Sunset along Interstate 40 in eastern New Mexico

Day 1: Driving to Albuquerque

LiveStong volunteers paint the Cadillac Ranch

As always, the long ribbon of interstate 40 asphalt west proved an interesting drive. My first stop was at Amarillo, where I spotted the fact that the Cadillacs at Stanley Marsh’s Cadillac Ranch were yellow. I’ve stopped plenty of times at the Cadillac Ranch over the years, so I wasn’t planning to stop, but I’d never seen them yellow. Some volunteers from Lance Armstrong’s LiveStrong Foundation were painting them to raise cancer support. It made some neat images, and it was a unique opportunity. Also in Texas, I stopped to shoot a storage building that was painted with a farm scene, a sight I’d seen over and over, but only now stopped to photograph.

Painted building, west Texas panhande

By the time I got to New Mexico, the light, which wanes quickly in November, was starting to fade. I wanted to photograph a particularly colorful rock outcropping on the north side of the highway, but i couldn’t remember exactly where it was, so I took a guess about which exit to take. I was right, and also ran into a very lovely abandoned church in Newkirk, New Mexico, which was soaking up some very nice late afternoon light. The outcropping didn’t work out the way I wanted it to because the access road is actually lower than the highway, so I didn’t really have a good shot at it. Next time.

Abandoned church, Newkirk, New Mexico

Day 2: U. S. 550, Pueblo Alto trail, Chaco Overlook trail

Eroded hills near the Continental Divide U. S. 550

I was up before dawn in Albuquerque, and on the road to Chaco Culture National Historical Park, one of my favorite places to camp and hike.

I saw dozens of interesting first-light possibilities, but just made mental notes about one day spending the day along this stretch of road, U. S. 550. I stopped a couple of times, but I think this stretch of desert deserves more time than I had.

The "crack" in the north rim of the canyon takes hikers to Pueblo Alto and New Alto

My destination was Chaco, which I hadn’t seen since 2003. I decided that I wanted to hike all the trails at Chaco, and when I arrived,

Stone masonry at New Alto great house

I started with one of my favorites, the 5.6-mile Pueblo Alto trail. It leads up the north rim of Chaco Canyon to two great houses, Pueblo Alto and New Alto, and also leads to a short spur trail overlooking the largest Chacoan great house, Pueblo Bonito. On my hike, I didn’t see anyone else.

After setting up my camp site in the Gallo Campground and making a late lunch of vegetable soup and tortillas, I hiked the Chaco Canyon Overlook trail, which is full of interesting geology, some small natural arches, and an excellent view of Fajada Butte and Chacra Mesa. I saw another hiker, who was going back and forth. She told me it was her favorite trail in the park.

I also photographed a large trail cairn that sits right at the top of the switchbacks at the start of the trail. In 2003, it was U-shaped, but since then hikers have filled it in. The image I made of it six years ago was one of my favorites from that trip, and it was nice to see it again and photograph it again.

Trail cairn on the Chaco Overlook trail

It was dark by 5 pm, so I settled in for an evening in front of my camp fire. I brought several DuraFlame logs, since they are easy to light and last long. I also had my catalytic propane heater, which I put under my camp chair. By the time I was ready to sleep, it was quite cold, with a forecast low of 23.

Last light at Fajada Butte, the signature formation at Chaco

Day 3: South Mesa, Wijiji, Pueblo Bonito

Fajada Butte at first light

I photographed Fajada Butte at first light from the Gallo Campground. I also walked over to the Gallo Cliff Shelter and squeezed off a couple of frames.

Morning light streaming through doorway at Gallo Cliff Shelter, Gallo Campground

Posing in an eroded alcove on the switchbacks up the South Mesa trail

My first trail was the South Mesa, which leads to a partially excavated Chacoan great house called Tsin Kletsin. The ruins are only mildly interesting, but the trail cuts through a very evocative swath of lonely, high-desert land. From the top of the mesa, you can see across the canyon to Pueblo Alto and New Alto.

Looking west from Wijiji, with Fajada Butte on the left

As with most trails at Chaco in November, I didn’t see anyone else. It’s odd; though the trails are clearly marked and landmarks are always visible, I always feel lost at Chaco.

