The View from Castle Valley

Above: Utah's high desert, where Mormon colonizer Brigham Young and his followers sought pastures for their cattle in the 1870s, despite warnings from Indian tribes. Rainfall is so rare, its arrival seems to bring miracles.

The View from Route 292

Above: Nevada's Route 292 runs just three miles south from a desolate Oregon border.

The View from Crooked River

Above: Oregon's Crooked River Highway follows its namesake along a watershed that supports river otter, redband trout, golden eagles, prairie falcons, and pronghorn antelope, among other wildlife. Farther south, a weathered oasis in the town of Brothers seems transplanted from another century.

The View from Olympic Peninsula

Above: views from the peninsula's Dungeness Spit, where Indian paintbrush blooms alongside dandelions, and a ferry ride to the Emerald City.