Wells dam on Columbia River, Washington

Another smaller dam on the Columbia, part of the same potent family with the Grand Coulee that helps make Washington the state that most heavily uses renewable energy.

Blobby rocks, Western Washington

Fields now beginning to be broken up by blobby formations of dark rocks. When one drives through here (as I did one snowy darkening January evening a few years back), there is nothing but open dry yellow fields and these rough black outcroppings looming up seemingly at random, like English moors on a much larger and more desolate scale.

Grand Coulee Dam, Washington

The Grand Coulee Dam, the largest hydroelectric generating station in the United States, doesn't look like all that much from this angle, looking down from above the reservoir. Think about the scale as you look at it, however: I remember from touring it as a child just how massive this place is, with generators bigger than semi trucks. For some reason, I also always remember that we watched a laser show play across the face of the dam at night.

Countor-line fields, near Grand Coulee

One more shot of the interlacing of fields and natural forms: in these farms, the elevation contours seem to be brought out directly in distinguished pathways in their crops.

Corduroy fields, Creston, Washington

If you look closely at the darker fields, you can see they have a thick parallel texture of lines, not unlike a corduroy fabric.

Rippling fields, Western Washington

A much flatter landscape: fields of Western Washington state, perfectly rectilinear yet all wrinkled up with the contours of their watershed in this dry high countryside.

Idaho mountain logging roads

Logging roads lacing the wilderness of the mountains of Northern Idaho.