The Traveller

The Next Cairn, November 2007

Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Day 1…

•I spent the day on the road. I stopped and shot lots of fun stuff, but I didn’t do any hiking, since my plan was to drive straight through to Blanding, Utah, which took about 15 hours.

Abandoned gazebo, western Oklahoma

Day 2…

•Monday morning I left Blanding before sunrise and headed west on the beautiful state highway 95, which cuts through Cedar Mesa, the Robbers Roost, the Glen Canyon Recreation Area, and the San Rafael Desert, all wonderful places. I stopped first at White Canyon, a deep gorge parallel to UT95, which is a notable canyoneering canyon. I am not a canyoneer, but I wanted to know what my uutah.com friends were talking about, so I decided to hike down a piece of it and see. The canyon is deep and wild, curving and meandering. It’s about 600 feet deep, but I only descended about half of that, since I was alone and was not prepared to negotiate any of the serious obstacles that a seasoned canyoneer might. Marklar count: 0.

White Canyon, Utah

•I made some passable images, then hiked out and hit the road. My next stop was the San Rafael Swell, a desolate and wild area in central Utah that appeals to those like me who crave solitude and adventure. I hiked my two original target trails, Ding Canyon and Dang Canyon. They can be done as a loop, but I found obstacles that I was not comfortable attacking while hiking alone, so I only went some of the way up both canyons. Dang also included wet crossings, and I don’t care for the water. Still, the areas I saw were spectacular. Marklar Count: 0.

Ding Canyon, San Rafael Swell

Hiking in Ding Canyon

•By late afternoon I was looking for a sunset opportunity, so I made my way over to the nearby Goblin Valley State Park. I hiked a couple of their short trails to kill time, and was in the main valley for the last light. Marklar count: 2.

Hiking at Goblin Valley

Day 3…

•Up before the sun, I drove from Green River, Utah, to the San Rafael Swell, making some nice sunrise images on the way.

Sunrise, San Rafael Swell

•My first trail was Wild Horse Canyon, an expansive, beautiful and lonely canyon cutting through the eastern edge of the Swell in a formation called the San Rafael Reef. The trail follows the Wild Horse Creek bed until it opens at the bottom of the reef. It features two sets of fairly picturesque narrows, and if one is inclined to do a little off-trail navigation across open slickrock, a large natural arch called “Wild Horse Window.” Marklar count: 0.

Narrows, Wild Horse Canyon

Wild Horse Window

•After my hike at Wild Horse, I was starting to get frustrated by the lack of suitable trail markers or road signs. The area was originally developed by uranium mining, and is now administered by the Bureau of Land Management. In the back of my mind, I kept hearing the call: Canyonlands. This national park might be my favorite place on earth, and by afternoon, I was there. A friendly park ranger suggested the Lathrop trail, which leads through an open pasture to the the rim of the Island in the Sky district, then descends to the Colorado River. I only had a couple of hours of daylight, so I hiked as far as the rim, then returned, for a total of about five miles. Marklar count: 0.

View from Lathrop Trail

Along the Lathrop Trail

Day 4…

•It was a big day on the trails in the Island in the Sky District of Canyonlands…

•In the morning, Neck Spring Trail, a 5.8-mile loop with a lot of variety: woodlands, open slickrock, two active springs, and a steep climb. Marklar count: 0. Prior to the hike, two guys from New Mexico took my picture, and told me that the best way to do White Sands (New Mexico) is on a summer night with a full moon and a watermelon. It sounded pretty cool.

At the Neck Spring trail head

Along the Neck Spring Trail

•At midday, a friendly ranger named Kass gave a nice 15-minute program about the origins of Canyonlands. While we were waiting for Kass before the program, a nice Australian woman named Jo mistook me for the ranger, undoubtedly due to my rugged attire. I was very flattered. She and her friendly husband Graham, from Melbourne, came to the states, bought an RV, and are spending 18 months touring the country. I told them that they are living a fantasy that Abby and I dream of often. As the afternoon wore on, I made my way down the Grand View Overlook trail, which heads west across a mesa, leading to an overlook of the White Rim and, if you look hard enough in the distance, the Maze District. I dream of one day buying or renting a Jeep and visiting the Maze, which is regarded as among the most remote areas in the lower 48. Marklar count: 5.

Maze District in the distance

View from Grand View Trail

•I watched the sun go down at Grand View Point, which is always a spiritual experience for me. I sat in silence for 45 minutes or more and took in the quiet and the grandeur.

Grand View Point at sunset

•As I was leaving the park, the thought crossed my mind that I might catch some last light on Mesa Arch, so when I got to the trailhead, I bounded out and practically ran the quarter-mile trail. I got there in time for a couple of really nice images with gold light hitting the features in the background, and mellow blueish-purple light on the arch itself. Those who photograph this signature piece of the Island know that it is mostly photographed in the morning, so it was nice to get some unusual light on it.

