I think 2012 was the first year I photographed this little stand of spruce trees on Murphy Dome. I have kept returning to this spot over the years that I’ve lived in Fairbanks. The photo above was taken on March 17, 2019, the most recent photo I have taken of these trees. For at least the last seven years the stand of spruce has looked pretty much the same. I’m not entirely sure why this one little tree cluster has become such a focus to me. It’s one of the first places I go whenever I find myself at Murphy Dome. I think it’s because they’ve always stood so alone, so tall and straight out on the tundra. They looked a bit ragged this year. Wind seems to have taken its toll on a few of them. There wasn’t much snow this year, and much of the top of Murphy Dome was snow-free. It takes things so long to grow up here, this weathering of these trees will last for a long time. Probably my lifetime at least. They’ll maybe never look so proud as they have over the years. But, I’ll keep going back.