Next morning we decided to explore Las Vegas. First up were Luxor and Mandalay Bay which we had not seen before. Luxor was a bit seedy; Mandalay Bay was much nicer and had an interesting wave pool. There was a new hotel complex at Las Vegas City Center (Vdara, Cosmopolitan and Aria). We explored Aria, but it was not too interesting. There was a very high end shopping mall outside the hotel called Crystal. Beautiful, but deserted. I guess the prices are too high for the hoi polloi. It is apparently designed by Daniel Libeskind. After a buffet lunch at the Bellagio, we were bored and headed over to Lake Mead. The temperatures were exceeding 100F and after a brief walk over the dam, we headed back to the airport and back to Seattle.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Utah/Arizona Trip: Day 4 (June 12th), Cottonwood Canyon Road
Next day we first went to see the Toadstool Hoodoos near Big Water. The hoodoos are easily reached after an easy 15 min hike along a wash from the road. The hoodoos present a surreal landscape and live up to their apt name.
Next we wanted to drive the Cottonwood canyon road through Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (GSENM) from Big Water to Cannonville. It is a dirt road which spans 45 miles along the Cockscomb fault running north south through the GSENM. We checked the road conditions at the Big Water visitor center and started the drive. The first portion of the road ran along the Paria river which had inexplicably white sand bars on both sides. Finally we stopped the car and went down to the sand bars to look at the white stuff. I tasted the white stuff and it seemed to be salt. My speculation is that the high rate of evaporation of water from the ground brings out dissolved salt to the surface, but I have no independent confirmation.
The road was lonely and beautiful: it passed through colorful badlands which have been warped into strange shapes by the Cockscomb fault. There were multiple trailheads and apparently there are interesting slot canyons on the side including the Cottonwood canyon narrows themselves. The area seems very much worth exploring in future: especially I am interested in exploring the Yellow Rock which promises some very colorful striated slickrock. The final interesting spot on the road was Grosvenor arch. Although all of the Cottonwood canyon was a dirt road, incongrouously, there was a nice concrete paved trail to see the Grosvenor arch. The arch looks like a doorway and is one of the more interesting arches around. After Grosvenor, the scenery became less interesting and we finally hit the pavement at Cannonville.
To make our return journey to Las Vegas more interesting, we decided to drive through Zion, rather than go to Cedar City and take I-15 south. We got to Zion in the afternoon and as usual, the scenery did not disappoint.
We stopped at various viewpoints to take pictures and also saw two groups of big horn sheep. The sheep were causing quite a traffic jam since everybody had to stop and take pictures. Once we were out of Zion, there was not much to see and it was a non-stop trip to Las Vegas. We checked into the MGM Grand and had dinner inside the hotel only.
Next we wanted to drive the Cottonwood canyon road through Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument (GSENM) from Big Water to Cannonville. It is a dirt road which spans 45 miles along the Cockscomb fault running north south through the GSENM. We checked the road conditions at the Big Water visitor center and started the drive. The first portion of the road ran along the Paria river which had inexplicably white sand bars on both sides. Finally we stopped the car and went down to the sand bars to look at the white stuff. I tasted the white stuff and it seemed to be salt. My speculation is that the high rate of evaporation of water from the ground brings out dissolved salt to the surface, but I have no independent confirmation.
The road was lonely and beautiful: it passed through colorful badlands which have been warped into strange shapes by the Cockscomb fault. There were multiple trailheads and apparently there are interesting slot canyons on the side including the Cottonwood canyon narrows themselves. The area seems very much worth exploring in future: especially I am interested in exploring the Yellow Rock which promises some very colorful striated slickrock. The final interesting spot on the road was Grosvenor arch. Although all of the Cottonwood canyon was a dirt road, incongrouously, there was a nice concrete paved trail to see the Grosvenor arch. The arch looks like a doorway and is one of the more interesting arches around. After Grosvenor, the scenery became less interesting and we finally hit the pavement at Cannonville.
To make our return journey to Las Vegas more interesting, we decided to drive through Zion, rather than go to Cedar City and take I-15 south. We got to Zion in the afternoon and as usual, the scenery did not disappoint.
We stopped at various viewpoints to take pictures and also saw two groups of big horn sheep. The sheep were causing quite a traffic jam since everybody had to stop and take pictures. Once we were out of Zion, there was not much to see and it was a non-stop trip to Las Vegas. We checked into the MGM Grand and had dinner inside the hotel only.
