Snow and Pines on Canyon Wall,
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

This photo of a light snowfall on a canyon wall in Bryce Canyon National Park was made in late November of 2006. It was the first snow of the winter. We got there a couple days after it had fallen, and the skies had cleared and the warmth was welcome.

It had been a light snowfall, several inches or so. Light snow cover on the ground reveals much about the form of the landscape. It can drift into ravines, swales, and other creases in the land, while more exposed areas might be bare. When the sun hits it, anything darker than pure white absorbs the heat and radiates it, melting the snow immediately next to it. In this photo we see the exposed ridges of the canyon wall where the snow melted in the sun, as well as areas that were too steep for the snow to stick to. The patterns of ridges and snow and sunlight and shadow, along with the ponderosa pine trees growing vertically from spots where they managed to take root and thrive, give this photograph its distinction.

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