Hi...
The vertical pic looks muddy until I blew it up to 100% ...but there is detail almost everywhere, but, on my (calibrated) monitor it still looks a little dark (it looks a perfect on the laptop screen... do you have a calibrated monitor?)
The Horizontal pic looks good, but the eye is lead into the mist. Mist can be photogenic if you can see beyond it - it can help give a sense of depth to a picture.