After an early lunch, I hiked the Wijiji Trail, the only trail on the east side of the park. It is another oddly lonely stretch. According to a park service person, the Navajo consider it evil for some reason.

In the afternoon, I went to the visitor center, where I saw the girl who was hiking on the Chaco Overlook trail the day before; a volunteer ranger with the Student Conservation Association named Lauren Blacik, who invited me to take her tour of Pueblo Bonito at 2 pm. I took her up on it, and ended up enjoying it very much, and learning some things I didn’t know before. Lauren was enthusiastic and well-versed on the details of her tour. She had me take a picture of her with her camera for her family, explaining that she had been a ranger for one month.

One of my goals in taking the tour was to find and photograph some of the impressive Chacoan stone masonry doors I have seen in so many photographer’s portfolios of Chaco.

SCA ranger Lauren Blacik at the top of "Threatening Rock," the 30,000-ton boulder that collapsed on Pueblo Bonito in 1941

I wanted to photograph them myself, and we found them and photographed them. I was very pleased with the result.

Aligned stone masonry doors at Pueblo Bonito

Back at the visitor center I overheard a woman asking if she could buy firewood anywhere, so I offered to give her a couple of my DuraFlame logs, since I had plenty.

Maria from Santa Fe at her Gallo camp site

We struck up a conversation, and she told me that she was Maria, she lived in Santa Fe, and told me, “I’m just exploring. I haven’t been to Chaco in over 20 years.” She had a bike and was planning to ride all she could at Chaco. She also said she had just spent three nights at the De-Na-Zin Wilderness nearby. She wanted to give me $10 for the fire logs, but I would only take $5. The next morning I gave her two more logs, since I was done camping and she wasn’t.

Dark brought another cold night in the Gallo Campground, and I decided it would be a good night, clear and still, to photograph the night sky. On the advice of a fellow outdoor photographer who makes a lot of star trace images, I decided to shoot a number of relatively short-exposure (30 seconds) images and stack them together in Photoshop, a technique that minimizes the noise associated with very long exposures with digital sensors. After some reading on the web, I was able to stack 60 images, resulting in a nice 30-minute star trace photo looking southwest.

30-minute star trace photo from my Gallo Campground camp site

Day 4: Peñasco Blanco, Angel Peak, Aztec Ruins, and Anasazi Arch

Cliff face near the end of the Peñasco Blanco trail showing the famous Supernova Pictograph

I broke camp early in Chaco, and hit the last trail in the park, Peñasco Blanco, which passes the famous Supernova Pictograph, thought to represent the supernova of 1054 AD. Again, I didn’t see anyone else on the trail. There are several great houses along this route, and some very interesting petroglyph panels along the trail. A long trail that crosses the Chaco wash near the west end of the park, this route affords views of its namesake, the Peñasco Blanco great house, for much of the way.

With all the trails at Chaco under my belt, I drove north to U. S. 550, then headed northwest to spend the night in Farmington, New Mexico.

Erosions near Angel Peak in increasingly hazy light

Along the way I stopped briefly at Angel Peak, which we visited in 2003, to see if anything had changed. The site was essentially unchanged, with just a few more gas and oil wells visible. It has been renamed, however; it is now the Angel Peak Scenic Area; six years ago it was the Angel Peak National Recreation Area.

I made a few passable frames, but since I wasn’t hiking, and had gotten lots of really great stuff in 2003, I decided to drive on.

My next stop was Aztec Ruins National Monument, where I wanted to rephotograph the reconstructed Great Kiva. I was always disappointed in my result six years ago, and wanted to try again. I thought I knew how I wanted to reshoot it, and shot it that way, but also made a fisheye view, and that ended up being my favorite.

View of the inside of the reconstructed Great Kiva at Aztec Ruins made with 10-17mm fisheye lens

My next stop was just up the road from Aztec. The rangers at Aztec gave me a map of local arches, and I wanted to find and photograph the largest of them, Anasazi Arch.

