Our hiking days are now done for the year. Temperatures are getting a bit too warm, 94F today, and the heat brings out some unsavoury characters in the desert. Snake sightings happen all year but become much more frequent when it heats up. Besides, trekking out in the hot sun when its 65F is very enjoyable. Not so much when the temperatures break 80F.
We did Siphon Draw trail with Neil and Lynne about 2 weeks ago and while not the longest or the most elevation gain it was definitely a consistently steep hike which proved to be the best cardio workout of the year. The trail is a little over 4 miles out and back with an elevation gain over 1000 ft. Im not sure of the exact numbers as I didn't turn my All Trails off until we got back home so the numbers were skewed. It was definitely a heart thumper but the views are among the best.
Our first sighting of a roadrunner this year. Shot is a little blurry as they don't stand still for long.
This flat steep channel of rock through the canyon is called the bowling alley. That's Neal on the right. He looks pretty tiny compared to the rest of the scene. I made it a little past where he is at in this picture. The rock is very smooth from centuries of water pouring down this channel in monsoon season and in the last few years hikers scrambling up the rock. Good hiking shoes provide the grip needed but lots try it with running shoes and they are sliding all over the place.
That's my shadow in the foreground. This is as far as I went. Top of the bowling alley. Lynne was above me but getting down is always a bit more difficult than the ascent and I decided that this was enough.
You can see some small figures behind the hiker in the foreground. That is about where Lori was waiting for me.
Another shot of the bowling alley. The rock projectile in the top middle of the picture is Flat Iron. A very popular but very difficult hiking destination. We have not been there and will not be attempting it.
A young avid hiker made it to the top earlier this year and while taking a selfie he lost his balance and fell to his death. Lots of people were heading to the top on the day we were there. We saw one coming down later with a gash in his arm from a fall he took. Thanks but no thanks.
That smooth stretch of rock in the middle of the picture is the bowling alley. I made it to the top of the smooth part but then the rock scrambling and climbing begins. Flat Iron isn't that far away but it is straight up.
Lots of pictures to edit and post and I hope to get mostly caught up before we head home. We are leaving GC on April 17 but our route home will be kind of indirect. We are heading to Vegas for 2 nights. Not because we have any desire to see the Strip but rather I want to take in the Valley of Fire State Park in eastern Nevada. Its about an hour drive from Henderson where we will be staying and its supposed to be breathtaking.
Next up will be a drive through Death Valley with a 2 night stay in Lone Pine, CA. Then on to Port Angeles, WA for a couple nights to see the the Olympic National Park which is designated a rain forest. That should be a little different than the desert climate we have been enjoying this past winter. Then we take the ferry over to Victoria and we have booked a place for 2 weeks in Nanoose Bay. Its a central location to explore the island. From there we make our way east with stops at Shuswap Lake, Lake Louise and Lethbridge. If the snow is gone in Manitoba we will then head home. If not who knows.
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