Day 10: Sunday, October 3, 2010: Vega$, Baby, Vega$

Day 10: Sunday, October 3, 2010

Vega$, Baby, Vega$

So, our final full day was upon us. No agenda today other than to pack up, find something to do for the 4 hours between check out time and check in time at the Excalibur. While showering, where I tend to do my best thinking, I realized Winger still hadn’t seen the Hoover Dam, and really wanted to. I suggested we pack up the jeep and head to the damn Dam. Winger was excited and seemed to have a bit of a spring back in her step.

We checked out, grabbed a bite to eat, and headed out to the Hoover Dam. The weather was MUCH different than when I visited 9 days earlier. It was nearly 100 degrees and not a cloud in the sky that Friday but today it was cloudy and very breezy. We parked on the Arizona side of the dam, and walked across to the visitor’s center and back taking some pictures along the way. Our timing, as would be a theme today, was perfect as it started to rain just as we were getting back to the car.

Along the way and on the way back, we tried to contact the company we rented our camping gear from to see if we could return it a day earlier. I was supposed to return it Monday morning as my flight wasn’t until 1AM Monday night/Tuesday AM. I was going to try to get home earlier if I could get the gear back Sunday… Unfortunately, we hadn’t heard anything back. The company was a few miles from the Damn, but was open by appointment only.

We stopped in Boulder City on the way back where the temporary Visitors’ Center for the Lake Meade National Recreation Area was located and after finding a parking spot (there was an art festival going on, and traffic was pretty tough), we visited some very eager rangers… it seemed as if they hadn’t had many visitors that day! I got my National Parks passport stamped, chatted a little with the people there, and then we hit the road.

The one remaining thing left to see in the area was Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area which was just to the west of Vegas. The National Parks Pass worked for this area too. Best investment of the trip, methinks! The drive to Red Rock was pretty incredible scenery-wise, mostly because of the clouds, and the way the sunlight was hitting some of the rocks/mountains. There’s a beautiful 12 mile scenic loop drive through the park and we stopped at most of the viewpoints to take pictures and relax along the way. If the weather wasn’t so ominous, we would have hiked a little bit, as Winger had her energy back, but that’ll have to wait until next time…

On our way out, Winger saw that the woman from Western Wanderer (the camping company) contacted her via email and said she’d be in until 5PM (it was just 3 at the time) so we drove back to Boulder City, and dropped off the camping gear. We shared some stories with the woman at Western Wanderer, and headed back to the city with a much lighter load.
We headed back to the Strip to check into the Excalibur. The Excalibur has on site parking, but as we found out, it’s a bit of a walk from there to the registration. We basically cleared out the car and brought everything we had left (or threw it in the garbage) into the hotel. The walk to registration was fun with all of my stuff draped on my shoulders and back. I needed a serious repacking. The hotel was enormous! We ended up in the first tower on floor 4 with an amazing view…. Of the wall of an adjoining section of the hotel/casino. That’s what $35/night will get you, I guess! I had to take everything out of my bags and duffel bag so I could re-pack everything. Upon doing this, I realized that I had lost the book that inspired this trip, and worked as a guide for us: Photographing the Southwest, Volume 1: Southern Utah. I looked everywhere for it, and even called the hotel we left that morning, and was pretty bummed about it. I actually realized it might be missing when we were at Red Rock, but really realized it when I went through everything. Bummer! The only other thing(s) I couldn’t find were a lens end camp and my camera body cap which I can replace hopefully inexpensively…

Winger left to wander up the strip as she had to get to bed at a reasonable hour (up at 4AM to take a cab to the airport and fly at 6:40, yuk!) I had to finish packing or I’d have gone insane. Eventually I got everything organized, and it was time to play!
I wanted to walk up to the Bellagio to catch the fountain show which they set off every 15 minutes. Made it up there early for the 8PM show. Its pretty cool, kinda hokey, but worth checking out. Took a few okay pictures (though a tripod would have been optimal, I didn’t feel like walking around with it)…

I walked back down the other side of Las Vegas Blvd and took a few pictures along the way. It was my first time on the strip, and it was fun to see the people wandering around (though I imagine in a few hours, after midnight, it might have been more entertaining), and of course the lights!

