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!