6/2/2008

My first visit to Arches National Park.  I had seen some pictures over the years and while it looked interesting, there was nothing especially alluring that made me feel it was a must visit.  But, like every National Park I have ever visited, they are National Parks for a reason - they are all incredible, each with its' own look and feel and atmosphere.  And I would go back to each one in a minute. 

The first formation you come across, Park Avenue, is simply astounding in its' sheer size alone.

There are a whole bunch of wonderful and crazy rock formations, like Balanced Rock.

And Double Arch.

But Delicate Arch is a whole level beyond.  It's one of those natural wonders that must be viewed from every angle, studied and absorbed over several hours. 

Fortunatley for me, Jim had been here before and took me to the Delicate Arch viewpoint first.  This is intended to be a short walk to see a far away view of the arch, but Jim and I turned this into an extended adventure that was well worth it and provided great perspective as the day wore on.  Start scrambling up the slickrock from the viewpoint and go as far as you can toward Delicate Arch.  You'll eventually be focred to stop by a large, beautiful chasm that seperates you from the arch.  You'll have views like this.

And this

There are sort of three long fingers of sandstone that you can keep walking up - we took the one in the center - all the while taking you higher and higher, and giving you great views of not only Delicate Arch,  but a fabulous 360 degree look at how awesome the area is. 

After spending about an hour enjoying this far away vantage point, it was time to greet the arch up close and personal.  The trail to Delicate Arch is a fairly steep climb up some nice slickrock - is there any other kind of slickrock really?  It takes about 30 minutes.  What's kinda neat about this hike is that you have no view of the arch on the way up.  You come to this turn in the trail, and notice that the landscape to your left is fantastic as well.

Then you turn the corner and BAM, there it is!

4/4/2009

So, for some reason the wives needed to do a hike and the husbands had to come along.  And the hike to be done had to be a gruelling 10 mile round trip slog thru puddles and mud.  Somehow it was just determined that we would do the Old Bulldozer Road Trail in Ricketts Glen State Park.  I had done this hike a few times before, and Jodi had done it once, but Brett and Renee had no idea what they were in for.

The first mile of this hike is the real test, a straight up,  very steep climb.  Does this look steep?  Kind of?  Well, it is, much more than it looks.  See the elevation gain from the foreground to the very bottom of the trail?

And like most nasty climbs, it has a couple of corners that give you hope you may be finished, but, of course, you're not.  And the steepest part is the last 100 yards.  See the body lean on these 2 poor souls?

While you could probably climb the entire mile without stopping if forced at gun point, under normal circumstances you usually stop 3 or 4 time before the top.  See the hands on hips, the classic gasping-for-air position?

Looks really steep to me!

There is a little reward at the top - a nice big rock to rest on.

We picked one of the worst times to do this hike, smack dab in the middle of the spring thaw.  A good part of the trail was under water and muddy.  Look, Renee's an airplane coming in for a water landing!

And I think that shadowy figure on the right is Sasquatch.

A good part of the hike was spent in the weeds trying to stay dry.

So many choices!

Two happy travellers - arriving at Mountain Springs Lake, 5 miles from the start.

A pretty spot, even on a cold, damp day.

Lunch on the terrace - too cold for some of us.

Lake and stream shots.

Unusual for this day - a nice dry section of the trail

Now, believe it or not, the worst part - going down!!!  My knees still hurt!  Going down really shows you how steep this trail is.

4 happy hikers hiding the pain

October 4, 2006

We had finished a hike thru Wire Pass to the junction with Buckskin Gulch and had a couple of hours left before sunset.  We stopped at the BLM Paria contact station to see what recommendations they had.  They suggested we check out the toadstools just up the road.  So there we were pulled over at the junction of Cottonwood Canyon Road and Route 89 debating taking a drive on Cottonwood vs. the toadstools; the drive was on our to do list, the toadstools were not, and we weren't sure how interesting they sounded anyway.  Up pulls a BLM pickup with a beautiful young lady behind the wheel who asks if we need help.  Yikes!  Two guys from Pennsylvania in the dusty Utah desert for a week, fumbling around trying to decide what to do, and here she comes to our rescue?  Just like in the movies.

Well, we end up hanging out with her for about a half hour, and it turns out Megan really knows the area and she says we will not be disappointed with the toadstools.  Barry, ever the ham, asks for a picture.

Funny side note - a full year later we head to Utah again and stop in the visitor center just outside Kanab and who do we see but Megan.  We - all three of us - do a double take, like hey, I know you - Megan?  Yeah, aren't you the 2 guys from Pennsylvania?  From now on, it will be a disappointment if we do not see her during every visit.

Now, on to the toadstools.  It's about a 30 minute walk to reach them.  Pretty mundane scenery along the way, but when you finally get there - geez, is this Mars?  The moon?   Just insane rock formations.  Here's pretty much the first view you get - not quite there yet, but starting to see what's to come.

It's as if every rock was delicately placed and feature of the land was painstakingly painted by hand.

This shot shows the distinct colors of the rock layers.  You can see how the rock has eroded over time to create this crazy place.  Dark brown at the very top, white next, then orange.

