Best of
A collection of favorite images from Lucas Barth Photography
Climber Kate Sabo, pulls on one of the best and definitely the most iconic climb in Ha Long Bay. Half the adventure is reaching the route by hiring a boat driver to take you about 1 1/2 hours from Cat Ba Island to reach this small pinnacle of rock in the middle of the sea. The route is characterized by amazing quality vertical technical limestone with lots of pockets and side-pulls and rated 7a+. Vietnam.
El Matador is the most iconic climb at Devils Tower, and also one of the most iconic in the world. The second pitch makes a perfect box in between two columns.
It's all about the legs!
Mato Tipila (Devils Tower National Monument), Wyoming.
Duende: A Spanish term for a heightened state of emotion, expression and authenticity. The duende, is a power, not a work. It is a struggle, not a thought. The duende climbs up inside you, from the soles of the feet. I was definitely feeling the Duende as this Flamenco dancer went all out in the halls of the Plaza de Espana.
Seville, Spain.
Inside this ancient walled city a gardener tends to the nursery of flowers. Imperial City, Hue, Vietnam.
These herons stalking prey in the Arcata Marsh made me fell as if I'd gone back in time to when dinosaurs still roamed this earth.
California.
These Mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus) try to fade into their surroundings in the Klamath Basin, California.
Every time the conditions were right and a rainbow appeared I ran up to the Joyner Ridge trailhead as fast as I could and tried to capture this shot. This was one of those times. Mato Tipila (Devils Tower National Monument), Wyoming.
One of the most remarkable sunsets I've seen. Bishop, California.
This group of kids was playing up high in a tree limb over the Nam Song River in Laos, when my kayak rounded the corner. As they saw me they whooped and hollered, and I could tell mischief was in their minds. I quickly got out my camera from the dry bag, and took one quick shot before storing it safely away. As I neared, they all jumped into the water at once, yelling and swimming frantically towards me. It was all fun and games but I didn't want them to flip my boat even with my gear in a dry bag, so I paddled quickly before they could latch on.
Resting in a tree in Tonsai, Thailand.
Pim Shaitosa really goes for it on the short but punchy crux of ‘To Exist is to Resist’ 5.11d (7a). Nam Pha Pa Yai, Thailand.
Eric Bissell works out the moves on the route 'Top Gun,' one of the longest standing un-climbed projects in Tuolumne (first tried in 1985). He tried the route over 5 seasons before finally sending in July of 2016. This photo is from an attempt in 2014. The route is easily visible on the standard climbers descent from Stately Pleasure Dome.
Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park, California.
The Cathedral Range peaks of Unicorn and Cockscomb are lit up in orange alpenglow at sunset with the Tuolumne River rushing in the foreground.
Yosemite National Park, California.
Alongside the Tuolumne River.
Yosemite National Park, California.
In the cold of a December morning I crept into the small wooden hut before dawn and waited. Just enough room for me and my camera gear, there was a hole in the wall big enough for a camera lens to peer through. In the early grey light this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched and sat, contemplating who knows what.
Klamath Basin, California.
It was a magical morning that I captured this Snowy Egret (Egretta thula) on camera with the light just right as it waded in the shallows of the mud flats searching for small fish.
Natural Bridges State Beach, Santa Cruz, California.
A woman quietly knits in the streets of Liming, Yunnan, China.
The lamplit entryway to this shop intrigued me. Upon entering it was almost pitch black. Suddenly the lights flickered on and this man revealed himself as the shop owner (I think). I asked to take his picture and he acknowledged yes. What drew me in immediately was how much he blended into his surroundings and visually I could not resist making the image.
Fez, Morocco
A woman paddles a basket boat taxi transporting fishermen to their boats or tourists to floating restaurants in Cat Ba harbor. Cat Ba Island, Vietnam.
The main temple complex at Angkor Wat at sunrise.
Cambodia.
Walking gracefully in the last light as the sky turns orange, on the 200 foot high-line over the ocean in San Luis Obispo. California.
Soaring in the wind at Fort Funston, California.
Something about looking at this image has always brought me a sense of peace and quiet. Maybe its the silkyness of the ocean and the steadfastness of the rock, or maybe just the memory of that time and place. Big Sur, California.
The California Sea Lion (Zalophus californianus) takes a nap at the popular surf spot, Steamer Lane, in Santa Cruz, California.
Sunset from Sentinel Dome of Half Dome, Nevada Fall, and Tenaya Canyon.
Yosemite National Park, CA.
One of the most spectacular and iconic ridge lines in the Sierra. The Minarets are not made up of granite as is typical of most of the other major ridges in the Sierra, but rather an ancient volcanic metamorphic rock.
Sierra Nevada range, California.
A mother (Sphyrapicus varius) tends to her chick nested in a cavity of an Aspen tree. City of Rocks National Reserve, Idaho.
The Raven (Corvus corax) posed for me at this classic view point of Bridal Veil fall in Yosemite National Park.
California
Genevive Walker is the ‘Jungle Queen’, seen here climbing this ultra classic 5.12b (7b), 35 meters of overhanging fun in The Roof. Green Climbers Home, Thakehk, Laos.
A beautiful and unique line, ‘Earthquake’ 5.11d (7a) climbs deep in the heart of Crazy Horse Buttress. Andrew Lyons-Gould climbing. Thailand.