Sinks Canyon and Popo Agie Falls, Wyoming

Well, we are staying pretty busy at the NOLS Wilderness EMT course.   Studying, practicals, rotations in the local emergency rooms, and lots of tests.  It's enough to make me want to study all weekend!  Or not....  Exercise keeps the brain functioning well.  Or at least that was enough of an excuse to get me outside on a beautiful spring weekend for a hike up into the Wind River range.  Just west of Lander, WY is a State Park called Sinks Canyon.   It's a great place for rock climbing, hiking, and road biking.

The canyon is so named because the river actually sinks into a cave for a short distance, leaving a dry wash and a big gurgling sound.  The water then flows underground for about 2 hours, through some really small cracks, and emerges again at a trout pond a short ways down the canyon.  Pretty cool.  I've driven up into the park a couple of times now, it's a good place to sit by the rushing river (except for the missing bit) and watch for wildlife.  So far in my few weeks here in Wyoming, I've seen a rattlesnake, a scorpion, a moose, a family of owls, and a couple of deer.

Lauren enjoys the falls and the sunshine!

At the upper end of the park, the road diverts from the canyon bottom and a hiking trail starts.    From the parking lot, it's only about a 30 minute hike up the beautiful canyon to a series of waterfalls on the Popo Agie river.  (By the way, Popo Agie is pronounced "poh-POH-zsha").   My classmate Lauren joined me for the hike up to the waterfall this time, which was stunning with all the spring runoff.

From the falls, Lauren retraced her path back down to do some rock climbing, while I continued further up the trail.  Now known as the Middle Fork trail (for the middle fork of the Popo Agie river) it meanders up the valley in a gradual but uphill climb into the proper wilderness.   The trail meets the river again in several spots, with some nice rushing falls and several sections of flat water, too.  It passes through some really cool rocky sections, but it mostly easy walking.   With all the recent rains, some sections of the trail were rather muddy, but I got the impression that usually it's dry as a bone.  I was wearing my chaco sandals in an attempt to get used to them, so I could splash through the mud and not care much.   At least until my feet started getting a few friction spots, so I had to stop and use some first aid kit materials to prevent the chafing.

After seeing a rattlesnake the day before, I saw a couple more snakes on the trail during the day.  Although these snakes were much smaller and harmless, altogether it was enough to give me the willies.  Yeah.  After that, every stick on the trail had me leaping like a scared hare.

Actually, what I saw most on the trail were piles of things that looked rather like big dark acorns.  I learned later it was moose droppings.  Not a lot of moose anywhere I've ever lived before!   The only moose I actually saw was a yearling on the side of the road further down the canyon...oh, and a dead one on the side of the trail.    But from the copious amounts of droppings I assume there was one looking at me from behind every big rock along the trail.

I had it in my mind to continue up the trail until I could see the snowy mountains.  It seemed like a valid goal.   Unfortunately I had no idea how long that would take.  I figured since the highest peaks in the range were in the 13,000 foot range, they would pop up rather spectacularly.   Luckily, my willingness to keep hiking coincided nicely with a nice view of the Wind River Peak from a small pass on the trail.  I used that view to stop for a snack, fix my feet, and then head back down to the trailhead.  After all, I still had homework to do....

Popo Agie falls

Bell Canyon Reservoir, Sandy, UT

In the shadow of Lone Peak and looking over the congested salt lake valley is a hidden little gem called Bell Canyon.    I absolute love how close it is to my new digs...even a relatively short run from the house could get me up and around the reservoir and home again.   

My first trip up their was with my nephew and his friend.  We encircled the Lower Reservoir and then started exploring the paths along the creek.  Aidan took the lead and we did a little bushwacking to find some nice waterfalls and a great spot in the boulders for a snack.  

The trail continues farther up the valley, where there is evidently another reservoir.  Appropriately named Upper Bell Canyon Reservoir, it's near Lone Peak itself, so there is some substantial elevation gain somewhere.  When the snow melts a little more I will be back up here trying to find my way to the top!  

Angel's Landing Trail, Zion National Park

Zion National Park.

One of my favorite places in the world, and a big reason why moving to Utah just sounded like such a great idea.    So on our whirlwind spring break tour, we had to stop in Zion.   When Rob and I were here a couple of years ago, we hiked up the creek into the Narrows, and had a blast.  Unfortunately the water was a little too cold this early in the season, but luckily there are many, many hiking options in Zion and the surrounding area.

Aidan and Nick eating lunch atop Angel's Landing

To keep our feet dry, we went up instead of down, way up.   The Angel's Landing trail started at the Virgin River, and then climbed and climbed until we reached a saddle between two slickrock hills.   From there the trail got decidedly steeper and more exposed.  At times there were even chains along the trail to help the less confident to safely reach the overlook without freezing in fear.   Rob and I had to look at each other and wonder how we had missed this hike on our prior visit, it was so amazing.  It reminded us of the via ferratas we had done in the Alps with the exposure and cable.  Not that it should deter anyone from doing this trail, it's worth it!