Anasazi Arch, also known as Cox Canyon Arch, north of Aztec, New Mexico

The brochure had GPS coordinates, so I plugged them in, and my GPS got me close enough that I could figure out the rest. Getting to the arch after parking involved a bit of cliff scrambling, and some route finding, but in the end wasn’t overly difficult. Among other things, I could hear the hum from the oil rig pumping station below, so I could always follow the sound if I felt lost. It was obvious from the beer cans and tire tracks in the area that it was a party hangout at night. The arch itself is impressively big and beautiful.

Finally, I settled in to a motel room in Farmington for the night.

Day 5: Bisti Wilderness, El Morro, and driving to Tucumcari

Posing in a hoodoo field in the Bisti Wilderness

One item I wanted to be sure to see and photograph on this trip was the Bisti Wilderness Area, about 35 miles south of Farmington, New Mexico. Aside from a short detour into a very small area of this amazing place on our third anniversary trip in 2007, and a short day hike in 2001, I haven’t seen enough of this huge, alien landscape.

In 2001, we hiked east and then north into an interesting area of eroded towers and washes, but I wanted to see something different this time, so I struck out directly east, then bent southeast as I followed the Bisti Wash. I came across some very interesting fields of hoodoos, as well as some excellent eroded bentonite hills. Despite the fact that the light was stubbornly subdued by a veil of high clouds, I felt I was still able to shoot some very interesting stuff.

Hoodoo in the Bisti Wilderness

While I was exploring, I topped a red hill to sort out where I wanted to go, and spotted a tent and two figures who appeared to be people taking pictures. I made my way that direction, and approached and asked, “I’m looking for a formation called the ‘Cracked Eggs.’ Do you know where I could find it?”

Bisti photographers Chris and Steve

“It’s right here!” they explained. We talked for a while, and they told me they were Steve and Chris from Albuquerque, and that they had come just for a couple of days to make a few pictures. The night before, they made some light-painting photos of the Cracked Eggs while they camped.

The "Cracked Eggs" at Bisti

The water source at El Morro

Since the light wasn’t cooperating, I decided to hike out around mid-day. I looked at a map for something that might be an interesting afternoon stop, and saw El Morro National Monument to the south. In 2000, I tried to visit it, but was too late in the day, so it was closed. This time, however, I would be there right after lunch, and I would be able to hike any short trails they offered.

I was surprised and delighted by the one trail, the Headland Trail, at El Morro.

Woodpecker Rock natural arch

It leads first past the reason for its significance, a large pool of water that stays full all year, which many years ago allowed travelers to stop and fill up on their journeys to explore the west. One result of this was “Inscription Rock,” the next item on the trail, which shows hundreds of historical messages carved into the stone. The trail continues up and around these amazingly beautiful sandstone towers past a large, oddly-structured natural arch called “Woodpecker Rock”, and leads around a spectacular box canyon, then past a Mogollon ruin. I was surprised that all this was hidden here, and glad I came.

Trees and stone high on the bluffs of El Morro National Monument

Day 6: The Drive Home

The drive home from Tucumcari is usually fairly uneventful, but on this occasion, I wanted to give another look to the Cadillac Ranch, to see if the yellow they had painted five days earlier was still there. Sure enough, the graffiti, part of the life of the Cadillac Ranch, had come back. It was pretty amazing, actually.

The Cadillac Ranch as it appeared on Sunday (left), and Friday, five days later (right)

It was another excellent excursion out west, and from the moment it was over, I was planning the next one. The wild road awaits us.

Self portrait on the road, somewhere in New Mexico

See the Circle of Dust gallery at richardbarron.net here.

Sandstone formation with La Sal Mountains in the background. The La Sals are a signature formation for the Moab, Utah, area.

Day 1: Driving from home in Ada to Farmington, New Mexico

A dark stretch of U.S. 550 between Albuquerque and Bloomfield, New Mexico

Abby on the road

My wife Abby and I find that this drive, which we have made many times both alone and together, is never boring. Among other things, it represents the path to adventure. The road itself is mostly interstate highway, one of the most traveled of all the routes connecting the wild west with the rest of America, Interstate 40. Over the years, we have learned the route well, including most of its photo opportunities. The red quonset hut, the leaning water tower, the giant cross, Tucumcari Mountain, and on and on. A few of the spots that once made photos are no more, like the “Plague Town,” a wayward rest stop near Newkirk, New Mexico, which has burned and fallen town in the years we’ve been watching and photographing it. Other places, like Cuervo, have plastered “No Trespassing” signs on each of their abandoned parcels of falling-down property. We respect that.

