Slickrock and Shadow

  Columbine Spring is the source of a clear Leeds Creek.  Water just emerges from under these rocks! The origin of Leeds Creek is Columbine Spring.  Columbine Spring emerges from the ground in the foothills of Pine Valley Mountain, the largest mountain in the St. George region.  From the spring, Leeds Creek rambles down the mountain to eventually drop into Harrisburg Creek and then Quail Creek Reservoir.  Leeds provides more water for the reservoir than any other source.   Recently on a training hike I saw "Columbine Spring" listed on a map near Oak Grove campground.  Knowing this is a beautiful region, I wanted to find this spring myself.  After hiking to Oak Grove, I set off in the direction of Columbine Spring.  Be warned that travel to this water is not easy.  Shoulder-height bushes prevent easy movement and travel is slow for the whole 1-2 miles.  It feels like torture.   Having committed myself to go, and gettin...

Hell Hole Waterfall Drops 600 feet! Trying to capture Hell Hole waterfall has been a quest for several years.  I've driven out to Ivins, Utah during many a rainstorm to gaze at the cliffs, searching for a waterfall that magically appears in the right conditions.  I've been disappointed time and again.  Finally this year I went during a heavy storm and did the hike (even when there was no falling water) because more rain was predicted in the next few hours.  I figured that if there was no waterfall, then I'd just shoot the vegetation and rocks.  I've done that before as a consolation prize.  I found a wonderful redbud in bloom that way.  As I was deep in the canyon, focusing on a small pool of water while trying to photograph a reflection in it, I heard rushing water  . . . like a shower.  I stopped, looked around and then looked UP to see this waterfall beginning to drop.  It grew heavier and heavier as I changed lenses and began...

Purple Blossoms of Spring as seen on the Hellhole (or Hell Hole) Trail in Red Cliffs Desert Reserve The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve is a vast area north of St. George.   The reserve was initially formed, in part, because of the desert tortoise.   These seldom-seen residents are a threatened local species.   The reserve status protects this land for recreational use and I’ve enjoyed several jaunts into various parts of the reserve.   Some have famous names like Yant Flat or the Vortex.   Others are unknown.   On this day I hiked into an unknown area named “Hell hole” because of the miserable heart in the summer.   My visit had clouds and rain and I felt it more like a desert garden than a pit of despair.   I know that a waterfall can appear from the high cliffs if it rains enough.   I hoped for a waterfall appearance . . . but got something different.   The trail heads up a wash on the west side of Red Mountain.   The san...

Pebbles, Rocks and the Lines of Yant Flat As I wandered around Yant Flat, I discovered more and more photo compositions.  This location is rich in potential.  It's pretty amazing to visit an amazing place like this and not have every great corner previously discovered by someone else.  I'm thinking of The Wave (Coyote Buttes North) when I say this.  That's an amazing place I've visited 6 times but I had to wander wide and work hard to shoot an original shot.  That is NOT the case at Yant Flat.  It's so new, so untouched that any shot may be the first time for this virgin rock.  So, enjoy some landscape shots of Yant Flat. Red Dot of Yant Flat All part of Utah's Red Cliff Desert Reserve Yellow Hill resembles a Shell Dead Tree in Shape of Cross Hiking around Yant Flat to discover many gems

Sandstone Mountain Arch Drink lots of water The big arch This is the trail report about the area around sandstone mountain.  Sometimes there are nearby locations that have never been explored or are relatively undiscovered.  The Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, an area set aside to protect the special environment of the desert tortoise, has some wonderful hiking trails.  These don't really get a lot of traffic.  I decided to explore one area this spring: the hike around sandstone mountain. Although this was not a very hot day, the exposure here to the sun shine is extreme and I would never recommend this in the summertime.  There is a trail that is very well-established going from the parking lot down to the Virgin River.  It goes through some sandstone fins and towers.  Then it leads to a very large arch that you can actually hike under. Rough country After it reaches the river, the trail basically disappears.  It turns to the eas...