billtheis.bsky.social
@billtheis.bsky.social
In this winter scene above Lee Vining, CA, only the evergreens still hold their leaves. The snow isn’t yet deep, but the pass into Yosemite has long been closed. The reddish hue of bare stalks stands out against the white bark of the leafless aspens. Poole Power Plant Road, off the 120 Tioga Pass Rd
November 29, 2025 at 6:41 PM
Swampy. Sunlight penetrates this wet area only infrequently. Western skunk cabbage is the huge forground plant, and several instances may be seen strewn across the picture. Everything else is moss covered in Sol Duc Valley in Olympic National Park
November 28, 2025 at 6:17 PM
Yin and Yang. The slug prowls it's minerature environment, climbing over mossy ground, eye stalks fully extended. Looking out for danger. Like me! Here, the slug and the orange fallen leaf seem to form elements of the Yin Yang symbol, though that might be a bit of a stretch. Olympic National Park
November 26, 2025 at 6:02 PM
❄️✨ Not a sound anywhere—no wind, no birds, no critters. The pond is frozen solid, so even the fish and insects are taking the morning off. Just pure, peaceful solitude in the Rockies
November 25, 2025 at 4:21 PM
A beautiful composition found at Beaver Lake. The way the submerged rocks and grasses blend with the shoreline is gorgeous, but it's that fallen branch that really brings everything together. Nature's perfect little masterpiece! 🌿Rocky Mtn National Park
November 24, 2025 at 5:55 PM
Great Gallery. Standing before the 'Holy Ghost' panel in the Maze District of Canyonlands. The center figure alone is nearly 8 feet tall! It feels impossible to create 'new' art out of a masterpiece that already exists, so I view this simply as documentary photography
November 22, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Three rocks sunbathe on a sandy California beach. They've been doing this for a very long time—possibly millennia! Translated as the "Mountain of Gold," this coastal gem is situated in Montana de Oro State Park.
November 20, 2025 at 6:50 PM
Captured weed. Deep within the shadowy depths of Brimstone Gulch, things go in but don't go out. Towering canyon walls, heavily striated and studed with embedded rock, guard the passage. This renowned slot canyon is a striking feature of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM).
November 19, 2025 at 6:23 PM
Tan rocks floating in a sea of Bentonite clay! 🤯 The Hartnet Desert in Capitol Reef is painted with these incredible, surreal colors. It's all because ancient volcanic ash mixed with water for eons. Nature's paintbrush is wild!
November 13, 2025 at 3:32 PM
Desert Oasis. Running through Arches National Park, Courthouse Wash meanders providing habitat for many things. Lined with cottonwood trees, it becomes quite the sight of brilliant yellow against a background of sandstone cliffs.
November 11, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Soil that is truly blue. The Blue Mesa Member of the Chinle Formation, which is surprisingly blue, makes up the vibrant hills of the Blue Mesa and Teepees. All in all, a strange terrain to discover and appreciate. Painted Desert National Park
November 7, 2025 at 5:27 PM
STRETCHED TO THE DISTANT HORIZON! 🤩
The valley floor was completely covered by a bright golden-orange blanket, which visually resembled tangled thread or spaghetti. This temporary landscape was created by Golden Dodder (Cuscuta californica), a rare native parasitic plant. Death Valley NP
November 6, 2025 at 6:44 PM
The valley was briefly covered in a massive, bright golden-orange blanket that looked exactly like tangled spaghetti.

This incredible sight was the parasite Golden Doddera californica), creating a stunning, temporary golden landscape that stretched to the horizon. Death Valley NP
November 5, 2025 at 6:07 PM
Out in the Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in Death Valley, the wind constantly sculpts the sand into perfect ripples. But look closely! This dead tumbleweed changes the airflow and causes the sand to pile and shift in a completely unique way around it.
November 4, 2025 at 3:43 PM
View from the White Rim. The White Rim view. A wonderland of cliffs appears to go on forever against the backdrop of the La Salle mountains. The cliff tops, where tumbleweeds, sage, and other plants struggle to survive in the shallow soil, are the focus of this vista.
November 1, 2025 at 5:30 PM
A tumbleweed captured during the Magic Hour, right as the sun was setting. Moments after I exposed this sheet of film, the light vanished, transforming the scene completely. The golden light also highlights the rock formations in the background. Capitol Reef Natl Park
October 31, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Tumbleweeds congregate in a ditch but impeded from further rolling in the wind to distribute their seeds by the rancher's fence. The plant was first introduced in 1873, in Bon Homme County, SD, when its seeds accidentally arrived in a shipment of flaxseed imported from Russia by immigrant farmers.
October 30, 2025 at 3:23 PM
Sometimes referred to as tumbleweeds, thistles grow large in the desert. They break in the wind and roll. Here they have accumulated in a depression protected from the wind so they have gone no farther but rest in a tumbleweed graveyard for now. Canyonlands Natl Park
October 29, 2025 at 2:48 PM
Tumbleweeds Are Secretly GORGEOUS! With a background of bentonite mounds, thistles grow in the brick red soil. Normally, they look pretty gray and dull in the sun. But if you stand so they're backlit—with the sun shining through them—they suddenly light up in brilliant shades of yellow and green! 🤯
October 28, 2025 at 5:23 PM
There's a special kind of quiet that falls over Bryce Canyon when the snow arrives. 🌨️ It dusts the magnificent rock amphitheaters, turning them into a high-desert dreamscape. The evergreen trees stand guard, witnessing the powerful contrast between the icy white and the deep, rich red soil.
October 25, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Time to Chase the Clouds on the Control Road! 🏞️
This epic 23-mile route below the Mogollon Rim is not just history—it's a high-desert drama! Our infrared shot captures the stunning backlit trees and breathtaking cloud drama on the Control Road (FR 64) in the Tonto National Forest.
October 24, 2025 at 5:14 PM
Floating. The tree has fallen into the stream and now inhabits a visual wonderland of light and shadow. Reflections are a particularly vivid feast! Grand Mesa CO
October 23, 2025 at 4:39 PM
First. One of the earliest to turn orange, this tree growing on a fence row in Smoky Mountains National Park stands out from the multitude of other trees. Fall is in the air.
October 22, 2025 at 5:52 PM
Slanted checkerboard. Weathered by the sea, this intriguing structure of square-shaped pedestals would be ideal for (very large) chess pieces. The younger sedimentary rock has worn away to reveal the stunning granodiorite along the beach, which creates for excellent tidal pools at Point Lobos.
October 21, 2025 at 5:01 PM
Ancient. The oldest non-clonal trees in the world, Bristlecone Pines, grow on the cliff edges of Cedar Breaks. They appear almost dead as they slowly survive their tough environment here and in other similar areas of the west, such the White Mountains and Great Basin.
October 16, 2025 at 5:07 PM