We ate lunch on slickrock in the warm sun, with 360 degree views of the amazing scenery that is the Zion Valley.

The descent was quick as by now we had all found more confidence in our footing and had gotten used to the exposure factor.  It was a beautiful afternoon, and we extended the hike by including a walk over to the Emerald Pools, just down the river a little from our trailhead.

The pools weren't really emerald.  At all.  So not sure how they got their name.  Granted, it was late afternoon and the sun wasn't hitting the water anymore...but it was still a nice end to the hike.   Above the upper pool, Randy showed us where he had done a 500 foot rappel down from Heaps Canyon, a very technical slot canyon in the upper reaches of Zion.    I started getting ideas of what to do on future visits...although I need a little bit more training first!

We had taken the shuttle in from our campground as cars are controlled inside the park.   I decided to run back instead, and had a lovely downhill jog along the canyon floor.   Bonus, I even beat the rest of the family home, as their wait for a crowded shuttle took a little while.  Score!

Randy slides through a small slot beside the trail

Lara and Aidan enjoying the sunshine!

Hoya de la Sima, La Palma

Our final few days in the La Palma were marked with high winds, episodes of rain (really), and a lot of clouds.  Our first attempt at this hike had us turning around while still on the drive up to the parking lot, discouraged by thick fog, cool temps, and strong winds.

Luckily for us, a little luck had us instead find a tucked away little beach where the sun kept shining and the strong northerly winds were blocked.  Instead of walking in blustery fog, we spent the afternoon catching a day of sunshine and swimming on the black beach of Puerto Tazacorte.  It seems that regardless of the weather elsewhere on the island, this corner at the bottom of Taburiente Crater manages to be sunny most of the time. 

As we were driving back to our hotel from the beach, we saw that the clouds had thinned a little bit on the ridge, but it was too late in the day to go for a hike.   The next day, we planned a little better.  Rainshowers still fell on us on the eastern side of the island, so we drove west to Puerto Tazacorte again for some midday sun.  Then when the clouds thinned a little, we finally geared up for our last hike.  It took a bit of mental fortitude to dress in several layers (after being in swimming clothes on the beach!).  And getting out of the car in strong winds and dense fog was even harder.  In fact, it looked like a blizzard of fog blowing across the road.  But once we turned a corner on the trail and walked a little ways, we came out of the fog again and had a pleasant walk through thick pines along a mostly level fire road.   We also crossed one of the most recent lava flows, from 1949.  The lava trail seemed to be heading right for a small town, then inexplicably diverted around it.

The far point of our walk was our destination.  A deep hole in the ground known as Hoya de la Sima.   The bottom was invisible in the black, and surely there must be caves leading out from it as well.  There is quite a system of caves on La Palma, volcanic and otherwise.   But we left speculation and the hole behind, and enjoyed the walk back even more, getting a last day's sniff of pine scent and blue skies, with just a tad of warmth.

Distance: 6 miles, 2 hrs, and 500 feet of elevation gain (and loss).

Walk #14 from the Walking on La Palma Cicerone Guide

Bivouac in Taburiente Crater, La Palma

Stashed in my luggage in hopes of night under the stars was a bivy bag, sleeping bag, and minimal sleeping mat.  A hike on La Palma that had eluded me the prior visit was a journey into the heart of Taburiente Crater.  It can be done an a day hike via the use of a taxi, but I wanted to spend a night in the bowels of the island, and perhaps explore extra trails deep in the crater.

Day trippers find the crater a fairly easy hike, since the taxi drives them up most of the elevation, and they are left with a long steady downhill and then a rocky river descent to the finish.   Why I decided to go the other way I'm not quite sure, but I do like to start and finish hikes under my own steam.  No taxis for me.  Rob dropped me off at the river bed and my pack felt much heavier than usual, loaded up with extra food and sleeping gear.  I could tell I was tired, too...the 2 weeks of steady long day hikes and beach walks were much more than even I was used to.  

But the river was an amazing place and the variety of rocks in the flowing river kept me searching for new colors.  It was another sunny, clear day, and I was lucky to be walking in such a place.   The river, flowing from springs deep in the crater, often colored the rocks orange from iron-ores.  In other places the trail brought me high above the water looking down into narrow gorges. 

A detour was a must to go up to see the Cascada de Colores, where the river bed got more and more orange from sediment until it was fairly glowing.  The cascada wasn't really much, though, just a man-made dam with orange and green stains from the water flow. 

