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Runner up: Joshua Tree National Park, California. -
Runner up: 100 years ago this was the world’s biggest gold mine. Today the forest is devouring the ruins in Douglas Island, Alaska. -
Runner up: Slowing down. -
Readers’ choice: Aaron Henriquez climbs an ice pillar in Rollinsville, Colorado, while Ellie Stanton belays. -
Runner up: Roadrunner, Las Cruces, New Mexico. -
Editor’s choice: A summer moon, mountain lake and night swim in the Swan Range, Montana. -
Runner up: A quiet morning hike above Silverton, Colorado. -
Runner up: The Elvis Church and the barn from the Apacheland movie sit in front of the Superstition Mountains in Youngsberg, Arizona. -
Runner up: White Sands Monsoon, White Sands National Park, New Mexico. -
Runner up: Construction in the resort town of Big Sky, Montana.
Even when a pandemic limits how far Westerners can travel, our region provides plenty of inspiration. For this year’s photo contest, we asked readers to share notable nearby sights, perhaps glimpsed in their backyards or on a hike in the back hills. From intimate shots of hatchlings in a nest and snails stretching across sidewalks, to vast landscapes and star-strewn skies, we received more than 120 entries, proving that beauty can be found even in the most difficult of times.
Email High Country News at editor@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline The West: Familiar and phenomenal.
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