Posts in Category: Big Bend National Park
West Of Here: Chasing The Perseids Across Big Bend National Park
A meteor during the Perseids meteor shower viewed from Big Bend National Park near the Burro Mesa pouroff on August 12, 2016 around 4 a.m. Heavy clouds, part of a storm system from Mexico, made viewing difficult. However, at about 2 a.m., the skies cleared and debris from the Swift-Tuttle comet soared into the earth’s atmosphere. ©2016 Robert W. Hart
I sped out to Big Bend National Park, a mere nine hours west, on Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2016, last week with two goals in mind. One: Photograph the Perseids Meteor shower in one of the darkest skies in North America and two: Photograph the desert storms that develop in and around the park in August. A pair of Mexican storm systems almost thwarted my meteorite plans by stalling directly over the park and surrounding area Thursday night. Fortunately, on Friday morning, the peak time for viewing the Perseids, the clouds cleared at about 2 a.m. and I was able to shoot till dawn.
Unfortunately, the wall of moisture-filled clouds up from Mexico threw a wrench in my plans for storm shooting but one does not despair when faced with the prospect of two full days working in BBNP. I made for Terlingua to stay at Villa Terlingua, the beautiful guesthouse owned by my friend Cynta De Narvaez. It’s my favorite place to stay when I’m not in a tent in the park. It’s in the ghost town but far enough away from the store and the Starlight to be quiet, even during the chili cookoffs. I shot the Perseids image with the Nikon D810 and an f/2.8 17-35mm lens at ISO 2000 and a 20-second exposure.
Villa Terlingua in Terlingua Ghost Town: My favorite place to stay in the Big Bend.
West of Here: Santa Elena Canyon After Dark
Santa Elena Canyon on the Rio Bravo in Big Bend National Park is one of the park’s most popular spots. I shot this at 2 a.m., more or less, on December 30, 2015 in sub-freezing weather alongside my friend and fellow photographer Matt Larseingue on a photo/camping trip. ©2015 Robert W. Hart
West of Here: Chisos Mountains at Dawn
Chisos Dawn
In mid-November I spent five days in the Chihuahuan desert at Villa de las Minas and this was the dawn view looking mostly east, southeast outside my adobe. Night temperatures were in the low to mid-40s which made porch sleeping mighty pleasant.
Daytime temps hit the low 80s, so day hikes in the national park were a breeze. For the first time, I saw Cattail Falls with water actually falling. The falls don’t run year round but there’d been sufficient recent rainfall and that allowed me to make the photo below.
Geophysicist Cedric Snyder at Cattail Falls in Big Bend National Park on November 16, 2014.
West of Here: Terlingua Cemetery Redux
Hundreds of candles adorn the ancient graves on Dia De Los Muertos in the Terlingua Ghost Town cemetery on November 2, 2013.
©2013 Robert W. Hart
West of Here: Two days in Boquillas
Juaquin Luna, 83, plays guitar outside the cantina in Boquillas, Coahuila, Mexico on April 19, 2013.
I spent April 19 and 20 in Boquillas photographing life in the village after the 11-year absence of U.S. tourist money. The people of Boquillas are glad to have visitors once again and despite our absence, the village is still home to a friendly, hard-working populace. After dwindling to 90 residents during the past 11 years, some villagers are returning.
American tourists stroll the main road in Boquillas on April 20, 2013 just nine days after the border crossing was re-opened between the village and Rio Grande Village in Big Bend National Park in Texas.
Boquillas Photos Drive Record Page Views for Client ‘Texas Highways’ magazine
Waiting area of the new Customs and Border Patrol crossing and point of entry on the U.S. side in Big Bend National Park near Rio Grande Village.
©Copyright 2013 Robert W. Hart
A park ranger closes the gate to the Boquillas Crossing in Big Bend National Park on December 21, 2012.
© Copyright 2013 Robert W. Hart
I just learned that these two images and the accompanying news item posted to Facebook about the opening of the Boquillas border crossing set new page view records for the Texas Highways magazine website on Thursday (April 12, 2013).
I’m always ecstatic when my efforts pay off for my clients. These were self-assigned images I made back on Dec. 21, 2012 when I approached the Big Bend National Park officials about shooting the new facility.
Prior to last week’s opening I was the only journalist allowed access to the new Border crossing facility. I’m returning this Friday, April 19, to spend three days in Boquillas to shoot stills, video and gather audio.
One of the best things about personal projects like this one is that I get to tell stories the way I want to tell them. I can spend time with my subjects and that always means better photos, videos and quotes. In short: Better stories.
But the real icing comes when I can impact my clients’ page views, marketability and visibility.
West of Here: New Boquillas Border Crossing in Big Bend is Open
Waiting area of the new Customs and Border Patrol crossing and point of entry on the U.S. side in Big Bend National Park near Rio Grande Village. ©2013 Robert W. Hart
The much-awaited opening of the new Customs and Border Patrol crossing and point of entry in Big Bend National Park happened today, Wednesday April 10, 2013. For the first time in more than a decade, since the days shortly after 9/11, Mexican and U.S. citizens can cross the border legally between the U.S. and the tiny Mexican village of Boquillas del Carmen.