I got back to the Excalibur after a quick snack at a FoodCourt across the street, at about 9:15 to clean up and check out the Casino…. I won’t get into details about that, but I had a certain amount of money I was willing to lose… and I did. That’s all you need to know about that! I was out until about 12:15, I played a combo of Poker, Roulette and Slots, including putting my last $5 on 17 Black for Kristina and Lily… It was fun to check out the madness, and it’d be fun to go back with more time to relax/explore the city…..

Day 9: Saturday, October 2, 2010

Day 9: Saturday, October 2, 2010
Brrrrrrrrr!

Woke up to mid 30’s temperatures, easily the coldest night of the trip. I wanted to get up to Sunset point in Bryce to catch the sunrise, and we were up plenty early for it. It was the first and only time I was glad I brought a winter hat and gloves along for the trip! We grabbed the tripods and headed up to Bryce and were, I believe, the 2nd car there. The sunrise was absolutely beautiful with the clouds still looming from the day before, and the hoodoos of the Bryce Amphitheater started to glow when the rays of the sun hit them. It was a great sight and though I got some ok pictures, I’m not sure they did it justice!

Following the sunrise, we decided to drive the length of the park down to Rainbow Point and stop at all of the points along the way. The park reached 9500 feet, I believe, by the end of the drive, and it was still chilly but was starting to warm up. The overlooks/viewpoints down the 15 mile road to Rainbow Point were much different than the Amphitheater as the hoodoos and groups of them were much more spread out. More of a grand view, but still awesome, and impressive… The clouds made me really wish they had been there throughout the trip, as my photos would have been more impressive!

We got back to the tent and packed up for what would be the last time and headed on our way to Zion National Park, the final destination on our adventure.

Along the way, about a 2 hour drive, we talked about our options as it was clear Winger was still recovering from Thursday, and the temperature was quickly rising. She said instead of camping at the park (I had reserved a site at Watchmen Campground in Zion) that she would spring for a hotel and I could drop her off and explore the park.

We reached the park and drove in through the East Entrance, and it was a stunning view. The road is under construction and traffic picked up as we reached the big tunnel. The drive through the tunnel and into the canyon was spectacular. We stopped at the visitors center which was mobbed, and parking was at a premium. The park runs a shuttle service, mandatory to visit the scenic road into the canyon during peak months.

After checking out the book store/visitor’s center (the temperatures had reached mid 90’s), we left the park into Springdale, the town just south of the park, to see if we could find a reasonable priced place to stay for the night. Unfortunately, we learned there was a Marathon in St. George, and a big Red Bull event, along with a ton of families visiting the park, so rooms were at a premium. There was nothing within a reasonable price range.

I decided that I’d suck it up and we’d drive back to Vegas that afternoon. It wasn’t an easy choice because Zion was one of the places I really wanted to see, but Winger was hurting, and I didn’t want to leave her behind. I appreciated her offer to spring for a hotel and let me go up there by myself, but I didn’t feel right about it, and honestly, the place was so packed, and hot, I came to terms with it, and made the decision to head back a day early. Softening the blow was the news that the day before, according to our email, we got permits to hike the Wave in Arizona in January. If we can put a short trip together to do that and then visit Zion (in the winter!) that would make up for it 10 fold!

Other than the temperatures reaching triple digits (according to the car thermometer), the drive back to Vegas was uneventful until we got within 15-20 miles of the city and saw a crazy storm sweeping across the desert. The wind picked up and was extremely strong. Winger, already ill, was getting nervous, and we hit rain for the first time on the trip. Didn’t expect to see that in/near Vegas, but it was quite a site seeing blackness heading right towards us!

We made it to Vegas and checked into an Extended Stay suite thing east of the strip, and not in the best neighborhood, but it was a really nice room (actually rooms, separate kitchen/living room, etc) and cheap. Unwound and had some pizza for dinner and that was that….

Day 8: Friday, October 1, 2010 - Back on the Road

Day 8: Friday, October 1, 2010
Back on the Road
So, Thursday was pretty much a wash. Crashed in the Days Inn from about noon until 9 Friday morning. I was feeling much better by the time bed time rolled around, and when I woke up, I felt much better, and ready to head down to Bryce Canyon. Winger was feeling better, but still not near where she wanted to be.
The most striking thing about waking up was that there were honest to goodness clouds in the sky!

