[NSR] Death Valley Hiking

[Spats]

A friend and I went hiking in Death Valley over Thanksgiving.

(Since I can't get to the upload page on the photo gallery, there will be one photo per message.)

Camping at about 5000 feet just outside the park. Yes it was cold, thanks for asking!

[Spats]

When in Death Valley National Park, allowing coyotes to barf on your hand is strictly prohibited:

[Spats]

Fall Canyon starts out like this...

[Spamhelmet]

Originally posted by Spats
When in Death Valley National Park, allowing coyotes to barf on your hand is strictly prohibited:

Letting the coyotees vomit on your hand i s strictly prohibited.
Thats what there should read.

Edit: whtfck?! i read first that you had written "..blah..blah..feeding the coy...".!!?

You stole my pun!

[Spats]

After a few miles, you start seeing dolomite narrows like this:

[Spats]

Which look like this from above:

[Spats]

The next day, we hiked up Red Wall Canyon. The entrance is visible about two miles away, at the top of this long gravel fan.

Note the anticipatory look of disgust on Ryk's face: the hike up was just as tedious as it looks.

[Spats]

But once you enter, the world becomes strange and different, like this:

[Spats]

And this:

[Spats]

Looking up towards Mt. Palmer and the head of the canyon, we saw this:

[Spats]

Here's what happens when you let your rocks sit out in the sun too long.

[Spats]

The Black Mountains at sunrise can look like this:

[Spats]

Ryk attacks a bouldering problem at the mouth of Grotto Canyon. Too bad neither of us know jack about rock climbing! Yet somehow we make it several miles, through a lot of these little falls, before being stopped by a water-polished 30-footer with no bypass route.

[Spats]

Finally some sunshine, seen through the narrows:

[Spats]

A rare shot of the photographer in his natural habitat:

[Spats]

Unfortunately there are no pictures or movies of the new dance I invented the next day. It's called the "S#!T F@#K I ALMOST STEPPED ON A LIVE TARANTULA" dance. Here's a closeup of the cute, fuzzy little trooper:

[Spats]

A beautiful afternoon sky viewed through Hole In The Wall:

[Spats]

Just another stunning desert sunset. YAWN

[Spats]

And lastly, an important reminder to anyone considering trips down here:

[White Chocolate]

death valley is so sweet it makes me want to crap my pants. when i was there, we camped in monarch canyon near the best metamorphic rocks ever. there are some schist layers in there with monster garnets the size of nickels. Gotta love the funeral mountains metamorphic core complex The driving loop through titus canyon is also amazing. I also got rained on at funeral springs while playing an intense game of ultimate frisbee on the lawn of the park service center. definately going to have to make a return trip.

[FreakofSnow]

nice pics.

The word for tonight is: DOLOMITE

[Spats]

^ for anyone wanting to check DV out this fall. I would recommend waiting until October.