2025 Reader Photos

Across open highways, backcountry gravel roads, small town squares, and rugged landscapes, stories are waiting to be shared. The annual Wildsam Photo Contest, presented by our friends at MPB.com, offers readers a chance to capture and share these moments in all their grit, charm, and beauty.

This year, Wildsam expanded its call for submissions with three new themes plus a photo essay with a Photo Essay category.

CLASSIC AMERICANA

ROAD LIFE

NATURAL WORLD

PHOTO ESSAY

Readers submitted more than 3,000 photos, and an expert panel of judges selected the top photos for each category. Without further ado, here's a look at the best Wildsam reader photos of 2025.

"Operations of the world's highest-elevation tunnel. Come hell or high snowdrifts, crews responsible for Eisenhower-Edwin C. Johnson Memorial Tunnel in Colorado make roads safer and get them cleared quickly. The 1.7-mile passage receives an average 315 inches of snow each year, while accomodating roughly 35,000 vehicles daily."

Thank you to our photo contest judges: Samantha Shanahan, Photo Editor at Wildsam; Alex Forestier, documentary photographer and filmmaker; Amelia Le Brun, travel and lifestyle photographer; Phuc Pham, Creative Lead, Photo at Airbnb; and Jenn Tompkins, Art Director at Texas Monthly.