Lee Petersen

@leepetersen

Photographer writing Alaska hiking, travel, wildflower guides and other junk. Living in Fairbanks, Alaska. Lots of stuff here:

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Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 25d

A bit of pink variation on an arctic starflower (Lysimachia europaea) in Homer, Alaska. Info in my wildflower guide: www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-wildf... #alaska #wildflowers #bloomscrolling

Looking down on two arctic starflowers among oval green leaves and brown leaf litter. The nearer flower has seven pointed petals flushed pale pink, with a yellow-green center and slender yellow stamens; a second, whiter flower blooms above it, slightly out of focus in warm low light.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 25d

Moulin on the College Glacier in the Eastern Alaska Range. #glacier #alaska #hiking

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 26d

Narrow-leaved arnica (Arnica angustifolia). The latest addition to my Alaska Wildflower Guide: www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-wildf... #alaska #bloomscrolling #wildflowers

A single yellow Arnica angustifolia flower head in sharp focus, with roughly a dozen strap-like ray petals radiating around a domed center of tiny yellow disc florets. The flower sits atop a hairy green stem bearing two unopened buds, one still closed and one just beginning to open, against a softly blurred background of green grass and dark shadow.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 26d

Aurora over Angel Rocks near Fairbanks, Alaska in late April. Only about a month until it's dark enough here to see the lights again, and I'm making plans to chase them in some pretty cool places this year. More aurora: photos.lwpetersen.com/Galleries/Al... #alaska #auroraborealis #hiking

Bright green curtains of aurora borealis fill most of a deep blue night sky, swirling and streaming diagonally from the upper left toward the horizon. The brightest band forms a sharp ribbon of vivid green edged with pink and magenta, folding back on itself like drapery, while fainter rays fan out to the right in soft vertical streaks. A few stars show through the glow. Along the bottom, a low ridge of snow-covered mountains catches faint light, and the dark silhouette of a rocky outcrop with a few spruce trees rises in the lower right corner. A thin band of pale purple twilight lingers just above the mountains.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 27d

Bald Eagle on the beach at Anchor Point near Homer, Alaska. From my latest post: lwpetersen.substack.com/p/homer-suns... #alaska #wildlife #eagle #birding

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 27d

Woolly lousewort (Pedicularis lanata) along Nome Creek on the way to Mt. Prindle in early June. lwpetersen.substack.com/p/overnight-... #wildflowers #alaska #bloomscrolling #hiking

Close-up of two spikes of woolly lousewort covered in bright pink tubular flowers and fuzzy white hairs, growing low on the tundra. A person lies on the ground behind the flowers, face close to the blooms and smiling, with snow-patched mountains and blue sky blurred in the background.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 27d

Icebergs at the calving face of the Columbia Glacier, Chugach Mountains, near Valdez.

Icebergs and floating chunks of pale blue ice scattered across gray water in front of the calving face of the Columbia Glacier. The jagged ice cliff of the glacier stretches across the horizon under a flat gray sky, with dark rock at the right.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· 29d

Cassidy in one of the glacier caves we explored in June. I've been photographing this same stretch of ice for years, and most of what I've found there is already gone. Full story and more photos on Substack, Field Notes from the North: lwpetersen.substack.com/p/three-days... #alaska #glacier

A person in a green jacket and helmet stands inside a glacier cave, dwarfed by walls of deep blue ice. A dark round tube opening curves through the ice to the right, and a meltwater channel cuts through the sediment-covered floor in the foreground.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 13

Seracs on the Gabriel Icefall, Eastern Alaska Range. The ice fractures into blades where the glacier bends over steeper ground. Taken yesterday. www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-guide... #alaska #glacier #hiking

Jagged white and pale blue seracs on the Gabriel Icefall, rising in blades and spires against a deep blue sky. Layered bands of dirt and ice run through the broken glacier surface, with dark rocky moraine and patches of snow across the bottom of the frame.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 13

This was quite the spot in the Gabriel Icefall on the Gulkana Glacier, taken earlier this afternoon.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 12

One of the videos from my latest Substack post. One of the (now) smaller glacier caves we visited over the winter was inaccessible to the main chamber because of water. lwpetersen.substack.com/p/three-days... #alaska #glacier #hiking

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 11

Some mosquito bullshit tonight on Wickersham Dome #hikingsucks

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 9

I'm finishing up some writing today. Here's some aurora from autumn, 11 years ago in Fairbanks. It's still over a month away from it getting dark enough at night to see the northern lights again here. photos.lwpetersen.com/Galleries/Al... #alaska #auroraborealis #aurora

A green aurora curtain sweeps across a starry night sky over silhouetted black spruce trees near Fairbanks, Alaska. The bright disk of the moon sits low in the sky to the left, and faint purple tints the horizon behind the treeline.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 7

Narcissus-flowered anemone (Anemone narcissiflora) at Hatcher Pass near Palmer, Alaska. This one is caught up in an ongoing reclassification: recent treatments move it into the genus Anemonastrum, and some split the old species into several. I'll update the guide as the naming settles.

