There is one question at the Visitor Center at Big Bend National Park to which I try not to show my impatience. "Where is the best view of the sunset?"
So far, the sun has proven to be reliable in setting in approximately the same place each day ... in the west. Of course, the precise location on the horizon varies by a few degrees each day over months, but one would have to be here plotting the spot to recognize the variations.
So, I'm tempted to say, "Look West, young man, look West!" Except that it isn't always or even usually a 'young man.' The question though, almost always comes from a person whom I assume plans to use the camera dangling from the strap around his/her neck to capture the lovely pastels on cloud and cliff of post card fame. An accompanying hunch has me thinking: you'll only get home and have to say in a tone dripping with disappointment, "Well it doesn't do justice to the actual sunset, I guess you have to be there."
My answer, filtered through my best 'Friendly Ranger' smile is, "Well, I think the best view of the sunset is to stand with your back to the setting sun and marvel at the color shifts on the hills and mountains that will unfold like a kaleidoscope every few minutes.
They often return my answer with a look that says, "Old man, are there any real Rangers here?"
Why is it that people do not realize that the sun is not something you look at, it is something you see by.
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