Mesa Arch at dusk

•After that I was driving near the Neck when the sky absolutely caught fire with sunset light, and I stopped and shot it. It was an excellent way to end the day.

Sunset, Island in the Sky

Day 5…

•I woke up in Moab wondering what to hike. I felt certain that if I just drove around for a bit, I’d find something, and before long I proved myself right. I ran into a friendly couple who were hiking up the Moab Rim Jeep Road, and they highly recommended it. It starts at the Kane Creek road behind the cliffs you see when you come into Moab from the south, ascending 1000 feet in 1.1 miles to a nice overlook of the whole Spanish Valley, including the City of Moab. This Jeep road continues on for some miles into the Behind the Rocks Wilderness Study Area.

At the top of the Moab Rim

•On my way back down, I ran into a nice girl hiking with her three friendly dogs. I also encountered two Jeeps and a pickup making their way up the road, which the sign at the trail head cautioned was a “4+”, meaning most difficult. By the time I got to the Jeepers, they were attempting to ascend one of the difficult obstacles, and not soon after that one of them gave up and parked his vehicle.

Jeepers on the Moab Rim trail

•By mid-morning I was on the road again, and I stopped and shot several really nice desert and badlands scenes.

Arizona badlands

Arizona badlands

•By the middle of the afternoon I was at Canyon de Chelly National Monument, where I drove to the Antelope House Overlook, which I had never seen despite visiting the canyon many times, including on our honeymoon. I met three nice ladies from Virginia, who asked me to take their picture and then took mine. I gave them a richardbarron.net web site card, and one of them told me, “You live in the crossword puzzle clue city!” (Ada)

Canyon de Chelly

At Canyon de Chelly, Arizona

As are all our trips to the desert, this Utah adventure was wonderful. Here are a couple of points…

•The hiking was excellent. November is a superb month for trips like this, since it is cool, usually clear with good sunsets, and the “Marklars” (tourists) are at home instead of cluttering the trails.

•As much as I admire the San Rafael Swell, I am increasingly frustrated by the lack of signage, the indefinite and often misleading network of trails, and the rough, unmarked roads.

•I missed my family. I take a couple of trips alone each year because my wife and son aren’t up for the kinds of demanding wilderness hiking that I love. I think about Abby with every step on every trail, though. I want to introduce her to Canyonlands soon.

Canyonlands at last light

See the Next Cairn galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

The Power of Three, October 2007

Stop sign along the road, October 2007

Day 1…

•Tonight we are on the road. We loaded the car with me, Abby, Mitchell, the Chihuahuas Max and Sierra, and all our stuff, and headed west. It was a fairly routine drive, with a couple of thunderstorms on our route, and a wildly windy eastern New Mexico. We are retracing the wedding trip of three years ago. About to sleep. The road awaits.

Day 2…

•We got up in Farmington, New Mexico, to a beautiful sun in a bright blue sky. We had a big breakfast, then headed north through the Four Corners region to a regular stop for us, Blanding, Utah, for our bags of fun free stuff from their welcome center. We drove up U.S. 191 through Monticello, where we stayed twice last year. It’s a lovely small town, and we might have stayed with them again this time, but hunters occupy the Abajo Mountains hunting deer this time of year, and there was no room in the inn. We got to Moab, Utah, by midday, got a bite of lunch, then drove up the Castle Valley highway to Fisher Towers, which our Uutah.com friends recommended as dog friendly and worth seeing. The trail and scenery were nothing short of spectacular.

Abby and Mitchell hike with the dogs

•Abby and Sierra weren’t up for hiking as far as Mitchell, Max and I were, so the ladies found a nice spot to rest and enjoy the sunshine, and Mitch and I took Max on down the trail another mile or so. After returning to the car and driving a couple of miles, we stopped to photograph an excellent golden hour scene of the La Sal Mountains viewed through a canyon with slickrock formations in the foreground. It was an excellent adventure.

Fisher Towers, east of Moab, Utah

Castle Valley Sunset

Day 3…

•Since dogs aren’t allowed in Arches National Park, Mitchell agreed to stay in the motel and keep them company while Abby and I hiked to Delicate Arch. Abby’s knees are hurting her more than usual lately, so we took our time hiking up. It was a perfectly beautiful day, just like the day when we got married. There seemed to be more people there than three years ago, but not so many as to spoil our time. It was a wonderful experience to take Abby back to this place we both love and is so meaningful to us.

With Abby on the trail

With Abby at Delicate Arch

•After lunch, Abby stayed in and Mitchell and I hiked Negro Bill Canyon to Morning Glory Bridge, which is the sixth longest natural span in the world. It was an excellent hike, and we timed it perfectly, such that we were back at the trailhead right before dark.

