Trip to Utah - Part I
April 16, 2022
Back in 2009, I went on a trip to New Mexico for a week. While there, I took a quick visit to the Four Corners area. That was my first trip to Utah. Later that same year, I passed through the state on a train trip from California to Illinois, but it was in the middle of the night. Despite having physically been in Utah on those two occasions, I had not ever actually visited the state. With all my travels, it was one destination I was saving for later. You see, my best friend was from Salt Lake City originally, and I had always told her I wouldn’t ‘do’ Utah until she could be there to show me around. When she and her husband had moved to Texas over ten years ago, I wasn’t sure if it would ever happen. However, in March of 2016, they moved again, this time to Salt Lake City to be near her family, and I finally had my chance. We planned for months, and in October 2016, I finally boarded a plane to take me out west. The plan was to arrive at lunchtime, grab a bite, have a tour of the city, and then in the morning, head out of town to visit Zion National Park for the first few days and Bryce Canyon National Park for the remainder of the week. We hadn’t made specific plans for the second week, as she wouldn’t know her work schedule until the end of the first. But, we both had a lot of possible ideas. I was super excited, not only to see Savory, as it had been five years since they’d last been back to visit, but to really get to explore the state. We had planned the trip for when we thought peak foliage would be happening in Zion National Park, since it has so many wonderful trees inside the canyon. I’d seen some amazing photos and couldn’t wait for the chance to try to capture some of the same images.
There was a bit of engine trouble in Chicago, delaying our flight for a while. By the time we were finally coming in to land in Salt Lake City, I was more than ready to get the adventure started. I had pulled my camera out ahead of time and got some photos from the air as we circled around for a landing. There had been a bit of a shower, and the play of light through the clouds and on the surrounding mountains and across the ground was quite interesting. Once we were on the ground, I was the last one off the plane, as usual. Apparently, Savory had had a bit of an adventure herself trying to get there, so she hadn’t been waiting very long. We grabbed my bags then went to sort out the rental car. Unfortunately, there were some hiccups, which took several hours to sort out. When we finally got on the road, we ditched our original plans and went straight to her place for a quick bite to eat. Then, we went to do a little shopping for supplies for our camping trip. Afterwards, she gave me a bit of a tour of the area before returning to their home for the evening. The following day, we packed our gear, did a few last minute errands, and headed out around lunchtime. We headed south, taking the highway towards Zion. Usually when I travel, I have a tendency to pull over a lot, any time I see something that is cool or different or simply strikes my fancy. I try to document everything, but it means I’m not taking my time with the photos. I don’t even turn the car off, and often, I don’t even get out of the car. I certainly don’t wander around to get the best position, set up my tripod, use filters, bracket for exposure, etc. Consequently, I have often been disappointed with my photos when I return home, knowing that if I’d just slowed down and taken some time, they would have been better. But, it also meant that a lot of the photos aren’t particularly interesting; they’re just stuff I saw along the drive that isn’t the same as what I see every day back home. One of my goals for this trip was to take more time with my photography and to do less run and gun style to just ‘document’ everything I saw. Instead, I really wanted to work on creating beautiful landscape images. I wanted images I could be proud of, rather than just snapshots. I had asked Savory to help remind me to try and slow down when we were in the parks. But, it also meant that for this drive, I was actively avoiding pulling over for photographs. This was a very different concept for me, and I found it really bizarre on that long drive to not be stopping every time we saw some new landscape. And, to be honest, looking back, it’s one of the things I regret most from the trip. We drove through so many varied, amazing landscapes, and I don’t have any images of that. Part of me very much wishes I had those snapshots that I’d been trying so hard to avoid. Despite my internal battle at the time, it was a really great drive. The views were amazing, and it was fantastic to catch up with Savory. We did end up stopping at one point for a photo. As it happened, Savory and I had just been talking about how weird it was not to be getting photos when we came upon a scene we both agreed needed to be captured. I pulled over immediately, and we both hopped out to try and get the photo. The light was changing quite quickly, so I didn’t end up with the image I’d originally seen from the road. However, the act of stopping for a photo made me feel a lot better. I think that, in future, I will need to find a balance between the documentary aspect of capturing all I’m seeing and experiencing, and the artistic aspect of landscape photography, so that I can truly feel satisfied with my photography and with the trip as a whole.
