Staubbach Falls at Lauterbrunnen, Canton of Bern, Switzerland Jan 3, 2026

Our picture of the day takes us to the Swiss village of Lauterbrunnen, where the Staubbach Falls shimmer in the distance beyond a quiet alpine valley. The falls cascade 297 metres down a towering cliff, one of Europe"s highest free-falling waterfalls, creating a shimmering veil of mist that can be seen for miles around. The town of Lauterbrunnen, with its 72 waterfalls, is often considered one of the most picturesque valleys in the world. This is the landscape a young traveller, J.R.R. Tolkien, crossed during a hiking trip in 1911, long before he became the storyteller behind "The Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit." Its soaring cliffs, silver waterfalls and crisp mountain air left a lasting impression and are believed to have inspired his vision of Rivendell, the elven refuge hidden deep in Middle-earth.

© pongnathee kluaythong/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Jan 3, 2024Lake Minnewanka, Alberta, Canada
Jan 3, 2025Radcliffe Camera and All Souls College, University of Oxford, England

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Feb 10, 2025Art Installation of umbrellas, London, England
Sep 8, 2025Library@orchard, Singapore
Aug 28, 2025Great white egret, Hungary
Jan 1, 2026Arctic fox
Mar 15, 2024Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California, USA
Dec 3, 2025Sandhill cranes, Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, United States
Sep 29, 2024West Cornwall Covered Bridge, Connecticut, USA
Nov 9, 2023Birch trees, Drammen, Norway
Jun 22, 2025Amazon rainforest, Ecuador
Apr 7, 2025North American beaver, Moran, Wyoming, United States
Feb 10, 2024Giant anteater
Feb 3, 2024Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute, Venice, Italy
Dec 14, 2023Boreal owl
Jul 24, 2024Swaledale sheep in North Yorkshire, England
Nov 12, 2023Mallard ducks
Nov 30, 2023The Old Man of Storr, Isle of Skye, Scotland, UK
Nov 13, 2023Serra de Tramuntana, Balearic Islands, Majorca, Spain
Jan 17, 2024Eurasian wolf
Sep 21, 2023Inside the Nobel Peace Centre, Oslo, Norway
Mar 8, 2025Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park, Germany
May 29, 2025Miravet, Catalonia, Spain
Oct 9, 2025Pillars of Creation
Aug 1, 2024Floating fruit market, Kaptai Lake, Rangamati, Bangladesh
Feb 19, 2024Puerto de la Cruz, Tenerife, Spain
Jul 22, 2025Badlands National Park, South Dakota, United States
Nov 22, 2023Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, USA
Oct 30, 2025Camels, Rajasthan, India
Apr 4, 2024Lechwe herd, Botswana
Sep 24, 2025Devils Tower National Monument, Wyoming, United States
Nov 14, 2023Russell lupines, Lake Tekapo, New Zealand