By the time we arrive in Farmington, after some 14 hours on the road, sleep comes easy.

Day 2: Farmington to Moab, Utah

There are several routes into southeastern Utah, and on this occasion, we decided to let the GPS suggest our route.

Shooting at the Anticline Overlook with Max's leash carabinered to my belt.

It took us through Four Corners, then up the Aneth highway, which is a neat little piece of scenery, then to Blanding, where we always stop at their clean, interesting visitor’s center. We usually buy maps there, and sometimes they have gift bags for us.

Abby and Kev at Moab Brewery

By midday we were at Hatch Point, which we like because it sports excellent overlooks, and we can hike a little with the Chihuahuas, Max and Sierra. Crews were working on the unpaved portion of the road, and had taken down the sign to the Canyonlands Overlook, which we took anyway, only to find that it had washed out. We continued on to the Anticline Overlook, where we hiked around the short trail with the dogs.

By late afternoon, we were in Moab, and settled in to our motel for the night. We got ahold of my Bogley.com friend Kev, who had met me last year for an excellent hike, and he met us for dinner at Moab Brewery, which was right next to our motel. We all had a terrific time, and it was such a pleasure to let Abby and Kev meet for the first time.

Day 3: Canyonlands

I planned to meet up with Kev and hike. With rain in the forecast, we got a before-daybreak start. We drove south to the Needles District at Canyonlands,

Kev inches down a slickrock slope of Cedar Mesa sandstone in The Needles

where I thought we could hike from the Elephant Hill access road to Chesler Park, then turn north and make the Devil’s Kitchen/Devil’s Pocket loop. It is the only trail in the Chesler Park area that can be day-hiked that I haven’t seen. The weather looked foreboding, so instead we struck out south from the Squaw Flat campground, to the bench at Wooden Shoe Butte. I felt that we could see some of the heart of

In my emergency poncho under a tree, hiding from small hail

The Needles, do a little exploring, and still be close enough to the trail head that if rain came and stayed, we wouldn’t be out in it for too long. Once we got to the butte, we broke from the trail and explored to the west though an exceptionally beautiful section of slickrock benches and buttes. Kev got his eye on a prominent hoodoo, and we made our way to it. We high-pointed it, and from there we could see dark clouds to the west and hear thunder, so we navigated back to the trail and headed back to the trail head. About a mile from cover, rain, with embedded hail, started, but was tolerable, and didn’t last long. It ended up being an easy hike for both of us, but he had never seen The Needles before, so it was a great, though interrupted, introduction.

Kev has a cordial chat with some horses grazing below Hatch Point

As we drove out on the main road, the rain began to pour, and at one point lightning struck about 300 yards from the car. Kev said it was the closest he’d ever been to a lightning strike, and we both felt adjudicated that we had gotten off the trail when we did. A little farther down the road, we stopped several times to attempt to photograph the amazing cottonwoods along Indian Creek. On one of our stops, we saw some beautiful horses that came up to us. We noticed that they grazed in an area with Cockleburs (Xanthium strumarium, Asteraceae), and their manes were full of them.

Benches and buttes typical of the landscape of The Needles District at Canyonlands

Day 4: Hidden Valley and Delicate Arch

Hidden Valley viewed from Petro Pass, with the La Sal Mountains in the distance

Abby felt like sleeping in with the dogs in the morning, so I headed a few miles south of Moab to a trail I had seen on the map for years, but never tried, the Hidden Valley trail. Almost immediately from the trail head, short, rocky switchbacks lead up the 680 feet that from the Spanish Valley appears to be a wall of rocks. Near the top is an inlet that opens into a wide, flat valley. The trail follows it another two miles northwest in the Behind the Rocks Wilderness Area to Petro Pass, where it joins the Moab Rim Jeep trail. I was fortunate to have a chilly breeze and clear, blue skies. I turned around at the pass and headed home.