Utah/Arizona Trip: Day 3 (June 11th), North Coyote Buttes/The Wave
The day was predicted to be warm (high 80s) and sunny. We took our time getting ready because we knew that the best light on The Wave is around midday. The daily quota for the Wave is 20 people, 10 permits allocated by prior reservation and rest 10 allocated on the walk-in lottery where we participated. By the number of cars in the trailhead, it appears that almost everybody had already started the hike in. We sprayed ourselves with bug spray and left the trailhead around 10AM. There is no formal trail to the Wave: BLM provides a map and a set of photos outlining landmarks along the way. It is pretty easy to navigate: the landmarks are very clear and the slickrock landscape allows one to see far. We started out from Wire pass, took the old road and soon was on slickrock navigating from landmark to landmark. The landscape was remarkable: I had been here before once, but still I am surprised at every corner. The lack of trail gives the area a particularly wild feel.
The slickrock radiated back the midday heat and we were thankful that we had brought 5 liters of water. We met couple of groups of people coming back from the Wave already.
Finally after about two hours we reached the dunes below the Wave where we encountered beautiful yellow blooms on the sand. The heat was taking a toll on us, but we pushed on for the last few minutes and arrived at the Wave. There were a couple sitting on the rock in shade having lunch. We said hello and took a walk around to look at our surroundings. It is one of the most remarkable places I have seen and probably equal of any place anywhere in the world.
One does not need talent to photograph here: just pointing the camera anywhere one can take wonderful pictures. We took a few pictures and then sat down to enjoy some water and lunch. After lunch we explored some more and took more pictures. Our next plan was to go to some of the other locations which I had not seen on my last trip: the Second Wave, Sand Cove and the Boneyard.
Last time I had visited the Wave, I did not find the Second Wave. This time we did not have any problem finding the Second Wave: but I realized that you have to look at the Second Wave in a very particular angle to recognize it. Indeed, last time I had been to the Second Wave, but did not recognize it as such! We sat down next to the Second Wave to take a little rest and that's when bad luck struck. I had kept my camera propped up on the tripod while I sat, but the wind was so high it blew my tripod over and the camera solidly struck the solid slickrock ---the lens cap bounced off and disappeared over the cliff. When I walked over to the tripod I discovered that the damage was not too bad: the camera had taken a big dent next to the film door hinge such that the film door will no longer open fully. The film compartment was still light tight (the pictures came out fine) and the lens was intact. There was not much to do but to continue.
We negotiated the slope from the Wave plateau down to Sand Cove which was full of beautifully striated red and white slickrock.
The Boneyard was next to sand cove and we found some interestingly eroded boulders. The Boneyard was made famous by Michael Fatali's photo. Although we did not find the exact location, it was clear that the area had a lot of potential. Unfortunately for us, the mid day sun was beating down upon us hard and the shadows were harsh. Anyway, we took a few pictures and decided to make our way home through the Sand Cova back to the trailhead. After negotiating a few tricky sections in the wash we were back at the dunes in front of the Wave and it was easy route finding back.
Once we were back at the trailhead, we were planning to drive over to Escalante and spend the night. We were rather tired and so decided to switcech the plans a bit and instead drove to Page and checked into the Super 8. The afternoon and evening was relaxing: we gorged ourselves at the local Chinese buffet and then walked over to the Glen Canyon dam viewpoint to enjoy the cool evening.
The slickrock radiated back the midday heat and we were thankful that we had brought 5 liters of water. We met couple of groups of people coming back from the Wave already.
Finally after about two hours we reached the dunes below the Wave where we encountered beautiful yellow blooms on the sand. The heat was taking a toll on us, but we pushed on for the last few minutes and arrived at the Wave. There were a couple sitting on the rock in shade having lunch. We said hello and took a walk around to look at our surroundings. It is one of the most remarkable places I have seen and probably equal of any place anywhere in the world.
One does not need talent to photograph here: just pointing the camera anywhere one can take wonderful pictures. We took a few pictures and then sat down to enjoy some water and lunch. After lunch we explored some more and took more pictures. Our next plan was to go to some of the other locations which I had not seen on my last trip: the Second Wave, Sand Cove and the Boneyard.
Last time I had visited the Wave, I did not find the Second Wave. This time we did not have any problem finding the Second Wave: but I realized that you have to look at the Second Wave in a very particular angle to recognize it. Indeed, last time I had been to the Second Wave, but did not recognize it as such! We sat down next to the Second Wave to take a little rest and that's when bad luck struck. I had kept my camera propped up on the tripod while I sat, but the wind was so high it blew my tripod over and the camera solidly struck the solid slickrock ---the lens cap bounced off and disappeared over the cliff. When I walked over to the tripod I discovered that the damage was not too bad: the camera had taken a big dent next to the film door hinge such that the film door will no longer open fully. The film compartment was still light tight (the pictures came out fine) and the lens was intact. There was not much to do but to continue.