From the riverbed up to the campground, the trail climbed steeply but was well groomed and smooth...probably the best maintained trail on the island, and that's saying a lot.   I was sweating but it felt great in the dry air by the time I arrived at the campground.  Which was a ghost town.  I dropped of my permit in a slot in the locked visitor center, then toured the area for the best locations.  I didn't see any sign of life aside from an empty tent.   The deeply shaded grounds were lined with tall pines, but I could hear another river gurgling nearby.   In short, it was paradise.  I found a spot where the sun shone down on a bed of pine needles, and proceeded to spend several hours reading and sunning, with the river a calming background trickle.

Near sunset, I moved out into the wide riverbed to catch a timelapse of shadows on the crater rim, and cooked supper on a rock. My bed for the night was on layers of thick pine needles which someone had helpfully gathered. As darkness settled in and I with it, I suddenly wondered where my walking pole was, as it was not near my sleeping bag. I found my flashlight and went looking for it in all the places I had visited, but saw no sign of it. I suddenly wondered if someone had taken it...unlikely given that I hadn't seen a single person all day, but the trees were thick. Could there be a thief? I couldn't believe it, yet where was my stick? (The short answer was no....I found my pole the next morning exactly where I had left it, somehow evading the dim light of my flashlight search the night before!) 

I struggled to get much sleep that night, for some reason, and found that the light of the moon in my eyes was keeping me awake.  Yet it was an absolutely perfect night, warm, calm, at times foggy and yet clear, with no hint of chill.  The moon and the stars waded through the trees above me, and there were no sounds aside from flowing water.  Well, aside from a really annoying rooster.  What's a rooster doing up in the crater, anyway?!



I had planned on doing an extra hike up to a large waterfall in the morning, but in the end, just didn't really feel like it when I woke up.  So I cooked breakfast in the warm air, and then slowly hiked up and out of the crater along another nicely graded path.   And I do mean slowly....I could tell that the endless days of hiking were catching up with my legs.  Fog shrouded the crater rim and it was kind of a grey day.  At the end of the hiking path was the road descent down to the river where Rob was waiting for me.  I suddenly realized that walking down the 10 miles of road switchbacks would take me forever (it seemed), so I took a few hiking trail shortcuts instead.  These were really steep, and made me want to get back on the road and flag down a taxi, I was feeling that tired.  The road went off somewhere else for a while, though, and I was stuck on the trail. 

It was on a graveled path where my tired legs lost their footing and I went down hard on the rocks.  Luckily the rocks were of the normal variety and not the sharp volcanic stuff.  After a few whimpers, I realized that I hadn't done much damage besides small scrapes and what would turn out to be a softball-sized bruise on my thigh.   I continued on hoping to hear the sounds of a vehicle...I really wanted a ride down now.  Nothing.  I continued on, more trail shortcuts, and soon the river started to look larger...I realized I was getting a lot closer to it than I expected.  I determined to finish the descent on my own steam (good choice...no vehicles ever did pass me), and soon I could see Rob at the river coming back from his own hike up into the barranco.  It wasn't the strong finish I was hoping for, but it was an absolutely beautiful night out and so peaceful that I will remember that, rather than my crash!
Distance: 13 miles, 8 hrs, and 3500 feet of elevation gain (and loss).

Walk #17 from the Walking on La Palma Cicerone Guide

Cascada de Colores...clearly not the best time of day for photos of this

Pico de La Nieve & Taburiente Crater Rim, La Palma

Another day and another chance to evade the clouds in the ring around La Palma!  This day we were looking for clouds and trying to capture some good photos of the fog by staying high.  We took the long, winding, switchback road up to the very rim of the crater at 8000 feet.   At such a height, the wind always seems to have a bite to it, even when it's warm enough to sunbathe down on the beach. 

At the road overlook, the clouds were dancing with the wind, the fog, and the rainbows, and it was suprisingly warm.  We stopped to capture a few time lapse sequences (hundreds of photos taken over 15-60 minutes with a camera on a tripod, then made into a fast-motion movie).  I'll be posting a collection of our time lapse creations from the Canary Islands soon. 

To get some hiking in, we drove to a lower part of the rim road to start a short hike up to Pico de la Nieve.   It was rather blustery in the open, but the side trail joined the GR131 rim trail on the southern side of the peak.  I wasn't feeling too energetic, so I paused on some warm rocks for another time lapse secquence while Rob headed up to the true peak.  He was soon back down complaining of the winds.   We stayed for a while in the sheltered spot enjoying the views of the crater rim, and contemplating walking more of the rim trail.  In the end, we didn't, and had a slow enjoyable walk through more pines (yay!) back to the car. 

Distance: 4 miles, 2 hrs, and 1000 feet of elevation gain (and loss).

Walk #30 from the Walk! La Palma Walking Guide