Utah Trip Report
Mar 31st, 2013, 07:07 AM
#3
Just keep adding to this thread. You can call them Part - 1, Part - 2, etc so we can easily differentiate between your report and comments or your responses to questions.
This trip was a long time in the making and I'm sure a lot of us are interested in how it went and to see photos.
This trip was a long time in the making and I'm sure a lot of us are interested in how it went and to see photos.
Mar 31st, 2013, 09:56 AM
#5
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Okay guys, here it goes
Part 1
I boarded the 12pm flight from Boston to Las Vegas and was on the ground in Las Vegas around 2:30pm. The flight went by without a hitch and was better than I expected. I got my suitcase and boarded the shuttle to the McCarran Rent-a-car center, about 5 minutes away. I got there and waited for about 45 minutes in line to talk to the person that would give me the car. Obviously the moment I come up to the front of the line, another 5 people show up to help other people. I was told to choose any car in the lot of SUV's and chose a Jeep Liberty, for I did not know if I would need some off-road capability. I was on 1-15 around 5pm and started driving to Zion. I passed through Nevada, a sliver of Arizona, and into Utah. I saw a sports bar from the highway in St. George and went in there to eat. The food was good but nothing special. Back on the road, I exited the interstate and started on secondary roads towards Zion. A coyote and a raccoon decided to try their luck by running in front of me, but I braked in time. I got to Cable Mountain Lodge around 8:30pm, around a 3 hr drive. The room was amazing, king bed, two flat screen TV's, full kitchen, and a small jacuzzi. I decided to call it a night, for it was already 11pm by my Boston time.
Day 1
Morning greeted me at about 5am and I decided that it would soon be time to eat. I found a place called La Soleil, which opened at 6, and planned out my day for another half hour. I selected the observation point trail, an 8 mile, strenuous hike up and down the mountain. After a breakfast of an egg and cheese with turkey on a bagel and some coffee, I went back and packed up my hiking stuff. I was at the trailhead around 8:15 and saw some mule deer feeding near the river. I started up the moderately steep switchbacks for about 30 minutes, until it flattened out and I entered a canyon. There was a miniature slot canyon that was great for some photos. I continued on and it became more steep with steeper switchbacks. The altitude was wearing on me but I kept going up. I reached the top of the plateau and walked another 15 minutes to the overlook, where I had my lunch of a sandwich that I made from supermarket groceries. I started down the switchbacks and had to go down slowly, because my feet were not used to the steep uphills. I reached the bottom in a round trip time of 4hrs. I wanted to see Weeping Rock, and the paved trail is definitely not worth anybody's time. The rock is just a rock with water on it. I got back in my car and went to my hotel, for I needed to relax my feet a bit. In the afternoon, I went to a gallery by David West, where I actually purchased an original photograph called Seeking the Light, in Antelope Canyon. Dinner was at the Switchback Grill, where I had a Kobe Beef Burger, which was very good but a bit expensive. That was all that I did on my first full day, and I was definitely tired after it.
Part 1
I boarded the 12pm flight from Boston to Las Vegas and was on the ground in Las Vegas around 2:30pm. The flight went by without a hitch and was better than I expected. I got my suitcase and boarded the shuttle to the McCarran Rent-a-car center, about 5 minutes away. I got there and waited for about 45 minutes in line to talk to the person that would give me the car. Obviously the moment I come up to the front of the line, another 5 people show up to help other people. I was told to choose any car in the lot of SUV's and chose a Jeep Liberty, for I did not know if I would need some off-road capability. I was on 1-15 around 5pm and started driving to Zion. I passed through Nevada, a sliver of Arizona, and into Utah. I saw a sports bar from the highway in St. George and went in there to eat. The food was good but nothing special. Back on the road, I exited the interstate and started on secondary roads towards Zion. A coyote and a raccoon decided to try their luck by running in front of me, but I braked in time. I got to Cable Mountain Lodge around 8:30pm, around a 3 hr drive. The room was amazing, king bed, two flat screen TV's, full kitchen, and a small jacuzzi. I decided to call it a night, for it was already 11pm by my Boston time.
