13th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Dead Trees and stormy sky at Mesa Verde National Park

We drove through hail and rain through the climbing drive of Mesa Verde. Following the eastern mesa of the park, we entered a region of burnt trees, destroyed in a fire several years earlier. Behind, the volatile weather that altered these trees is visible. Mesa Verde gets the most lightning strikes of anywhere in Colorado.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2015
Date Uploaded: 12.2015
Photo Location: Cortez, Colorado, United States of America
Camera: ILCE-7RM2
Copyright: © Karen Blaha