We packed up and left Torrey around 9 and headed down Scenic Route 12 towards Bryce. Its not the most direct route, but it’s a can’t miss drive. The drive took us into the Dixie National Forest. The foliage was a lot different than we have in New England, not as many different colors, but it was still beautiful. Not to mention, there were open range cows EVERYWHERE. After passing through the forest, we found ourselves in the Grand Staircase Escalante. The change in landscape was pretty amazing, and we ended up driving on a narrow ridge with huge drop offs on each side. It honestly was hard to not stop every 5 minutes and take some photos. And there were plenty of pull offs to do that, but Bryce was calling.
We made it to Bryce around noon and found a campsite at Ruby’s RV and Campground just outside the park which would prove to be convenient.

After checking in at the visitor’s center and driving a bit, Winger determined that she wouldn’t be able to do too much walking around, as she was still wiped out from the sickness so after driving to a couple of overlooks accessible from the car (a theme we developed for a future Lazy Photography Travel Blog idea ;) ) I dropped her back off at the camp site, and returned to the park to do some hiking.

One thing to take into consideration with Bryce is the elevation. A lot of the parks are pretty high up but Bryce is mostly between 8-10,000 feet. I did a short hike into the Canyon called the Queens Garden Trail which was a total of 1.6 miles round trip. The trip in was all downhill which, of course ,meant the trip up was uphill. It was pretty impressive being amongst the hoodoos. I think that Bryce is my favorite, so far, of the parks, though its pretty small, and not that diverse. I met some cool people along the trail including a couple of dudes from Mass and Rhode Island. Took a break for some snacks (apple and cliff bar) and more water (I made sure to keep plenty hydrated after the previous issues) and hiked back up to the Sunrise point.

After grilling up some grilled cheese for dinner, we headed back into the park to check out Sunset point, but Sunrise point was where we watched the sun set.

Back at the camp site, you could feel the temperature dropping. I bundled up in a hooded sweatshirt and flannel pants and was pretty comfy…The goal for tomorrow was to wake up for sunrise at Sunset Point, pack up the tent and head down to Zion for our final stop….

Day 7: Thursday, September 30, 2010 - Utah 2 - Gib/Winger 0

Utah 2-Gib/Winger 0

So apparently whatever we tried to put ourselves through yesterday pissed off our bodies. I didn’t sleep all that well last night and woke up feeling awful…Achy and feverish. That’s the theme of today.

Our goal today was to drive from Moab to Torrey, Utah and stop in at Goblin Valley State Park and Capitol Reef National Park.

We managed to get to Goblin Valley, and walk around for a little, but it was really tough. Following that, we headed for Capitol Reef, but by the time we got there, neither one of us was looking forward to exploring/photographing. The route we were on cut through the park and we managed to take a few pictures and stop in at the Visitors Center, but that was it for this park. By noon we were at a Days Inn in Torrey and though they don’t check in until 2PM, Winger managed to talk the woman at the front desk into letting us in early where we’ve spent most of the day sleeping…

After sleeping for 5 hours and getting some food, I definitely felt better. Hopefully in the morning we’ll be ready to head down to Bryce Canyon!

Day 6: Wednesday, September 29, 2010 - Humbling

Humbling

Tuesday morning Winger decided to sleep in, so I got up early to catch sunrise at Dead Horse Point State Park. I got on the road at about 5:45 and to the park around 6:30. Only one other guy was there at the time I arrived, and it was the most silent and peaceful time I’ve experienced in a long time. I found a spot to set up, away from the other guy and got some pretty cool shots of the river gooseneck and some trees in the foreground. I’m starting to compose photos better, get an idea in my mind instead of just fire away. While setting up, I managed to take a few moments to relax and enjoy the view. I thought of my dad and how much of the country he got to see in his day. We had talked about visiting some of the parks out here, but never got around to it.
I climbed back up a few rocks to head back to Moab and smashed my knee on some sandstone. Little did I know it was a sign of things to come! After paying the park entrance fee and using the bathroom at the visitors center (which didn’t open until 8, along with all of the bathrooms in the park, quick sidebar: if you have the option to go to the bathroom before leaving, do it, don’t ever assume they’ll be open!), I headed back to the Lazy Lizard where Wings was still asleep (I was somewhat envious, but I think I had the better morning!)

We decided Wednesday would be laundry day and Winger did all of the laundry for both of us at a Laundromat nearby while I took a nice nap.

