Dinosaur National Monument

On my recent drive to Utah for a conference, I made a little side trip to a massive, wildnerness region tucked in the northwestern corner of Colorado: Dinosaur National Monument. This canyonlands region follows two rivers that have gouged themselves deep into the surrounding plateau. The monument is named for the dinosaur fossil quarry on the Utah side of the park, and the funny thing is, on the Colorado side, which is by far the majority of the park and known as the scenic side, there are none of the prehistoric relics! Anyway, I made a nice half day trip into the park with my car, stopping at the many roadside lookouts, with their amazing views over massive canyons and valleys, and finished up the day with a hike out to this viewpoint: looking down at the junction of the Green and Yampa rivers.

Just had to throw this in there...I saw this little guy on my hike.

This is looking east down on Echo Park (the sandy area in the bottom center) and the Yampa River canyon. Echo Park sits at the junction of the two rivers; Green River and the junction cannot be seen here because of the massive Steamboat Rock blocking the view (lower left corner). The sheer size of this place and its features simply cannot be conveyed by these pictures...just think: it takes rafters 4-5 DAYS to raft from the east side of the monument to the west...that is absolutely massive.

The landscapes in this area are spectacular...almost alien at times.

The Green River is the larger of the two, so after the junction, the river keeps this name. This is it flowing west from the junction (which would be behind me in this picture)

Another view of the Yampa River canyon, Steamboat Rock, and the junction hidden behind it.

A view after a little hike from one of the many roadside stopping points.
Notice the gorge that cuts deep into the valley floor (center right).

Just a pic directly down at the rock you see in the monument

Closer to the entrance of the park...this is looking south-south-east.

Camping at 11-Mile Reservoir

Sunset over the reservoir. 11-Mile Reservoir State Park provides some awesome backcountry camping spots. The spots are all on a large, rounded peninsula that is surrounded by massive boulders and shaded by tall mountain pines. Perfect place for a relaxing weekend, which is exactly why we chose it to spend the 3 days of Memorial Day weekend.

Looking out over the reservoir on a clear morning at the grassy slopes and continental divide in the far distance. I haven't figured out which mountains these are yet, but I'm pretty sure they are some of the collegiate peaks (all 14ers named after Ivy League schools). Anyway, looking around at this place feels like you are in a movie, or some kind of fantasy tale...truly awe inspiring.

Another look out across the res. Unfortunately, there is no swimming here since the water is used as drinking water, but the rocks are perfect for rock jumping. Funny too that people aren't allowed to swim in it, but they are allowed to run their boats...must have something to do with the ease of filtering out oil and exhaust from the boats as opposed to whatever humans will leave in there?

A view of several of the sites around the res. These are kind of exposed...ours were much better I think...although these people didn't have to work as much (mild rock climbing) for the awesome views.

Another look out...I just couldn't take enough pictures here. Notice how blue the water looks in this picture...remember that for later.

This was also taken at sunset; I loved how the grass on the other shore was totally lit up while everything else was dark.

A shot looking down at our campsite with Laura, Anna, Marcin and the doggies: Bailey and Mattie!

We only had a touch of rain over the three days...it was perfect weather really. The rain didn't last long enough to wet anything through...and the clouds made for an awesome show around the res.

Sunset seen from our site.

Some perspective for the size of these rocks...Mattias (the Swede standing at the top in his celebratory stance) is like 6'4'' or something....excellent example of your average stereotypical Swede. Marcin is also demonstrating the many uses for the boulders, in this case, as a recliner. It was a great weekend with some good friends in a breathtaking place.

Rock Climbing...

This was from a few weeks ago with some friends at the cliffs near Golden, CO.

Brady showing off his flexibility on the most difficult face of the day.

Maciej checking on Gary below.

A view from the top. The clifs are near the top of a large mesa that overlooks the town of Golden. In this picture, you can see Denver in the background.

Another view from the base of the cliffs. The cliff base is really quite high up the side of the mesa, as you can see here. The buildings below are a water treatment plant and rail yard.

Maciej going up one of the first faces of the day with Edward doing belay. The belay man is constantly watching the climber so that, in case of a fall, he can stop the climbers descent by simply changing the angle he holds the rope. A climber puts his life in his belay mans hands. At the bottom, before the climber starts up, both he and the belay man check each others knots and harnesses to ensure that everything is tied in and clipped properly. Climbing is an awesome display of trust and athleticism. Climbing a shear rock face that most would consider to be physically impossible is a pretty cool feeling too.

