203. Along the Way

Utah is such a fabulous place that even the scenery along the way is spectacular. All those pictures were taken just by the side of the road. I had to stop to take a few pictures, even though they don’t belong to any part of park systems. I kept on thinking, as I was taking those pictures, that places like these would be some kind of parks, if they were in the east coast. 🙂

Well, this is the end of that 10 days trip—it took me a month to post everything. 🙂  The next post will be about Sedona, again.

199. Needles District of Canyonlands NP (2): Naked Man at Druid Arch!

Durid Arch trail is 11 miles round trip. After hiking five and a half miles which included a climbing on a ladder, a dry waterfall, and scrambling up a steep hill, the most outlandish rock formation emerged right in front of me. Druid Arch, the isolated, freestanding, oddly shaped arch took me aback.

Of course I have seen photos of this famous rock formation. I actually planned to hike the trail last time when I was there, but didn’t get the chance to do it (too wet). However, the pictures didn’t do it justice. No picture could adequately portrait a three dimensioned structure. No photo could prepare me to feel so small when I leaned up to look at the towering 450 feet arch! Standing amongst the astonishing, bizarre landscape, I was unable to shake a peculiar sense of wonder that I was on another planet, or in a dream.

And nobody was there. Or at least for half an hour. I had this amazing arch all to myself! Then a group of three showed up. Guess what they did? One of the guys striped himself! He was completely naked!  I don’t know what kind of “ritual” he was practicing. But I got his picture (see the last one below)! 🙂

What I do know is in ancient, pre-Christian era, a Druid was a member of priestly class among the Celtic people. The Arch was named due to its resemblance to Stonehenge in England, a place long associated with Druids. One of Druids’ strong beliefs was reincarnation! Perhaps, the man was trying to perform “pre-reincarnation” ceremony. 🙂

 

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

197. Rock that Tells a Story

Located about 25 miles southwest of Monticello, Utah, Newspaper Rock is a remarkable petroglyph site. This panel etched in sandstone records a couple of thousand years of early human activity.

No one really knows the true meaning of the figures on the rock. Do the figures represent storytelling, doodling, hunting magic, clan symbols or ancient graffiti? Without a true understanding of the petroglyphs, much is left for individual interpretation and imagination. In Navajo, the rock is called “Tse’ Hane’” –Rock that tells a story.

I am just happy to be there, to witness such history, in natural environment, with or without understanding the true meaning behind the figures. They seemed intriguing to me.

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

195. Arches National Park (1): Amazing Arches

Arches National Park is one of my favorite NP. I have been there a number of times, yet I love it so much that I don’t mind being there, again and again.

Although the longest trail is only 7.2 miles, there are a number of them. If you hike every single one of them like I did, it’ll still take you a couple of days. Can you imagine that there are more than 2000 arches in the park? Simply amazing! Every time I saw those astonishing arches, I couldn’t help but marveling the splendor of Mother Nature. So fortunate to witness such a beauty!

PS. the only “drawback” of the area (Moab) is it’s very expensive to stay. Even Motel 6 costs $90. I stayed in a hostel (Lazy Lizard). With a private room, it costs $28 (share bathroom and showers).

 

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

193. Little Wild Horse Canyon

Little Wild Horse Canyon is a pretty slot canyon not far away from Goblin Valley State Park (post #190,191). The loop trail is about 8 miles, moderately strenuous, requiring some scrambling.

I have seen a few slot canyons by now. Little Wild Horse, I have to say, is one the pretty ones. The rocks are light orange in color; the shape of the walls is quite wavy at places, very pretty; tall, colorful mountain tops surrounded the area. The only bad part is the pictures of the slot canyon are not very bright. As you probably have already noticed, I love pictures with brilliant colors. 🙂

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

190. Off Trail Hiking in Goblin Valley State Park (1)

I don’t usually hike off trail, alone. I love off trail hiking, but I just don’t think it is safe or smart to wander off trail on my own. Even though I’ve hiked some of the most remote places, I figure, as long as I am on trail, that within a day (or two, if I am so unlucky), that someone will find me if I am in trouble. Well, if I am off trail, I could be stuck there, forever, without anyone ever finding me there. Or at least it would take more than a day or two.

That’s why I was surprised when the ranger told me to go off trail in Goblin Valley State Park. “To tell you the truth, the trails don’t have the best view. Just walk down the valley.” He probably figured I am a crazy hiker, being the first one showed up bright early in the morning before sunrise.

“I won’t get lost?” I was cautious.

“No, you will see the observation area, even from far.”

So, I did, wandered without any trail, amongst all kinds of shapes and sizes of goblins. It was an amazing area! Once again, I was like a little girl lost in the rocky wonderland. With early sunlight, I was able to capture a few pictures I like.

I did hike a trail in the afternoon, just curious. The ranger was right. It was so much more fun to walk down the valley. You could see the rock formations much better. However, one does need to be careful. Although it is not hard to see the general direction, it doesn’t always mean it is easy to find your way back. I did scramble up a few areas, wandered too far to back track and had to find another way out. As we all know or learned our lesson one way or another, it is so much easier to go up than get down. I did get my heart pounding, and my breath panting a couple of times. 🙂

In fact, I did wonder, how long would take them to find me, if I were in real trouble. Perhaps a couple of weeks? Or it might take longer! There were so many places one can go, being hurt and then getting stuck!

