We stopped frequently on this final day of our thousand mile, four day adventure discovering an abandoned goal mine, a Vietnam War Memorial, and countless photogenic landscapes. Between stops we had hours of time to talk and reflect on the passage of our combined 101 years, work, family, friends and our respective interests. I hope Alissa and Mayela are both up for some kind of sibling adventure as I would like to do the same with each of them when they reach the half century mark.
Mark and Jeanine both share a gift for spotting wildlife from a speeding car. Mark spotted a group of male Big Horn sheep on a distant mountainside in waning light. Unbelievable, as they practically disappear into their environment. The herd of females was easier to track down and we ultimately found a dirt road that took us to within feet of them for great close ups.
The petroglyphs are about twenty feet above the ground on along a vertical wall and it was not clear to either Mark or I as to how they were placed there. The dinosaur tracks, highlighted in white, are about twice the size of my hand and required a short but tricky climb to get a close up view.
Today is a travel day back to Denver where we will stay in a hotel before our flights tomorrow morning. Before departing, however, we make a brief excursion down the Colorado in the opposite direction, where we seek out Native American petroglyphs and preserved dinosaur tracks.
As sunset approaches, Mark and I make the strenuous climb to iconic Delicate Arch. We are both acrophobic and the last few hundred feet are along a narrow cliff ledge. Although Mark makes it past the ledge he elects to descend immediately rather than waiting as I will for golden light which necessitates a return in darkness. Only during the winter months does the angle of the setting sun afford a near shadowless image. Add in snow caps on the La Sal Mountains and it does not get any better than this.
We spend the remainder of the afternoon and evening enjoying Arches National Park where there is no shortage of stunning scenery to capture. Mark has a great photographic eye and an affinity for shooting tiny details through the macro lens while I tend to look for the big picture vistas. His photo above of the lichen covered mounds is one of my favorites from the trip. The subtle color palette combined with the strong opposing diagonal elements makes for a really sophisticated composition and great image.
Learning a lesson from the prior evening, we find an approved tent site early in the day. The Arches campground is full so we opt for a site directly adjacent to the Colorado River which turned out to be a superior second choice and offered us quick access to Moab for gas and food.
Our next destination is Dead Horse Point State Park where the morning fog lifts just as we arrive to reveal a crystal clear view of what I believe to be one of the top five panoramic views in the United States.
Reversing roles from yesterday, Mark is the student today and I pass on advice as we capture all the beauty that surrounds us. While all the photographers jockey for position and prepare for the sunrise shooting frenzy (optimal light exists for a fleeting five minutes), Mark enjoys what has to be one of the most clear and bright night skies either of us has ever seen. After returning to the parking area we have the bad luck to shake out the tent at the exact moment a park ranger is passing by. Despite my efforts to wiggle out of the $50 citation for camping outside of an approved area the fully frosted windshield of the car is a dead give away. Fortunately my National Park Annual Pass and the temporary paper license plate on our new from the factory rental car all check out and the understanding ranger sends us on our way. I chaulk up the fine to an expensive tent site fee and small price to pay for the images we got. Mark chaulked it up to my general stupidity and failure to follow posted rules and his good advice to heed them.
Today, we wake up an hour before sunrise, take down the tent, and make the short hike to Mesa Arch, where we join several other photographers to enjoy the dramatic lighting on the underside of the arch from the sun’s first light.
The net result on the day was two happy brothers. We got off the river at about 6:30 pm and drove to Canyon Lands National Park in Utah, arriving just around 11 pm. The campground there was full, and I opted to pitch our tent in the Mesa Arch trailhead parking area.
I believe the highlight of the day for Mark was dry casting from the anchored boat and catching a nice Brown after a very patient effort to coax him onto the hook. This style of fishing takes far more finesse than the nymph fishing that we employed for most of the day.
I spent about half my time fishing and the other half behind the camera. In the afternoon, I asked Lincoln to put me ashore so I could shoot from that perspective and ran ahead of the boat along a narrow path that paralleled the river.
I believe the last time I went fishing was also with Mark some 35 years ago. He and Lincoln did a fine job of teaching me the art of fly casting, healing the line, setting the hook, and landing the fish. I used this knowledge to catch this small but very pretty Brown Trout. Had I paid closer attention to the lesson on landing the fish, I would have kept my pole in an upright position keeping the right pressure on the line when I hooked a very big fish. When I lowered my pole and tried to pull him to the boat he got away but it was still a big thrill to fight with him while he was on the line.