The Bisti/De-Na-Zin Wilderness is a rolling landscape of badlands in New Mexico, which offers some of the most unusual scenery found in the Southwest. Time, water and wind have etched a fantasy world of strange rock formations made of layered sandstone, shale, mudstone, coal and silt. The weathering of the sandstone forms hoodoos – carved rock in the form of pinnacles, spires, cap rocks and other unusual forms like these “cracked eggs” recently captured by photographer Matt Beckmann under a purple sunset. Photo courtesy of Matt Beckmann.

Summer in the PNW? Yes, please! And there’s no better place to explore than North Cascades National Park in Washington. The park is part of more than 2 million acres of wilderness, including nearby Mount Baker Wilderness (pictured here). Enjoy the solitude, peace and challenge that hiking in this beautiful park and surrounding wildernesses offer. Remember to walk lightly in all wilderness areas, so that many generations more may discover this place too. Photo courtesy of Dene Miles.

Cuteness alert: four adorable bear cubs go on a walk with their mother in Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska. It’s rare to see a mother bear with that many cubs – they usually only have two or three baby bears. Next Friday, August 19, marks the 75th anniversary of the refuge, which was created to protect Kodiak bears and their habitat. Video by Lisa Hupp, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Wolverines are well known, but rarely seen animals. Famously fearless and incredibly tough, wolverines can travel over almost any terrain and will take on prey many times their size. Because they thrive in remote areas, it’s difficult to get good photos of these amazing animals. Luckily, on a recent boating trip on the Noatak River at Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska, National Park Service staff were able to get some pictures of this curious wolverine. Photo by S. Behrns, National Park Service.