With the holidays over, and 2016 having given way to a new year, I begin looking forward to my birthday on the 18th. Using the time for reflection and thinking ahead, I decided to visit Garnet Peak in Cleveland National Forest East of San Diego. With a short, brief hike, I arrived at the summit to take in the wonderful views.
Category: Nomad Travels
Obsidian Butte, Salton Sea
On Saturday, I met up with some friends in San Diego and went out to another adventure at the South End of the Salton Sea. We ended up spending all afternoon, into the evening, exploring only one of the active volcanoes, Obsidian Butte, and the nearby shores of the giant lake.
Cabrillo National Monument
On Saturday, I decided to head to the Cabrillo National Monument, on the south end of Point Loma in San Diego. Even though I lived in San Diego for many years, I never ended up finding my way down to the national monument, so I was excited to take the time to do so, finally.
Sonny Bono Salton Sea NWR and Southern California’s Only Active Volcanoes
While in Southern California for the season, I decided to do a run over to the Sonny Bono Salton Sea National Wildlife Refuge. I had recently discovered that a small series of active volcanoes–the Salton Buttes–were located within and nearby the wildlife refuge, and this became a goal of this adventure.
To San Diego: Peak 3339, Gasp Benchmark, Groan Benchmark, Rozzie Mountain
A couple of weeks ago, on Wednesday, I decided to leave my campsite outside of Zion and head back to San Diego. I spent the majority of the time with family and friends, running out to McCain Valley Recreation Area and Carrizo Gorge Wilderness to hike to Peak 3339, Gasp Benchmark, Groan Benchmark, and Rozzie Mountain. Finally, yesterday, I made my way back to camping out on the Carrizo Badlands Overlook for the week.
Zion NP: Kolob Arch and Deertrap Mountain
While continuing to hang out nearby Zion National Park another week, I decided to spend my weekend doing a good amount of solid hiking. Saturday morning, I woke early and headed out to the Kolob Canyons to do the 14 mile trek to Kolob Arch and back. Sunday, I then did the 20.6 mile trek to Deertrap Mountain and back, via the East Entrance.
Zion Canyon Weekend: Emerald Pools, Angels Landing, Hidden Canyon, Observation Point
Friday afternoon, I decided that I had had enough of the cold around Bryce Canyon and headed down to St George and Zion National Park. Over the course of Saturday and Sunday, I visited the park, hiking to the Emerald Pools, Angels Landing, the arch at the end of Hidden Canyon, and Observation Point.
Utah: Natural Bridges NM, Capital Reef NP, Grand Staircase-Escalante NM, Bryce Canyon
On Friday, I decided that I had enough with Moab and moved on. Over the course of the weekend, I ended up visiting National Bridges National Monument, the proposed Bears Ears National Monument, Glenn Canyon National Recreation Area, Capital Reef National Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, and Bryce Canyon National Park. I finally found a campsite at Cabin Hollow to spend the cold week ahead.
Weekend at Moab : Canyonlands NP : Needles District, Druid Arch, The Joint, Chesler Park
After arriving at Hamburger Rock Campground Saturday night, I headed to the Elephant Hill Trailhead early Sunday morning, set out to hike to Druid Arch. I had actually not received any particularly compelling reason to hike this particular route, but I enjoyed it so much that I ended up also including most of the Chesler Park and Joint Trail loop as well, making for a 15.7 mile hike! This is now easily one of my favorite hikes of all time, making me remarkably happy to complete it. Finally, I even made it back to Willow Springs Road to setup camp again before dark.
Weekend at Moab : Arches NP, Devils Garden
Friday afternoon, I decided to pack up and head back to Moab for a weekend of hiking and fun. Staying a night at the familiar Willow Springs Road that night, I woke early and headed into Arches National Park to do the Devils Garden Primitive Loop hike. Once complete, I headed to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, finding a campsite at Hamburger Rock, just outside of that park.