Three white narcissus-flowered anemone blossoms on a single stem, each with five to six white sepals around a center of yellow stamens and a green button of pistils. Backlit against a dark, out-of-focus background of green leaves and bare twigs. Hatcher Pass, Alaska.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 7

Taking pictures of alpine flowers over the Harding Icefield. More of my Recent Photos: photos.lwpetersen.com/Recent-Photos #alaska #hiking #glacier

A hiker in a bright green jacket walks along a rocky, grass-tufted ridge in the foreground, dwarfed by the Harding Icefield behind them. Smooth snow-covered ice stretches to the horizon, broken by crevasse fields below and dark nunatak peaks in the distance under low clouds.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 6

Just a beach sunset. Homer, Alaska. Low tide, so the whole beach was a mirror. Prints and Wall Art: photos.lwpetersen.com/Recent-Photo... #alaska #sunset #beach

The sun sits on the horizon over the ocean at sunset, seen from a dark sand beach in Homer, Alaska. Orange light reflects in a path across breaking waves and wet, pebbled sand in the foreground. Faint mountains line the horizon at left.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 6

The last few days are a blur. Friday morning, I woke up at Hatcher Pass and hiked to Reed Lakes in the fog with Cassidy. Then we drove 5 hours to the Delta Range. Here's a quick clip from the Gabriel Icefall.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 5

Sunset from Hatcher Pass... I haven't posted in a bit because I've been hiking around Alaska with friends and our climbing team on our annual trip to Hatcher Pass. When the rain settled in, we headed north to the Deltas in the Alaska Range.

Jagged gray peaks of the Talkeetna Mountains under orange and gray sunset clouds at Hatcher Pass, Alaska. A narrow creek winds through green tundra toward the viewer, reflecting the orange light. Lichen-covered boulders and low shrubs fill the foreground.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jul 1

Today's view... Harding Icefield Trail, Kenai Fjords National Park

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 28

My view right now. Homer, Alaska.

A wide low-tide beach of dark wet sand reflects a partly cloudy sky at sunset. The sun breaks through clouds on the right, casting a gold streak across the water and the sand. Ocean waves break in the middle distance, and a snow-covered mountain range rises along the horizon on the left.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 26

Day one of three in the Alaska Range. We followed the Gulkana moraine past where I'd been before, found the season's first saxifrage, and let the trip have no plan at all. open.substack.com/pub/lwpeters... #alaska #hiking #glacier

Title graphic reading 'Three Days in the Alaska Range: Day One, Gulkana Moraine,' with lwpetersen.substack.com and 'Field notes from the north' below. Beneath the text, a smiling hiker in a beanie and backpack stands in front of a broad snow-covered glacier valley and peaks under a blue sky.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 24

The Windchimes, granite tors near Mt. Prindle in the White Mountains National Recreation Area, early June, still plenty of snow on the ground. Remnants of granite intrusions exposed by millions of years of frost shattering and erosion of the surrounding rock. #alaska #hiking #backpacking

Vertical landscape photograph of granite tor formations known as the Windchimes near Mount Prindle in the White Mountains National Recreation Area, Alaska, in early June. Several jagged dark grey granite spires rise along a ridgeline, with patches of snow cornicing the foreground slope and additional snow patches scattered across the surrounding brown tundra. More tor formations and a snow-streaked peak are visible in the distance under a partly cloudy blue sky

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 22

Tall Jacob's ladder (Polemonium acutiflorum), Fairbanks, yesterday. Info in my wildflower guide: www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-wildf... #alaska #wildflowers #bloomscrolling

Close-up photograph of tall Jacob's ladder (Polemonium acutiflorum) flowers in Fairbanks, Alaska. Several lavender-blue flowers with five rounded petals cluster at the top of a green stem, with white centers and orange anthers on long drooping filaments extending below the petals. Multiple unopened buds are visible along the stem below the open flowers, ranging from tightly closed green buds to one nearly open lavender bud at the base. The background is a soft blur of green and olive tones.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 22

Saw a sleepy boi at UAF today. Silver fox, a melanistic morph of the red fox, same species, different pigment expression. He rolled around in the grass for a while. photos.lwpetersen.com/Recent-Photos #alaska #wildlife #fox

Close-up photograph of a silver fox lying in green grass at UAF in Fairbanks, Alaska. The fox faces the camera directly, its body curled with its bushy black tail visible behind it. The fur is predominantly black with silver-grey frosting across the face and shoulders. The eyes are amber-gold. Green grass and leafy plants fill the foreground and background.

