in forest. The larch trees seen here are native to many of the mountains of central Europe, such as the Alps, Carpathians, and the Pyrenees.Desktop Version

Jun 22, 2020Pollinators: not to be sneezed at

As National Pollinator Week kicks off today, you might ask yourself why a US Senate resolution would officially dedicate a whole week to bees, birds, bats, beetles, and other critters that move pollen from plant to plant. True, on days when your eyes are rubbed red by lunchtime and the Allegra won"t seem to kick in, you might not think the world of pollen. But in ways that transcend sinus clarity, your world wouldn"t be the same without pollinators—they"re to thank for as many as one in three bites of food eaten in the US. Pollinator Week is meant to highlight problems—like climate change, pollution, and invasive species—that threaten pollinator animals, especially bee populations that are already declining.Desktop Version

Apr 28, 2018National Park Week: Canyonlands National Park, Utah

You don’t need a museum ticket to visit the Great Gallery at Canyonlands National Park, but you’ll want to bring your hiking boots. This remote archeological site in Utah is home to one of the most well known rock art collections in the country. Archaeologists believe that the pictographs here in Horseshoe Canyon (formerly known as Barrier Canyon) were produced sometime between 400 and 1100 CE, when nomadic hunter-gatherers roamed the desert. Pictured here is the Ghost Panel, named for about 20 life-sized figures that seem to hover above viewers.Desktop Version

Oct 16, 2021Unearthing a queen s lost tale

Almost 3,500 years ago under Queen Hatshepsut"s reign, Egypt enjoyed decades of peace and flourishing culture, and this elegant temple is just one piece of her larger-than-life legacy. But the pharaoh who succeeded Hatshepsut forbade all mention of her rule, taking credit for her monuments and leaving her name all but unknown for millennia.Desktop Version

Jul 27, 2020A stunning sight in Mexico s wilderness

Here in central Mexico, the Gallinas River spills into the Tampaón River gorge to create Tamul waterfall, renowned as a jewel of the country"s wilderness. Both rivers offer great swimming near the falls, and boaters can float by on the Tampaón for close-up views. Both activities are best attempted between July and October, though: During wetter months, the falls converge into a thundering cataract as the Gallinas rises to form torrential rapids.Desktop Version

Dec 10, 2018Feeling crabby?

Bright red crabs like this one number in the tens of millions here on Christmas Island, a territory of Australia located in the Indian Ocean. It’s warm on the island this time of year, and these crabs are migrating to the sea, where they will mate and spawn. The event is quite a spectacle—onlookers will see rivers of crabs, thousands of them at a time climbing over fences and crossing roads on their journey, which attracts tourists to the remote destination. This isle itself was named by an English sea captain who discovered the destination on Christmas Day of 1643.Desktop Version

Jun 8, 2021A day for our oceans

To celebrate World Oceans Day, we"re swimming through a shoal of jack fish just off the coast of Baja, California, in Cabo Pulmo National Park. This Mexican marine park in the Sea of Cortez is home to the northernmost and oldest coral reef on the west coast of North America, estimated to be about 20,000 years old. Jacks are clearly plentiful here, but divers and snorkelers in Cabo Pulmo can also come across many other species of fish and marine mammals, including several varieties of sharks, whales, dolphins, tortoises, and manta rays.Desktop Version

Dec 1, 2020Giving Tuesday

These common terns sharing a fish have the right idea for today, which is Giving Tuesday. Held annually on the Tuesday after the US Thanksgiving, the global movement serves to encourage acts of generosity during the holidays, when consumerism seems to be the focus for so many. Giving Tuesday was founded in 2012 by New York"s 92nd Street Y in partnership with the United Nations Foundation. Originally observed only in the US, it"s grown into a worldwide celebration of generosity promoted by a newly independent organization. There are several ways you can participate: Donate to the cause of your choice, volunteer your time, or just do something nice—even sharing a fish counts.Desktop Version