Our goal for the afternoon was to head to Canyonlands National Park and find False Kiva, a class 2 archaeological site that isn’t listed on maps, or advertised, but the rangers are required to give you information on how to find it if you ask for it directly. I had read and seen about it on websites and in the book “Photographing the Southwest”, a series of books that inspired me and gave me ideas for this trip….
I had read that it could be difficult to find, and it was strenuous coming back from the site. I had no idea what we were in store for until we began the trek. We both realized that there are limitations to what we can do, and that neither one of us are in the kind of shape that would allow us to continue on the journey. Unfortunately, this didn’t come until we were 2/3 of the way there and realized that we’d have to climb back up a hefty slope of rocks and trees at elevation and in pretty high heat. It was humbling but we decided to turn around before continuing along a path that might have been dangerous. I don’t have any regrets, but am motivated to get back there! The ranger said that at least ½ of the people who look for it do not find it on their first try and we found it, and knew how to get there. I will be back!

After a precarious climb back to the top where we parked, we decided it’d be overlook stops in the rest of the park. We were both exhausted and wanted to head back home but we were in one of the most beautiful places in the area, and wanted to see some more sites. I managed to get a few decent shots of Grand View Point, the classic Canyonlands shot, and we headed back to Moab for an early night.

Day 5: Tues, September 28, 2010

Day 5: Tuesday, September 28, 2010
We decided that we’d just wake up whenever we woke up and hit Arches at that time…
For some reason that worked better than setting alarms. Who knew?

We headed back into Arches before 8AM and shot for the Windows section again. Our goal was to get a shot (seen above) that is a classic shot, though it takes some scrambling up some rocks behind the North Window that they don’t necessarily like people to do. I have really enjoyed climbing these rocks, though I don’t think its something I could see myself doing straight up the face of a giant rock… Anyway, we got a few decent shots, though I am getting frustrated with the lack of clouds!

Next up, we headed to the northern part of the park, the Devils Garden, and hiked up to Landscape Arch. It was a beautiful little hike, and the arch, I believe the longest in the world, was pretty awesome. Along the way, several people commented on my North Carolina State U T-shirt that I happened to have on, including a Virginia Tech alum who conceded that we’ll kick their butts In football this weekend. I said ‘I sure hope so!’ ha ha ha. Another couple asked where in NC I was from and seemed disappointed when I told her I wasn’t from there at all. Sorry lady!

After the nice little 2 mile hike, we headed back into Moab to grab lunch at the Moab Brewery. Our first restaurant meal in a few days. I had a delicious burger and some great French fries along with a beer from the brewery. No idea what it was but it was tasty!

Following lunch we headed down to the Lazy Lizard International Hostel and checked in for our two night stay in a cabin. It’s a pretty chill place with old hippies everywhere. (Winger insists its where old hippies go to die). Its got a bunk bed, a lamp, table, chair and electricity. Not much more you can ask for..OH its got A/C too, and in the last few days where it reached upper 90’s its welcome!
Speaking of 90’s, I spoke to my friend Steph back in Rhode Island and she commiserated about the rain they were getting back in New England. Believe me, I would have taken a little rain!

We rested up for a bit before heading back on the road. We got a pamphlet from the Moab information center that had some local Indian Art to look for and we headed up Potash road. It was pretty disappointing for the first few stops, but heading back towards town, we found a great display of art right along the road. Definitely worth a stop.

Our final destination for the day was Delicate Arch, pretty much the symbol of Utah and on most of their license plates. Due to the heat and exhaustion, we resigned to hiking the ½ mile to the Arch viewpoint rather than the arch itself to catch last light. The ½ mile was pretty much straight up and was pretty exhausting. The sun, elevation and fact that neither one of us are in really good shape was starting to catch up with us by the time we reached the viewing area. It was a pretty cool view of the arch and also the hundred or so people standing around the arch, they all looked like ants!

After the sun set, we headed back into town to grab some groceries and dinner at Paradox Pizza. Some of the best Pizza I’ve had in a long time, check ‘em out if you’re ever in town!

Day 4: Monday, September 27: House on Fire!

Day 4: Monday, September 27, 2010
So, Monday we woke up with hopes of catching some great early morning light with the classic view of leaving Monument Valley heading up north towards Blanding, Utah. We were almost good to go except the tent stakes we were required to use for the rainfly were STUCK into the ground. It honestly took us 45 minutes to get them out and the rest of the tent packed. Not a good start to the day!

We did manage to get out of there and head up north and snag a few pictures in the middle of the road back towards Monument Valley. The light was ok, but it sure would have been nice to see a cloud or two! We have seen literally 4 clouds the whole trip so far. Kind of makes for boring skies in the photos!

