3-4 day backpacking trip to five spectacular lakes in the Hoover Wilderness and Kerrick Meadow in Yosemite National Park.
Tag: canyon
Otto’s Trail (Colorado National Monument, CO)
Otto's Trail, Colorado National Monument, September 2020 Otto’s Trail is a short and easy hike ending at a scenic viewpoint overlooking Wedding Canyon and Monument Canyon in Colorado National Monument, an excellent park on the edge of the Uncompahgre Plateau overlooking Grand Junction, Colorado. The fine stroll descends gradually from Rim Rock Drive, working out …
Continue reading Otto’s Trail (Colorado National Monument, CO)
Colorado National Monument, CO
Colorado National Monument, September 2020 Colorado National Monument—named for the river, not the state—is a marvel of winding canyons, prominent spires, and multi-hued cliffs, Colorado’s closest rival to the canyon parks of Utah, such as Arches, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef. Here the power of erosion has carved deep gorges in the eastern flank of the …
North Vista Trail to Exclamation Point (Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, CO)
Exclamation Point, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, August 2020 !!!!! More than a mere punctuation mark, Exclamation Point is also the name for a prominent vista along the North Rim in Colorado’s Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Longer and perhaps more rewarding than the nearby Chasm View Nature Trail, the North …
Chasm View Nature Trail (Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, CO)
The Chasm View Nature Trail is a short hike along the North Rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison, offering quick access to the canyon rim.
Return to Capitol Reef National Park
Grand Wash, Capitol Reef National Park, August 2020 After more than five years away, yours truly finally had the chance to return to Capitol Reef National Park in central Utah, where I spent a lovely winter as a seasonal interpretive volunteer. Having effectively already covered all the hikes in the park in previous posts (see …
Peekaboo Loop Trail (Bryce Canyon National Park, UT)
The Peekaboo Loop Trail via Bryce Point is a challenging stem-and-loop hike through some of Bryce Canyon's most spectacular hoodoo landscapes.
Steep Ravine – Matt Davis Trail Loop (Mount Tamalpais State Park, CA)
The Steep Ravine – Matt Davis Trail Loop in California’s Mount Tamalpais State Park is a longer and more popular variant of the Steep Ravine – Dipsea Trail Loop (described in an April 2015 post). Though not as expansive as the views along the upper reaches of Dipsea, the sunny seaside vistas from the Matt …
Continue reading Steep Ravine – Matt Davis Trail Loop (Mount Tamalpais State Park, CA)
Falls Trail Loop (Mount Diablo State Park, CA)
The East Bay, for all of its wonderful hiking, is not known for its waterfalls. Flowing streams, let alone tumbling cascades, are scarce amid the largely scrubby, chaparral hills that separate San Francisco Bay from California’s vast Central Valley. After springtime rains, however, there a handful of seasonal streams that come alive. One of the …
Continue reading Falls Trail Loop (Mount Diablo State Park, CA)
Rings Loop Trail (Mojave National Preserve, CA)
The Rings Loop Trail at Mojave National Preserve’s Hole-in-the-Wall area meanders through Banshee Canyon, a wild, narrow notch named by early settlers for its howling desert winds. Though only 1.4 miles, this brief circuit packs a punch, passing through desert scrub to a set of ancient petroglyphs before ascending a pair of ring ladders, bolted …
Continue reading Rings Loop Trail (Mojave National Preserve, CA)
Live and Let Hike 