- Joined
- May 5, 2012
- Messages
- 1,725
Spent a week in early November on the Arizona Strip without much of an itinerary, just wandering to some popular spots in the hopes of catching a decent photo or two.
Started out in Vermillion Cliffs NM after striking out at the Coyote Buttes North lottery in Kanab.
![_MG_0994.jpg _MG_0994.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60976-183e9f3904aff143d3cee576c66d8908.jpg)
![_MG_0029.jpg _MG_0029.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60971-85ef0266fcf21204e00dd93eff44fe42.jpg)
![_MG_1003.jpg _MG_1003.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60977-8850232b7cc6c4713114aa4bb9c6cab1.jpg)
![_MG_0072.jpg _MG_0072.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60972-7420cbf348224b9ab14cff9dc8274219.jpg)
![_MG_1093.jpg _MG_1093.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60978-c612eb193ac3299df816d609e231c77f.jpg)
![_MG_0087.jpg _MG_0087.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60973-ad42b90923994fad084a1471f5648679.jpg)
![_MG_1208.jpg _MG_1208.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60979-77229fca92d80d6b3280f77743a91d66.jpg)
![_MG_1241.jpg _MG_1241.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60980-d005f212111648a57d1a2b1b75216b2f.jpg)
![_MG_1262.jpg _MG_1262.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60982-0cc6c7f66c3ce249308ffde959462548.jpg)
![_MG_1244.jpg _MG_1244.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60981-15772c8c711c17c4cbe0699f35b7b069.jpg)
![_MG_1271.jpg _MG_1271.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60983-c1e538fc77803022d1ae1f83e3f8c8e3.jpg)
![_MG_1300.jpg _MG_1300.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60984-e8e8aaa42502349e7ebd8295ab6bb280.jpg)
![_MG_1319.jpg _MG_1319.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60986-4f1fe72736285fe5efe7fad56ce2309c.jpg)
![_MG_0144.jpg _MG_0144.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60975-f93960d6e1d01ba2786e2e64c46e823a.jpg)
![_MG_0136.jpg _MG_0136.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60974-afe5528c72be8b69c8dc4b82ae80f15e.jpg)
![_MG_1416.jpg _MG_1416.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60987-67a75d1d2916097c29169ddcedb20348.jpg)
![_MG_1465.jpg _MG_1465.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60989-aa4057dc03b8f17c2e65547741f05ff6.jpg)
![_MG_1472.jpg _MG_1472.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60990-b5d7cdc6c52bfa1ef3b9d8ddb9e5f3dc.jpg)
Coming off the Sand Hills, I checked out the condor viewing area at the south end of the House Rock Valley Road. A number of the birds were roosting up near the enclosure at the top of the Vermillion Cliffs.
![_MG_0195.jpg _MG_0195.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60992-8dfc9504c61d225f0de7de4af6b4727d.jpg)
![_MG_0148.jpg _MG_0148.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60991-c4f895a7f33e59f34e5bfe3a3a031597.jpg)
![_MG_0200.jpg _MG_0200.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60993-945c4c0b67785ac2d43a46c445070b51.jpg)
![_MG_0201.jpg _MG_0201.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60994-3e42e2d21c857dc93da2a1c7ef4fde6f.jpg)
Heading into St. George to visit some friends, I made the teeth-grinding drive through Zion. A large group of Bighorn Sheep were grazing just off the side of SR-9.
I pulled off to the side of the road before anyone else had and quietly broke out the telephoto.
![_MG_0225.jpg _MG_0225.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60996-71c1ec62f076fff29187e3edb1d1825a.jpg)
![_MG_0219.jpg _MG_0219.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60995-f4e6cc778a1a89cbeddcd05bc78a7e3a.jpg)
![_MG_0256.jpg _MG_0256.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60998-57299639aa08af9190e71b7ddcd99a80.jpg)
It only took a couple of minutes for a large crowd to gather. Noise intensified. People left their cars idling and walked right up to the sheep.
