Geraint Smith Photography

Fine Art Images from the American Southwest

 505-501-4880

Facebook-f Instagram

Tag: Williams Lake

Springtime, Taos Mountain. 05-28-2025

Geraint May 28, 2025 6 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week, Taos Mountain and El Prado, the meadows, are in the height of spring finery, and Williams Lake, followed by the ‘print of the week’.

Taos Mountain, El Prado.
Taos Mountain, El Prado.

I made it back to Williams Lake without a slip on the ice. Conditions weren’t too bad, no need for micro-spikes this time, but I was definitely glad to have the hiking poles. I’ve had tougher trips, like back on July 4, 1995, when I had to turn around because the snow was too deep. I was carrying my 1½-year-old son on my back and kept post-holing through the drifts in the trees. Over the years, I’ve probably made close to a hundred trips to this lake, and I’m looking forward to many more, here and on the trails beyond.

Williams Lake
Williams Lake, 05-22-25

I had brunch with these two critters, a ground squirrel and a scarry looking buck toothed marmot

Ground squirrel
Ground Squirrel.
Marmot
Marmot.

While the squirrel raced around foraging, the marmot sat unmoving like a big furry glove puppet. To put it in perspective, he/she was bigger the our chihuahua, Barkley, now no longer with us. Here he is on Wheeler Peak.

This week’s featured print is a nearly full Harvest Moon beneath an almost double rainbow. Some images stay with me, and this is one of them. I remember the exact moment I captured this five-image stitched panorama. Taos Mountain is in the clouds under the rainbow. This piece found a home in Taos this week.

Print of the week, Harvest Moon Rainbow
Print of the week, Harvest Moon and Rainbow

As always, thank you for looking and for all the comments and compliments. Have a great week. G

Williams Lake, Wheeler Traverse. 05-14-2025

Geraint May 13, 2025 2 Comments

Greetings from San Cristobal, NM. This week, I’m sharing a wide panorama from Williams Lake, a panorama shot on my iPhone. It’s a short post, but a sweeping view. I’m going back up to the lake sometime next week and follow up with another perspective.

The Wheeler Traverse extends from Wheeler Peak on the left of the frame to the peak on the extreme right and beyond down to the Taos Ski Valley. I did the traverse in 1989, again in 1990, and maybe again this year. Click on the image to expand.

Williams Lake, New Mexico
Williams Lake, New Mexico.

Williams Lake and Wheeler Peak, New Mexico, are located high in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Taos, New Mexico. Williams Lake and Wheeler Peak form one of the most iconic alpine destinations in the state. Their rugged beauty, pristine wilderness, and accessibility from Taos Ski Valley make them favorites for hikers and backpackers.

Wheeler traverse
Wheeler traverse.

Wheeler Peak, elevation 13,161 feet (4,011 m), is the highest point in New Mexico. From Williams Lake, a steep, rocky spur trail continues another 2 miles and gains 2,000 feet to the summit. The views are sweeping: to the north, you see the Rio Grande Gorge; to the east, the Moreno Valley and Eagle Nest Lake; and to the west, the layered mesas of northern New Mexico. Bighorn sheep, marmots, pika, golden eagles, and the occasional black bear frequent the alpine tundra.

If you’re fit and would enjoy a guided hike to the lake for a photography tour, please message me through my contact form.

Print of the week. Click on the image to see more details.

Rio Grande Gorge Rainbow
Rio Grande Gorge Rainbow.

As always, thanks for looking. Have a great week. G

Mobile Home, The Moon, The Birds, In a Window, On the Roadside

Geraint April 20, 2022 14 Comments

Greetings from northern New Mexico. A mobile home in our neighborhood (so New Mexico) with the moon rising over the San Cristobal Valley.

Mobile Home, moonrise
Mobile home full moonrise, San Cristobal, NM

And the next night from the driveway as the moon slinked over the ridge.

Full moon rise Sangre de Cristo foothills
Full moon rise over the Sangre de Cristo foothills, San Cristobal, NM

The birds I’ve seen the most this winter are always American Kestrels, and this year joining them en masse are thousands of Pinyon Jays. I have never seen so many Pinyon Jays. They are raucous and over the top loud. They devoured the birdseed in the feeders in no time at all. Usually, there is a handful. I’ve added a picture below of one individual.

American Kestrel
American Kestrel
Pinyon Jay
Pinyon Jay or as we like to spell it in New Mexico, “Piñon Jay”

I couldn’t resist the juxtaposition in a window in the photo below. Everything is for sale. I just take the photo.

Guadalupe Window
Guadalupe in a Window

Drive-by shooting on the roadside. I do this a lot. Many scenes look like this here in New Mexico. Someone deposits the sofa making it someone else’s problem. If it’s in good condition, it will probably find a home. The fate of the couch is now left up to someone else. The original owner has absolved themselves of any further responsibility and saved themselves the trash dump fee. So New Mexico!

Roadside sofa, New Mexico Style
Roadside sofa, (so) New Mexico style.

Let’s end with a tranquil scene at Williams Lake in the mountains close to where I live. Last year was the first time I didn’t hike to the lake. It is a favorite hike and will be on the hiking agenda again this year as soon as the snow melts.

Williams Lake in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains
Williams Lake in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico.

I made a print of Valley of the Gods.

Valley of the Gods
New Print, Valley of the Gods

Click here to go to the purchase print page. The print is large but I can print it smaller than the sizes shown.

As always, thank you for looking and for all the kind comments and compliments over the last few weeks. Until next week, have a great week. G