Texas - PhotoTrice

Wilderness

Balanced Rock - Big Bend National Park — Balanced Rock – Big Bend National Park

Balanced Rock is one of the iconic spots to visit in Big Bend National Park. A short twenty to thirty minute hike is required to see the huge bolder more than ten feet across balanced neatly between two outcrops. It is a sight worth seeing.

Most tourists take snapshots of the balanced rock by itself or with someone pretending to hold the great mass above their head. Nice souvenirs to be sure.

This photo was made just before sunrise with my tripod setup underneath the bolder. Tourists generally wait until after sunrise to hike Grapevine Hills because mountain lions and bears are active in the hours just before dawn. I’ve never had a close encounter except one time seeing evidence that a big cat crossed my path. It left scat full of javelina fur on the trail right where I’d walked an hour before. That is my real wilderness experience.

Yuccas Whisper

Yuccas Whisper Among Themselves

The Big Bend National and State Parks are treasures that are largely unvisited. They are remote with few amenities that people find necessary for comfortable vacations. Conditions are hot by day, cold at night with some of the darkest skies in the lower 48 states. It frightens some people because there are only moon and stars for light and the sounds of nature. That is exactly why you might want to explore the thousand square miles of parkland for yourself. There is no other place where you can hear the Dagger Yuccas whisper in the breeze.

Night Speed

Staying with the darkness for one more post. This image is a riff on work done by West Coast artists such as Ed Ruscha. Long lines and exaggerated perspective appeals to me. Having been born and raised at least part of the time in the American West, I tend to see landscapes with a certain color, sweep and depth. The result of saturated golden hour hues from dust in the atmosphere and deep blue high altitude light. It became imprinted in my perception as a child. That is my story anyway. Regardless of where I live I can close my eyes and see the Wasatch range topped with snow and glowing in golden light.