New Year, New Things to See

All in all, we covered over 60 miles in 2007. Not nearly the 200 I wanted to cover, but I fully enjoyed every step of it.



Of course I also never planned on having an accident and another move cut short our hiking year and make getting started again in 2008 so difficult.



My goal this year is to cover 100 miles which may prove difficult with my new job that lately has been taking over my weekends and even my holidays. There are so many things I want to get out and see I can wait.



We started a few weeks ago with an old familiar hike in Snow Canyon to Johnson Arch. This is a hike we did last year with Amy's family. This year we took my sister and her family. We had a lot of fun and I enjoyed using my new camera to capture pictures. I still have a lot to learn about shooting in full day light. It isn't as easy as you might assume.

The highlight of this hike is the natural arch and a neat box canyon. The arch is cool, but it is difficult to see because it doesn't stand out like some of the famous arches. In fact many people hike right past it. If you look behind us, you can see the arch with the light coming through.

Again, if you look at the light, you can see the arch cut into the side of the cliff.

The girls did a great job. Cami hiked the whole thing (She is now officially too large for the kid carrier) and Taryn took turns hiking and riding.

We had to stop for customary snack at the midway point (end of the canyon).

I was so proud of Taryn. She really worked hard to get over some of the difficult parts. She refused to let me carry her.

Mount Timpanogos

Date: 8/16/2007
Distance: 14
Elevation: 4652

Location: Northern Utah
Who Tagged Along: Amy, Papa, Stephanie, Kyle, Dylan, Carolyn, Rachael, Hannah, Ryan

We had a great time hiking Mt. Timp this year. Papa really wanted to give it a another try and the kids tried it for the first time. This was Amy's first time too.

We got an early start, getting up at 4:00 and leaving the house by 5:00. We were at the trail head by 6:15. The cold caught most everyone by surprise, but it didn't take long to get warmed up on the trail.

Everyone looked happy the first mile.

It didn't take long to get up into the wilderness with some beautiful scenery.

Several waterfalls crossed the trails as we climbed the Great Staircase.

It didn't take long for everyone to get hot with the sun out. We found ourselves stopping frequently for water and rest.

There were some gorgeous views along the trail.

We all finally made it to the top plateau were we had our first glimpse of the saddle and the summit. We also saw over a dozen mountain goats off in the distance. I have no idea how they climbed up there.

One of the funniest things was Ryan asking if we knew why his nipples hurt. Amy and I knew right away thanks to Mark Thompson who says that nipples can get soar during marathons (and obviously long hikes) due to a wet shirt rubbing them. I helped him out with some of my glide stick which is used to prevent blisters.

Steph, Kyle and Ryan turned around at this point and headed back down. Ryan said is was due to his knee (on which his ACL was repaired last year), we made fun of him saying it was his nipples but in truth he volunteered to stick with Steph and Kyle. Kyle was having a hard time with the heights. The rest of us pressed on for the summit.

We were really sad that most of the wildflowers had come and gone. We did find a few patches that were holding out for us. The wildflowers on the plateau are beautiful when they are in full bloom.

We plugged along and headed towards the saddle.

We finally reached the saddle. Everyone was happy and I was tempted to go to the top, but we weren't sure who else wanted/could make it. And besides, we needed to detour to Emerald Lake to refill our water bottles.

View of Utah valley from the saddle

View the other direction towards the wilderness side

Amy and I split off from the group and headed towards Emerald Lake. This is a small lake (visible on the left side) at the base of this "Glacier" . I was surprised to see how much of the snow had melted this year. Usually, people slide down this glacier after reaching the summit. Not much sliding this year.

This is a shelter near the lake on the Aspen Grove trail. Amy and I filtered the lake water to refill everyone's bottles.

After refilling the bottles, we meet up with everyone else and started the trek back. On the way down, we got really close to a couple of moose. I forgot to snap a picture. Dylan and Ryan's nipples also provided the comic relief as we plugged on towards the bottom.

I think everyone was really tired when we got back, but we all had a ton of fun and were happy we did it.

I was especially proud of papa. I hope I can climb this mountain at the age of 68. I was also really impressed with my nieces and nephews. They did a great job and made it look easy.

Next time we want to get to the top.

Calico Hills Loop

Date: 2/19/2007

Distance: 5.3

Elevation: 2045

Location: Red Rock Canyon

Who Tagged Along: Solo
Geocaches:

Red Rum P-mac Cache

Over the Hills and Through the Woods

Halfway Between

This is a hike I have been wanting to do for a while. It is more technical and difficult than the hikes we have done in the past, so I knew I couldn't take the kids. Amy was nice enough to let me do it on my own while she watched the kids. I got up early and was on the trail before 7:00.

The hike starts on the east side of the Calico Hills. These are massive sandstone hills with wonderful red colors and wonderful stone slabs. It turns out that it is one of the top climbing places in the country.

