mynxt have you done any post processing on the images? They look like they could be improved with some sharpening and exposure-type adjustments in post.
I hope you don't mind (mods can remove if you do mind), I made some quick adjustments to your first image. It's still soft but shows some improvement I think - you would probably get better results by applying changes to the original full resolution file. (Processing was lighten shadows + slight saturation boost + sharpening. Took about a minute to do.)
If you are shooting jpeg format it might be also be worth checking your in-camera settings for sharpening, contrast, etc. which might give you better images straight out of the camera.
Looks like a great location to shoot, definitely worth a revisit...
Cheers.