Hot Springs Canyon

One of the great areas to explore in Big Bend is the area around Hot Springs.  Start with the namesake hot springs there-a perfect 105 degrees right on the banks of the Rio Grande.  Always a great place for a soak.

Stay for sunset and you get a treat of watching the sun light up the Sierra del Carmen Range.  The view is good on the hill above the springs but better views are downstream.

You can actually hike from the springs along the edge of the canyon into the Rio Grande Village Campground (about 3 miles).

On one of the days we actually had clouds, we decided to take in sunset from the canyon.  We wandered down the canyon looking for images along the river and on the rocks.

A narrow sand shelf had a great trail through some grass that I was able to capture taking in the scene.  

I went farther into the canyon getting  look through the canyon to the Carmens and got a great (and rare for me) long lens shot (top image).  I had swapped out my usually 17-40 for the 70-200 to compress the scene some.

We stayed until the light was fading and I got a more tranquil wider view of the small canyon at twilight.

This turned out to be about the only sunset we got during the week here.  I had a few nice images to show for it and I made plans to return the next morning to see if it would be possible to get a Milky Way shot here at the canyon.