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Month: March 2013

Monument ValleyMonument Valley

Monument Valley

Friday – Sunday, March 29-31, 2013

I’ve driven past Monument Valley many times in the past but have never actually stopped in the park before. I decided to spend all day Saturday at the park so that I could photograph the Mitten Shadow at sunset. Since that was my main goal this trip, I’ll start this report with the photo I was after. Twice a year the West Mitten casts it’s shadow onto the East Mitten just before sunset and it’s something that I’ve wanted to try and photograph for a while. There were a lot of clouds on the western horizon at sunset and I almost thought it wasn’t going to happen this time, but the sun did peek out for a few seconds which gave me just enough time to capture the image below. I’d say it was a successful evening!

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Quick Cathedral Valley TripQuick Cathedral Valley Trip

Quick Cathedral Valley Trip

Saturday, March 23, 2013

This wasn’t supposed to be a quick trip. I was planning on camping at the Cathedral Valley Campground and spending the entire weekend in the area, however the cold temperatures and strong winds made me change my mind while I was out there. Instead I drove part of the loop and made a few stops at some of the overlooks and then drove north to I-70 through the San Rafael Swell to make a big loop back home.

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Druid Arch & Canyonlands OverlookDruid Arch & Canyonlands Overlook

Druid Arch & Canyonlands Overlook

Friday – Sunday, March 15-17, 2013

After work on Friday I got in my Jeep and started driving towards The Needles District of Canyonlands. I reached a campsite just outside the park shorty before sunset. As I was getting my tent setup the setting sun broke free of the clouds and lit up the red rocks surrounding me, so I dropped what I was doing and grabbed my camera for a few shots.

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Mid-Week MoabMid-Week Moab

Mid-Week Moab

Monday – Tuesday, March 11-12, 2013

Long story short, I had ended up with two passes for a ranger guided tour of the Fiery Furnace in Arches National Park on Tuesday and had taken the day off from work so I could go. The weather in Moab was looking good so I headed down after work on Monday and setup my campsite along the Colorado River just outside of town. I grabbed a burger at the Moab Brewery for dinner and then took a drive up Long Canyon as the sun was setting for the evening. It was a beautiful sunset.

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Pollock BenchPollock Bench

Pollock Bench

Sunday, March 10, 2013

Since the weather was bad all over the Colorado Plateau on Saturday I decided to stick around home this weekend. I did manage to get outside on Sunday after the weather cleared up for a hike on the Pollock Bench trail to the Window Rock Tower. This is the main trail that leads to the Rattlesnake Canyon arches, if you don’t have a high clearance vehicle to reach the upper trailhead. Since I have always visited the arches from the upper trailhead, I thought it would be nice to check out this alternate route that I have always bypassed. I also wanted to check out the Window Rock Tower, which is where I turned around on this hike.

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