One of the nice things that comes with spending time outdoors is the "light" surprises that often make the experience special. This image was taken one evening camped near a trailhead for the next morning's hike. It was on a ridge above a canyon with a surprising large collection of dead trees, mostly pinion pine. remind me of looking through glass that isn't completely smooth and that warps the light passing through it.

As sunset approached, the clear western sky and stormy eastern sky meant a good possibility for nice light on the clouds. Having not planned to be shooting sunset this evening, it was necessary to make do with the dominant elements at hand, which included the sizeable collection of tree skeletons.

In the end, even though this is a somewhat hurried composition, it really is a favorite image from the outing. The dominant forest on much of the Colorado Plateau is composed of pinion and juniper, and the pinions in particular have a stately elegance both in life and death that speaks to the ancient rhythms of this land and the stamina it takes to survive here.