Slickrock and Shadow

Darwin Falls with the reeds on the left.  What a beauty! I found myself passing Darwin Falls trailhead this past summer en route to the Sierra Mountains.  As cool as they would be, Death Valley was roasting at 118° F.  Though I'm no stranger to triple-digit temperature, this was a new record for hiking conditions.  I was literally passing through in the middle of the day, with the sun directly overhead.  One step out of the air-conditioned Subaru and I was uncomfortably hot.  I felt like I was standing too close to a roaring campfire the whole time.   2 miles and I could see no sign of shade.  Taking only my hat, water bottle, camera and tripod, I marched off as efficiently as I could.  Marching in place in a sauna would be the best training for this hike.  After 20 minutes of hiking up the wash, water and trees appeared in the canyon.  Grateful for the shade, I hopped over a few puddles and then water flowed slowly down the sh...

  Poverty Wash glowing slot canyon walls My blog seems to be turning into a homage to Parunuweap Canyon and its' tributaries.  Poverty Wash is another lucky place.  If you make it here, you are lucky.  If you see the walls, wade through shallow but totally clear waters, you are lucky.  If you reach the last section ending in a circular room, you are lucky.   Getting into Parunuweap can be done in several ways.  I've come through Rock and French Canyons.  That's the hard part.  Once you're in, Poverty wash is a walk in the park without any obstacles.   French Canyon short cut into Parunuweap Traditional Route with good photos As you may guess, visiting Poverty Wash is a highlight for anybody's life.  Now that I've explored several sections of Parunuweap (Rock Canyon, French Canyon, Mineral Gulch, Fat Man's Misery and Poverty Wash) I'm thinking Poverty is my favorite of them all.   Poverty Wash curves around smooth...

French Canyon:  The Jungle in Zion that nobody knew existed As I kid I'd watch Indiana Jones movies and wonder at the world's most exotic and adventurous locations.  I'd imagine hacking my way through the jungle to discover an amazing secret spot.  I felt like a kid again this month as I hiked up French Canyon, a branch off of the East Virgin River, also known as Parunuweap or the Barracks. French Canyon begins mysteriously as a slot canyon immediately off of the Virgin River.  A gorgeous tree obscures the view into this narrow slot canyon, yet the clear water flowing over the sandy stream bed invite further exploration.  The canyon remains narrow for 1/3 mile.  In that short distance, you will trek over trees and through vines all the while in a pleasant 2-6 inches of clear water.  Nothing is really difficult.  The obstacles really create a special feeling of mystery and excitement.  Hiking here is fun, beautiful and Indiana-Jonesish....

Sidewinder curves in the depths of Crack Canyon Crack Canyon in Utah's San Rafael region is another of Utah's less-known gems.  Down a dirt road in Central Utah, this trailhead is not even listed on maps.  The canyon makes for a pleasant stroll on a clear or cloudy day.  A short slot section resembles the "Subway" of Zion but I liked the impressive rust-colored walls and Swiss-cheese holes in the sandstone.  This place has more holes in rocks than any other location I've seen.  It's quite "holy".  Here are a few pics from this wonderful little location. Cave-like Crack Canyon with light at the end of the tunnel A glimpse of the amazing holes, cavities and caves in this canyon -- and the namesake "Crack".

Fat Man's Misery exits into a warm green bath-like pool!  Go down the waterslide for good time! Green waters thrill me.  I've always thought emeralds were the most beautiful color of green.  This hue exists in Parunuweap Canyon within the green glassy clear waters.  You need a filter to drink the water but no camera filter to get this amazing color!  It's entirely natural and stunning to see. Some pools are blue but for me the most beautiful are these in Parunuweap Green. If you go, bring a dry bag for camera equipment and good shoes.  Also known as "the Barracks", this East Fork of the Virgin River is the most beautiful of the three (Main Fork and North Fork). Green turquoise waters in a deep slot canyon, Parunuweap, Zion Boulder and Pool in Parunuweap

