Three of the Emerald’s staff photographers documented their spring break road trips to several of the most prominent national parks in the West, from snow-camping at 7,200 feet on the rim of Crater Lake to hiking from the valley floor of Angels Landing in Zion National Park. Michael Arellano and Mason Trinca set out from Eugene and spent two nights in the snowy heights of Crater Lake before heading to the Painted Hills Unit of the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in central Oregon, while Tess Freeman journeyed to Utah to explore the beauty of Zion National Park and Bryce Canyon National Park.
1,600 miles driven across three states. Three national parks. Thousands of images taken.
Here are their favorite photos.
Crater Lake’s Wizard Island is illuminated by a full moon near midnight on Wednesday, March 27th. This image is a panorama created from four photos. (Michael Arellano/Emerald)
Two men photograph the northern section of Zion Canyon on the top of Angel’s Landing hike at Zion National Park, Utah’s first national park on Tuesday, March 26th. Angel’s Landing is Zion National Park’s most popular location for hikers, with a twisting ridgeline trail that ends at an overlook at 1,400 feet above the canyon floor. (Tess Freeman/Emerald)
Campers tend to the fire as the sunset vanishes near the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Oregon on Friday, March 29, 2013. (Mason Trinca/Emerald)
Visitors to Bryce National Park hike the trail leading up to Sunset Point in one of Bryce National Park’s amphitheaters on Wednesday, March 27th. Frost-wedging and erosion through rainwater created the unique shapes of the rock formations at Bryce National Park. (Tess Freeman/Emerald)
The sun sets on the Painted Hills Unit on Friday, March 29, 2013. This photo was composed from 8 separate images. (Mason Trinca/Emerald)
An adult Clark’s Nutcraker vocalizes amidst the heavy afternoon fog rolling across Crater Lake’s rim on Wednesday, March 27th. The species was first described by William Clark in 1805 during Lewis and Clark’s expedition across the Northwest. (Michael Arellano/Emerald)
A young boy takes a break while he waits for his parents in the lower section of The Angel’s Landing hike at Zion National Park on Tuesday, March 26th. (Tess Freeman/Emerald)
The rich soils of Mitchell, Oregon’s Painted Hills are framed against a midday sky. This image is a panorama composed of 24 individual photos and was taken from the peak of Carroll Rim Trail on Friday, March 29th. (Michael Arellano/Emerald)
A cow and her calf are silhouetted against a brilliant sky during sunset in the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument on Friday, March 29th. (Michael Arellano/Emerald)
The stars radiate through the night sky at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument in Oregon on Friday, March 29, 2013 . (Mason Trinca/Emerald)
Jennifer Breunig climbs one of the rock formations at Byrce National Park on the Navajo Loop trail on Wednesday, March 27th. Bryce National Park is famous for it’s unique geology and series of rock formations known as “hoodoos.” (Tess Freeman/Emerald)