By late morning, Abby was up and feeling like a hike, and when we are in Moab,

Abby pauses to make a photo at the top of "The Dome," a long expanse of steepish slickrock in the middle section of the Delicate Arch trail.

we like to hike to Delicate Arch in Arches National Park, where we got married in 2004. We left the dogs in the room (since they are not allowed on National Parks trails), and made the hike. It was breezy and cool, the sky was a perfect pearl blue like the day we got married, and it was simply great to have Abby with me on “our” trail. Her knees were bothering her, so we took it slow, but that didn’t matter.

At Delicate Arch I observed something new: no one was posing under the arch. In the past, particularly in the evening, the “photographers” and the “tourists” can get into arguments about who has the right to do what there. The photographers think they are making some important images (and of course think that they themselves are important),

Photographers lined up on the approach to Delicate Arch

while the tourists just want to have fun. This time, however, was oddly different. There were more photographers than I have ever seen at the arch (in six visits), and most of them had tripods. Most of the cameras were very expensive digital Nikons and Canons. All but a few had set up on the approach to the arch, the ridge to the north one encounters as you first see the arch. Oddly, this spot yields the most predictable image, almost a “mug shot” of this Entrada sandstone miracle. I have this shot; I make it every time I visit, since it’s so easy. But all these people were all making this same photo. Odd.

In the midst of all this, Abby and I relaxed and enjoyed the afternoon. We didn’t come to make amazing photos. We came to celebrate five years of happy marriage after our wedding at this wonderful place.

A nice German couple asked if we would take a picture of them with their camera, and they did the same for us.

The hike down was fun, too, and we both were tremendously happy to be there together.

With my wonderful wife in the spot where our marriage began

Day 5: Meeting Some Friends and Shopping

Abby and I took it slow on this day, including sleeping late, and meeting some friends for lunch.

Joe and Heather Gardner, a young couple of free spirits who enjoy biking and exploring the wilderness

It was our pleasure to meet and visit with more Bogley.com friends, Joe and Heather Gardner. I have been following their exploits on their mutual blog, as well as Heather’s blog, and our visit today did not leave us wanting. Their wedding anniversary is this month also, and like us, they like to spend at least part of it in the Moab area, mostly mountain biking. Aside from some rock rash on Heather’s elbow from a crash on a ride yesterday, both seemed to be in excellent spirits, and they seemed to be having a terrific time. They even got to meet our dogs.

In the afternoon, Abby and I shopped Moab, mostly looking for souvenirs, and enjoying being in a town where most of the people are fit and adventurous. We walked from shop to shop, holding hands most of the time. It was a beautiful day and a fun time together.

Day 6: Sand Flats and Hunter Canyon

At "Diving Board Rock"

For our last day in Moab, we wanted to explore a few spots that we’d never seen, and where we could take the dogs.

Our first venue was the legendary Sand Flats Recreation Area,

Max on the trail at Sand Flats

a world-renowned Jeep and mountain bike paradise just east of Moab on the Porcupine Ridge. We drove around and saw dozens of tricked-out Jeeps, some dirt bikes, some ATVs (in southeastern Utah they are abbreviated OHVs), and of course lots of mountain bikes. We hiked for a mile or so down a Jeep road, letting the dogs play and taking a few pictures. We were passed by several dirt bikes, and a couple who had two West Highland Terriers.

Abby finds shade in an alcove in Hunter Canyon

Later in the morning, we drove to Hunter Canyon, a deep and impressive formation in the midst of dozens of towering sandstone canyons. With the dogs in tow, Abby and I hiked some of the way down the canyon, far enough to see and photograph Hunter Arch.

Hunter Arch on the left, with a small unnamed natural arch on the right

Finally, we drove the Kane Creek road to the intersection with the Chicken Corners road, and photographed an odd formation called the “Devil’s Golf Ball.” It was also neat to see the Anticline Overlook from the spot it over looks.