After walking along the base, I quickly began to make my way up to the saddle. It was fairly steep and I ascended 700 ft in no time. There was a fair amount of scrambling on the way up.

Saddle in the distance

View of the saddle up close - you can see all the boulders and rocks you have scramble over

Very cool boulder on the way to the top. The cavern carved into the boulder is tall enough for me to kneel in.

The view from the top of the saddle were wonderful. To the west was a great view of Red Rock Canyon. To the east, a great view of the hills that surround Vegas and the city itself. Unfortunately, my camera doesn't do it justice. Fortunately, I still have a camera (more on that in a minute).

View West into Red Rock Canyon (down the backside)

View down the way a came. You can't see it, but Las Vegas is in the background beyond the hills.

After taking a break to catch my breath, I started down the other side. Again there was some fun scrambling on the way down. At the bottom there were several rock out croppings and a natural water basin. One of them didn't have much water, but the other was full. It is a key watering hole for wildlife in the area.

Natural tank - the one in the top left corner was full of water

From there, I followed a wash which involved more scrambling. This took me towards the Calico II parking lot were I started to see a few more people. The trail followed the wash and base of the hills for good distance. Interestingly, the rocks changed color on this side of the hill. There was even a large section were the rock all looked like they had the measles. I am not sure what caused the red spots.

Rocks were more white on the west side of the hills

Some of the red spots on the rocks. Very cool.

After passing near the parking lot, the trail dropped back into the wash and then merged into another trail that ran along some large sandstone slabs. Shortly after that, I turned and followed a steep water chute up, climbed some sandstone steps and climbed a steep sandstone ramp. Once on top I could see the Calico I parking lot.

Eventually, I came to the Calico I parking and followed the trail down and through a small tunnel formed by two boulders. The trail descended again and followed the wash for a ways were there was some great scrambling.

Tunnel you have to crawl through

After a ways, everything opened up and I was out in a small little "valley". While hiking through here, I discovered that there were three caches along the route so I decided to go and find them.

The first one took me off the path and through a sandy "forest" - at least it was a forest considering where I was. I found the cache camouflaged in a tree.

The second cache was down the trail. I had to scramble up a 50 degree slope to the base of the hill where I found the cache in a hollow.

The third cache was on the hike back over the hill. It was well hidden in a little "cave" under a boulder.

This is the first geocaching we have done in Las Vegas and it was interesting to see the difference between hiding items in dead trees and under leaves in Michigan versus rocks.

From the final cache, I crested the hill and could see the parking lot. I walked down the hill and saw the Red Rock springs - a natural spring area - and decided that I wanted a picture. This was when, to my horror, when I discovered I no longer had my camera. I must have lost it somewhere on the last part of the trail.

At this point, I had a decision to make. Do I go back and look for it? It could be anywhere - under some brush, down a crevice or smashed into pieces. I had also made three separate side trips to the caches and it could be anywhere off of the trail. I would also have to hike back up and down the hill to the other side and then do it again to get back to the car. Besides I have been wanting a new camera for some time.

Finally, I decided I might as well and besides there were probably some pictures of the girls on there Amy would really want, so I turned around and headed back.

I used the GPS to back track my exact trail past the third cache and two the turn off for the second cache. At this point, I wasn't too excited about scrambling up the steep slope again and I felt like I should stay on the main trail, so I decided to keep heading back towards the wash.

I got back to the wash and the rock field and started scrambling back through. At this point, I really didn't think I would find it and I was beginning to get tired. I decided that I would say a short prayer and put my faith to the test.

I want to testify that Heavenly Father hears are prayers and answers them, not matter how small or inconsequential we may think they are in the grand scheme of heaven. Not more than two minutes later and about 30 seconds from giving up and heading back to check the side caches, I turned the corner and was very happy to see my camera sitting safely in the middle of the path in a pile of sand.

I thought for sure it would have fallen out of my pocket during one of the scrambles over hard rock and dropped into a crevice between boulders making it impossible to find. I know that the Lord answered my prayer.

I was very thankful as I hiked back to the car (now about an hour later than I had planned) that I had found the camera and didn' t have to look further. I was also thankful that I while I didn't discover the camera missing right away, at least I discovered it before I had left the park for home. Once back at the parking lot, I got that final picture of the Red Rock springs I had wanted.

La Madre Springs

Date: 3/24/2007
Distance: 4.1
Elevation: 1081
Location: Red Rock Canyon
Who Tagged Along: Amy, Cami, Taryn

This was a great afternoon hike. We started by off roading a short distance. We then got out of the truck and loaded up. We soon passed a young couple that were coming out of a large wash. They told us that there were some Big Horn Sheep not far up the wash, so we decided to go for a detour.