Jan 10, 2021China s colorful terraced pools

While the sight of these gorgeous pools may make you want to don a swimsuit and plunge in for a refreshing soak, we don"t recommend it. The water may be fed by underground geothermal springs, but these are no hot springs—the water"s only about 41 F. We"ll take it all in from dry land. The terraced, travertine pools cascade downward for nearly 2 miles. Formed over thousands of years, calcite deposits give the water its unique, and welcoming, turquoise coloration.Desktop Version

Jul 9, 2020High alpine color in Colorado

Songstress Dolly Parton once sang "wildflowers don"t care where they grow," but we gotta believe the wildflowers growing in Colorado"s American Basin, shown here, are pretty delighted with their surroundings. American Basin is in the San Juan Mountains in the southern part of the state, about a five-hour drive from Denver. Visitors here will find rocky cliffs, streams, unique rock formations, and some spectacular wildflowers. July and August are the best months to see the blooms—it"s the time of year when you"ll reliably spot the Rocky Mountain columbine (Colorado"s state flower), elephant"s head, Parry"s primrose, and marsh marigold. Bring us back a bouquet, all right?Desktop Version

Apr 18, 2018A crested partridge

Our moodily lit crested partridge is a female. Though her plumage includes vibrant green and copper, the male sports the red crest that gives the bird its most common name. Unless you travel to the biogeographic region of Southeast Asia known as Sundaland, you may have to head to your local zoo to get a glimpse of this bird. But don’t look for it up in the trees--the crested partridge prefers to walk, not fly.Desktop Version

Jul 13, 2021Through an artist s eyes

If this beautiful view of Grand Teton National Park seems as pretty as a painting, there may be a reason for it. The majestic peaks towering over the landscape include Mount Moran, named for Thomas Moran, an American artist of New York"s Hudson River School who earned fame by painting scenes of the Western frontier. In 1871, Moran and photographer William Henry Jackson were invited on an expedition to the Yellowstone region to accompany a team from the US Geological Society while they conducted the first comprehensive survey of the area. Moran"s paintings and Jackson"s photographs from the trip immediately captured the public"s attention and inspired Congress to establish Yellowstone as the first national park in 1872.Desktop Version

Oct 21, 2020Does this chameleon look a little insecure?

If it appears to be slinking away from the camera, maybe this chameleon is all too aware of the way some of us humanfolk see reptiles: as frightening at best, disgusting at worst. We know you die-hard reptile lovers are out there too, but it"s undeniable that reptiles" reputation among people has suffered thanks to popular villainous depictions—from "Anaconda" and "Godzilla" to the serpent encountered by Adam and Eve. Even our everyday language throws shade on this vast class of critters: When"s the last time you called someone "reptile" and meant it nicely?Desktop Version

May 14, 2020Green fields of grain

We"re looking down on the lush fields of the Sidemen Valley, sitting in the shadow of Bali"s tallest mountain, Mount Agung. In May, this Indonesian province marks the end of the harvest season of a key staple—rice. Towns and villages are decorated with colorful flags, and farmers erect shrines to Dewi Sri, the rice goddess. Small handmade straw dolls depicting the goddess are left here and there in further tribute. Before "social distancing" entered the global vocabulary, people came together to share traditional food and indulge in fun and games, like water buffalo races through the streets. This year, to be sure, the celebrations will be more subdued, more private, though the gratitude for a bountiful harvest, we suspect, will be just as deeply felt.Desktop Version

May 18, 2018It’s Endangered Species Day

We chose this photo of a peregrine falcon—a female, walking across the rail of a balcony in Chicago—to inspire hope on Endangered Species Day. Not every animal listed as endangered is doomed to extinction. Peregrine populations were decimated by the use of pesticides, such as DDT, in the mid-20th century. The chemicals accumulated in the birds’ bodies, causing weak eggshells and high mortality rates for chicks. But by the 1980s humans had learned the cause, reduced and eliminated the various chemicals, and helped the birds rebound with gusto.Desktop Version