As you can see, some rocks are enormous - wonder how long before this guy falls.

A true random scattering of rocks of all sizes and shapes.

Most people just get to this main area and look around, then leave.  But if you go to your left you find more interesting formations around the corner.

Cool colors

Nice rock pile

The surrounding landscape is also quite awesome!

I just love the colors in this area.  After a while you realize how long the erosion process must have taken and the different density of the rock layers.

Well, curiosity got the better of me and I had to see if these delicately balanced rocks were fused tight to each other or not.  I would think they would be but it turns out they are not.  I moved exactly one rock, this rock, just a little.  Any guess what's hiding underneath?

A black and white bat!  I thought they always hung upside down.  I gently put the rock back and touched no more.

June 4, 2008

Arrived at Bryce Canyon the night before, got a good night's sleep and now ready to tackle the Fairyland Loop.  The weather was very iffy, 70% chance of rain, temps in the 50's.  But having driven from Pennsylvania for a week in Utah, we were not about to give up easily.  Jim and I had done the Fairyland Loop once before and had a great day.  We start this hike by doing the rim portion first, mainly because the scenery is not nearly as good as the rest of the trail.  The first 2 miles are cold and dreary, gray, threatening skies, hardly another soul to be found.  Every five minutes I'm thinking I should stop and put on my long pants, no signs of the weather improving.  This picture shows the kind of skies that would follow us a good part of the day.

We run into a couple from England on their honeymoon and chat for a few minutes.  They are heading back due to weather concerns.  We move on.  What can you say about this place.  The rock formations are other-worldly and unlike any others you'll find.

About an hour into the hike our luck starts to change.  The weather is improving, the clouds disapper and the sun is out!  The sky turns to that wonderful, clear, deep Utah blue.

For the next three hours we had plenty of sunny skies with just enough harmless clouds to add to the magical sights.  The earlier weather chased away the crowds and we pretty much had the trail all to ourselves, maybe saw 5 other people the rest of the way. 

It's days like these that the real benefits of travel, vacations, hiking, the outdoors become so obvious.    We were having a blast, getting tons of great pictures, meandering along at a leisurely pace with not a care in the world.  It may have been the most relaxing day of my life, no worries, nothing on my mind.  It gave me some new found appreciation for this park.  While it is no doubt a world class place, and while there is nothing like the first time you see these rocks, it was not high on my list of places to return to.  We just luckily caught it at a great time, where everything seemed to come together perfectly - weather, mood, company, itinerary.

This place is just so photogenic...

The color of the rocks...

The hoodoos...

Those mind-boggling trees - how do they survive...

I've always loved the relative openess of the park's features, spaced out so nicely, not at all crowded...

The contrast between green and orange...

It's now about mid afternoon and we hit the last part of the hike, 1.5 miles all uphill.  And the sun is gone and the clouds are back.  We're climbing at a steady pace and round a corner to see really dark clouds coming over the horizon just ahead of us. 

Our pace quickens.  Around another corner and now the wind picks up.  Our pace quickens some more.  Now the wind is really blowing.  Rain starts to fall.  The temperature had to drop 15-20 degrees in 10 minutes.  Stop to put on some gear - at least try to put on some gear, but the wind is too strong.  The little, tiny, erosion-generated pebbles that constantly break off and shape this place into the spectacular amphiteater that it is are now flying thru the air and hitting us like little darts.  I retreat behind a wall to finally get on some rain gear and resume the climb.  We are now moving as fast as we can without breaking into a jog.  The weather worsens with every step.  Uphill, hood on, head down, leaning into the wind, quads burning, heart pumping - no problem as long as the lightning stays away.

We finally reach top and get to the car just as the rain picks up.  Just another lesson to always be prepared for anything in these environments.  It can change so quickly.  I never mind the weather as long as I have the proper gear, and sometimes you get to see the parks at their most powerful, magnificent selves.  Today was just interesting timing.  We cancel the room we had and head to Zion for the night.  The temps are in the 50's when we get there, probably doesn't happen very often in Zion in June.  We find out the next day the were several inches of snow that night at Bryce. 

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June 5, 2008

Jim and I had been in Utah for the last few days, coming from great days of hiking in Arches and Bryce National Parks.  Our target for the day was Observation Point, a strenuous but invigorating 8 mile rountrip hike.  3 of the 4 miles to Observation Point are a steady uphill climb.  A great workout in my opinion, one that makes you feel great to be alive.  We had done this same hike 16 years earlier, almost to the day, during our first visit together to Zion.  We had a fantastic day back then, and anticipated the same again.

One of the most enjoyable things we encounter on our hikes are the people we meet.  It seems every hike we take we meet someone who becomes a permanent part of our conversation and reminiscence about that hike for years to come.  In fact, as we started off today, Jim remarked that you always seem to run into the nicest people on this particular hike.  This day would turn out to be no different. 