Days 6 and 7: On the Road Again, Moab to Tucumcari, then Home

Our Nissan Rogue at the Ouray, Colorado overlook

Abby and I decided to take a longer route home than usual, since we had the whole weekend for travel. From Moab, we turned immediately east at La Sal Junction, crossing into Colorado near the Paradox Valley. We stopped at a charming general store in Bedrock, Colorado, then made our way through the Dallas Divide, Ouray, Red Mountain Pass, Silverton, and Durango before joining our more familiar route south into New Mexico. The mountain scenery and high country snows were inspirational.

Stopped to photograph the sunset near Cabezon Peak in northwestern New Mexico

This trip was our first in my new Nissan Rogue, and Abby and I were both very pleased with its qualities. It got excellent fuel mileage, had plenty of space for us, our stuff, and our dogs, and was comfortable over the many hours on the road. There were several occasions when the all-wheel drive was a factor, and several more where its excellent ground clearance took it places my Grand Am could never have gone.

Our dogs travel well and are little trouble. They seem to enjoy being with us no matter what, and take in the trail like they were born to do it.

Abby and I had an excellent fifth anniversary vacation.

Making pictures in Arches National Park

Abby smiles in the warm autumn sunshine at Delicate Arch in Arches National Park

See the Scent of the Desert gallery at richardbarron.net here.

Tom, Chele and Abby in the receiving line after the wedding ceremony

Tom Reeves and Abby’s daughter Dawna Michele Milligan were married at Sacred Heart Church of Glyndon, Maryland March 21, 2009.

The Bel-Loc Diner

Abby, Mitchell, Dorothy and I traveled from Oklahoma to spend a week in the Baltimore area with Chele and Tom, and to meet Tom’s family.We were joined by my sister Nicole Barron of New Orleans, and my mother Sarah Jo Barron, who flew from her home in Florida.

We stayed at a hotel across the street from a charming Bel-Loc Diner, a historic eatery with excellent service and charming classic decor. We ate nearly half of our meals there. “Baltimore is all about diners, so I guess it’s good we’re eating at a diner,” Chele explained.

Chele and Tom at the church for rehearsal

Robert and me at the Bel Loc Diner

I was joined for two days by my long-time friend and fellow photographer Robert Stinson, whose additional photography rounded out the shooting quite nicely, including some images of me. Abby shot some as well, and they both created an irreplaceable contribution to the imaging.

Abby and I depart the church at the end of the ceremony (Photo by Robert Stinson)

Abby and Chele before the wedding

With my camera at the end of the wedding ceremony

In addition to wanting me in her wedding, Chele asked me to photograph it. I don’t routinely shoot weddings, since I am a photojournalist, but I have shot several in the past, and it was my pleasure to shoot this one. I felt the product I produced expressed the events very successfully.

Chele and Mitchell share a playful moment at the reception

Abby and I used our Nikon D70s digitals. Our friend Michael suggested I borrow his Sigma 24-70mm f/2.8, which produced excellent results.

Chele and Tom at the rehearsal

Hand in hand, the new bride and groom

“On a journey of the heart

There’s so much to see

When the sky is dark

You’ll be right here, right here with me…”

Tom and Chele during the ceremony

Clouds at sunset, Green River Overlook, Canyonlands National Park

Day 1…

Cyclone Canyon viewed from the Confluence Overlook Trail, Canyonlands

•Up before dawn in Monticello, Utah, after driving 15 hours the day before.

•After shooting a couple of sunrise images along U. S. 191 south of Moab, my first venue was the Klondike Bluffs at Arches National Park. It was an excellent hike with clear skies, though it was a bit on the warm side.

•Made the short hike in the Windows section at Arches. The park service calls it a “primitive” trail, but it is practically a sidewalk. The day became increasingly hazy.

Hiking the Klondike Bluffs

•Drove to Hittle Bottom east of Moab and hiked the Richardson Amphitheater Loop Trail, which was interesting and fairly un-crowded.

•Visited the historic Dewey Bridge, which I had heard burned in April. Photographed the ruins.

•Made my way to the Castle Valley for sunset. Shot only a few frames – the sun only came out in the last few minutes.

Day 2…

•At first light, drove to the Gemini Twin Bridges. The road was rough but otherwise unchallenging.

