Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.
John Muir, Our National Parks
I confess I have never been one to climb mountains, and certainly not these days! But I am inspired by the sight of them and by all the wonders of the world’s wilder places.
And where better to see some of these than in a national park? I’m a particular admirer of the US national parks system, which owes much to the campaigning of John Muir. He was passionate about wild places, especially in North America where he had emigrated from Scotland as a young boy. He explored them, wrote about them and campaigned to protect them. He believed in protecting them, for their own sake, for ours and for wildlife. His writings helped people to understand the importance of wildness and inspired the creation of the world’s first national park system.
The photo above shows the view from Muir Rock in King’s Canyon National Park, California. According to the NPS website:
From this rock overlooking a relatively quiet bend of the Kings River, he would address anyone who would listen. He shared his love of the wild and his theories on how these canyons formed (carved by large rivers of ice called glaciers, which later proved to be correct). These talks and the articles he wrote celebrating the area helped lead to its becoming a national park.
https://www.nps.gov/places/000/muir-rock.htm
To celebrate Earth Day (April 22nd) as well as the US National Park Week April 19th – 27th) I’m sharing some images from our visits to some of those parks. And to tie into Leanne’s theme-free Monochrome Madness I’m experimenting with some black and white edits using Nik Silver Efex Pro. It may seem counter-intuitive to strip out the beautiful hues that the earth gives us, but monochrome brings out shapes and textures to emphasise other aspects of its beauty. And you will already have seen many of these shots in colour, especially those taken in California last year.
I’m also linking this to Terri’s Sunday Stills challenge as she too is celebrating Earth Day.
Junction View, King’s Canyon National Park, California
Moro Rock, Sequoia National Park, California
View from Glacier Point, Yosemite National Park, California
Olmstead Point, Tioga Pass, Yosemite National Park, California
Bumpass Hell viewpoint, Lassen Volcanic National Park, California
On Artist’s Drive, Death Valley National Park, California
At Dante’s View, Death Valley National Park, California
Alkali Flat, White Sands National Park, New Mexico
El Malpais National Monument, New Mexico
The view from Hurricane Ridge, Olympic National Park, Washington State
Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington State
Glacier, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington State
Myrtle Falls, Mount Rainier National Park, Washington State
Oxbow Bend, Snake River, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
Jenny Lake, Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming
Near Mammoth Hot Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
These photos were taken in 2006 (Wyoming), 2011 (New Mexico), 2017 (Washington State) and 2024 (California). I have also visited national parks in Utah, Arizona, Florida and elsewhere but only have 35mm slides, either not yet or very poorly scanned, from those trips.
44 Comments
equinoxio21
I like mountains. Climbed a few in my days. Some of the ones you show must be tough to climb. But worth it.
Sarah Wilkie
They would ALL be tough to climb from my perspective, although there was a time when I might have tackled the least challenging among them 🙂
equinoxio21
There is also the fact that the UK is rather flat. When I took my English friends on the train to go climb Mont-Blanc, I remember when the train came in view of the Alps. I showed them the mountains through the windows. They went very pale.
Sarah Wilkie
Very true – the highest ‘mountain’ I’ve climbed right to the top of from the bottom is the Old Man of Coniston in England’s Lake District, just 802.42 metres high!
the eternal traveller
The only one of these we’ve been to is Sequioa National Park and it was fantastic.
Sarah Wilkie
We really enjoyed seeing Sequoia although it’s probably not at the top of my list of favourites 🙂
Annie Berger
I particularly liked the New Mexico shots as Steven and I will soon be heading for a two-plus-week trip of the Land of Enchantment, Sarah. It’ll be exciting to tour a state that’s so close to us in Denver, but not a state we’ve spent much time in. I’ll be glad to rectify that. As I think you know, your photos and love of the state were part of the inspiration for us going.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Annie 🙂 I do hope New Mexico lives up to your expectations (and my enthusiasm for the state!)
Anabel @ The Glasgow Gallivanter
Fabulous! I was thinking, never been to any of these, and then you got to Grand Teton and Yellowstone.I think the Yellowstone image is the one that I think would definitely be better in colour – in b&w you don’t get quite how otherworldly it is.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Anabel 🙂 I take your point about Yellowstone and I certainly have shots from there that would always be best in colour, but that particular one was taken on a dull early morning with flat light and little colour so I felt it would suit monochrome, especially with those dead trees. But I’ll share the colour version one day so you can see what you think – you may well still prefer that!
