Leaving Fort Davis on Highway 17 North, this is my favorite cottonwood bower. The shapely trunks are handsome even in leafless winter. During walks in the area, one can distinguish the different timbres of the wind through various leaf shapes. Cottonwood leaves sound like hundreds of rustling round tympanums, very unlike the baritone wind through the long-needle ponderosa pine.

Many visitors enjoy the Davis Mountains’ dark skies during the Dark skies need to be preserved for the McDonald Observatory McDonald Observatory star parties. But these photos show what a mellow setting the Observatory visitor center is during its daytime programs.

After our rainy season when the grasses are high, the sun glints the seedheads like daytime stars.