So, off we go, with a reasonably early start, grabbing the shuttle from Springdale and on the trail shortly before 9AM.  Not many people on the trail ahead of us and the climb begins, up, up and up some more.  We come to the junction for Hidden Canyon and this brings back quite a memory from 16 years ago.  Seems the night before we arrived in Zion back then, there was a big hail storm, and the next day we found mounds of hail stones in the shady parts of the trail.  In early June.  Quite refreshing at the time, as the stones provided a cool drink on the 95 degree day.  This day we press on with no such relief, though it is not particularly warm at this time of the morning. 

After a while longer we come to Jim's favorite spot, an outcropping of rock that hangs suspended over the depths below, with a wonderful view of the canyon.  16 years ago Jim had gone ahead on the way down from Observation Point, and we found him lounging on this same spot when we came around the bend.

We move on.  The views of the inner Zion canyon are spectacular. 

Soon those views will be left behind as the trail wraps around the back side.  The climb continues a while longer until we reach a plateau.  From here it's about a mile of mostly level walking until we reach our goal - Observation Point!   You never know if you'll ever make it back to any of these places, so when you do, it's like reuniting with an old friend.  It's great to be back!! 

Time for a break, to take in the incredible views, to relax, refuel.  Inevitably, we make new friends, Bryan and his wonderful family from New Orleans who are in the midst of a 2 week vacation all over the great western United States.  What an outstanding thing to do!  We spend the better part of an hour at the point.  Did I mention the view?  All the way up canyon to the junction and beyond.

Now back down, most of the way spent getting to know our new friends.  They will forever be part of our memories and conversations. 

We stop for a few pictures.  I personally don't like the long, steep downhills, prefer to climb, find it much easier on the legs and knees, as well as the fitness benefits.  Ah, but once again, the scenery takes away all misery! 

We reach the bottom and hop on the shuttle.  It feels good to sit and rest.  We still have several hours of daylight left and begin discussing our options over lunch at the Zion Lodge.  We decide we're going to do Angels' Landing.  We try to entice Bryan to come along, but he looks too comfortable sprawled in his chair.  He says we're too hard core for him, plus he's doing the Narrows tomorrow. 

Jim and I hop back on the shuttle to the Grotto and we're at the trailhead in no time.  2 and a half miles up we need to go.  We feel good at the start, and the weather is perfect.  Last night it got down into the 40's and only hit the mid 70's today, quite cool for this time of year.  We're the only one's headed up, and in fact don't see many people coming down.  We have about 2 hours of daylight left and are thoroughly enjoying ourselves.  Thru Walter's Wiggles, which really is a beautiful, if exhausting, part of the trail and then to Scouts Lookout.  Now the fun begins, 45 minutes of steep, exposed climbing.

Allow me to describe this climb.  This is my fourth time.  Did it in 1992 with Jim and 1993 with another group.  In 92, pre internet, pre trip reports and tons of pictures, we had no idea what was to come.  We were happily moving along until we started this last section, when, as Jim described it, "all conversations stopped."  I believe the comment at the time was "Hey, this is some serious stuff, we better pay attention."  Of course, today there is so much information available that anyone should have some idea of what they're getting into.  However, that day in 1992, it was all new to us, and we had just started up the knife edge when we came across a young lady sitting on a rock.  I was in the lead and said hello and she just started crying.  She was terrified, could not move.  Her group had gone ahead to the top and left her alone.  She made a good decision to not go further, but now needed some help getting back to a safer spot.  So we took her by the hand and led her to safety.  Jim keenly put her at ease by telling her "Don't worry, we're just going to remove your belongings and dispose of your body!"  Luckily, she laughed.  We moved on and made it to the top.  Having never done anything like this climb before, we recognized afterwards it was exposed, but it seemed like no big deal.

In 1993 I was happy to lead some other friends up, eager to show them how cool it was.  And it was, and still is.  But 15 years later, in 2007, as I was on my third ascent, it really struck me how dangerous this could be.  Probably just a factor of youth gone by, more to lose now, facing one's mortality.  It is steep and exposed and somewhat nerve racking and demanding of full concentration, and ... BUT, it also makes you feel SOOOO ALIVE!  I find myself stopping several times to think what a place I'm in, somewhere I'd never imagine being, a place I am thrilled to be! 

And, now today, the fourth time.  As I am climbing I'm really starting to feel the fatigue in my legs from the day's activity, and some doubt goes thru my mind.  Should I stop and call it a day?  Am I in any extra danger?  Am I making a bad decision to continue?  After all, summitting is always optional, returning is not.  Oh well, on I go and make it up without incident.  It's pretty cool to be the last people on top for the day - wait, here comes another hiker.  Damn.  Well, at least we now have a photographer.  We hang for a few minutes and then start down.  Coming down probably is scarier for a lot of people because you kind of have the long drop offs on either side of you in view.  But I've never had a problem with this part, and the views to the canyon floor are awesome!  After we get off the knife edge, the rest is easy.

Back on the shuttle and then off at the visitors center.  We make some kind of remark about our Angel's Landing hike and someone over hears.  He says he did that hike today and what a great hike, and that he's doing Observation Point tomorrow.  We casually mention we did both today.  He says "Wow, you guys are hard core!"  I guess we are.

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