Waterfall, Negro Bill Canyon

Morning Glory Bridge

Day 4…

•A word about our Chihuahuas: these two small dogs are full of love and energy, and are very easy traveling companions. In fact, before we left on this trip, a friend of mine asked me how we would manage with the dogs in my car, and I told her that no matter what car or truck we use, the dogs are always in the same place: someone’s lap.

Sierra and Max on the trail

On the trail they are great fun. Since he is more athletic, Max tends to lead the way with Mitchell holding his leash. He seems to understand that he should scout ahead. Abby says that Sierra looks back at Abby, watching where Abby is stepping so she’ll know where to go. Abby says that Sierra even tugs on her harness to help Abby up steeper steps and slopes.

•Stopped to photograph the western tongue of the Bisti Wilderness in northwest New Mexico.

Bisti Wilderness

•We are on our way home. It has been an exceptional third anniversary vacation.

Day 5…

•As we prepared to leave our motel in Moab, Utah, yesterday, Mitchell and I were loading the car when I spotted a plastic bag on the ground in the parking lot. It contained a folded wad of bills, and the visible one was a $100 bill. Of course it was tempting to simply pocket the wad. There might have been $500 or $1000 there, but that was irrelevant. I called Mitchell over and told him, “This is one of those times when we need to do the right thing. Come on.” We took the bills to the front desk of the motel and told them where we found it. I explained to Mitchell that the test for knowing what’s right is to reverse the situation: what if we had lost our vacation money? Would we want whoever found it to return it? Having someone watching your moral fiber for an example of right and wrong has a way of clarifying your actions. I hope I am giving this young man the tools for a happy life.

My amazing wife Abby on the trail at Fisher Towers

See the Power of Three galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Sand in Our Hair, July 2007

For our second father-son vacation together, Mitchell and I picked Great Sand Dunes National Park in southern Colorado, which we wanted to visit last year, but only stayed a few minutes because of rain and driving winds.

Mitchell on the road, posing with a U-Haul depicting the Mitchell Corn Palace, which he has also visited.

Day 1…

•Excellent driving day with Mitchell. Staying in Alamosa, Colorado.

Mitchell near Walsenberg, CO

Mitchell at the Cadillac Ranch, Amarillo, TX

Day 2…

•We spent the morning hiking the dunes, including High Dune. Against my advice, Mitchell went barefoot, and is now regretting it.

Mitchell on High Dune

Atop High Dune

•Hot lunch at our camp site. Napped through a thunderstorm.

•Left Mitchell in the tent and drove a few miles south of the park to Zapata Falls for a short hike. I could have gone farther if I had anticipated an extended, fully-wet crossing. But I don’t like the water anyway.

Wildflowers, Zapata Falls

Day 3…

•I let Mitchell sleep in while I made an early-morning hike up Mosca Pass in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains Wilderness just east of the park. I made this hike in 2004, but this time I intended to high point at the pass at 10,000 feet. I was, ironically, turned back by the same thing that turned me back last time: poison ivy. It’s rare to see it above 5000 feet, but I have gotten pretty good at identifying it these last few years, and I’m sure it was poison ivy. It completely blocked the trail. I reported it to the park rangers.

Wildflowers, Mosca Pass Trail

Mosca Pass Trail

•In the middle part of the day, Mitchell and I drove to the town of San Luis, where we photographed an exquisite Spanish Mission which featured bronze statues of the Stations of the Cross. It was the pride of the town.

San Luis Mission Church

San Luis Mission

•Later in the afternoon, I hiked southeast along Medano Creek, which is one of the key features of Great Sand Dunes. Along the popular dunes area, the creek is nearly 100 yards wide in places, but never more than a few inches deep. It flows southwest out of the mountains, and some miles downstream simply disappears into the sand. I follow it in both directions. The hike southwest wasn’t more than a few miles, and I was entirely alone.

Medano Creek, upstream

Medano Creek near the dune field

Medano Creek disappearing into the sand

Day 4…

•Driving home day. We saw several excellent and entertaining things on the road.

•Jogged west to U.S. 285 to cross into New Mexico so we could see the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. At Tres Pierdras, New Mexico, we encountered a very unusual art gallery, painted bright pink. We were greeted by loud but friendly dogs. The owner, who had the bushiest eyebrows I have ever seen on a human, said we were welcome to take pictures, then disappeared without a word.

Pink Gallery, Tres Piedras, NM

•As we approached the Gorge Bridge, I noticed that the EarthShip-style houses I had seen before along this highway seemed to have grow bigger and more complex. I took a chance and pulled into the “main” one. We were greeted by a man named Charles Shultz, who without hesitation gave us an hour-long tour of the place, called the “World’s Nest.”