We negotiated the slope from the Wave plateau down to Sand Cove which was full of beautifully striated red and white slickrock.
The Boneyard was next to sand cove and we found some interestingly eroded boulders. The Boneyard was made famous by Michael Fatali's photo. Although we did not find the exact location, it was clear that the area had a lot of potential. Unfortunately for us, the mid day sun was beating down upon us hard and the shadows were harsh. Anyway, we took a few pictures and decided to make our way home through the Sand Cova back to the trailhead. After negotiating a few tricky sections in the wash we were back at the dunes in front of the Wave and it was easy route finding back.
Once we were back at the trailhead, we were planning to drive over to Escalante and spend the night. We were rather tired and so decided to switcech the plans a bit and instead drove to Page and checked into the Super 8. The afternoon and evening was relaxing: we gorged ourselves at the local Chinese buffet and then walked over to the Glen Canyon dam viewpoint to enjoy the cool evening.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Utah/Arizona Trip: Day 2 (June 10th), Antelope Canyon and Wire Pass
Next day we both woke up and joined the permit lottery once more. This time we were lucky: there were only 30 odd people and we got a permit for 3 people (Sara was supposed to join us) for next day. This was definitely a lucky break. After the permit we decided to visit Antelope Canyon in Page which is only 30 miles away from the Paria Contact station. It was a little confusing to find the entrance to the Antelope canyon park, but finally we found it. To go into the canyon, one must be part of a guided tour. We bought tickets ($27 each) for the 12PM tour of upper Antelope canyon which lasts for an hour. There was a little more confusion because Arizona is in a different time zone from Utah. Since there was still 2 more hours to kill, we left to go and see the horse shoe bend.
It was a hot 3/4 mile walk to the horse shoe bend over a sandy trail, but the viewpoint definitely justified the walk. We were soon done and decided to hurry back to the Antelope canyon and get into the 11AM tour. Especially since around noon, reportedly beautiful shafts of light illuminate the canyon.
We got back in time to the entrance and got into the open 4x4 truck to ride the 3 mile to the canyon. At this point I found out that in the regular tour, tripods are not allowed. For photographers, one must go with the photo tour which lasts two hours. So I just opted to lug the tripod along. The ride was along a sandy wash ---it was pretty bumpy and there was sand all around. We were soon at the entrance to the canyon: the inside was pretty amazing, but the crowd was pretty amazing too.
There was little time to take pictures even for people who were on guided photography tours. There was not enough place to spread the tripod legs. Also there were so many people inside the canyon that one had to clear the surroundings before one could take a picture. In retrospect, it would not have been worthwhile to take the two hour photo tour. Nevertheless, it was clear that the canyon deserved its reputation: with almost no effort one could produce amazing photographs. Once the tour was over, we took the bumpy ride back and was back at the entrance.
After the tour, we had lunch and went back towards Kanab to the Wire pass trailhead. Our goal was to hike through Wire pass to its junction with Buckskin Gulch. The heat was oppressive (89F) and there were tiny black flies which proved to be very annoying. Finally when we entered the narrows of Wire pass, it was blessedly cool and windy which drove away all the flies.
After Antelope canyon, Wire pass was spookily deserted. The narrows were typically only a yard wide and more than 100 feet tall. The colors on Wire pass were not as beautiful as Antelope canyon, but still it was interesting.
Very soon we were at the junction with Buckskin Gulch which was a majestic sight: soaring tall red rock walls enclosed us on all sides and in three directions, the walls narrowed to slots. At the confluence, there was a set of small petroglyphs which depicted people and deers. Overall, the impression was of great quiet and loneliness. We turned back the way we came and walked through the heat to the trailhead.
It was a hot 3/4 mile walk to the horse shoe bend over a sandy trail, but the viewpoint definitely justified the walk. We were soon done and decided to hurry back to the Antelope canyon and get into the 11AM tour. Especially since around noon, reportedly beautiful shafts of light illuminate the canyon.
We got back in time to the entrance and got into the open 4x4 truck to ride the 3 mile to the canyon. At this point I found out that in the regular tour, tripods are not allowed. For photographers, one must go with the photo tour which lasts two hours. So I just opted to lug the tripod along. The ride was along a sandy wash ---it was pretty bumpy and there was sand all around. We were soon at the entrance to the canyon: the inside was pretty amazing, but the crowd was pretty amazing too.