The first planned stop of the day was to find Fallen Roof Ruin. The drive there took us through a section of gravel switchbacks called Mokey Dugway. It was a pretty insane and awesomely scenic drive. I took some video with Winger’s Canon D7. Not sure how it’ll come out, but hopefully good.
Shortly after ascending up the side of a cliff, we came to the turnoff that leads to the trailhead. Unfortunately we got about a half of a mile down the road and due to a recent rainfall, the road was a little sketchy, and we decided not to risk it in the rental… Definitely something I’d like to check out in the near future though!

We did have a backup plan. Along the way from where we were to where we were going, there was a ruin called House of Fire Ruin in Mule Canyon. We found the trailhead which descended into a canyon and followed a wash about a mile… I don’t have the best sense of distance or height apparently… In the Photography book I have, the author clearly said that the ruin was about 20 feet off of the canyon floor. Well, I thought I saw it (after maybe 2/3 mile) and decided to start climbing up scary rocks until I got up there, maybe 65-70 feet up and realized I was WAAAAY off. Thankfully for Winger, she didn’t come up all the way and saved some energy. After we made it back to the canyon floor, we continued on westward until we saw it, clearly, on the right, about 20 feet up. There was a small climb involved, but it wasn’t much, and it was worth the short hike. We made it just in time where the ruin was still in shadow and the suns rays were reflecting off of the rocks below lighting it up nicely!

After a short snack break we headed back, where there were no unnecessary details!
This brought us out around noon so we still had plenty of the day left as we headed towards Moab. Along the way we took a slight detour and saw Newspaper Rock, some old petroglyphs on a huge rock just off of the side of the road. It was the first time I had seen any that I know of and they were pretty cool.

We headed north to Moab. Winger had stayed in town for a few days last December, so she pretty much knows the lay of the land! It’s a pretty cool/chill little town that I could see myself hanging out in longer in the future!

Our first stop was to swing by the Lazy Lizard International Hostel where we originally had a reservation for a cabin for Tuesday night. We changed it to Tuesday and Wednesday with no problem.

Following this, we stopped at ArchView Campground to see if they had any places, and they did so we got a site and set up our tent for the night.

Along the way up to the campground, I was reminded by my old roommate and good friend Dave that his parents were in Moab during a Southwest Adventure of their own so I called his mom and talked to them for a few minutes. I let them know that we were going to swing through Arches that evening to check it out and take some pictures so maybe we’d meet up.

The drive into Arches was amazing in itself. I didn’t realize that it was so mountainous (I honestly thought it would be flat and all of the features would be sticking out of the flat ground… oops!) It was an amazing first drive through. So much to see, I’m glad Winger was driving as she’s been there a few times before! We headed to the Windows section to get some sunset pictures and there were a TON of people there walking around, checking out the massive arches and taking photos.. We got some pretty good stuff, and then as we were hiking back down to the cars, I was talking to a couple from Pennsylvania and said I was from Nashua, and I heard “HEY NASHUA!” it was Dave’s mom from the parking area, waving and yelling up. It was great to see them and share a few quick stories. They were headed south back towards New Mexico as we were headed north and then southwest from Moab in a few days.

We set up the camp stove for the first time and grilled up some hot dogs for dinner. They never tasted so good, I’ll tell you that much!

Day 3: Sunday, September 26

Sunday, September 26, 2010
Rise and Shine at 4:45 am.
Taking down the tent took a little longer than anticipated, but it went relatively smoothly. Considering it is big enough for a kitchen and bathroom, we did ok. We hit the road just around 5:45 with sunrise around 6:15. Our goal was to get to Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River, just south of Page, about 12 miles from where were camping, in time for the sunrise. Unfortunately we didn’t get there THAT early, and this KIND gentleman who was hiking out of there assured us that we were 30 minutes too late. Thanks for the newsflash Dan Rather.

We met a couple from Montana in the parking area and we took the hike in with them. They had just hiked the Wave the day before, which I was, of course, rather jealous of. Winger made sure to mention that I made mention of every ‘Wave’ related stop along the drive from Vegas to Page. “That’s where we would have gotten our permit” …. “that’s the road we would have driven to get to the trailhead”..

As it turned out, the light was actually pretty good, though just hitting the top of the rocks. It’s a rather scary overlook and one wrong step could mean curtains!