Photograph of a silver fox lying on its back in green grass at UAF in Fairbanks, Alaska, eyes closed and tongue slightly visible. The body is stretched out with front paws relaxed near the chest. Black fur with silver-grey frosting covers the head and shoulders. Seed heads and grass stems rise around the fox. The background is soft blurred grass.

Photograph of a silver fox rolling onto its back in green grass at UAF in Fairbanks, Alaska, with front paws raised in the air and head turned upward and back. The body is twisted mid-motion, with thick black and silver-grey fur visible across the torso and tail. The background is soft blurred grass and dry vegetation.

Photograph of a silver fox lying in green grass at UAF in Fairbanks, Alaska, with mouth open showing teeth and tongue, appearing to vocalize or yawn. The body is stretched out along the ground with the bushy tail extending to the left. Black fur with silver-grey frosting covers the head, and amber eyes are visible. Green grass and leafy plants surround the fox.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 21

Rubus chamaemorus, cloudberry. www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-wildf... #alaska #wildflowers #bloomscrolling

Close-up photograph of a cloudberry flower (Rubus chamaemorus) backlit against a dark background. The flower has five rounded white petals with visible vein texture, surrounding a cluster of slender white stamens tipped with small reddish-brown anthers and a pale yellow-green center. Several deeply veined, textured green leaves frame the lower portion of the frame, also backlit and translucent. The stem extends diagonally through the upper portion of the image.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 20

Sunset colors over Ballaine Lake in Fairbanks tonight. Taken just after midnight on June 20, 2026. photos.lwpetersen.com/Recent-Photos #alaska #sunset #midnightsun

Wide landscape photograph of Ballaine Lake near Fairbanks, Alaska, taken just after midnight on June 20, 2026. The sky is filled with dramatic clouds glowing bright orange and gold from low sun near the solstice, with patches of blue visible at the edges. A treeline of spruce silhouettes the horizon on both sides of the frame. The still lake surface creates a near-perfect mirror reflection of the sky and treeline, with the warm cloud colors and tree silhouettes doubled in the water.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 19

Looking over the Savage River, Tr'at'egheth No' in the Lower Tanana dialect, in Denali National Park, April, 2026. www.lwpetersen.com/photo-blog/f... #alaska #hiking #denalinationalpark

Vertical landscape photograph looking down over the Savage River in Denali National Park, Alaska in April. Dark open water winds through a wide snow-covered river valley, the snow banks carved into smooth curving shapes by the current. Scattered spruce trees dot the snowy flats in the middle distance. Snow-covered mountains of the Alaska Range fill the background under a clear blue sky with light wispy clouds.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 18

Woolly lousewort (Pedicularis lanata) near Nome Creek in the White Mountains National Recreation Area, May 6. One of the earlier alpine wildflowers in interior Alaska, blooming while snow is still on the peaks. www.lwpetersen.com/alaska-wildf... #alaska #bloomscrolling #wildflowers #hiking

Wide angle close-up photograph of woolly lousewort (Pedicularis lanata) growing on open tundra near Nome Creek in the White Mountains National Recreation Area, Alaska, on May 6, 2026. Two dense pink-purple flower spikes rise from a base of finely divided green leaves in the foreground. A third smaller spike is visible to the right. The background shows open tundra in muted brown tones with a snow-patched mountain peak visible under a partly cloudy blue sky.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 15

I'm still sifting through 3 days of photos from hiking in the Alaska Range, but this had to be one of the coolest glacier caves I've explored yet, so I had to share it first. #alaska #glacier #hiking

Photograph taken inside a large glacier cave in the Alaska Range, Alaska. A person in a teal jacket and dark pants stands on a ledge of glacial ice in the left center of the frame, providing scale against the sweeping blue-white ice ceiling and walls that arch overhead. The ice shows translucent blue coloring with dark debris bands running through it. Two openings in the cave floor drop into darkness — one in the foreground left and a larger one to the right. The cave interior is smooth and sculpted from meltwater erosion.

Lee Petersen@leepetersen· Jun 12

Two juvenile bald eagles fighting over a salmon at the Solomon Gulch Hatchery in Valdez, Alaska. Juveniles lack the white head and tail of adults and don't develop the white plumage until around five years old. photos.lwpetersen.com/Galleries/Al... #alaska #wildlife #valdez #baldeagle