There was little time to take pictures even for people who were on guided photography tours. There was not enough place to spread the tripod legs. Also there were so many people inside the canyon that one had to clear the surroundings before one could take a picture. In retrospect, it would not have been worthwhile to take the two hour photo tour. Nevertheless, it was clear that the canyon deserved its reputation: with almost no effort one could produce amazing photographs. Once the tour was over, we took the bumpy ride back and was back at the entrance.
After the tour, we had lunch and went back towards Kanab to the Wire pass trailhead. Our goal was to hike through Wire pass to its junction with Buckskin Gulch. The heat was oppressive (89F) and there were tiny black flies which proved to be very annoying. Finally when we entered the narrows of Wire pass, it was blessedly cool and windy which drove away all the flies.
After Antelope canyon, Wire pass was spookily deserted. The narrows were typically only a yard wide and more than 100 feet tall. The colors on Wire pass were not as beautiful as Antelope canyon, but still it was interesting.
Very soon we were at the junction with Buckskin Gulch which was a majestic sight: soaring tall red rock walls enclosed us on all sides and in three directions, the walls narrowed to slots. At the confluence, there was a set of small petroglyphs which depicted people and deers. Overall, the impression was of great quiet and loneliness. We turned back the way we came and walked through the heat to the trailhead.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Utah/Arizona Trip: Day 1 (June 9th), Grand Canyon North Rim
We were planning a trip to southern Utah/northern Arizona to the canyon country. The main goal was to get to The Wave. So we got out of work early on the 8th evening and flew to Las Vegas. The wait for the car at the rental counter (Dollar) was interminable. Finally we got the car and drove out around 9PM to Kanab where we were supposed to spend the night at the Shilo Inn. The drive was less than 4 hours, but since Utah was on mountain time, we finally got there around 2AM. On Thursday (9th) morning, I woke up early and made the 45 mile drive to the Paria Contact Station for the lottery for The Wave.
The competition for the 10 walk-in permits for North Coyote Butte was pretty fierce. Finally there were 53 people who entered the lottery and we did not get the permit. I was pretty despondent after that. With a 20% probability of success, it was going to take quite a few tries before we would get the permit. I drove back to the hotel for breakfast and found that Nandana was up and ready. We took a leisurely drive towards the North Rim of Grand Canyon. The drive was beautiful over the Kaibab plateau and we drove through some beautiful meadows. We first drove to Bright Angel point and enjoyed the views. Then had lunch and enjoyed a bit of siesta in the car in the shade. The temperatures were very pleasant. In the afternoon we drove to Cape Royal and then to Point Imperial. Nandana loved the canyon. I had been to Grand Canyon North Rim before and was very disappointed because we had come from Zion and Bryce which were in my eyes more spectacular areas. But this time I was pleasantly surprised by the views. The afternoon sun threw the canyon into relief and there were interesting lights and shadows.
In the evening we were back at the Bright Angel point to watch the sunset where a large group of people joined together to watch it. It was a beautiful evening.
After sunset we drove back to Kanab. The drive was marked by a very large number of deer sightings. We must have had to brake 5-6 times to avoid deer on the road and encountered several large groups of deer.
The competition for the 10 walk-in permits for North Coyote Butte was pretty fierce. Finally there were 53 people who entered the lottery and we did not get the permit. I was pretty despondent after that. With a 20% probability of success, it was going to take quite a few tries before we would get the permit. I drove back to the hotel for breakfast and found that Nandana was up and ready. We took a leisurely drive towards the North Rim of Grand Canyon. The drive was beautiful over the Kaibab plateau and we drove through some beautiful meadows. We first drove to Bright Angel point and enjoyed the views. Then had lunch and enjoyed a bit of siesta in the car in the shade. The temperatures were very pleasant. In the afternoon we drove to Cape Royal and then to Point Imperial. Nandana loved the canyon. I had been to Grand Canyon North Rim before and was very disappointed because we had come from Zion and Bryce which were in my eyes more spectacular areas. But this time I was pleasantly surprised by the views. The afternoon sun threw the canyon into relief and there were interesting lights and shadows.
In the evening we were back at the Bright Angel point to watch the sunset where a large group of people joined together to watch it. It was a beautiful evening.
After sunset we drove back to Kanab. The drive was marked by a very large number of deer sightings. We must have had to brake 5-6 times to avoid deer on the road and encountered several large groups of deer.
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