Day 1
Morning greeted me at about 5am and I decided that it would soon be time to eat. I found a place called La Soleil, which opened at 6, and planned out my day for another half hour. I selected the observation point trail, an 8 mile, strenuous hike up and down the mountain. After a breakfast of an egg and cheese with turkey on a bagel and some coffee, I went back and packed up my hiking stuff. I was at the trailhead around 8:15 and saw some mule deer feeding near the river. I started up the moderately steep switchbacks for about 30 minutes, until it flattened out and I entered a canyon. There was a miniature slot canyon that was great for some photos. I continued on and it became more steep with steeper switchbacks. The altitude was wearing on me but I kept going up. I reached the top of the plateau and walked another 15 minutes to the overlook, where I had my lunch of a sandwich that I made from supermarket groceries. I started down the switchbacks and had to go down slowly, because my feet were not used to the steep uphills. I reached the bottom in a round trip time of 4hrs. I wanted to see Weeping Rock, and the paved trail is definitely not worth anybody's time. The rock is just a rock with water on it. I got back in my car and went to my hotel, for I needed to relax my feet a bit. In the afternoon, I went to a gallery by David West, where I actually purchased an original photograph called Seeking the Light, in Antelope Canyon. Dinner was at the Switchback Grill, where I had a Kobe Beef Burger, which was very good but a bit expensive. That was all that I did on my first full day, and I was definitely tired after it.
Mar 31st, 2013, 03:28 PM
#9
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Part 2
Day 2
I woke up in the morning earlier than I wanted to and made myself and omelet and toast with the groceries that I had bought the day before. The plan for the day was to do the Emerald Pools Trail and then head out to Bryce. I got to the trailhead around 8 am and started up to the lower pool. There was no one on the trail and the walk was quite easy. I got some pictures of the waterfall and then went up to the middle pool, which wasn't much. The upper pools seemed to be quite close but the trail became unmaintained and very steep, making me turn around after 15 minutes. On the way down, I got some nice views of a rainbow formed by the sun. I saw a sign to the Grotto and decided to go that way, turns out that the grotto is actually an area and not an actual grotto. I walked back along the river to the emerald pools trailhead. At 10am I was driving to Bryce and through the Mt Carmel tunnel. Just as I passed Checkerboard Mesa, there was a large herd of bighorn sheep right next to the road. I got some great pictures of a male with a full set of horns. The drive was fast and I got to Red Canyon around 12pm, got some pictures and continued to Bryce. I checked into Ruby's Inn and got a quick lunch. I drove to Bryce, just three minutes down the road, and went to most of the overlooks in the canyon. I even had time to hike down a little bit at Sunset Point. The view was breathtaking and unlike anything I had ever seen. The hotel was nice with a clean room and a cheap rate. For dinner I had a pot roast and a salad at the big salad bar in the restaurant. I watched a bit of TV and went to bed.
Day 3
The day started with a sunrise at Sunrise Point. As I put on my pants, I realized that the temperature was 12 degrees, windy, and snow. Being the northern, this did not deter me and I adventured out to warm up the car. I arrived at Sunrise Point to find a fully overcast sky, and I quickly turned around. I went to breakfast and got a stack of mediocre pancakes that were enough to shut me stomach up for a while. The day before, I had decided on hiking the Queens Garden Loop the next day, and with the temperature at around 20 with a sunny sky, went down into the canyon. The formations were amazing and I got some great pictures out of it. I got in the car, grabbed a bite to eat, and started towards Torrey UT with 2 stops in mind. After an hour of driving, I arrived at Escalante Petrified Forest SP, where the 1 hour trail led you to a dozen specimens of petrified wood. Pretty cool, and a good way to stretch my legs. The next stop was going to be the Anasazi Museum and SP, which I found to be closed. Thus I quickly arrived at the Bestwestern Capitol Reef. The room was nice, low rate, good view, and helpful staff. For dinner, I went to the Rim Rock, where I had a chicken and green pepper pizza. During the drive, my GPS had no reception and the Delorme Atlas saved my butt.
Do any of you have a good way of putting a lot of pictures online. I took about 400 and really want to show you guys what you helped me do.