![_MG_0255.jpg _MG_0255.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60997-aef2ef2d144213542f64516933892096.jpg)
Others held their iPads up to car windows, parking in the middle of the lane and blocking traffic. The wildlife handled it pretty well, considering. I secretly hoped one of them would charge.
This jerkface barely slowed down, practically nudging the sheep out of the way with his car. He deserved a skull punch from a male Bighorn more than anyone.
![_MG_0269.jpg _MG_0269.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61000-cbdc226221cc23a32ec111907a651322.jpg)
Disgusted, I packed up the camera and glared until the people who'd blocked me in by double-parking pulled forward enough to let me escape.
Afternoon was stretching on when I hit the canyon bottom. The idea hit me to shoot sunset from Angel's Landing. I grabbed the shuttle and disembarked at the Grotto around 4 p.m. The canyon bottom was already deep in shadow.
![_MG_1508.jpg _MG_1508.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61003-cf5f29ff759724c6a347f5d0c12551a8.jpg)
Racing the clock, I busted up the trail as most other people were sauntering down. My heart rate was cooking at about 180 bpm just below Scout Lookout. Fading light has a way of motivating me though. Breathing heavy under the weight of two DSLRs, lenses and a full-size tripod, I pushed up the chains.
![_MG_1539.jpg _MG_1539.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61005-7973b83da73605e4bca58037386973ea.jpg)
![_MG_0327.jpg _MG_0327.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61002-cd5dd708ddb404c215435c021f44135d.jpg)
I ended up making it to the top in about 65 minutes, which I thought was pretty good.
![_MG_1529.jpg _MG_1529.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61004-060b66c0746b633d86a0053ad866b333.jpg)
![_MG_0302.jpg _MG_0302.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61001-5ac91c5b099761ff80be2052145723ae.jpg)
A couple of shirtless frat bros arrived behind me and celebrated by shotgunning beers and calling their friend on speaker phone. Sigh.
![_MG_1584.jpg _MG_1584.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61006-ab3e368a66b0c1fed99d8e3c258d74c2.jpg)
![_MG_1590.jpg _MG_1590.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61007-cb0e53e2c1e1b836e8ed7c20b88f032b.jpg)
Thankfully, the fading light spooked the two guys and they scooted off quickly.
Twilight was well on by the time I departed, the last one off for the day. I made it almost all the way back to Scout Lookout before darkness became too enveloping and I had to bust out the headlamp.
The trip down was a bit of a race in its own right, since I was afraid of missing the last shuttle back down canyon. Double-timing down Walters Wiggles was made easier by the fact I had the whole width of the trail to work with, since there was no counter traffic.
I made it with about 10 minutes to spare. Time coming down was about the same as going up, ~70 minutes.
A shower and a hot meal in St. George that night, then it was on to Toroweap.
![_MG_0595.jpg _MG_0595.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61013-ec0fe843f9e3b5ce1ba4d03ffef67735.jpg)
![_MG_0565.jpg _MG_0565.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61012-deb784fdd0158669d8fb7ca31d2ba21d.jpg)
![_MG_1631-HDR.jpg _MG_1631-HDR.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61014-9a0dab6618a21491e191dad7143f3bcc.jpg)
![_MG_0328.jpg _MG_0328.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61008-6488504722de387fdd75baab2ed1e2b9.jpg)
Sunset light reflecting off the canyon walls was reaching the surface of the river 3,000 vertical feet below. It made the water look like molten metal from up on the rim. Trying to capture it pushed the limits of my camera gear and I'm not at all happy with the outcome versus what it looked like in person.