Tuckup Canyon:  Highly Rewarding for the Landscape Photographer Tuckup Canyon is a true adventure that can go on and on depending on your bravery and daring.  From the Colorado River, Tuckup Canyon goes back about a mile or less.  The canyon walls start out like thin brown shale.  Then the sandstone walls are more of a greenish block-like boulders.  These boulders litter than canyon floor and present the first obstacle to hiking.  Most hikers will find this no big deal.  Past these big boulders, a curved labyrinthine canyon runs back another half mile.  These canyon walls are knobby but smooth.  This is a most beautiful location.  My wife enjoyed sitting down here and picking up rocks from different ages all mixed in the ground cover.  Brown shale-like sandstone at the lowest levels of Tuckup Canyon Block-like boulders present the next early obstacle Tuckup Canyon:  The lower knobby narrows.  Morning light ...

The big pool in the middle of a hike in Death Hollow is just one of the many highlights.   Death Hollow is an equally challenging and rewarding backcountry experience.  I could say photographing Death Hollow is also challenging and rewarding.  Challenges include: 1.  The long miles of hiking 2.  The multi-day nature of this undertaking 3.  Coping with the ever-present water (dry bag for camera) 4.  Backcountry survival skills 5.  Trail finding on the first crucial day But the beauty is there, mostly undiscovered and waiting for a man or woman with camera to come and record the wonders of this land and creek.  Because of the incredible things about hiking through Death Hollow, I dedicated a detailed post for each day in my previous posts.  Please see them for details.   Death Hollow Day 1 Death Hollow Day 2 Death Hollow Day 3 I would do it again.  My wife says she's glad to have done it but...

Three twisted cottonwood trees in Escalante Canyon.  This is just one of the cool discoveries that remain on a trip through Death Hollow. Day 3 in Death Hollow was all about getting moving.  We had 8 miles from the confluence to our car and a little extra just to reach the confluence.  After a nice breakfast of oatmeal I put on a clean pair of socks.  For a whole 5 minutes I walked without sand, water and grit between my toes.  It was a brief but divine luxury.  We broke camp and started walking. The stream here is much more flat and shallow . . . so the temptation is to walk faster in the stream . . . which leads to falling down.  I had walked no more than 10 minutes before I slipped and fell hard on my left elbow.  Dang it hurt.  No sense stopping because that would do no good whatsoever. We kept walking and quickly reached the confluence.  Here the clearer waters of Death Hollow mix with the Escalante River.  The Escala...

Racehorse Falls:  A photogenic landscape near Bellingham, Washington During a recent trip to Bellingham, Washington, I searched for photography destinations and saw some photos of Racehorse Falls.  This waterfall splits halfway down its' course, like an upside-down wishbone.  I'd never heard of it but it's beauty was without doubt.  With some very sketchy online accounts to guide me I drove to what Google called the trailhead.  Happily I discovered a good trail going directly into the woods.  Things were going great until I got to the river.  I heard water, I looked over the edge and saw two smaller waterfalls but not the big one I'd seen in photos.  Not Racehorse Falls. Trail #1 The trail turned up (left) so that's where I went. I continued to hear falling water and spied a rope tied to a tree.  This long rope went down a steep slope where I found another rope which continued to go down to the river.  At the bottom I discover...

Grapevine Springs, Zion is a wall of seeping water coming out of sandstone. Grapevine Springs is the namesake for the "Grapevine" trail in Zion National Park.  Thinking this must be a big deal because it has it's own trailhead, I wondered why nobody ever writes about it, hikes to it nor are there any pictures of it on record that I can discover via Google Search. So I went on a hike to discover this spring and assess its' merits and beauties myself.  Hiking upstream from the Grapevine trail, one must keep a lookout for water coming from the left.  Follow this water up a nonexistent trail through and over many branches and you will arrive at a wall.  This is a magic wall with water dripping and ferns clinging.  I can't say it's a big deal but the subtle attraction and the sense of discovery and privacy is rewarding. Grapevine Spring:  Shot in the Water -- Camera got plenty wet for this photo. Closeup of Ferns and dripping water.  This has ...