Day 2
I woke up in the morning earlier than I wanted to and made myself and omelet and toast with the groceries that I had bought the day before. The plan for the day was to do the Emerald Pools Trail and then head out to Bryce. I got to the trailhead around 8 am and started up to the lower pool. There was no one on the trail and the walk was quite easy. I got some pictures of the waterfall and then went up to the middle pool, which wasn't much. The upper pools seemed to be quite close but the trail became unmaintained and very steep, making me turn around after 15 minutes. On the way down, I got some nice views of a rainbow formed by the sun. I saw a sign to the Grotto and decided to go that way, turns out that the grotto is actually an area and not an actual grotto. I walked back along the river to the emerald pools trailhead. At 10am I was driving to Bryce and through the Mt Carmel tunnel. Just as I passed Checkerboard Mesa, there was a large herd of bighorn sheep right next to the road. I got some great pictures of a male with a full set of horns. The drive was fast and I got to Red Canyon around 12pm, got some pictures and continued to Bryce. I checked into Ruby's Inn and got a quick lunch. I drove to Bryce, just three minutes down the road, and went to most of the overlooks in the canyon. I even had time to hike down a little bit at Sunset Point. The view was breathtaking and unlike anything I had ever seen. The hotel was nice with a clean room and a cheap rate. For dinner I had a pot roast and a salad at the big salad bar in the restaurant. I watched a bit of TV and went to bed.
Day 3
The day started with a sunrise at Sunrise Point. As I put on my pants, I realized that the temperature was 12 degrees, windy, and snow. Being the northern, this did not deter me and I adventured out to warm up the car. I arrived at Sunrise Point to find a fully overcast sky, and I quickly turned around. I went to breakfast and got a stack of mediocre pancakes that were enough to shut me stomach up for a while. The day before, I had decided on hiking the Queens Garden Loop the next day, and with the temperature at around 20 with a sunny sky, went down into the canyon. The formations were amazing and I got some great pictures out of it. I got in the car, grabbed a bite to eat, and started towards Torrey UT with 2 stops in mind. After an hour of driving, I arrived at Escalante Petrified Forest SP, where the 1 hour trail led you to a dozen specimens of petrified wood. Pretty cool, and a good way to stretch my legs. The next stop was going to be the Anasazi Museum and SP, which I found to be closed. Thus I quickly arrived at the Bestwestern Capitol Reef. The room was nice, low rate, good view, and helpful staff. For dinner, I went to the Rim Rock, where I had a chicken and green pepper pizza. During the drive, my GPS had no reception and the Delorme Atlas saved my butt.
Do any of you have a good way of putting a lot of pictures online. I took about 400 and really want to show you guys what you helped me do.
Mar 31st, 2013, 03:41 PM
#10
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there are many sites that you can share
I use Shutterfly. Flickr is probably the biggest one. picasweb is another. Still another is Photobucket
The reason I use Shutterfly is because I like their Photobooks better than the rest.
I use Shutterfly. Flickr is probably the biggest one. picasweb is another. Still another is Photobucket
The reason I use Shutterfly is because I like their Photobooks better than the rest.
Mar 31st, 2013, 05:31 PM
#12
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Glad you had time to report on the trip. Also glad it was a coyote and raccoon, not a steer or deer that ran in front of the car, they're real scarey.
BTW I use flickr and you can post up to 200 pictures for free there and for a small monthly charge you can post many more. If you want to look at the format you can go to www.flickr.com/photos/emalloy2009 and see how you can organize things.
BTW I use flickr and you can post up to 200 pictures for free there and for a small monthly charge you can post many more. If you want to look at the format you can go to www.flickr.com/photos/emalloy2009 and see how you can organize things.
Apr 1st, 2013, 03:57 AM
#16
Apr 1st, 2013, 08:18 AM
#18
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Hey guys, I made a shutterfly website with all of my pictures, sadly the order of pictures is really messed up and the first pictures are the last ones. I think that you can see all 373 pictures. The kid in some of the pictures is actually my niece who was travelling with his mom and we were in some places together. Here is the link
http://thegreatsouthwest.shutterfly.com/pictures
Remember the first pictures are on the last page and so on. Sorry for the problem but I don't have time to figure out how to fix it.
http://thegreatsouthwest.shutterfly.com/pictures
Remember the first pictures are on the last page and so on. Sorry for the problem but I don't have time to figure out how to fix it.