World’s Nest House

Mitchell at World’s Nest

• Continued to our last stop, the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge northwest of Taos, New Mexico, which I have seen several times, including on the Vanishing Point tour in 2001. Mitchell had never seen it.

Rio Grande Gorge Bridge

Mitchell at the Rio Grande Gorge

Sunset, Great Sand Dunes

See the Sand in our Hair galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

The Crossing, March 2007

David Martin and I had been looking at the Big Bend National Park area of southwest Texas for a long time, and finally made ourselves go. The park service cautions that the week of spring break is the most crowded at Big Bend, but our plan was to arrive just as the crowds were headed home, and that worked pretty well.

David hikes in the Chisos Mountains

Day 1…

•We started our trip by timing our drive such that we were in Fort Worth, Texas, in time for lunch at David’s favorite restaurant, the Spiral Diner, a vegan and vegetarian café.

At Spiral Diner, Fort Worth

•By late afternoon, we were at Monahans Sandhills State Park, where we hiked around for a little while. The light was nice, and it made a few decent images.

Photographing Monahans Sandhills

Day 2…

•Up at first light in Fort Stockton, Texas, in time to photograph Paisano Pete, a giant roadrunner who is the mascot of the region.

David and Paisano Pete

•Arrived at Big Bend to alternating clear then cloudy then clear again skies. Found a site in the Chisos Mountains campground.

•Hiked The Window trail the the Window, an impassable pour-off that affords excellent views of the western half of the park.

David at “The Window”

•Drove to the southwest end of the park to hike Santa Elena Canyon of the Rio Grande. It had rained on us briefly earlier in the day, but by the time we were there, all the rain appeared to have moved to our north.

David prepares to hike Santa Elena

It was a beautiful hike, but as we moved upstream along the canyon, I noticed that the water in the Rio Grande was rapidly getting dirtier, bringing downstream more and more mud, sticks, oil and garbage.

By the time we got back to the vicinity of the trailhead, I noticed two people who appeared to be wading in the Rio Grande. I asked David, “What the hell are they doing in the water?” We continued along this path towards the trailhead. Within another hundred yards we discovered why the people ahead of us were in the water. The open wash we had crossed on the way in wasn’t Rio Grande backwash after all. It was Terlingua Creek, and it had flash flooded behind us while we were hiking Santa Elena.

David and I pondered waiting to see if it would go down, but my feeling was that with every minute that passed, the chances increased that we would be stranded. I zipped off the legs of my convertible hiking pants to make them into shorts, and took off my shoes and socks to I could stow my socks. I put my shoes back on, hoping they would provide more traction as we forded.

I usually carry my cameras shouldered one on each side, but for climbing and scrambling, I carry them cross-slung, so they can’t fall off and don’t get in my way. I did so this time, and stashed my pants legs and socks in vest pockets. David extended his hiking pole (actually, it was my wife Abby’s, which he had borrowed), so he could us it to probe for the bottom.

Even though I don’t care for the water at all, at this point I strode right in. I decided not to waste any time, since the raging water might be worse in five or ten minutes. At its present level, we decided, we at least had some idea how deep it would be. The pressure was strong against our legs, as we crossed to a gravel island. From that point, we probed up and down for the shallowest spot. Finding it all about the same, we picked a place close to the bank, since it would limit our exposure. At its deepest, it was right at my crotch. I planted one foot and dug it in, then the other, until I was across. David threw me the hiking pole so I could anchor him, and he got across.

David after “The Crossing”

After “The Crossing”

•Nice sunset image on the way back to the Chisos.

Sunset, western Big Bend National Park

Day 3…

•Rain all night, sometimes hard. We stayed dry, thanks to good campsite selection and good tent placement.

•Morning hike: Lost Mine Trail in the Chisos Mountains. It was somewhat strenuous, with some switchbacks. It was particularly nice in the clearing morning clouds. Surprisingly crowded.

Lost Mine Trail

•Afternoon, the Chimneys in the western park of the park. Listed as primitive on the maps, it was an easy, level three miles to the Chimney formation. There, we saw a granary, a pictograph, and a natural arch.

Photographing natural arch

Formation in the Chimneys

Day 4…

•Quiet, cold night.

•We hiked to the park high point, Emory Peak (7825 feet), without too much fuss. The last mile is rough and primitive, and the last 100 feet is strictly bouldering. Nice views, clear sky. David watched swallows flying for half an hour or more.

David makes video, Emory Peak

On Emory Peak

•After lunch, we drove to the Grapevine Hills, in the central area of the park, where we hiked a level, one mile trail to a balanced rock. The trail was the most beautiful we have seen at Big Bend.

