23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Wildlife
Cliff Wanderer

At dawn, the cliff face is steeped in the warm golden glow of the morning sun. A bharal nestles into the dark brown rock ridges as a crisp silhouette — its sharp horns trace the cliff’s contours, its agile form treading the still-misty morning breeze. This “Cliff Wanderer” figure in the wilderness is just wrapped in the warm palette laid by the dawn glow, condensing both the roughness and softness of the mountain morning into this single frame.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 01.2024
Date Uploaded: 11.2025
Photo Location: Buha River, Qinghai Lake National Park, Tianjun County, Haixi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, China
Camera: Canon EOS-1D X Mark III
Copyright: © 永清 鲍