Sunset on the Guadalupe Mountains at the TxDOT rest area.

Wide Spaces

One of the things I enjoy when I venture out to west Texas is the wide open spaces. You can see for miles and miles. I love how the terrain folds out in front of you and if you wait for sunset the textures really stand out as the shadows begin to extend across the land. I captured this image below El Capitan at the roadside park that most visitors turn around and look at El Capitan. I decided to point my camera in the other direction and taken the vastness of the west Texas mountains.

Crimson Capitan

I made this shot shortly after I arrived at Guadalupe Mountains National Park in April. The wind was blowing like crazy, as it often does out there, making taking a long exposure shot impossible. The sun had set and there was a nice glow in the sky to the west. You'll find these boulders if you head downhill from the rest stop on the south side of the park. They provided a nice balance to the vertical face of El Capitan in the dsitance.

Oil Patch Lights

Sometimes it's good to take a break from your photos and come back to them later. When I first looked through my shots from our Guadalupe Mountains trip I passed over this shot thinking it wasn't that great. However, now looking back on it, it achieves exactly what I set out for it to do. Show off what the oil production east of Guadalupe Mountains National Park has done to the night sky. My friends asked me what city that was when they first saw the lights. My response, "Oil Town". All I know is there were a lot fewer lights out there in 2009 when we were last there. And a LOT fewer vehicles on the roadway between Pecos and Carlsbad. In a long exposure you can still see a lot of the stars, but it's not quite as easy with the naked eye as it was at one time.

Guadalupe Nights

When I first looked at this shot after downloading it from our trip to Guadalupe Mountains National Park I didn't think much of it. The moon was way to bright and blowing out the scene. But with a little work in Lightroom I was able to bring out the scene and get the look I wanted. If 'Where the Wild Things Are' had taken place in the desert, I imagine it would have been in a place like this. I'm looking towards the Guadalupe Mountains from my campsite. Mercury is the bright 'star' below the moon. The lens flare in the shot gives you an idea of just how bright the moon was. And if you look closely, you can see the glow of another tent in the distance in the middle of the shot.

Remote Outpost

The remains of the Pinery, the Butterfield Overland Mail Coach stop in the Guadalupe Mountains in west Texas. They used El Capitan in the background of this shot as their guide to locate the outpost. You can see El Capitan from at least 60 miles away as it looks like a huge bow of a ship when seen from the right angle. For more on the story of the Pinery and Butterfield stagecoach run, check out the Natioanl Park Service's website at http://www.nps.gov/gumo/learn/historyculture/butterfield.htm.

Mountain Blossoms

Spring has sprung in the mountains of west Texas when we were at Guadalupe Mountains National Park in April. I passed lots of these flowers on my hike from the campground to Frijole Ranch. I liked this shot in particular because I could see El Capitan in the background on the left.

Stormy Mountain

Hiking back from Devil's Hall in Guadalupe Mountains National Park with thunder rolling overhead as a thunderstorm begins to build. Luckily we did not get wet, but we were definitely a little concerned as we made our way along the trail.

Storm Brewing

We were returning from our hike up to Devil's Hall in Guadalupe Mountains National Park when we started hearing the rumble of thunder in the mountains behind us. I we off trail looking for the right spot to capture the moment in the west Texas mountains. Not much water here and some things live and others die as seen in this shot. Every drop of water is treasured and the plant and wildlife is well adapted to the dry conditions of these mountains. We were well over a mile high at this point. 1000 feet lower though and you'd be back in the west Texas desert with only scrub brush for vegetation. Amazing the difference 1000 feet makes out here and the mountain storm was evidence of the effect the mountains have on the weather.

Guadalupe Blooms

TGIF! I made this shot when we went looking for a different spot to watch the sun set on the Guadalupe Mountains. Not much blooming at this location beneath El Capitan, but this bush was loaded with blooms. It provided just the contrast I was looking for in the scene. Just when you think the desert is all scrub and brush, you run into a plant like this thriving in the harsh environment.

Clear Day

Looking west from the Top of Texas into New Mexico. This was the parting view we took in as we left Guadalupe Peak looking out towards the Salt Flats on the west side of Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Last time I was out on this point the cactus was in bloom, but it was a little early for it this trip so the scrub was the dominant plant life feature at the time of this shot. Still one heck of a view as you watch the land fold away.

Top of Texas

At 8749 feet above sea level, the American Airlines obelisk marks the highest point in Texas. The monument is on top of Guadalupe Peak and the mountain in the distance is El Capitan, which marks the end of the Rocky Mountains. At one time, the land beyond El Capitan was covered by an inland sea. Now the area just east of the park is filled with rigs drilling for oil and gas. I noted to my friends that came on the trip with me that 6 years ago when I was last there you could see a lot more stars and there did not recall the lights at night to the east of the national park. That's not the case any longer.

Mountain Dreams

Camping in the mountains is one of my favorite ways to get away. I made this image on the trip my wife and I just returned from in Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Looking to the west before the moon rose behind us I was able to capture the Milky Way before it set for the night. I believe I will be looking at this image often and dreaming of our next trip to some far off location. Hope all of you have a great week wherever you are. Photo by Steve Coyle Photography (www.stevecoylephotography.com)

Hunter Sunrise

Sunrise from the Pine Springs Trail in Guadalupe Mountains National Park. Photo by Steve Coyle Photography (www.stevecoylephotography.com)