We met some guy from Vancouver who was taking 3 weeks on his own to explore and photograph the Southwestern U.S. I asked him where he was off to next and of course he said The Wave. Wings laughed out loud and said how I had ‘Wave’ envy and if one more person there said they had just or were just about to hike to the Wave, I might just toss myself into Horseshoe Bend….
We grabbed breakfast at a Dennys in Page and then snapped a few pix of Glen Canyon Dam from a decent view point near the Dennys..

After that, we hit the road towards Monument Valley where we asked and were able to move our reservation (is that politically incorrect on Navajo land?) from Monday up to Sunday. It was another pretty good campground with full facilities.

After setting up the monster tent, we headed up to Goosenecks State Park in Utah where we had lunch and got some pretty cool shots of the goosenecks on the San Juan River. On the drive back we scoped out the shots of Monument Valley we wanted to take the following morning.

Upon returning to the campground we relaxed for a bit and then headed to the Monument Valley tribal park where we paid the fee and got a map. I snapped a few obligatory shots of the classic 3 formations with the rocks in the foreground with decent light and then we decided to hit the scenic drive…

Unfortunately, the road was extremely rocky and the light was getting low. We had to turn around after a few miles to make it back in time to shoot the sunset.

Instead of the same shots everyone else was getting up from the View parking area, we decided to set up our tripods at the camping area just down the dirt road and the results were rather outstanding.

We were approached by a local Navajo woman who asked us to buy some hand made jewelry for her
son’s upcoming field trip to Albuquerque, and we did. After hanging out for an hour or so, and getting the shots, we headed back and hit the hay.

Winger would like to pass on one message:
“HI MOM”!

Day 2: Saturday, September 25

Saturday, September 25, 2010
First day of the road trip based out of Las Vegas. Definitely didn’t get ‘up and at ‘em’ as early as I had hoped, but that’s probably what happens when you stay up way past 11PM losing $5 on slots! Ha ha

We hit the road around 6AM and saw the sun rise as we headed towards the Valley of Fire State Park. When planning, its easy to say “yeah we’ll just drive through here and maybe take a few pictures”. That turned into about 3 hours exploring the park (which is only about 60 miles northeast of Las Vegas, and it’s a shame that people go to Vegas all the time and don’t check it out)…
We did a little hiking (probably 1.5 miles total) into some cool wave-like features. The sun hit us pretty hard, but it was a good first hike. We spent some time hanging out at the Cabins which were built in the 1930’s for hikers/travelers through the park.

After visiting Valley of Fire we headed north to St. George, Utah where we had a picnic lunch in a park under a tree and then headed to Page. The drive in total took about 6 hours from Valley of Fire. We arrived at Wahweap Campground, right on Lake Powell, about 3:30pm and set up the tent. Turned out the tent we rented was slightly bigger than we need(ed). Big enough for 4 people comfortably (I believe its 10’x10’. That’s roughing it!. Not to mention we had wifi at the campground. Really REALLY roughing it. After setting up the tent, we decided to head into Page and stop at the Glen Canyon Dam. I got my first cancellation stamp in my nerdly National Parks Service Passport book, for the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area.

We tried to find a good spot for sunset, and by the time we got back to the marina area it was just too late. The the light over the rocks around Lake Powell was still pretty awesome, a cool purpleish hue.
Back at the campground we brainstormed plans for the next few days. We decided to forgo the Grand Canyon so we wouldn’t have to rush through Moab and that area. Our plan for Sunday is to head to Monument Valley for the night. After grabbing showers at the campground, we called it a night with hopes to get up around 4:45 and head to Horseshoe Bend just south of Page…

Not much time to add photos to this but you can follow daily photo updates as often as I can get them up: CLICK HERE

Day 1: Dam It!

Arrived safely in Las Vegas around 1:30PM. Everything went smoothly renting the car from Alamo. Ended up with a Jeep Patriot (MidSized SUV) which will be a bit tight, but will work pretty well for us, I reckon!

Headed to Western Wanderer to pick up the rented camping gear, then checked out the Hoover Dam before driving through the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

Picked up KW at 7:30 at the airport, grabbed some food/supplies at WalMart and now are at the Sahara Hotel and Casino, hitting the hay. We'll see how early we can get up and hit the road in the morning!

For a couple more photogs CLICK HERE

Tomorrow's destination is Lake Powell with stops in Valley of Fire and Coral Pink Sand Dunes...

Stay Tuned!

