Photographer Saxon Smith loves making the drive out to Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma. It’s a great place to escape the city and explore a lovely natural area. “After a gorgeous hike among wildflowers and blooming cacti this spring, we stayed in the refuge until dusk to see the sunset before heading home. As with most Oklahoma sunsets - especially with the backdrop of our beautifully worn and ancient Wichita mountains - it did not disappoint.” Photo courtesy of Saxon Smith.

Sunset lights up the water and sky at Necedah National Wildlife Refuge in Wisconsin. The refuge, known to early homesteaders as the Great Wisconsin Swamp, provides important habitat for endangered species like the Karner blue butterfly and whooping crane. Of the experience, photographer Darlene Martin says: “The sanctuary is spectacular and surprisingly large. It was a beautiful spring evening, and the brilliance of the sunset was quite unexpected.” Photo courtesy of Darlene Martin.

Muscatatuck National Wildlife Refuge in Indiana was established in 1966 to provide resting and feeding areas for waterfowl during their annual migrations. More than 280 species of birds have been seen at Muscatatuck, and the refuge is recognized as a “Continentally Important” bird area. This time of year, you can see great blue herons, egrets, warblers and incredible orange sunrises. Photo by Bill Tucker (www.sharetheexperience.org).

The Guadalupe Mountains rise dramatically above the high plains of west Texas. Featuring a premier fossil collection, ancient pictographs, pristine wilderness and fascinating history, Guadalupe Mountains National Park offers a rich reward to those bold enough to visit. Photo of Texas’s El Capitan courtesy of Sean Kennedy.

Sunset turns the sky orange at Yosemite National Park in California, illuminating Half Dome. Photo of courtesy of Aron Cooperman.

Sunsets are amazing at the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona. Randy Langstraat captured this pic from Cape Royal — a point that provides a panorama up, down, and across the canyon. With seemingly unlimited vistas to the east and west, it is popular for both sunrise and sunset. Cape Royal is on the North Rim of the park, which will open for summer in May. Photo fromwww.sharetheexperience.org.