The Chisos on Fire

Big Bend Region, Texas

We had been teaching astrophotography late into the night, walking through exposures and tracking techniques under a sky that felt endless. I drove out before sunrise to scout for the next evening’s session. I planned on sleeping afterward but the clouds were starting to give promise of an amazing sunrise. 

High-altitude texture started forming before dawn. Thin at first, then layered. By the time the eastern horizon began to glow, the ceiling above the Chisos was already charged with light waiting to happen.

When the sun finally cleared the horizon, still obscured by the Chisos, the entire sky lit up at once. The Chisos Mountains fell into silhouette while the clouds above them turned molten. The basin below stayed muted, soft browns and blues holding steady while the sky carried all the intensity.

I stayed where I was and let it unfold. No rushing. No repositioning. Just one frame, one exposure, and a mountain range that has stood through millions of years of volcanic upheaval and erosion, now briefly framed by a sky that looked like it was burning.

Sometimes staying up is the right decision! I made several wrong decisions as I often do when the sky amazes me - I was so focused on photos that I didn't run a timelapse, or even take any cell phone video at the peak. I have a few clips, but I did get some images I love such as this one. 

Context and Landscape

The Chisos Mountains rise from the heart of Big Bend National Park as a volcanic mountain range isolated by desert lowlands. Often described as a “sky island,” the range supports plant and animal life that differs dramatically from the surrounding Chihuahuan Desert.

Formed roughly 30 to 40 million years ago during intense volcanic activity, the Chisos are composed primarily of igneous rock shaped by uplift and erosion. Peaks like Emory Peak and Casa Grande dominate the skyline, visible from wide stretches of the basin. Their silhouette is unmistakable from almost any direction.

The surrounding desert basin sits thousands of feet lower in elevation. Creosote, ocotillo, sotol, and lechuguilla cover the flats, adapted to heat, wind, and long dry seasons. Weather systems moving through this region can create dramatic sunrise conditions, especially when upper-level moisture spreads thin cloud layers across the sky.

When those clouds catch first light, the entire range becomes a dark cutout against a sky that shifts rapidly through gold, amber, and deep red. The mountains remain unchanged. The light transforms everything around them.