Aug 21, 2018Ingenuity in action on the Santa Monica Pier

The story of the Ferris wheel, first invented for the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago, is a prime example of human ingenuity in urban environments, which happened to be the theme of our most recent photo contest. Congrats to contest winner Chris Fabregas, who captured this shot of human ingenuity in action on the Santa Monica Pier in California. Santa Monica debuted its Ferris wheel here in 1996 and then adapted it two years later to make it the world’s first solar-powered Ferris wheel, using clean energy for the ride that propelled about 800 passengers an hour. In 2014 it was replaced with a newer version that sports 174,000 LED lights, providing for glittering nighttime scenes just like this.Desktop Version

Aug 25, 2018Happy trails for the 21st century

We celebrate National Park Service Founders Day today with this photo from the John Muir Trail near Mammoth Lakes in California. The 210-mile trail is so long, to hike it all would take you through three national parks: Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia. At 102 years old, the National Park Service continues to do the day-to-day work of preserving our parks ‘for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.’Desktop Version

Jun 17, 2019World-class art comes to Arkansas

Bentonville, Arkansas, is probably not the first place that comes to mind when you think about visiting a world-class art museum. But Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is a new must-see in the art world. Its collection includes paintings, sculpture, photography, drawing, and installation art from colonial times to today and features American artists such as Maya Lin, Andrew Wyeth, Jacob Lawrence, Jackson Pollock, and Georgia O’Keeffe. But perhaps the biggest piece of art is the museum itself. Designed by Moshe Safdie, the building blends seamlessly and beautifully into the surrounding Ozark landscape. In addition to the art and architecture collections, there are eight nature trails on the grounds. And admission to the museum is always free.Desktop Version

Dec 9, 2018There’s treasure in them thar hills

This wintry view comes from Oregon’s Painted Hills, part of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument and home to one of the most complete fossil records on the planet. Paleontologists have uncovered fossils here that date as far back as 44 million years ago, when this region had a hot, wet, subtropical climate, home to crocodiles and rhino-like plant eaters. And what’s above ground here is equally impressive. This is only a glimpse of the portion of the monument called the Painted Hills, named for its vivid colors that are a result of layers of sediment from various geologic periods.Desktop Version

Oct 23, 2020Saskatchewan s spookier side

If you"re greeted by a friendly face and a warm "Welcome to Bents" as you stroll up to this old general store, you might be having a paranormal experience: It"s been 50 years since a living soul dwelt in this Saskatchewan ghost town.Desktop Version

Jan 21, 2021The tale of squirrels like Nutkin

If this picture looks right out of Beatrix Potter"s world, we"d say you have a good eye for a story. In 1903, Potter published "The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin," about a cheeky squirrel who taunts an owl with silly riddles until he pushes things too far—narrowly escaping with his life, minus a tail. Potter based Nutkin on the red squirrel, the only native squirrel species in the UK. The red squirrel population saw a steep decline here after humans introduced the larger nonnative Eastern gray squirrel in the late 1800s. But today in the UK, the red squirrel is a protected species, bolstering efforts to keep the gray numbers in check and preserve habitat. Estimates put the red squirrel population in the UK at fewer than 140,000, with the vast majority living in the woods of Scotland, like our little friend here.Desktop Version

Nov 14, 2021First Cliff Walk

When it comes to breathtaking mountain scenery, it"s difficult to top the village of Grindelwald in the center of the Swiss Alps, flanked as it is on all sides by towering peaks such as the Mannlichen, Faulhorn, and Wetterhorn. In winter, Grindelwald is home to one of the biggest ski resorts in Switzerland"s Jungfrau region, and even in the offseason there"s still plenty of adrenaline-inducing activity to be found here.Desktop Version

Aug 1, 2018Don’t look down

It"s Swiss National Day, and the citizens of Switzerland are taking the day off. They’re celebrating the 1291 confederation of regional cantons that led to the formation of their country. The nation first celebrated this milestone 600 years later, in 1891, but the day wasn’t declared an official holiday until 1994. Perhaps the Swiss are able to summon that level of patience as they cross the Charles Kuonen Suspension Bridge in the Alps near the village of Randa. At 1,621 feet, the bridge is currently ranked the world’s longest pedestrian suspension bridge. It’s also pretty high–at one point along the span, brave crossers are 279 feet above the ground. Just keep moving forward and maybe yodel a bit to distract yourself…Desktop Version

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