Hoops12751 wrote:
We are taking two months starting around Christmas to do a photo tour of the SW. Our route will take us from Northern AL through MS and LA into Ft. Worth for Christmas Eve and day. From there we will head to the SE part of NM - spend a week or so in western and southwestern NM(I have already captured the central and northwest part of the state). Next on the list is AZ and Page. I want to capture Antelope Canyon, but since they no longer allow photo tours is Canyon X a viable and worthy alternative since you can book a guide and use a tripod? The You Tube videos I have watched(at least the ones by and for photographers) are not high on the Lower and Upper Canyons. Since we will be there around the mod to latter part of January, the crowds will be smaller but input from those of you who have photographed that area would be most appreciated.
Any other "do not miss" locations are also welcomed.
Thanks so much in advance...this community is always so helpful and gracious.
We are taking two months starting around Christmas... (
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Good morning. And thank you for planning to visit our state. Keep in mind that January (and February) are our two most variable months of the year weather-wise. High temperatures will range from 32 degrees to 75 degrees, and low temperatures will be somewhere between 5 and 45. It will be colder as you go west and the elevation increases, and a lot colder as you go north, even though there is less elevation change. Going from Fort Worth to Amarillo is a whole different project than going from Fort Worth to Midland.
Having given that caution, most of the landscape along the most feasible routing from Fort Worth to the west is mostly flat, open country with a few hills here and there. I-20 passes through ranch land, then farm land, then semi-arid prairie on the way to Big Spring or Midland, but either of those can be a jumping off point to Carlsbad Caverns. A more northern route, to Wichita Falls, then to Lubbock or Amarillo, would be more interesting, but there is still a lot of fairly repetitious open space. There are some scenic canyons (on the White River, for instance) and the Caprock Escarpment a short time before getting to Lubbock or Amarillo, but you may find them too subtle for photography.
You might want to consider a detour to the South toward San Antonio and the Hill Country. It will be winter, to green landscapes will be limited, except where there is live oak or cedar, but these are historic areas that are important to us as natives. San Antonio ("SA") offers a number of missions, including the Alamo. Fredericksburg is a German tourist town that mostly avoids being touristy. A must-do there is the Museum of the Pacific War, which was originally a museum dedicated to Admiral Chester Nimitz.
I am not an expert on the Houston area, but there is a Natural History museum there whose collection rivals that of the Smithsonian. There are also a number of historical sites there, as well. The climate there is also going to be more temperate. You can head west from there on I-10, but may need to work you way a little bit north, depending on where you want to go next.
Carlsbad Caverns is just off US 180, which parallels north of I-20. They have been doing a lot of work on their lighting over the past few years, and I think they have standardized on 4000K LED lighting in most areas. That makes photography a lot easier, especially if your camera has Anti-Flicker. There are probably still some exceptions, especially in areas that the bats fly through. It's ben awhile since I've been to CC, and it's #1 on my planning list.
As you go west, the Organ Mountains are just east of Las Cruces, NM. They used to be quite well noted for their pastel colors, although I've not seen images of them much lately. They are good any time, but would be a notable Golden Hour subject. White Sands is just East from the Organ Mountains.
From here, it depends on how far north you go. I-25 will take you to Albuquerque and Santa Fe. Literally tons of stuff there. If you go to Albuquerque, check out the Turquoise Trail, which is an alternative highway on the back (East) side of Sandia Peak.
If you go West, check the NM map and find your way to Santa Rita, site of a monster open-pit copper mine. Not sure that it is still operating, but it is a remarkable hole in the ground. In that same area is City of Rocks State Park is just off US-180 a few miles south of Hurley. It isn't something that I would get in the car and drive to, but it's quite interesting if you are in the area. It is much more developed now than when I used to visit with my mother's favorite uncle.
There are a lot of other choices. My hope is that I've captured a few that others might not mention.