Grapevine Hills

Balanced Rock, Grapevine Hills

•In the evening, we drove to the park low point, Boquillas Canyon of the Rio Grande.

Boquillas Canyon

At Boquillas Canyon

Day 5…

•Broke camp early and headed north. Our first stop was Terlingua, which advertised itself as a ghost town. Sadly, we found it to be highly commercialized, with the exception of the beautiful Spanish cemetery.

Terlingua Cemetery

•The rest of the day we spent at the McDonald Observatory near Fort Davis, Texas, which we both found interesting.

Telescope, McDonald Observatory

It was an excellent end to another excellent hiking trip. To cap it all off, we timed our return to allow us to again eat at Spiral Diner. I had the best sandwich of my life, which bore the same name as our son, The Mitch.

Wall Decoration, Spiral Diner

See The Crossing galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Sticks and Stones, November 2006

One key motivation for this trip was to see for myself Rattlesnake Canyon at Carlsbad Caverns National Park, scene of the story of two college students who supposedly got lost there, leading to the death of one of them, in the summer of 1999. Abby and I had both eagerly read the book about the event, Jason Kersten’s “Journal of the Dead,” and after studying the topographic map of the trails at the park couldn’t figure out exactly how anyone could get lost there.

Trail head, Rattlesnake Canyon

Day 1…

•Driving day to Carlsbad, New Mexico. I only shot a couple of items at sunset, but I managed to get a huge number of stickers in my shoelaces.

West Texas Sunset

Day 2…

•Up before dawn on a beautiful day, I was unable to find breakfast or even coffee.

•I was at Carlsbad by 6:45 am, to find that nothing was open, neither the road to the trails nor the visitor’s center. I hiked for some distance on the Old Guano Road trail, making a few passable images.

Moonset, Old Guano Road Trail

•Drove to the Rattlesnake Canyon trail head, where I immediately found the trail to be as poorly marked as any I had hiked in recent memory. Also, unlike the canyons of Utah, these have a certain “sameness” to them. I was especially discouraged by the trail head, which left me guessing and blundering into the wash from anywhere. I could definitely see how someone might get lost.

Along Rattlesnake Canyon

•The side canyon that leads to Rattlesnake Canyon is brushy and indistinct. Rattlesnake Canyon itself is wider, and lined with white limestone where the wash runs. I hiked it in both directions and found some of the landmarks mentioned in “Journal of the Dead.” I concluded that while navigation is something of a challenge in the area, ultimately it would be unlikely that I could get as lost as the hikers in the book did. Even if you were unable to find the side canyon that lead back to the parking area, in a pinch you could hike north to another trail, the Guadalupe Ridge Trail, which would then lead you to the road that would take you back to your car or the visitor’s center. And finally, you could hike southeast our of the canyons into the open desert, which places you just five miles west of a major highway.

Map of the area in question

•My final conclusion was that you would have to be pretty inexperienced and a very poor navigator to get lost and then trapped in this area. Local law enforcement believed that one of the hikers, Raffi Kodikian, lured his partner, David Coughlin, to the canyon for the expressed purpose of murdering him, and arrested and charged him with that crime. Neither theory fully explains the events, and my visit didn’t really answer any more questions than it asked. Abby and I both recommend the book.

•By afternoon I was at nearby Guadalupe Mountains National Park, my second visit to the park, hiking the Devil’s Hall Trail, which was exceptionally beautiful with autumn color.

Along the Devil’s Hall trail

The Devil’s Hall

•Arriving at Guadalupe today felt somehow like coming home. In all the hiking I did today, I only saw three other people.

Day 3…

•An exceptional day on the trails, today hiking from the McKittrick Canyon Visitor’s Center on the northern end of Guadalupe Mountains National Park.

View from McKittrick Canyon

•In the morning I hiked McKittrick Canyon to the Hunter Line Cabin and the Grotto.

Foliage and sun viewed from the Grotto

•By afternoon, I hiked to the top of the Permian Reef Trail, which was long and steep. Excellent views of the canyon and mountains.

Permian Reef Trail and mountains

Permian Reef Trail

•Sunset near El Capitan

El Capitan and Guadalupe Peak

Day 4…

•Hiked one of Guadalupe’s more challenging hikes today, the Bear Canyon-Bowl-Tejas Trail loop, 10.2 miles in about six hours. The first half mile ascends 2500 feet in Bear Canyon. It was a great ending for a great trip.

On the Tejas Trail

Along the Tejas Trail

Ascending Bear Canyon

See the Sticks and Stones galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Twelve Legs, October 2006

For our second anniversary, Abby and I gathered our dogs, Chihuahuas Sierra and Max, for a trip to Utah. Our driving day, straight through to Monticello, Utah, was about 16 hours, but we had fun, and the dogs did just fine in our laps. By the time we arrived, it was cold in Monticello. We stayed in the Navajo Trail motel, which we liked very much.

