North Rim Grand Canyon AZ

The next major stop is the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. We've certainly seen it many times from the South Rim as well as running the Grand on river trips, but for one reason or another, we've never made it to the North Rim. We get an early start leaving Valley of Fire choosing to take the eastern route of Hwy 169 rather than the more traveled I-15. We pass through the farming community of Moapa Valley, which appears to be mostly Mormon based on the number of churches we see. Oddly enough, the Rooster Bar enjoys a predominate location on the main drag.

Leaving Valley of Fire

Rooster Bar

After rejoining I-15, we stop in Mesquite AZ to stock up at Smith's, which turns out to be nice upscale store.  Smith's features an extensive deli and a wide selection of wines.  Mesquite has recently become infamous as the former home of Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas shooter. We resist the urge to ask any of the residents about Paddock and instead ask the check-out lady about an item we couldn't find.  She is quite a character and says with a flourish we are sure to find in in St. George,  the shopping mecca for this part of the country.

Back on the freeway, we cross over into Arizona and start driving through the Virgin River Gorge. This part of I-15 is the most expensive section of interstate in the US ever built.  We always get a kick out of traveling through this narrow and deep gorge.

Crossing into Arizona

Entering the Virgin River Gorge

Walls are getting steeper

and deeper into the Gorge

almost to the end

Emerging on the north side of the Virgin River Gorge

We enter Utah south of St. George, and then turn eastward  towards the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  Although we arrive about mid afternoon, we can't find a campsite.  So we wander back to National Forest land and locate a nice boon-docking site at about 8000' in elevation. At least we thought it was quiet, until we hear a knock on the door from another camper who's just arrived.  He's a twenty-something who's managed to get his rental car down the very rutted dirt road to our campsite. He's worried about getting the car back out in the the morning. Peter takes a look at his car and reassures him he'll probably fine, besides - it's only a rental.

While talking to us, we show our visitor the inside of the camper. He's quite envious over how warm and cozy it is - especially because temperatures are forecast to be into the low 20's tonight. He's sleeping on the ground in a small tent.  Brrr - sure glad our days of sleeping on the ground are over with. Oh well, he's young and he'll survive.

Welcome to Utah

Water hole for cattle

Boon-dock camp

Sure enough the night is very cold and any water left outside is frozen solid by morning. We hustle through breakfast and drive back into the Park to catch the early morning light. We decide to avoid the more crowded Visitor Center area and head for Point Imperial. As we hoped, there are very few people at the overlook and the light is excellent for pictures.  We meet a young couple from South Korea who are very friendly and speak excellent English. They were both educated in the United States, but moved back to Korea to be closer to family. We tease them about being lucky to be out of South Korea as tensions are running high with North Korea busy setting off rockets.  They agree laughing nervously, but they have jobs and family to get back to.

The road to Point Imperial

Korean couple

Wonderful light and fall colors

View southward from Point Imperial

View toward the East

View towards the north

With the freezing weather, we decide against exploring further and leave for warmer more comfortable climates. Yes - I'm a wimp when it comes to weather that cold.

Looks like there's deer and elk here

Entering Kaibab NF

Buffalo ?

YES - Buffalo! In fact it's a buffalo jam.

Ahhh - warmer and sunnier

Valley of Fire NV

October 2018

The summer camping crush is over, so it's time to go off on more adventures while the weather is still good. Although we have driven over Pacheco Pass hundreds of times, we have never stopped at the Romero Overlook Visitor Center on the San Luis Reservoir before.  Much to our surprise, it's actually a very interesting place with informative displays about California's water system. Plus it affords spectacular views of the reservoir itself.  Just outside the Visitor Center is a memorial marker dedicated to Tim Crawford and Martin Alvarado who both lost their lives while conducting an underwater inspection of the pumping station.

Nice to see healthy water levels again

Memorial

Expansive views from the Visitor Center

Later while driving north on Hwy 15 just before the Nevada border, we pass the Ivanpah Solar Power Facility. This solar project has always fascinated me because it uses a technology different than the usual large arrays of solar collector panels. The Ivanpah Facility uses fields of heliostat (sun tracking) mirrors to focus sunlight onto centralized power towers to generate steam for running steam turbines (the better to supply Vegas's flashy lights).

