Day 13 - Joshua Tree

Joshua Tree was a let down at first but it came alive when the sun went down. I arrived at 10am and scurried around to find a campsite. Most campgrounds are first come first serve at national parks so arriving early allows for an easier securing of campsites-- I found a nice one at Big Rocks. I setup my uncles tent (struggling at first in the howling wind) in order to mark my spot and set out for a climb up Ryan Mountain.

Joshua Tree is known for their famous Joshua trees and slabs of rock. This first hike was in a section of the park short on these two items. The second hike was much better-- a 6 mile round trip to the Lost Horse Gold Mine set deep in the mountain hills. Pic 1.

The sun was starting to go down so I thought I would drive around and look for a good spot to watch the show. I found a large slab of rocks overlooking a field of Joshua Trees with the mountains in the background and a range of rocky peaks to the north and climbed up. Pic 2

Just kidding. I'm a very good climber and Joshua Tree rocks are sticky-- they aren't flat but pointy. And my shoes are very rubbery. The sun was slowly setting as I was scrambling around the rocks maybe fifty feet up.

Sunset at Joshua Tree is a almost spiritual experience. Whereby during the day the trees and rocks and hills blend together to a dullish ground color, at night the trees became dark pillars tilting in reflection, the rocks light up a haunting white-grey and the moutains keep the sunset for hours. Tonight was a full moon so I decided to go for a night hike before heading to camp. I have a light that attaches to the brim of my hat making night hiking safe. I rounded a rock corner and heard th faint beat of drums and Indian chants in the distance-- towards the fading horizon line. I contemplated walking over but the sound was too far off and I wasn't prepared to get lost and camp outside tonight, so turned back and headed to big rocks camp for the night. See pics 3-5 below.

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Day 161 - JMT Purple Lake and Tully Hole

We got our first glimpse of smoke far across the valley as we climbed higher. Up on a ridge after a morning climb, we followed a side trail to an open viewpoint beyond the trees. Selfie:) The smoke, while visible, seemed to give the mountains a blue glow-- like a highlighter to a sketch. You could still see the edges of the mountain ridges, the story of their creation. We could hike in this. But the smoke looked worse farther south. Or it was getting worse as time rolled incessantly forward. On day two we had ran into a northbound hiker we nicknamed Speedy Steve. Speedy Steve had hiked 18 miles a day through eight consecutive smoke-filled days, including atleast three "very bad days" when he couldn't see the surrounding mountains, the sun glowed a haunting orange and ash accumulated overnight. On the way to Purple Lake we ran into three dirty, beat up, tired north-bound hikers with a similar story. They had to spend one night in an emergency hut at Muir Pass to avoid the...

Day 172 - JMT Mount Whitney

Our day began in silence, at 315am in pursuit of the summit. We walked carefully, looking for slick, sandy rocks and icy sections--not wanting to fall. Hiking along a cliff edge in total darkness was thrilling, vividly black and white. By 5am, we had reached the three mile marker and the turnoff up to Whitney summit. We removed the heavy items from our bags and set off towards the summit sunrise. The trail was spectacular, a special creation of this nation, winding from one side of the mountain to the other, going down and around one side before coming up to another, creating anticipation with each turn. Looking back, the sloping ridges caught the early sunset delicately. As we hiked along the two mile upper trail, the views east would open up for the narrowest of moments. This opening was my favorite. 14,000 foot cathedrals of nature thrusted towards the heavens at each turn. The summit was almost in sight, the highest peak in the lower 48 states nearly at...

Day 52 - Mesa Verde

The Anasazi first settled on the mesa tops of Mesa Verde in 500 AD, then moved into the cliff dwellings this park is famous for in 1100 AD, then mysteriously abandoned the area entirely in 1300 AD. Like the other tourists, I was interested in seeing the cliff dwellings! Unfortunately many sites are closed in Colorado until Memorial Day, so I wasn't able to go into the two largest dwellings, Cliff Palace or Long House, settling instead for Balcony House. Balcony House is a small cliff dwelling built in a defensive posture on an inaccessible cliff. You have to climb a 30 foot ladder to enter the dwelling and then you have to crawl through a 3 foot wide hole and up more ladders to exit. Adventure and history are a nice combo. The ranger taught us about building techniques, spiritual structures and customs, and theories about the Anasazi culture and disappearance (draught or war). Pics. After the guided tour of Balcony House, I did self-guided tours of a historical museum,...

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