Greetings from Big Bend National Park

Ocotillo Sundown

We stand in the desert staring at the Chisos Mountains reddening in silence, each little rocky crag and slit given emphasis with nearby prickly pears brilliantly lit, but perhaps the most striking thing proves to be the way the setting sun illuminates spiked ocotillo plants with tiny red buds appearing to be spirits emerging from thorny shells silhouetted by such ghostly mountains.

Sincerely,
Richard F Fleck

Big Bend National Park

Big Bend National Park features broad expanses of Chihuahuan Desert shrubland and grassland interspersed with smaller areas of high-elevation woodland in the Chisos Mountains. Rugged rocks and deep canyons along the Rio Grande are among the park's most striking features; wetlands and springs add to the park's biological diversity. Visitors can explore the rugged trails, seek out the colorful array of birds and wildflowers, and spread out on a blanket after dark enjoying some of the darkest night skies in the country.

State(s): Texas

Established: 1935

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