Under Seen - Lava Tubes of the Upper Snake River Valley

On first view the landscape between the St. Anthony Sand Dunes and the Island Park Caldera seems a monotonous, worthless, and boring wasteland. One needs to look – hard – to appreciate the place. It is worthy of appreciation though. It is critical habitat for wintering Elk, Deer, and Moose and for nesting Sage Grouse, Rock Wrens, and Ferruginous Hawks. It is alive with wildflowers in the spring. It is leased by ranchers for sheep and cattle. Evidence of Native Americans is evident. The subtle form and color of Sage and Junipers offer a subtle beauty. The open and mostly treeless landscape provides unobstructed views of the stars and the light. It’s a good place to be alone. There are also impressive volcanic features and under the surface are caves – lava tubes.

It’s a strange thing to walk across the flat and dry and hot and rocky sage-covered desert and encounter one of these tubes. There are things associated with the cave entrances you don’t expect in this barren landscape. Cliff Swallows may circle overhead. Often a draft of cool moist air escapes from the depths. There are ferns, mosses, raspberry bushes, stinging nettle, fine grasses, weasels, gopher snakes, unusual insects, horned lizards, and bats. The caves and their entrances are microclimates that are strikingly different from their desert surroundings. Once inside the lava tubes you lose all sense of the stark landscape above you. The air is moist and cool. There are occasional pools of water and ice. There are remarkable colors. Bats cling to the ceiling and without warning fly at your face (the one cave experience that unnerves me). Desert wood rat nests, elaborate structures containing bones, sticks, trash, and other objects are abundant. There are also some typical cave formations such as cave coral, soda straws, stalagmites, stalactites (mostly from dripping and hardened lava), and other astonishing formations left from cooled lava. And there are disappointments including graffiti, lit fireworks, broken features, gun shots, and miscellaneous vandalism.  

Caves are dark, obviously, and photographing them using available light is problematic. Exposures are long, contrast is high, focusing is difficult, moisture can condense on the lens, and the light can change during an exposure. The resulting photographs though often reveal things not seen during the experience. Photography works differently from human vision. The pupils of our eyes open as far as they are able and after some time we are able to see some things in semi-darkness. Film gathers light and eventually reveals things in a semi-dark scene that a person could never see. Some of the resulting photographs often reveal a scene that was remarkably different from the place I thought I saw. I was often astonished by obscured detail, color, texture, or form that was recorded in the photograph that I didn’t perceive. I used to think photography allowed me a way to bring an experience home, viewing these photographs though offers a new experience.

I usually make photographs of landscapes near where I live. One reason for this is convenience. I can photograph after work, during the weekends, and even during lunch. Another, more significant reason is that I want to foster an appreciation in myself and others for places that are overlooked, under appreciated and under seen. I was once asked by a student for my favorite location from which to photograph the Tetons. He was shocked to learn I have never photographed them. I have also never photographed Yellowstone National Park. These places are appreciated, they are protected, and they are over-photographed. The sage-covered lava flows and lava tubes of the upper Snake River valley, though difficult to appreciate I admit, are worthy of our attention, understanding, and stewardship. These photographs acknowledge the power, beauty, silence, and importance of this under seen land.  

Darren Clark 2006