![_MG_0351.jpg _MG_0351.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61009-9a5b9a53a20c36036443eecba4ce9f15.jpg)
![_MG_0357.jpg _MG_0357.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61010-536d1781c35042e26f7a319c1af3f6d0.jpg)
![_MG_1701.jpg _MG_1701.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61015-33d6f04d91fc38f707555288013158ba.jpg)
![_MG_0358.jpg _MG_0358.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61011-751048986c1efc73519d05120f30b94b.jpg)
![_MG_1708.jpg _MG_1708.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61016-fc0245a385eeefcfa166f9dc2493c20e.jpg)
![_MG_1724.jpg _MG_1724.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61017-d880c31bbda98fcfb00a04ea8be6fa3f.jpg)
Only two other sites at the Toroweap CG were in use that night. It was quiet and warm for November. Unlike Vermillion Cliffs where the overnight temps were in the 20s, it was probably around 40 at night on the Esplanade.
![_MG_1758.jpg _MG_1758.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61019-162e15f525b264c1a57ec85a46c6b03d.jpg)
![_MG_0417.jpg _MG_0417.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61026-22d26bccf5a9262e4c78ac47ad36dd9f.jpg)
![_MG_1768.jpg _MG_1768.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61020-465dc7d0a7e66ec918c3a5d70624c75b.jpg)
![_MG_0420.jpg _MG_0420.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61027-5a7a1c68763ac41af18bb150c2e8f5c5.jpg)
![_MG_0431.jpg _MG_0431.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61028-b9cd4da45665cb6fb544feb3c483fa18.jpg)
![_MG_1880-HDR.jpg _MG_1880-HDR.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61022-26b98b213a7c0d8e2a0ddf44bd772688.jpg)
![_MG_1885.jpg _MG_1885.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61023-a13454cfab74a93ec834dafe41ef9fad.jpg)
![_MG_1921.jpg _MG_1921.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61024-9d16f765693be31eefb8999909e8204a.jpg)
On the way out the next day, I took the time to stop at Pipe Springs NM. I've passed it by many times but never devoted the time. I was impressed by the fair and neutral way the NPS approached telling the history here.
![_MG_1947.jpg _MG_1947.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61025-4335133c37016aabda32fe8902b57218.jpg)
Started out in Vermillion Cliffs NM after striking out at the Coyote Buttes North lottery in Kanab.
![_MG_0994.jpg _MG_0994.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60976-183e9f3904aff143d3cee576c66d8908.jpg)
![_MG_0029.jpg _MG_0029.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60971-85ef0266fcf21204e00dd93eff44fe42.jpg)
![_MG_1003.jpg _MG_1003.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60977-8850232b7cc6c4713114aa4bb9c6cab1.jpg)
![_MG_0072.jpg _MG_0072.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60972-7420cbf348224b9ab14cff9dc8274219.jpg)
![_MG_1093.jpg _MG_1093.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60978-c612eb193ac3299df816d609e231c77f.jpg)
![_MG_0087.jpg _MG_0087.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60973-ad42b90923994fad084a1471f5648679.jpg)
![_MG_1208.jpg _MG_1208.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60979-77229fca92d80d6b3280f77743a91d66.jpg)
![_MG_1241.jpg _MG_1241.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60980-d005f212111648a57d1a2b1b75216b2f.jpg)
![_MG_1262.jpg _MG_1262.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60982-0cc6c7f66c3ce249308ffde959462548.jpg)
![_MG_1244.jpg _MG_1244.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60981-15772c8c711c17c4cbe0699f35b7b069.jpg)
![_MG_1271.jpg _MG_1271.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60983-c1e538fc77803022d1ae1f83e3f8c8e3.jpg)
![_MG_1300.jpg _MG_1300.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60984-e8e8aaa42502349e7ebd8295ab6bb280.jpg)
![_MG_1319.jpg _MG_1319.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60986-4f1fe72736285fe5efe7fad56ce2309c.jpg)
![_MG_0144.jpg _MG_0144.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60975-f93960d6e1d01ba2786e2e64c46e823a.jpg)
![_MG_0136.jpg _MG_0136.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60974-afe5528c72be8b69c8dc4b82ae80f15e.jpg)
![_MG_1416.jpg _MG_1416.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60987-67a75d1d2916097c29169ddcedb20348.jpg)
![_MG_1465.jpg _MG_1465.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60989-aa4057dc03b8f17c2e65547741f05ff6.jpg)
![_MG_1472.jpg _MG_1472.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60990-b5d7cdc6c52bfa1ef3b9d8ddb9e5f3dc.jpg)
Coming off the Sand Hills, I checked out the condor viewing area at the south end of the House Rock Valley Road. A number of the birds were roosting up near the enclosure at the top of the Vermillion Cliffs.