Chihuahuas Sierra and Max on the road

Day 2…

•Beautiful, blue-sky day for us.

•Hiked with the dogs to Butler Wash ruins and Natural Bridge, where they minded well and seemed to have a great time.

With Max and Sierra at Butler Wash

Abby and Sierra, Butler Wash

•Drove to Muley Point overlooking the San Juan River, where we left the dogs in the car and scouted around for a few minutes.

Abby explores Muley Point

View from Muley Point looking south

•Stopped briefly at the Mokee Dugway, the steep gravel highway leading up Cedar Mesa from far southern Utah, that we visited in 2003 on the High Road. We were amazed at the number of stickers that had accumulated on the sign in the three and a half years since our last visit.

Signs at Mokee Dugway, 2003 and 2006

•Once down the Dugway, we took the Valley of the Gods road, which leads across an expanse of desert punctuated with pinnacles, washes, boulder fields, and one small campground. The sky was beautiful.

Abby’s image in the heart of Valley of the Gods

•Wonderful dinner together in Monticello at M D Ranch Cookhouse.

M D Ranch Cookhouse

Day 3…

•We left to dogs nested in our room in Monticello and took the guided tour of the Monument Valley Tribal Park. The entrance is just north of the Utah-Arizona state line, but the tour resides inside Arizona. The tour was $50 for each of us, and Abby and I strongly recommend it. Our guide, one of dozens of loosely-organized Navajo Tribe members, took us and a German couple through the park to four impressive natural arches. In the process, he told us stories of the land and its features, and at one point even sang a chant for us. His vehicle was an ancient Ford pickup with benches mounted on the bed for us to ride, covered with a rickety awning, all held together by duct tape.

Abby photographs Monument Valley

Guide and his truck

At “Big Hogan” arch

•Abby liked our tour guide so much, especially his singing, that she tipped him $20.

Day 4…

•Abby took the day off to crochet and nap with the dogs, so I took the Hart’s Draw Road from Monticello to the Needles District of Canyonlands. I saw lots of deer, hunters, snow and Aspens.

Mule Deer, Hart’s Draw Road

•Hiked from the Squaw Flat trail head to Lost Canyon, then south until there were too many wet crossings, so I turned back.

Bench south of Squaw Flat

•Made the Squaw Canyon-Big Spring Canyon loop, which connects at the southern end in a steep, spectacular bench and cliff complex that was some of the best hiking I’ve done in the park.

Near the top where Squaw and Big Spring canyons join

Day 5…

•It was a very odd weather day, so we decided against hiking to Delicate Arch. We heard a ranger on the scanner report hail at the Fiery Furnace trail head in Arches.

•Instead we drove out onto Hatch Point and had a look at the Anticline Overlook. We both had a great time shooting in some very complex light and a chilly breeze.

At the Anticline Overlook

Abby, Anticline Overlook

•On the way back to our motel, we ran into some very beautiful and surprising blowing snow in the Monticello area.

Monticello snow

•A simply great time with my wife.

Day 6…

•Cold, snowy morning; a perfect end for this trip to Utah.

Sunrise over the Abajo Mountains, Monticello, Utah

See the Twelve Legs galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

The Point, June 2006

This is my first vacation with just our son Mitchell and me.

Day 1…

•16 hours on the road with Mitchell went well. We miss Abby, but we are happy to be in Monticello, Utah.

Abajo Mountains at Sunset

Day 2…

•Started at the Elephant Hill trail head in Canyonlands National Park, with the intent of just hiking in a mile or two. I wanted to show Mitchell a sample of the beauty of Canyonlands. By the time we made it to Elephant Canyon, he decided he would go all the way to Chesler Park. During the entire 5.2-mile round trip, we only saw nine other people.

Mitchell hiking in Chesler Park, Canyonlands

•In late afternoon, we hiked the short trail to Butler Wash on Cedar Mesa, to a view of native ruins and a handsome natural bridge.

At Natural Bridge, Butler Wash

Day 3…

•It was record-breaking hot today, but we were still able to take a couple of very nice hikes.

•In the morning we drove to Moab, Utah, had some breakfast, then took the Potash Mine Road to the Jug Handle Arch.

Sign at Jug Handle Arch near Moab, Utah

•Hiked to Corona Arch, which is in the same vicinity as the Jug Handle. The trail is very similar to the Delicate Arch Trail, both in elevation increase and length, as well as character and difficulty. Aside from a grip cable along one piece of steep slickrock bench, and a few mokee steps, and one ladder, it is not difficult. Corona Arch is beautiful, huge and impressive.