Anonymous
Fantastic pictures Sarah! I hope you have got the Glacier Point picture hung on your wall! PS. I can’t seem to comment in WordPress reader for some reason, it says comments closed.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much 😊 No, not on my wall, but that’s a good idea! Glad you managed to comment – I’m not sure if the other anonymous ones below are from your previous attempts or from someone else?
Anonymous
That is bizarre! It’s Jim from Jim’s Walking Journey so not sure what’s going on, maybe WP is playing up!
Sarah Wilkie
Maybe , but this does happen with one or two other people on my blog (one of them all the time, frustratingly!) That’s why I ask that people include their name when commenting, although few do 😏
Anonymous
A beautiful collection in B&W, Sarah. Such sweeping landscapes and breathtaking heights.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much 😊
Sylvia
Sarah, the number of US parks you’ve visited is impressive. Your black & white images are sharp and distinctive! From an artists point of view, these images would lend themselves to wonderful pencil drawings as well! Nice work!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Sylvia 🙂 We always try to include some of the national parks on our road trips and they are always among the highlights 🙂 There are quite a few more we’ve been to, e.g. in Arizona and Utah, but that was pre-digital and the photos are 35mm slides, much harder to share here!
Leanne Cole
These are beautiful Sarah, very Ansel Adams like. They really work in monochrome.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Leanne 😊 Saying ‘Ansel Adams like’ is a wonderful compliment!
Easymalc
There’s no guessing as to who you admire with these images Sarah.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks Malcolm 🙂 Do you mean ‘no guessing’ or do you mean that it was easy to guess?!
Easymalc
Easy to guess – AA ☺️
Vicki
Stunning landscapes. Thanks for sharing.
I particularly like the diagonal lines of the Artist’s Drive image and the lone tree in the Dante’s view, Death Valley, but each image has something to admire in composition and texture.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Vicki 😊 I’m glad that like Margaret below you picked out Artists’ Drive. I really wasn’t sure if that one would work (it’s called Artists’ Drive because of all the different colours in the rocks) but like you I thought the diagonal lines were interesting.
norasphotos4u
Gorgeous photos – you’re channeling your inner Ansel Adams in these
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Nora 😊 I’m no Ansel Adams for sure, but I do think he demonstrated perfectly that monochrome landscape shots can be very powerful, and I do try to achieve something on those lines.
Anonymous
When I saw your title about national parks in black and white, I expected to feel a little sad about the lack of color. But my goodness, your black and white images are sharp and impressive! Wow! Beautiful work!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you, I’m so glad you feel these worked in black and white 🙂
Monkey's Tale
Funny that we both had mountain themes today. Surprisingly though, my favourite of these is Rialto Beach. I love the features that come out in the logs in black and white. Maggie
Sarah Wilkie
I’m always happy to feature mountains and to see other people’s images of them 😀 But I agree B&W works particularly well on those old tree trunks as it brings out all the textures.
Terri Webster Schrandt
Thank you for sharing your stunning images of beloved national parks, Sarah! Your monochrome experiments paid off in a big way and you captured the essence of Ansel Adam’s to boot. John Muir would be proud! ❤️
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Terri 😊 I can’t claim to match Ansel Adams but I am inspired by him!
grandmisadventures
Great pictures- makes me want to take off work, grab my hiking shoes, and get out to see the parks.
Sarah Wilkie
Glad they had that effect on you! Thank you Meg 🙂
Anne Sandler
Wow, Sarah, beautiful black and whites of some beautiful places. When we were traveling across the U.S. and back, I was talking to a woman in Missouri. She asked where I was from and I said California. She replied that she had been there and didn’t like it. I asked why. She replied that California had mountains! Thank you for showing that our mountains are beautiful in color or black and white!
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you very much Anne 😊 I’m happy to be able to show off the beauties of your state and others! I can’t imagine not liking a place because it has mountains, how odd!
Egídio
Wow, Sarah! You brought wonderful memories with these gorgeous photos.
Sarah Wilkie
Thanks so much Egidio 😊
Sue
What a marvellous set of images, Sarah! Like you, I am inspired by the sight of mountains , and by all the wonders of the world’s wilder places. Hard pressed to find a favourite, but I do like the fairly minimalistic image of the view from hurricane Ridge
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Sue 🙂 The views from Hurricane Ridge were just stunning, and the air so fresh up there!
margaret21
Although I miss the colour, these all work well in monochrome. I especially like Artists’ Drive and Rialto Beach in this format.
Sarah Wilkie
Thank you Margaret 🙂 I’m glad you picked out Artists’ Drive in particular as I wasn’t sure if that one had worked (it’s called Artists’ Drive because of all the different colours in the rocks!)
margaret21
Ah, I must have missed that if you showed it before. But it’s a striking image.