Brady and Ed at the base with Maciej on his way up.

Indian Peaks Wilderness

I took a hike with some friends two weeks ago. We went to the Indian Peaks Wilderness: a massive swath of land through which the continental divide runs through, brining with it these lovely mountains. The hike started at 8AM and we knocked out about 8 miles roundtrip, most of which was through deep snow. That was rough without snowshoes which turned out to be a seasonal rental from the university athletic center. Obviously, people at the athletic center don't go for hikes in the mountains in May.

These pics are mostly just to show what it is like up there...absolutely gorgeous. We started at a base elevation of around 10,000 ft and worked our way up to about 12,500 before turning back due to weather.

Lake Isabelle; still quite frozen in May...I wouldn't walk out on it though.

Most of the peaks in the Indian Peaks Wilderness are named after Native American tribes.

Looking back at where we came from...way down the valley and around the bend to the left another mile and a half or so.

Kauai, Hawaii

So this is a bit late coming, but here it is: Kauai, Hawaii. I was there at the end of February for a conference for work, ISSS-8 (International School for Space Simulations). The school kept us fairly busy, but I got a few days to explore the island...and it was amazing.

Chickens. These tasty creatures were introduced to the islands by Europeans (of course). Other than humans, no predators exist on the islands to keep their population controlled, and being the tropical paradise it is, the chickens flourished there. Now they are all over (including the beaches), and despite what every child is told...roosters do not just do their cock-a-doodle-dos in the morning...they do it in the middle of the night too, which is no fun when trying to sleep.

So, Kauai is supposedly the most ruggedly beautiful of the Hawaiian islands. It is no longer volcanically active, but those volcanoes that were there left an amazingly beautiful island. The pics here should help demonstrate that. As always, however, these pictures do little to no justice for the real thing! So this is just one of the random, perfect beaches one can stop at while taking the Kuhio (Kings) Highway along Kauai's north shore. These are scattered all along the side of the road, separated by rugged, rocky cliffs. All of this makes the drive a lot of fun too...just remember to pay attention to the road every once in a while, however hard it may be.

Another beach on the north shore, Secret Beach. Its really not that much of a secret though (as you can see by all the people). Although, I must admit, compared to beaches I have been to on the mainland, Kauai's are quite empty, and it is no problem finding your own massive patch of sand. Secret Beach is famous for its surfing and nude hippies. It is in quite a secluded spot which involves a short hike down a small cliff from a dirt road. Nudists enjoy this beach so much that there are signs posted letting all know that it is indeed illegal to shed your clothes no matter how secluded the beach may be! Pretty funny! The lighthouse on the cliff in the distance adds quite nicely to the whole place as well.

Sunset from a beach along the north shore near Waimea

Same beach near Waimea. There was a family of Hawaiians here that were barbecuing on the beach. The people of Hawaii have an amazing place to live, and they definitely seem to know that and appreciate it.

A valley on the northwest shore, part of the famous Na Pali coast. This corner of the island is a massive series of these rugged ridge lines and lush valleys, making it one of the more popular spots for helicopter tours.

Waimea Canyon: the Grand Canyon of the Pacific!

Waimea Canyon

Sun going down at Secret Beach

One of the many spectacular view from the Kalalau Trail along the Na Pali coastline...a really really awesome hike!

Tunnels Beach....possibly my new favorite beach in the world...definitely tied for first place with my favs from Fiji and Puerto Rico. The water is crystal clear with reefs and tons of tropical fish (nice for snorkeling). The beach is massive and really wasn't that busy while I was there, and I couldn't get enough of the mountainous backdrop...so incredible.

View from Tunnels Beach

Yet another spectacular view from the Kuhio Highway along the north shore.

This small mountain is called the Sleeping Giant. Think of the highpoint as the nose with the forehead (even equipped with an eyebrow). You can kind of make out a mouth line before the chin. The rest of the body must be in a sleeping bag or something because it doesn't have the "defined" features of the head. I really see it as one of those ancient sculptured heads from Easter Island turned over and seen in profile...hopefully that helps everyone see it!

Sunrise from the hotel.