The Paiute Indians call Zion, Mukuntuweap, meaning canyon or straight up land”. This is an excellent description. When entering the park, sheer red Navajo sandstone walls surround me. I almost have a feeling of floating as the walls seemingly rise as the winding roads descend. This vertigo effect is a sensation that I find impossible to capture with photos and videos. […]
Grand Staircase Escalante Monument is a United States national monument that designates 1,880,461 acres (the size of Delaware). The land is among the most remote in the country being the last to be mapped in the contiguous United States. The area consists of 3 distinct areas: The Grand Staircase, Kaiparowits Plateau, Escalante Canyons. […]
“86!” the stocky Navajo lady bellows. The Native woman is literally herding a group of 40 or so of us under a canopy. Just short of whipping and spurring us, she demands control of the crowd. “86!” again she rings. I look at my receipt and oh, no; it’s me. “Oh hell!” I wonder. What rule did I break, am I being sent to the back of the line again, am I getting kicked out? I’ve tangled with this woman twice already and am certain not to survive the 3rd meeting. The process of boarding for Antelope Canyon is beginning. […]
No image of America’s southwest is more recognizable than the Saguaro (sah-wah-ro) cactus. However, the large succulents are only found in the Sonoran desert in southern Arizona. Â To see these majestic beauties, I head south to Tucson, AZ, and the Saguaro National Park. I’m traveling south from Williams, AZ on I-17. I stop at that Sunset Point rest stop outside of Phoenix with no saguaros in sight. […]
It’s my 55th birthday and I place a self-imposed goal on myself to see the Grand Canyon on this day. I arrive in Williams, AZ, set up camp, then rush the 60 miles north to the main canyon entrance. I stop in the visitors center in Tusayan to buy a park pass and pick up maps etc.
The Pueblo de Cochiti refer to these geological formations as the Kasha Katuwe or White Cliffs. Now commonly called the “Tent Rocks”. The cone shape rocks are the result of volcanic eruptions some 6-7 million years ago, but who’s counting. These eruptions left pumices and ash deposits up to 1000 feet thick. Wind and erosion not only created these conical shapes but also the slot canyons below. […]