Well, I am still here, safe and sound, even after wandering off trail in the park for almost 10 hours. I was going to stay for the sunset, but by last afternoon, I was too tired to walk any longer. Too bad I missed the best sunlight, but a girl got her limit. 🙂

 

188. Camping in BLM land, Wild and Free

I am on the road again, just for 10 days. My land lady in Sedona is coming back to use her house so I am using this opportunity to travel, again. I didn’t have a particular goal in mind although I knew the general direction I was going to go—Utah. Once again, I was just going to “tumble in the wind”. So free!

My day actually didn’t start too great—I was too excited that I drove too fast. The end result is I got a speeding ticket! “This is not good. My insurance is going to increase! I don’t even have a job right now.” After a few moments of negative thoughts, I calmed down. It was my fault and nothing much I can do now other than deal with it when I get back from my trip. Nothing is going to stop me from enjoy the trip. Nothing!

Well something else interfered with my day as well—the wind was so strong when I reached my first intended destination, Monument Valley, that I was told I couldn’t set up my tent. “Others already asked for their refund.” Yes, the wind was so strong that it looked like fog in the sky. I guess that is a “dust storm”?

Luckily, I didn’t mind being “blown away” by the wind. So I “tumbled” along, driving forward. My next destination was Natural Bridge National Monument. I have been to this park before. Since it was cloudy, I didn’t have any good picture of this amazing place. So it wouldn’t be too bad to revisit the place again and take some nice pictures. At least, the day after was supposed to be nice enough.

Well, it was my “lucky” day—the campground at Natural Bridge was full! Now what? The place was very remote. The closest town is about a couple of hours away. Seeing my disappointment, the ranger was very nice to offer, “There is a BLM land (Bureau of land management) right outside of the park. It is primitive, but you can camp there, for free.”

So, I did—camped for free, in the wildness. Oh, there were few other groups of campers around, but they all scattered around in a large wooded area that I couldn’t see or hear anyone from my spot. I’ve camped countless times, but I’ve never camped in wildness, on my own. I was either alone in a campground or in primitive site with others. This was another first. When I went to my tent, I brought the bear spray with me, just to give me a peace of mind. 🙂

It turned out that I slept really well. Other than the wind was blowing, I couldn’t hear anything else. It was actually quiet serene, surrounded by nothing except pure nature! I loved it!

The bad news, though, even I hiked all the trails in the park (about 10 miles), I didn’t get any good picture. The day was dark and cloudy, good for hiking, but sucked for taking pictures. So, being in the park twice, I can’t share any good picture of the three natural bridges which are spectacular.

One thing I am so happy to find is rock arts in the canyon below. They were so clear that I thought it might belong to the art of “modern” people. I did show my pictures to the ranger and I was assured that they are real pictographs and petroglyphs!

By the way, if you are there and have time, do hike down the canyon. The trail is unmaintained, but the view looking up the rocks is worth the trouble. Most people only hike to the bridges, without going through the canyon. I loved it, being there all alone. Natural Bridge is a wild place, perfect for solitude.

I did meet a nice gentleman when I took the short hike to the bridge in the late afternoon the first day. Joe was coming up the trail as I was going down. We stopped and talked, for about 10-15 min. It turned out that he was a professional photographer! And he has a brother who lives 15 miles from Sedona where I will be back in 10 days. We plan to hike together when he goes to visit his brother in 2 weeks.

I often wonder why sometime we stop to talk to someone in a trail, while other times we just nod, or smile, or simply say hello. Perhaps it was his smile—friendly, cheerful, broad. Although most people are pretty happy on the trails, not everyone with such joy written all over his or her face. I guess he probably found the same delight on my face. At least I hope that was the case. 🙂

It was a good start of the trip-wild, free! Well, almost “free”—I still had to pay for the ticket when I got back. 🙂

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

Lake Powell near Page, AZ

Lake Powell is a reservoir on the Colorado River, straddling the border between Utah and Arizona. The greenish-blue lake is very pretty, surrounded by colorful rocks. It is a major vacation spot, also known as Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which around 2 million people visit every year.

I have been to Lake Powell several times, coming from different directions, seeing different part of the lake since it is very large.

If you visit Lake Powell, don’t miss a chance to take a boat tour from Page to Rainbow Bridge National Monument. Although I didn’t do it this time because it was too cold (low single digits), I have done it before. This world’s highest natural bridge is very impressive, but it can only be reached by boat or backpacking. Highly recommended!

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

172. Bizzarre Toadstools

Between Kanab and Page, near Big Water off Highway 89, there is a special surreal area featuring bizarre Toadstools, or Rim Rocks. It is part of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. With a short hike (about a mile one way), it is the only area easily accessible in the vast Monument, without a four wheel drive.

I have been to this amazing place once several years ago by chance. I didn’t know anything about the area, just driving around, trying to find a place to hike. It just so happened that I took the trail and I was pleasantly surprised by what I found. The rocks look so odd. As the name indicated, they do look like Toadstools, huge, rocky toadstools! A couple of years ago, I wrote an article about this peculiar site; with my photos, it was published in a Chinese Magazine.

Once again, this time, I went back to the area when I passed by. Even though I have seen it before, I was still in awe. It seemed I was on another planet! The fact that no one was there made the experience even more out-worldly.

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html

171. Just by the side of US-89

The scenery along Highway 89 between Kanab, UT and Page, AZ is amazing, even without specific name. When I say “amazing”, it really speaks to someone who loves wild, desolated area. I love the natural, unspoiled feel. The only drawback, as I mentioned in the last post, is there is hardly any paved road away from the main highway. All the pictures here were taken by taking short hikes when I parked my car by the side of the road.

PS. my photo website: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/qing-yang.html