![_MG_0195.jpg _MG_0195.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60992-8dfc9504c61d225f0de7de4af6b4727d.jpg)
![_MG_0148.jpg _MG_0148.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60991-c4f895a7f33e59f34e5bfe3a3a031597.jpg)
![_MG_0200.jpg _MG_0200.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60993-945c4c0b67785ac2d43a46c445070b51.jpg)
![_MG_0201.jpg _MG_0201.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60994-3e42e2d21c857dc93da2a1c7ef4fde6f.jpg)
Heading into St. George to visit some friends, I made the teeth-grinding drive through Zion. A large group of Bighorn Sheep were grazing just off the side of SR-9.
I pulled off to the side of the road before anyone else had and quietly broke out the telephoto.
![_MG_0225.jpg _MG_0225.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60996-71c1ec62f076fff29187e3edb1d1825a.jpg)
![_MG_0219.jpg _MG_0219.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60995-f4e6cc778a1a89cbeddcd05bc78a7e3a.jpg)
![_MG_0256.jpg _MG_0256.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60998-57299639aa08af9190e71b7ddcd99a80.jpg)
It only took a couple of minutes for a large crowd to gather. Noise intensified. People left their cars idling and walked right up to the sheep.
![_MG_0255.jpg _MG_0255.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/60/60997-aef2ef2d144213542f64516933892096.jpg)
Others held their iPads up to car windows, parking in the middle of the lane and blocking traffic. The wildlife handled it pretty well, considering. I secretly hoped one of them would charge.
This jerkface barely slowed down, practically nudging the sheep out of the way with his car. He deserved a skull punch from a male Bighorn more than anyone.
![_MG_0269.jpg _MG_0269.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61000-cbdc226221cc23a32ec111907a651322.jpg)
Disgusted, I packed up the camera and glared until the people who'd blocked me in by double-parking pulled forward enough to let me escape.
Afternoon was stretching on when I hit the canyon bottom. The idea hit me to shoot sunset from Angel's Landing. I grabbed the shuttle and disembarked at the Grotto around 4 p.m. The canyon bottom was already deep in shadow.
![_MG_1508.jpg _MG_1508.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61003-cf5f29ff759724c6a347f5d0c12551a8.jpg)
Racing the clock, I busted up the trail as most other people were sauntering down. My heart rate was cooking at about 180 bpm just below Scout Lookout. Fading light has a way of motivating me though. Breathing heavy under the weight of two DSLRs, lenses and a full-size tripod, I pushed up the chains.
![_MG_1539.jpg _MG_1539.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61005-7973b83da73605e4bca58037386973ea.jpg)
![_MG_0327.jpg _MG_0327.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61002-cd5dd708ddb404c215435c021f44135d.jpg)
I ended up making it to the top in about 65 minutes, which I thought was pretty good.
![_MG_1529.jpg _MG_1529.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61004-060b66c0746b633d86a0053ad866b333.jpg)
![_MG_0302.jpg _MG_0302.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61001-5ac91c5b099761ff80be2052145723ae.jpg)
A couple of shirtless frat bros arrived behind me and celebrated by shotgunning beers and calling their friend on speaker phone. Sigh.