Mitchell ascends ladder, Corona Arch Trail

Corona Arch, with Mitchell underneath

Corona Arch, Far Side

•Later in the day, a park ranger told me that anywhere else in the country, Corona Arch would be park of a national park.

•During the hottest part of the day, we drove to Dead Horse Point State Park just for something to do.

With Mitchell at Dead Horse Point

•Later in the afternoon at Arches National Park, we made the loop between Sand Dune Arch, Tapestry Arch, and Broken Arch. It ended up being a pretty fun little hike.

Mitchell climbs near Sand Dune Arch

Day 4…

•Hiked in Cedar Mesa to a native ruin in Mule Canyon called the “House on Fire.” It was a mile to the ruin, but we never saw anyone else on the trail.

Mitchell at the “House on Fire” ruin

•The heat continued, so after lunch we toured the Edge of the Cedars State Park in Blanding, Utah. It was fun and interesting, and worked out perfectly, since it thunderstormed twice in the afternoon.

Mitchell at Edge of the Cedars

Day 5 and 6…

•These driving days included a quick stop at Great Sand Dunes National Park. It was too windy and rainy to do much, but we definitely want to come back some day. We also stopped and photographed some really cool roadside sites, including a very complex roadside grotto.

Grotto at La Veta, Colorado

•I was glad I was able to bring Mitchell to see Capulin Volcano National Monument, if for no other reason than so he could see the ladybug migration.

Ladybug migration, Capulin Volcano

Mitchell at Capulin Volcano

See The Point galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Jornada del Muerto, March 2006

The Great Gallery

Day 1…

•Drove to my usual first night stop, Farmington, New Mexico. Generally speaking, this 11-hour drive is beautiful and interesting, but uses divided highways, so it is more of a utility drive. With radio and CDs, plus frequent phone calls to my wife and friends, the time slides by.

Day 2…

•Drove from Farmington northwest, shooting along the way.

Bridge over Glen Canyon, Utah

•Arrived at the Horseshoe Canyon detachment of Canyonlands National Park by 1 pm. The 3.5-mile hike down and into Horseshoe Canyon is beautiful. There are pictograph panels all along the bottom of the canyon, culminating in the Great Gallery, an icon of the ancestral Puebloans. The largest figures depicted at the Great Gallery are present in a scene at the beginning of the film Koyaanisqatsi, the title of which is a Hopi Indian word meaning “life out of balance.”

Figures at the Great Gallery

At the Great Gallery, Horseshoe Canyon

Day 3…

•It rained in the San Rafael Swell, where I had hoped to hike, so instead I drove to Capitol Reef National Park, making some decent images along the way.

Abandoned stone building, Utah highway 24

Abandoned cement mixer, Utah highway 24

Formation near Factory Butte, Utah

•Mostly drove and scouted at Capitol Reef

Day 4…

•Rain almost continuous in the morning. A spot of sunshine tempted me out in the afternoon, so I drove to Sego Canyon near Thompson Springs, Utah, a fairly deserted settlement.

Downtown Thompson Springs

•In the process of searching for the Sego Canyon petroglyphs, I managed to get my car stuck in some surprisingly slick, deep mud on a road that looked drivable. After several tries and giving up once, and with my shoes covered in an inch of filth, I coaxed my car out of the mire. It turned out I had overshot the petroglyphs, and they were on the paved road I had left behind.

Sego Canyon Petroglyphs

Day 5…

•Up before dawn and out the door in Green River, Utah, in time to shoot a lovely sunrise at the Book Cliffs north of town.

Sunrise and fog, Book Cliffs

•Perfect weather and excellent hiking at Capitol Reef. I started the day with Hickman Bridge, an impressive natural arch at the end of a short spur trail.

Hickman Bridge, Capitol Reef National Park

•Beyond the spur trail was the Rim Overlook Trail, which led to excellent views from the top of the park.

On the Rim Overlook Trail

•For some of the afternoon, I hiked the Grand Wash Trail, and though it was interesting and scenic, I found it fairly unchallenging.

The Narrows of Grand Wash

•After making mental notes of all the rest of Capitol Reef I want to visit, I took the long way back to Green River, through a mountain pass in the Fishlake National Forest, which took me above the 8000-foot snow line, then across the San Rafael Swell on I-70.

Snow Field, Fishlake National Forest, Utah

Ghost Rock, San Rafael Swell, Utah

Day 6…

•Mostly a driving day, making my way from Green River, Utah, to Socorro, New Mexico. I was able to make a few neat images along the way, and I finished the day at the Salinas Pueblo Missions National Monument near Mountainair, New Mexico just before sundown.

Abó Ruin

Last light, US 60, central New Mexico

Day 7…

•Up early in Socorro.

