Bismarck and Mandan have plenty of cool places from which you can observe and photograph our wide open skies. Last night I took the opportunity to bolt over to one of them, a secret little spot out in the middle of nowhere. I had to be careful because the recent rains could have turned it into a muddy mess, and I didn’t want to get my truck stuck.

Shortly after I arrived, the colors in the sky began to change. The golds faded and the reds and purples emerged.

As the sky behind me turned pink, I spun around to take some quick photos of the line of stoic power line towers leading over the horizon.

Most of these are new towers; the old ones which previously stood here were decimated by the spring ice/slush storm which deprived many area citizens of electricity for a long time.

The sky’s last display was for the remaining clouds to turn brilliant orange, then fade to a dull gray. The sun had finished the day’s work and dusk was here. I turned the truck around and headed for home, pondering the multitude of colors I’d seen in such a short span of time.