•On advice from a park ranger, I drove the White Rim Road down to the Gooseneck Trail and Musselman Arch. The sign at the top says “Speed Limit 15 mph,” but is entirely superfluous, since there is no way to go any faster.

The road was particularly rough and slow near Musselman Arch.

The Honda Element on the White Rim Road

•Hiked the Wilhite Trail from the trail head to the point at which it descends to the Holman Spring Basin below, about 1.1 miles. Saw no one else.

•Re-hiked the Upheaval Dome Overlook Trail, which Michael and I had done in 2004. It was a better, more interesting trail than I remembered, possibly because this late afternoon light was better this time.

•Was sure to be at the Green River Overlook for sunset, simply because I had not been there for sunset before. Despite a small crowd, it made really nice pictures.

Green River Overlook at Sunset

Day 3…

At the Confluence Overlook, Canyonlands

•Spent the entire day hiking the Confluence Overlook Trail in the Needles District at Canyonlands. A 6-mile trail that crosses three canyons, this journey sported excellent variety and beautiful scenery. The overlook itself was much more spectacular than I imagined it would be.

•Hooked up with Bogley.com pal Kevin for dinner at Eddie McStiff’s in Moab. Excellent vegan pizza.

Hoodoos along the Confluence Overlook Trail

Day 4…

Posing with Kevin at the Zeus and Moses formation

•Long, excellent hike with Kevin in a cold wind down the Alcove Spring Trail to the Zeus and Moses formations on the northern most end of Canyonlands. Superior conversation.

•Near the end of the day, took the White Rim Overlook Trail, which Kevin had never seen.

Kevin on the Trail

It was an excellent day of hiking to conclude this trip.

Day 5…

•On the drive home, I stopped to photograph Shiprock Peak, since it was along my route.

At the White Rim Overlook, Canyonlands

See the Quietest Moments gallery at richardbarron.net HERE.

Bryce Canyon National Park at sunset

Flowers in alpine meadow, Cedar Breaks National Monument

Day 1…

Hoodoos in Bryce Canyon National Park

•Due to a broken heater hose, I spent an extra day in Moriarty, New Mexico, waiting for a part to come from Albuquerque. By the end of that day, I was in Page, Arizona late for the night.

Day 2…

•First thing in the morning, I drove around and hiked around at the Glen Canyon Dam. There were a few short trails to hike, and the sandstone formations made pretty interesting pictures. By 10 am, it was already getting pretty hot. I hiked along the east side of the water until the dam and power lines were out of site.

•Security at the Glen Canyon Dam would let me bring neither my camera bag nor my Ralston tool into the visitor center.

•Took the Cottonwood Canyon road north from highway 89 toward Bryce, stopping at some views in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument. The road was way rough, washboarded, and spooky lonely.

Grosvenor Arch

•Grosvenor Arch, while popular and easily accessed, was an excellent stop.

•Kodachrome Basin State Park was next. It was geographically smaller than I thought it would be. Since it was mid-afternoon, it was very hot, but I did hike a couple of decent trails. The trails were poorly cairned and a little confusing, but the park was so small that there was no chance of getting lost.

•Bryce Canyon is as spectacular as one might expect, and at least twice as crowded. Even hiking into the amphitheater, I was surrounded by noisy tourists. I stayed through the sunset.

Fisheye overview of Kodachrome Basin State Park, Utah

Day 3…

•I gave my entire day to Cedar Breaks National Monument. Nice, fairly long,

Cedar Breaks Amphitheater

solitary hikes out to Spectra Point, then Rampart Point. It was cooler than Bryce since it is at around 10,000 feet. Blue skies. Unlike Bryce, the trails don’t lead down into the amphitheater.

•A very different hike down to the Alpine Pond. The pond was quite small, surrounded by Bristlecone Pine trees, many of which were dying from pine bark beetle infestation.

•With a few hours to kill, I drove up to the regional high point, Brian Head, which featured excellent views and complete privacy.

•Finished the evening with sunset at Cedar Breaks

Day 4…

•Since I was staying just 12 miles away, I thought I would be remiss in my duties not to at least drive through Zion National Park. At this time of year, however, it is quite hot and quite crowded, so I didn’t stay long or hike.

