“Trail Fairies”

Location: Broken Top Loop, Bend, Oregon (2021)

In the basin of No Name Lake on Broken Top during mid-July the wildflowers were on full display such as the red and distinctive Indian Paintbrush amongst purple-blue lupine.

After photographing “Bend Glacier Overlook”, I trotted down the trail you see in this photograph to a scene that had me ecstatic – wildflowers everywhere. Not overflowing, but there were flowers in every direction I looked. Yellows, purples, pinks, blues, reds, the colors contrasted marvelously with the brown volcanic soil.

Finding a composition to show off both the flowers and the environment took a bit of effort on my part. With so many flowers, I wanted to find an angle that would help tell a story – hence the name “Trail Fairies”. I had no idea I would be seeing so many flowers growing out of a rocky soil matrix. The sight of them restored my energy and gave me the strength to continue without feeling the heavy weight of my pack.