Ivanpah Solar Power

Looks like we just crossed the state line into Primm NV

That night we find a comfortable camp at Las Vegas Bay inside the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. It's good luck finding such a nice campground so close to Las Vegas - thank you again UC Public Campgrounds (great $5 camping app). The next morning we continue driving northeast on the scenic Northshore Road skirting the northern shoreline of Lake Mead. The stark desert landscapes against electric blue skies is pure a delight after the glitzy hustle/bustle of driving through Las Vegas yesterday.  As we round a large curve I spot a perfectly silhouetted male and female Bighorn sheep atop a huge boulder.  The sight takes my breath away and startles Peter as I gasp in surprise.  I beg him to stop and turn around so I can capture a shot of the Bighorns.  Unfortunately, there's no convenient place for this maneuver, so I have to console myself about the spectacular shot that got away (along with several others still dancing around my brain - sigh).

Northshore Road

A man camped next to us at Las Vegas Bay recommended we stop at Rogers Spring. Great tip. It is a truly beautiful oasis with warm water and a lovely pool beckoning us to stay awhile. But we have our minds set on getting a good campsite at Valley of Fire, so we resist the temptation and get back into the camper after exploring the spring.

Rogers Spring

Desert palms

Tempting warm pool

Just before leaving the Lake Mead Park boundary, we reach the turn off for the Valley of Fire State Park and find a wonderful spacious campsite at Atlatl Rock Campground. What's an atlatl?  It's a spear thrower used by early hunters and works much like the Chuckit ball thrower for dogs.

Turn off to Valley of Fire

Seven Sisters Picnic area

Atlatl Rock campsite

After getting our camp set up, we head off on foot to explore the nearby Atlatl Rock.  The trail leads to a long staircase that winds up the face of the rock to a viewing platform where we can easily view large panels of petroglyphs. Although it's not certain what they mean, it appears this area was popular with ancient tribes to hunting Bighorn sheep using atlatls.  These hunters must have also been very skilled climbers to get this high up on the rock to create these petroglyphs.

Staircase up Atlatl Rock

Petroglyphs

and more petroglyphs

The Valley of Fire is known for it's spectacular rock formations and the wonderful colors they turn under different lighting conditions.  Needless to say, it's a photographer's delight. It's hard not to get carried away snapping shots at these amazing rock formations.

The next morning I am up before the crack of dawn to take photos as the sun comes up.

Sunrise through the rocks

Half moon

Early morning light

Sunlight expands onto a small valley behind our camp

After breakfast, we take a short hike into the walk-in camping area at the end of the main campground.  It offers some very nice campsites featuring a great rock arch in exchange for a short walk from your vehicle.

We then pick up our camp and drive up White Domes Road to see what else the park has to offer.

Overlook on White Domes Road

After parking in the lot at the end of the road Peter decides to take a challenging hike, while I take some time to wander around looking for some good photos.

Afterwards, we start the drive back stopping at various scenic locations along the way.  Our first stop is at Mouse's Tank. A short trail leads to the 1800's hideout of a Southern Paiute Indian named "Little Mouse" as he evaded capture after allegedly killing two prospectors.  Natural basins in the rock provided pools for his drinking water next to a shelter he built.  Unfortunately for Mr. Mouse, the story does not end well as he was eventually captured and hanged.

White Domes Road

Trail to Mouse's Tank

Natural arch

Getting closer to the tanks

Hole in rock

All that remains of Mouse's house

By late morning busloads of tourists start flowing into the park from Las Vegas.  While hiking at Mouse's Tanks we are deluged by a large group of French tourists.  I surprise two women who are straggling behind the main group with my passable French pointing out a large panel of petroglyths they missed.  At Rainbow Vista, we encounter more European tourists in a rented RV and an East Indian couple on a Photo Tour. I wonder why their guide has taken them to the park during the least interesting part of the day (lightning wise).  Maybe it's the only time they could go?

French tour group

Rented RV

Photo Tour

Rainbow Vista

Not yet sated with exploring, we set off again on foot after leaving our truck back at camp. This time we try a different direction to see the Beehives. These rock are marked by cross-bedding, a geological process caused by successive layers of sediment being deposited at different times. 
We've had fun at Valley of Fire and hope to return when we have time for hiking back trails.

Rocks on fire at Sunset