![_MG_1584.jpg _MG_1584.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61006-ab3e368a66b0c1fed99d8e3c258d74c2.jpg)
![_MG_1590.jpg _MG_1590.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61007-cb0e53e2c1e1b836e8ed7c20b88f032b.jpg)
Thankfully, the fading light spooked the two guys and they scooted off quickly.
Twilight was well on by the time I departed, the last one off for the day. I made it almost all the way back to Scout Lookout before darkness became too enveloping and I had to bust out the headlamp.
The trip down was a bit of a race in its own right, since I was afraid of missing the last shuttle back down canyon. Double-timing down Walters Wiggles was made easier by the fact I had the whole width of the trail to work with, since there was no counter traffic.
I made it with about 10 minutes to spare. Time coming down was about the same as going up, ~70 minutes.
A shower and a hot meal in St. George that night, then it was on to Toroweap.
![_MG_0595.jpg _MG_0595.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61013-ec0fe843f9e3b5ce1ba4d03ffef67735.jpg)
![_MG_0565.jpg _MG_0565.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61012-deb784fdd0158669d8fb7ca31d2ba21d.jpg)
![_MG_1631-HDR.jpg _MG_1631-HDR.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61014-9a0dab6618a21491e191dad7143f3bcc.jpg)
![_MG_0328.jpg _MG_0328.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61008-6488504722de387fdd75baab2ed1e2b9.jpg)
Sunset light reflecting off the canyon walls was reaching the surface of the river 3,000 vertical feet below. It made the water look like molten metal from up on the rim. Trying to capture it pushed the limits of my camera gear and I'm not at all happy with the outcome versus what it looked like in person.
![_MG_0351.jpg _MG_0351.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61009-9a5b9a53a20c36036443eecba4ce9f15.jpg)
![_MG_0357.jpg _MG_0357.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61010-536d1781c35042e26f7a319c1af3f6d0.jpg)
![_MG_1701.jpg _MG_1701.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61015-33d6f04d91fc38f707555288013158ba.jpg)
![_MG_0358.jpg _MG_0358.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61011-751048986c1efc73519d05120f30b94b.jpg)
![_MG_1708.jpg _MG_1708.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61016-fc0245a385eeefcfa166f9dc2493c20e.jpg)
![_MG_1724.jpg _MG_1724.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61017-d880c31bbda98fcfb00a04ea8be6fa3f.jpg)
Only two other sites at the Toroweap CG were in use that night. It was quiet and warm for November. Unlike Vermillion Cliffs where the overnight temps were in the 20s, it was probably around 40 at night on the Esplanade.
![_MG_1758.jpg _MG_1758.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61019-162e15f525b264c1a57ec85a46c6b03d.jpg)
![_MG_0417.jpg _MG_0417.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61026-22d26bccf5a9262e4c78ac47ad36dd9f.jpg)
![_MG_1768.jpg _MG_1768.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61020-465dc7d0a7e66ec918c3a5d70624c75b.jpg)
![_MG_0420.jpg _MG_0420.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61027-5a7a1c68763ac41af18bb150c2e8f5c5.jpg)
![_MG_0431.jpg _MG_0431.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61028-b9cd4da45665cb6fb544feb3c483fa18.jpg)
![_MG_1880-HDR.jpg _MG_1880-HDR.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61022-26b98b213a7c0d8e2a0ddf44bd772688.jpg)
![_MG_1885.jpg _MG_1885.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61023-a13454cfab74a93ec834dafe41ef9fad.jpg)
![_MG_1921.jpg _MG_1921.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61024-9d16f765693be31eefb8999909e8204a.jpg)
On the way out the next day, I took the time to stop at Pipe Springs NM. I've passed it by many times but never devoted the time. I was impressed by the fair and neutral way the NPS approached telling the history here.
![_MG_1947.jpg _MG_1947.jpg](https://backcountrypost.com/data/attachments/61/61025-4335133c37016aabda32fe8902b57218.jpg)
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