6 Days to go

So, we're under a week left to go and while I'll be busy working tonight at the paper, and tomorrow at the NASCAR Sylvania 300 race in Loudon for AP, my thoughts are with my partner in crime, or at least travel, Winger, who lost a mentor and friend in George Parks, the UMass band director, this past Thursday night. My thoughts are with everyone in the UMass community, and wish the band all the best today as they perform at the Big House in Ann Arbor.

Moving right to the rest of our tentative itinerary:

Day 8 (Fri Oct 1): We will head to Bryce Canyon National Park from Dead Horse Point. Not sure where we'll end up for sunrise, maybe right at Dead Horse. Along the way to Bryce, the plan is to stop at Goblin Valley State Park with some crazy rock formations. The drive to Bryce takes us through Capitol Reef National Park. While we won't have a lot of time to spend there, there are plenty of scenic stops along the way that we'll check out. After getting through Capitol Reef, the drive takes us down Scenic Route 12, one of the most beautiful drives in the country, to Bryce Canyon. The plan will be, depending on the time we arrive, to find a place to camp (the campgrounds in the park don't take reservations after October 1 for some reason), and do some exploring of the park. Strangely, its recommended that Sunrise point is better to view/photograph Sunset, so we'll probably check that out, and then see if we can get some good night/stars photos as Bryce has one of the best night skies.

Day 9 (Sat Oct 2): Sunrise at Sunset Point, some small hikes, maybe Queens Garden Trail. We'll leave by late morning and head down to Zion National Park for the last stop of our journey. No idea what we'll be able to see, and where we'll check out sunset but we have reservations at the Watchman Campground inside the park.

Day 10 (Sun Oct 3): This day will consist of our most ambitious hike, Angel's Landing, in Zion National Park, in the morning. We'll head up as early as we can get going, and see how it goes. The view is so rewarding, and I hope we can pull it off! After either completing this hike, or turning around before the final ascent to the landing, we'll find a few more places to explore before heading back to Las Vegas for the night. Reservations are at the Excallibur in Las Vegas, and I'm hoping to be able to do some wandering and night time photography on the strip this night. Wings has to fly out at 6:30 AM to San Antonio, a recent adjustment to our plans, so I'm not sure how late she'll want to be up, but It'd be a shame not to do some wandering around this night..

Day 11 (Mon Oct 4): The last day of my journey. After saying goodbye to Wings wicked early (5AM I reckon?) I might head out to Red Rocks Canyon for some early light exploring/photography, though I'm not sure how early its open (I believe its gated). I'll have to, at some point, return the camping gear to Western Wanderer in Boulder City. I'd like to find a good place to photograph the sunset in/Near Las Vegas (possibly on Lake Mead?). I have to return the rental car by 11:00PM and my flight out is at 1AM (Day 12, Tues Oct 5). The flight gets into Logan around noon and I'll catch a bus back to Nashua where I anticipate sleeping for the remainder of the day!

There you have it.. our very tentative, ambitious itinerary for this excellent adventure. I hope that a) everything goes smoothly, b) the destinations live up to the expectations and c) we don't strangle each other along the way and/or throw each other into a canyon along the way (though I suspect if anyone gets tossed into a canyon, it'll be me!)

Not sure how much else I'll have to say before the journey begins, but I hope that you enjoy following along, and please leave some comments for us to read along the way!

Enjoy
-Gib

8 Days Until Liftoff!

Just about a week left before we take off. Very busy week coming up, so it should fly by.

One thing I'm still trying to figure out is how I'll pack what I need to pack. And keep out the stuff I don't NEED to bring... I want to keep it to my camera bag (with my laptop in that instead of my huge laptop bag I usually lug), my duffel bag, and my backpack. I have to also pack my tripod in my duffel bag. I'm hoping that I can use my backpack for clothes, put it in my duffel bag, and pack the rest of my clothes around it. I'll have to try that out a few days beforehand to see if I can pull it off... I'd like to have just one checked bag if possible....

Continuing on with our tentative itinerary...
The following three days are very tentative as we are leaving time to relax/recharge/do laundry/get a real meal, etc, in Moab and then figure out what we want to do for the next few days. The Moab area includes a lot of what we want to see including Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park and DeadHorse Point State Park....

