It's Monsoon Season

Monsoon Season in the Southwest usually lasts from mid-July to mid-September and daily storms could build up any time in the afternoon. Not all storms brought rain or thunder, some just brought amazing clouds and skies.
One of these late afternoons I hiked to the cinder cone volcano behind my house when a nice monsoon storm popped up.

The late light lit up the Hurricane cliffs really nice. I just loved it.
A bit later dramatic storm clouds lit up the sky in a super dramatic way, it was just wow.

After dark, a good light show began and I was able to get a few shots of some lightning.

I definitely have to do better next time. There would be more than one more chance for sure. One of the reasons I loved monsoon season so much.

hiking the Virgin River in Zion NP

July in the desert Southwest brings hot temperatures. And hot means really hot. This weekend we had a forecast of 110F. But I was still wanted to go on a hike somewhere. Why not hike in a river and cool off and beat the heat a bit that way?
I decided to head to Zion National Park and hike the Virgin River from the end of the shuttle stop at Temple of Sinewava all the way to Canyon Junction. The entire hike would be in the water.
I headed to the park before sunrise so I could shoot sunrise at the Natural History Museum and the Towers of the Virgin. It was also the spot where I would park my car for the day.
Sunrise was great and the cliffs lit up nicely.

After sunrise, I waited for the shuttle and got off at the last stop. While everyone else was heading towards the Narrows, I headed to the opposite direction. It was still pretty cloudy but I liked it a lot because it wasn't getting too hot too soon.
The views of Zion Canyon was amazing.

It was peaceful out there, just the murmuring sound of the river and the wind moving through the foliage of the willows and cottonwoods. And not a single soul out here compared to the circus heading to the Narrows.

The Great White Throne

I passed the Great White Throne and the shuttle stop for the hikes to Observation Point and Weeping Rock, the river offered great views. There were nice little swim holes as well as rocky sections that were pretty shallow. The temperature was just perfect with the cloud cover.

One pretty thing was an area of algae growth that looked like a little coral reef. There were even small fish hiding underneath the algae.

Several stops followed where I just soaked in the cool water of the river. The swim holes were just amazing. I didn't realize there were so many as I only about a few.
I walked further south and passed Angels Landing, one of the most famous icons of Zion National Park.

Angels Landing

On my way I also encountered the cute Canyon Tree Frogs, they were everywhere. I saw a Jerusalem Cricket as well, these bugs could sting like crazy if you're not careful enough. 

Jerusalem Cricket

Near the river bridge to Angels Landing it got busier and I saw many people for the first time today. Some of my favorite swim holes were also close to the bridge near Angels Landing trail.  I moved on fast and encountered another stretch of river where no one else was there. It was beautiful.

I passed the Emerald Pools area with Heaps Canyon, it was just great to see all the iconic areas from this perspective. I really enjoyed the hike so far.

Heaps Canyon

The sun was out now and it was getting hot pretty fast. I was glad to be in the river where I could cool off every now and then. The last stretch of my hike also offered great scenery and a wonderful canyon landscape.

Mountain of the Sun

Too soon I arrived at Canyon Junction where I hopped onto the shuttle back to the Human History Museum. Total mileage was a bit more than 8 miles, but it was well worth the effort and a great way to get outside on a hot day.

A weekend in the High Uintas, June 2018

One of my best friends was getting married in the Uintas end of June and invited me to attend her wedding. So I decided to add a few extra days and do some day hikes while I was up there. It's been a while since I have hiked in the Uintas and I was pretty excited to be back again.
From Southern Utah, it is quite the drive to get there but I was in no hurry and enjoyed the drive up north.

I decided to do the hike up to Bald Mountain since it was still early in the afternoon. This would be a nice leg burner and I was excited about the views from the top. The trailhead parking was not super busy and I got my pack ready. The trail started at about 10,700ft and immediately started to climb upwards. After a while, I reached a plateau and views were great up from there.

Bald Mountain Pass and Murdock Mountain

There were a few wildflowers and I also saw a pika collecting them for food. Past the plateau, the trail started to climb up again. 

Reids Peak

There was a bit of boulder hopping involved at the very last part but it wasn't too bad. I soon reached the summit and enjoyed the views from more than 11,800ft. It was pretty windy and very hazy due to some wildfires but it was still a great view from top.

The hike back to the trailhead didn't last too long and I reached my reserved campsite at Stillwater campground before sunset where I set up camp. 

The next morning I decided to do the Lofty Lakes Loop. It was about 8 miles and had some nice elevation changes along the loop. I started pretty early and was the first car at the trailhead. The first part of the hike went through a forest of fir trees and spruces before the trail went to a meadow.

The meadow offered amazing views to Bald Mountain and Reads Peak with reflections in some small tarns. 

There were also a lot of wildflowers everywhere. I loved the view while I continued the trail. After about a quarter of a while the trail split and I took the detour to Cuberant Lake.  There was some elevation gain before the trail dropped down again and the views were really great.

Elephant Head

I reached the lake and enjoyed the solitude. 

Cuberant Lake

Back at the main trail, I continued to Kamas Lake where I had a little snack break.

After I left the lake, the trail gained elevation again. On top of the plateau, there were amazing views towards the Hayden Fork drainage and Bear River with all its lakes. Definitely worth the hike.

The trail continued from here to Lofty Lake.

Lofty Lake

I passed the lake and continued to descend down the rocky path towards Scout Lake and further to Picturesque Lake. I had to stop several times to delve into the mountain scenery. It was gorgeous. A lot of wildflowers everywhere and great spots for little breaks. This was definitely an enjoyable hike for sure.

From Picturesque Lake it was only about a mile back to the trailhead. 

Since it was still early in the day I decided to do the short hike to Ruth Lake, one of the most popular lakes. 

The little hike to the lake didn't take too long but the views along the way were so gorgeous I had to stop all the time.

I reached the lake and walked along its shore with meadows of wildflowers and beautiful views. This was a really great little hike and I enjoyed it a lot. 

This was definitely a great trip to the mountains and I was pretty sure that I wanted to go back very soon again.