Quick break while in the wash

Sure enough, about 10 minutes later we looked up and some 5 or 6 Big Horn sheep on the side of the wash. They were sunning themselves and giving us the cold shoulder.

It is hard to seem them, but there are two standing in the middle of the picture....I promise.

Cami enjoyed seeing them once she was able to figure out where they were. How do you explain to a 3 year old distances and elevations?

We then headed back to the trail to resume our trek to the springs.

The trail followed some white sandstone hills appropriately named the White Hills. There is a long loop that goes around them we may try someday in the future.

The White Hills

After about a 2 mile hike with a descent ascent (especially lugging 35 extra pounds - no not my belly, Cami) , we made it to the springs. I was pleasantly surprised to see how much water was in the spring. Often times, there isn't much in the desert and it seems to be very seasonal.

According to some signs, the springs have been flowing for hundreds of years and make their way out of the La Madre mountains. Many people in the past have used the springs, most recently several homesteaders. They had even dammed up the springs to form a small pool.

The thing that amazes me is that the even found them. They must have spent a ton of time wondering around the hills.

After stopping and taking a snack break, we headed for home, singing primary songs as we went.

Snack Break

Cami and Me at the Springs

North Las Vegas Dike

Date: 3/10/2007
Distance: 7.25
Elevation: 250
Location: North Las Vegas BLM Land

Who Tagged Along: Solo

There was a lot to do today so I decided to get up early and explore the BLM lands north of our home. I was glad that I went.

One of the first things I saw as I entered the desert was a Jack Rabbit. I am not sure who scared the other most. I couldn't believe how big his ears were.

So I didn't really take this picture, but I did learn once I got home that a Jack Rabbit really isn't a rabbit, but is actually a hare....interesting.

Not long after I heard a rumbling and looked up to see a very large Air Force cargo plan leaving the base and flying almost right overhead. I thought that was cool until I saw the 1 .. 2 .. 3 .. 4 .. 5 jets quickly catching up to the large plane.

I soon realized that it was the Thunderbirds (Air Force's Aerial acrobatics group) leaving their home base for some unknown destination. The cargo plane is used to carry all the extra things they use. I just wish they had done some cool tricks for me to watch.

The rest of the hike proved unexciting but peaceful as I made my way up to and along the dike north of town. The dike is used to control water and prevent flooding when it does rain.

Once there, I turned around and was very impressed with the view of the city. I have been surprised by home much I like the desert. While it may not be as beautiful as forests or lush mountain meadows, it has its own beauty.

On top of the dike looking down it

View towards the north and the BLM and air force practice range

Anniversary Narrows

Date: 3/3/2007
Distance: 5.0
Elevation: 420
Location: Lake Mead National Recreation Area
Who Tagged Along: Amy, Cami, Taryn

This is probably the coolest hike we have been on to date. We started out by hiking 1.5 miles along an old mine road. The road heads into a pocket of hills and ends by descending into the Lovell wash.

As we hiked up the wash, we could see many different mines and even ventured 20 ft into one of them were it ended and another shaft headed upwards at a 40 degree angle.Along with the mines, there was some left over mining tracks, debris and other things. Others on the trails told us the mines were used to look for gems such as opals.

The wash continued for a little way and then entered into the narrows. Going into the narrows, I carried Cami on my back, which made jumping over pools of water and climbing over rocks very interesting.

At places, the narrows closed to within 5 feet with sheer vertical walls...very cool.

We hiked to the end were it opened back up into the wash and took a snack break. On the way back, Cami got to hike back. It was fun to watch her jump from rock to rock and over the pools of water. Of course I was holding her hand to cushion and control her landing. In many spots, she simply jumped and relied on me to make sure it went OK. She is a regular little mountain goat at heart, she just needs a little more coordination.

We all really enjoyed the narrows and the rest of our hike. Our only regret was not bringing flashlights with us so we could go into some of the other mines.

Cami and I towards the beginning of the narrows

My girls coming down -this gives a good view of the narrows

Amy and Taryn coming down

Cami is a little mountain goat!

Pine Creek Canyon

Date: 2/19/2007
Distance: 2.2
Elevation: 400
Location: Red Rock Canyon
Who Tagged Along: Amy, Cami, Taryn

This is another hike in Red Rock Canyon. It was very beautiful and we loved the trail because it was less improved (more true hiking) than some of the ones we did the week before. But that means I got to carry Cami most of the way since she has a hard time with larger rocks.

The hike takes you down from the parking lot and across the desert into the canyon. The trail continues for a while and then make a loop. There were lots of side trails that led to climbs and other places. We started the hike late (around 2:00) so we didn't get to stay for long due to the cold.

Nice view of Pine Creek Canyon

Me and Cami on the way in. You can see that we are already in the mountains shadow.

Amy and Tarn on the trail