Formations in Red Canyon Area

•Discovered a nice visitor center at Red Canyon west of Bryce, operated by the U. S. Forest Service. I hiked a nice one-mile loop trail in Losee Canyon past some very interesting red sandstone arches.

Red Canyon hike

•I ended the day back in Bryce, sort of tying up loose ends; visiting overlooks and short trails that I felt might make pictures. Nice day.

•Foreigners, particularly Europeans, outnumbered Americans by at least 3:1 at every stop on this trip.

Day 5…

•As I began to make my way back toward home, I stopped at several choice points along the way, including Wupatki National Monument and Sunset Crater National Monument. My first venue was the north rim of Grand Canyon National Park. It was a nice drive, and it was, as I had heard, not very crowded, but I didn’t have very good light, so I felt I was missing the true majesty of the place.

Grand Canyon North Rim

See the Plateau of Mirror Galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Badlands, northeastern Arizona

Day 1…

View of Canyonlands from Lathrop Trail

•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.

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.

•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.

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.

Day 3…

Sunrise, San Rafael Swell

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

•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.

•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,

Along 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.
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.

At the Neck Spring trail head

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 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.

Grand View Trail, Maze District in the distance

•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.

•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.

Mesa Arch at dusk

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.

•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.

Day 5…

At the top of the Moab Rim

•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.
•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.

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

•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 National Monument

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

On the Lathrop trail, Canyonlands

•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.

Narrows in Wild Horse Canyon, San Rafael Swell

See the Next Cairn galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Sunset on the La Sal Mountains viewed from north of Castle Valley near Moab, Utah

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,

Abby and Mitchell hike with our dogs, Sierra and Max, at Fisher Towers

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 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

Day 3…

•Since dogs aren’t allowed in Arches National Park, Mitchell

With Abby on the Delicate Arch trail

Posing with Abby at Delicate Arch

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.

•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.

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.

Sierra and Max on the trail

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.

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.

Hoodoo in the Bisti Badlands

•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,

My amazing wife Abby on the trail at Fisher Towers

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.

View from Fisher Towers looking west toward Castle Valley

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

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

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.

Day 1…

•Excellent driving day with Mitchell.

Mitchell near Walsenberg, Colorado

We spent the night in Alamosa, Colorado.

Day 2…

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

Mitchell on 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.

Butterfly and 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.

Wildflowers, Mosca Pass Trail

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.

Interior, San Luis Mission Church

•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.

•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

Day 4…

•Driving home day.

Pink Gallery, Tres Piedras, New Mexico

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

World's Nest house near Taos, New Mexico

disappeared without a word.

•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.”

• 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 northwest of Taos, New Mexico

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

David hikes the Lost Mine Trail in the Chisos Mountains

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.

Day 1…

•We started our trip by timing our

At Spiral Diner, Fort Worth, Texas

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.

•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…

•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.

•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 Canyon

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.

Soaked but not drowned after "the Crossing"

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.

Sunset, western Big Bend National Park

Day 3…

•Rain all night, sometimes hard.

Crossing a saddle about three quarters of the way up the Lost Mine trail

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.

Photographing an unnamed conglomerate natural arch in The Chimneys section of Big Bend

•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.

Day 4…

David takes in the view from Emory Peak, the high point of Big Bend

•Quiet, cold night.

•We hiked to the park high point,

Boulder field, Grapevine Hills

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.

•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.

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

The Rio Grande flowing through Boquillas Canyon, with the U. S. on the left, Mexico on the right

Day 5…

•Broke camp early and headed north.

Telescope, McDonald Observatory

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.

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

Terlingua Cemetery

See The Crossing galleries at richardbarron.net HERE.

Trail head, Rattlesnake Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns National Park

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.

Day 1…

West Texas sunset

•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.

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.

•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.

Moonset, Old Guano Road Trail

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 out of the canyons into the open desert, which places you just five miles west of a major highway.

•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.

Autumn color along the Devil's Hall trail

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

Day 3…

McKittrick Canyon

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

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

•Sunset near El Capitan

El Capitan and Guadalupe Peak, sunset

Day 4…

On the Tejas Trail

•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.

Along the Tejas Trail

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