Weather And Stuff

THUNDERSTORM OVER THE CORAZONES
The other day, a cold front began moving into the area, bringing with it some winter thunderstorms. As I happened to be working that day, I got the opportunity to photograph some truly phenomenal weather, such as this thunderstorm out over the Terlingua Ranch area, with the Corazones (the two peaks on the left) awaiting their chance at catching a little rain. As you can see between the dark, massive clouds and the open areas of bright sunshine, the lighting was truly awesome.

MAMMATUS CLOUDS OVER PERSIMMON PEAK
These curious-looking clouds have always fascinated me with their bulbous texture. They also can also be harbingers of turbulent weather systems, up to and including tornadoes. No tornadoes this day, but the weather was rockin'.

MAMMATUS CLOUDS
I just thought I'd include a photo of just the main mass of these unique clouds. They just look like they mean business, don't they? When they turn green, that's the time to head for shelter, as that usually means tornadic activity is right around the corner.

ALMOST INFRARED
Why I didn't think to grab my infrared filter and capture this scene in infrared is beyond me. I was just too mesmerized by the drama to think about it, I suppose. It was just perfect as it was.

CACTUS WITH A VIEW
About a week ago, I decided it was time to head down to the Hot Springs area and see what damage nature (and the Trail Crew) had wrought. It turns out that either or both of them did such a good job, I was too depressed to include any photos of the destruction. So, I decided I would concentrate on other stuff as I made my way to the Hot Springs and sought out the Hot Springs Bluff Trail. (I guess that's what it's called; I don't think it has an actual name.)

CLIFF SWALLOW NESTS
I'm always fascinated by these clay pot-shaped nests the cliff swallows make, especially in such a aesthetically-pleasing setting.

HOT SPRINGS POOL FROM OVERHEAD
Well, what do you know? I found the bluff trail, at last. I'd always heard there was one, but never knew where to pick it up. (It actually starts back behind the old General Store/Post Office.) Here's a shot of the Hot Springs pool taken from up above, with Mexico just on the other side of the Rio Grande.

HOT SPRINGS BLUFF HOUSE
I'd always heard there was an old house ruins up here, which is why I decided to find the trail at last, so I could photograph it for my collection. Not much left, as you can see, but I found it interesting it had a concrete floor. They sure had a nice view, though, didn't they?

HOT SPRINGS BLUFF HOUSE
Here we have a reverse-angle view, showing the Sierra del Carmen Mountains off in the distance. Boy, they had a nice view no matter where they looked.

HOT SPRINGS AREA FROM OVERHEAD
We're almost at the end of the trail now (I started where the trail ends up past the Hot Springs), and below we see the motel unit, the General Store/Post Office, and the parking area. Taking the draw you cross just before you get to the store will put you at the trailhead, although you won't find any markings directing you.

HOT SPRINGS MOTEL INTERIOR
After I got down off the trail, I decided to poke around the area some more, and found one of the doors to one of the units opened just enough to get my hand (with camera) inside. The cracked dirt you see is leftover silt from the October 2008 flood. This unit just hasn't gotten cleaned out yet.

HOT SPRINGS MOTEL UNIT FLOOR
I've always been a big fan of cracked earth shots, so I thought I'd take one of the motel floor for posterity's sake. They always reminds me of our backyard on Ash Street in Grand Prairie during the summer, back when I was a kid. I don't know how many Army men I lost in those cracks.

PYRRHULOXIA
And last, but not least, here we see a West Texas version of the ever-popular cardinal, called a pyrrhuloxia. This little guy comes and sits in the mesquite tree in front of the Entrance Station and keeps an eye on me, as you can see him doing now. They're so closely related to the cardinal, they even make the same peeping sound.

Well, that's all the time we have for today. As always, thanks for tuning in!