One of my thoughts going out to Big Bend was catching sunrise over the Mule Ears. I didn’t really have a great plan for a vantage point though. There is an overlook at the Mule Ears trailhead, but I figured that the sun would rise too far south in the sky from this point. While… Read More Mule Ears of Big Bend
In Big Bend National Park there is a feature called The Window, which is an opening in the mountains surrounding Chisos Basin. The Window is on the west side of the basin so it is an interesting place for a sunset. There is also a hiking trail that takes you down to The Window if… Read More Big Bend: The Window (both sides)
Colorado Bend State Park has several trails that I have never hiked. I have been trying to check these off my list one at a time, but this park is a bit of a drive from my house (73 miles) so I can’t get to it as often as I would like. The park sits… Read More The Tinaja Trail at Colorado Bend
I tried to spend some time in Yellowstone and Grand Teton taking some landscape photos, though it wasn’t my main objective on the trip. I was mainly having fun with my daughter looking at animals. Had I been there alone, I probably would have found a few places to come back to at specific times… Read More Yellowstone and Grand Teton Landscapes
Thursday evening it was hot and humid and I needed a hike. So, I went to one of my favorite places again. I got to the parking lot and as usual it was empty, so it would just be me and a few million bugs in the refuge. As soon as I got out of… Read More Golden Hour Hike
I decided to go out to Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge in the Doeskin Ranch area on a nice evening to hike and check out the wildflowers. I figured that the trails in the high meadows would be very nice just before sunset. As usual there were few people there – only two other cars… Read More Wildflower Hike at Balcones Canyonlands
Today I have just a few butterfly close-ups. When I went down to shoot wildflowers, I noticed a lot of butterflies and went back with a longer lens. I then tried to get close enough to the butterflies to take some pictures. But the butterflies are easily spooked. My main problem was keeping my shadow… Read More Butterfly Close-ups
On Sunday afternoon I hiked up to a particular dead tree that I think is somewhat photogenic in the Doeskin Ranch section of the Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge. This tree is alone, right next to the trail, catches a lot of afternoon sun, and often has lots of wildflowers and long grass at its… Read More A Dead Tree
Sunday afternoon I hiked the river trail at Colorado Bend State Park and then on to Gorman Falls. From the parking lot in the main camping area this hike is about 3.8 miles to Gorman Falls, for a total of 7.6 miles round-trip hike. Below is the trails map from the state park on which… Read More A Hike to Gorman Falls
After spending spring break in Orlando, dealing with the crowds at Disney World and Universal Studio, I got back home and needed some peace and solitude. One of my favorite places for this is Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge which is very close to my home in the Austin area. As an added bonus, it… Read More A Wildflower Hike
Jason Frels 