Day 5 (Tues Sep 28): We'll try to catch some semblance of sunrise as we head out of Monument Valley. Probably from the regular Viewpoint, and then head up towards Moab. Along the way to Moab, we plan to make a quick stop at Goosenecks State Park which is not too far up the road. We'll take a short hike and explore Fallen Roof Ruins. Not far up the road is Newspaper Rock which we'll swing by and take a look at before heading up to Moab. This night will be spent in a hostel in which we have reserved our own cabin. We'll have the chance to recharge, do laundry and go into town and have a good meal. If we're feeling up for it, we might drive up the street to Arches National Park for sunset.

Day 6 (Wed Sep 29): Depending on how ambitious we are feeling, we might head up to Arches an hour before sunrise and hike up to Double O Arch and get some sunrise shots. There is a good 3-4 mile loop around that area to explore on our way back. The rest of the day we don't have anything planned, though I imagine we'll be at Arches for a sunset hike to Delicate Arch. As of press time, we don't have anything planned for loging this night, so that's something we'll figure out during the day... or beforehand.

Day 7 (Thurs Sep 30): This will be our Canyonlands/Dead Horse Point day. Depending on where we end up the night before, I'd like to check out Mesa Arch at Canyonlands for sunrise, that might have to wait until the following morning. Inside Canyonlands, later in the afternoon, we'll take short hikes to Aztec Butte and hopefully False Kiva later in the afternoon/pre-sunset. That night will likely be spent camping at Dead Horse Point State Park. The following morning we'll head out towards Bryce Canyon for the final leg of our journey.

(last leg tomorrow)

10 Days

So, our camping/hiking/photograhpy adventure through Vegas, Utah and Arizona begins in just 10 days. Am I ready? I don't know yet. I have most of the stuff I'd need to buy (except for some general items like toothpaste, shampoo, soap, etc). I have researched places that I'd like to visit/hike to/photograph. We've rented camping gear, made reservations for all but 2 nights so far, and we have a pretty solid but flexible itinerary..

Speaking of Itinerary. Here's the first part of the basic outline of our itinerary)

Day 1 (Fri, Sep 24): Arrive in Vegas (simple enough? kind of! I get in 6 hours before Winger and will be picking up the rental car, and the rental camping gear, as well as making a trip to WalMart, though, we might need to make a 2nd trip after I pick her up, as I'll likely forget something! I MIGHT swing by the Hoover Dam... but don't tell Winger). We'll get everything together and relax in our hotel (The Sahara) and prepare to leave well before sunup the next day. The advantage of doing this 2 (for her) and 3 time zones away is that it SHOULD be easier to get up early in the morning... SHOULD be

Day 2 (Sat Sep 25): probably the longest driving day of the trip (good to get it out of the way early?). We are driving to Wahweap Marina in Page Arizona on Lake Powell. Plans are to be in the Valley of Fire State Park in Nevada for sunrise, swing by the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in Utah and then proceed to Lake Powell... I'm hoping that we're able to hit up a spot called Alstrom Point on Lake Powell for sunset. The more I read about it, the less likely I think this'll be with our rental car, but I'll do some more research and ask around when we get there! This'll be our first camping night at the Wahweap Marina RV/Campground on the lake..

Day 3 (Sun Sep 26): The first big test will be how well we can take down the tent and pack up while its still dark out! The plan is to hit up a section of the Colorado river called Horseshoe Bend for sunrise. Its just south of Page and on the way to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Our reservations are for the North Rim campground and we'll have all afternoon/evening to explore and find a good spot for sunset (Cape Royal is what I'm looking at!)

Day 4 (Mon Sep 27): Our destination this day will be Monument Valley. We'll catch sunrise in the Grand Canyon at Point Imperial, hike around a bit and then head up to Monument Valley where we have reservations at Goulding's Lodge campground. Depending on how early we get in, we might have the opportunity to take a guided trek through the valley. Much of the sights you can not get to without a Navajo tour guide. A lot of the cool stuff you can see from a distance on the scenic drive which is accessable to all patrons of the park, so we might just stick to that.

More on this tomorrow!

21 days from now, we will be in Vegas, about to embark on a most excellent adventure!

Winger Here!

Woot! Here I am.

Welcome!

Welcome to the travel journal for our much anticipated (at least by me :) ) trek to the Southwest at the end of September. I hope to update family friends and followers with daily (if possible) tales and photographs from the road, trails, parks, sights, and campgrounds of Las Vegas, Southern Utah and Northern Arizona. Please enjoy and follow along.
If you're REALLY interested in our trip, here's a countdown timer I obsessively created.

Enjoy!
-Gib (and Winger if she's down for sharing :) )