• The Trinity Site is where the first atomic bomb was tested at 5:29 a.m. Mountain War Time, July 16, 1945. In the middle of the forbidding Jornada del Muerto desert and the White Sands Missile Range, the 51,500-acre area was declared a national historic landmark in 1975. The Site is open only on the first Saturday in April and the first Saturday in October. No reservations are required, but I would urge visitors to arrive early - there was a surprisingly large contingent of tourists waiting at the Stallion Gate on the north end of the WSMR when it opened at 8 a. m.

Replica of the first atomic bomb

Ground Zero Marker

•In the afternoon, I had a great time hiking around at White Sands. The wind was up, so I didn’t shoot a lot, but it was a nice, relaxing last day of my vacation.

Sand and Sky, White Sands National Monument, New Mexico

See the Jornada del Muerto gallery at richardbarron.net HERE.

Llano Estacado, November 2005

With Abby sick, though better, I wanted somewhere to hike that was less than a day away from home. I decided to revisit Caprock Canyons State Park and Palo Duro State Park in northwest Texas, camp a couple of nights, and see what developed.

West Texas Sunrise

Since this was something of a whirlwind trip, I chose not to write about it day by day, but to summarize the entire three days in the wild.

•Shot well on my drive, then set up camp at Caprock, this time in the Little Red tent camping area.

Reshoot, Leaning Tower of Brittain

•Hiked the surprisingly rugged Haynes Ridge Overlook Trail.

View from Haynes Overlook

•My campsite faces west. At night I can hear coyotes, like when we camped at Chaco. Midnight at Caprock: the moon, crescent, and a bright star set in front of me. Above, all the stars there are. Behind me, the flickering orange of my camp fire. It is breezy and warm, and I don’t need my camp coat. It is a good night on the llano estacado.

•I hiked so much in the last 24 hours that it seems like I have been here a week.

•The wind is insane in my tent at night. It keeps me awake with the flapping of my tent, and blows sand in through the rain fly.

•Trails I hiked: Canyon Loop, Eagle Point, Lower Canyon, Upper Canyon, and Haynes Overlook.

Upper Canyon

Natural Arch, Lower Canyon

•After breaking camp, I drove to Palo Duro Canyon nearby and hiked to the Lighthouse.

Lighthouse, Palo Duro Canyon

See the Llano Estacado gallery at richardbarron.net HERE.

Mokee Mokee, October 2005

For our first anniversary, Abby and I let Mitchell stay with a friend while she and I headed west.

With my wife at our favorite Texas rest stop

Day 1…

•Travel day. We make our usual stop at our favorite rest area in the Texas panhandle, which we visited on our first vacation together, the High Road, in 2003. We had fun playing around on the grounds and making a few pictures.

Abby photographs the Texas rest stop

•Staying in Santa Fe, we discovered that the Chinese place we liked so much the last two times we were here, Ten Ten, had become a truck salvage yard. We had Chinese food delivered by a place called “Little House” instead, and it was delicious.

Day 2…

• The next morning, we drove the Chama Valley and into Colorado, not shooting much, but instead just enjoying being together. We did, however, stop to shoot some nicely golden trees by the roadside in a valley.

Yellow trees and foothills in Colorado

• By late afternoon, we were fortunate to be at Mesa Verde National Park in time for sunset at Square Tower House.

Abby at Mesa Verde

•We stayed at the charming Mokee Motel in Bluff, Utah. On the High Road, Abby and I drove a cool high road called the Mokee Dugway. After that, and to this day, one of our nicknames for each other has been some permutation of Mokee, Dugway, or Mokee Dugway. Sometimes we answer phone calls from each other, “Mokee mokee!” Last year I discovered this motel in Bluff, and I told Abby we had to stay there. So this vacation, celebrating a year of being married, is named Mokee Mokee. By the way, we found the Mokee Motel to be among the nicest, most comfortable, and friendliest we have ever visited.

Mokee Motel, Bluff, Utah

Day 3…

•We made our way up to the Moab, Utah, area. We had a very nice drive through Arches National Park, where we got married last year, but Abby wasn’t feeling well enough to hike, so she insisted that I hike up to Delicate Arch anyway to shoot it at sunset. Despite Abby’s absence, and a sea of tourists, it was a worthwhile endeavor.

Delicate Arch near sunset

Day 4…

•We slept in, then had a very relaxing, romantic breakfast. We headed south, stopping at Hatch Point to see the Needles Overlook. It was a beautiful day. I think Abby and I were both surprised and delighted by what we experienced looking out over the vastness of this place, one of my favorite in the world. It was an excellent way to introduce Abby to Canyonlands.

Abby makes video at the Needles Overlook

It was an exceptionally romantic first anniversary trip. There is simple nowhere I would rather be than with her, on the road or on the trail, or just by her side.

See the Mokee Mokee page at richardbarron.net HERE.