Some time later, we left the highway just past Cedar City to enter the first section of Zion National Park. When we pulled into the park, we found that the visitor center was already closed. But, we were still able to head into Kolob Canyons to explore the five-mile drive. It was starting to get close to sunset, so the sun’s rays were lighting up the landscape from a low angle. There were some clouds in the sky that kept flitting past the sun, so the light was constantly changing. We took a really long time to do that drive, stopping numerous times for photos. Each time, I was trying to slow down and think more about the composition. I also did some bracketing, not only for exposure, but also for where to focus and for white balance. I was trying to ensure I’d get an image that was ‘just right’, but I also wanted to figure out what results (and therefore what settings) I liked best.
After we were done shooting the sunset at the end of the road, we started the drive back through the canyon. However, rather than just drive straight through, we decided to stop along the way. It was really just the start of the blue hour, and the canyon’s rock formations still had some very interesting light on them. Savory had found a night setting on her camera that she wanted to test out, and since I’ve not done much blue hour photography, I was quite happy to do some experimenting myself. By the time we were done and heading out of the park, it was pitch black. I hoped we wouldn’t have too much farther to go for the night. Whenever I go on trips, I try not to travel after dark if I can help it because I want to see as much as possible of the new place, and that’s just not possible in the dark. After a short time, we turned off the highway, heading east. In the town of Virgin, we left the main road to head into the second section of Zion National Park. The road would pass in and out of BLM and Park territory as it headed up onto Kolob Terrace, and my goal was to find a safe place to spend the night on BLM land. Along the way, we found ourselves high on a plateau with a million stars not only above us, but below us as well, just outside my window. I pulled over at what appeared to be a small turnout, and we both hopped out to do some night photography. I went through a quick tutorial with Savory about night photography and camera settings. Then, I set up my tripod and set to work getting images of the Milky Way. Once we were both cold and tired enough, we packed up and continued on, soon finding a good spot to pull over and spend the night.
Star trails and the Milky Way beyond Lambs Knoll. I wasn't sure what I was going to get for this shot. I'd had to cut short the exposure when I heard a car approaching. I was quite pleased that the star trails showed so well, as did the rock formation, and the fact that you could see the core of the Milky Way even in the long exposure was a nice surprise. Zion National Park, Utah The following morning, we woke early after spending the night listening to the sound of coyotes howling nearby. It was a beautiful morning, and I was pleasantly surprised by the landscape around us. We had chosen a fantastic spot to spend the night and so were able to photograph sunrise just a few feet away. Once we were done, we packed up and started the drive back down to the main road. We were constantly amazed by the views and by our elevation as we descended from Kolob Terrace. We’d had no idea just how high we’d come or what the landscape had been like. We stopped numerous times for photos on the way out.
We made our way to the main section of the park. Amazingly, the line was really short at the entrance, and we were able to find a parking space without issue. Originally, our plan was to do some hiking before our trail ride scheduled at 1pm. Unfortunately, everything took a lot longer than we expected, so it wasn’t until noon when we were finally boarding a shuttle. We headed straight to the Zion Lodge shuttle stop and headed over to the corral to check in. Then, we had a bit of time to kill, so Savory walked back over to the Lodge to inquire about future accommodations.
Unfortunately, I found out that we would have to leave all of our gear behind during the ride. They would allow me to take only one camera and attached lens, hanging from the neck strap. It wouldn’t be in the way, interfering with my ability to control my mount, and it was small enough that it shouldn’t spook the horses. So, I spent the extra time wandering around the area, taking photos with different lenses, trying to figure out which one would be best. I decided on my 28-70mm for a bit more versatility, not knowing how close we might be to the rock walls or what we might see for wildlife. In the end, though, it didn’t really matter. I did get to see a few deer and a couple of squirrels, and the scenery along the trail was quite pretty, but I wasn’t able to stop long enough for any images. It was only at the far end of the ride, when we were all stopped for the guide to talk with us a bit, that I was able to capture a handful of photographs from horseback.
After the ride, we took some more photos near the corral before starting the hike to Lower Emerald Pools. Despite my goal for the trip to take more time with my photos, that just didn’t happen on this hike. I found I wasn’t really in the mood and concentrated more on enjoying the hike and just taking quick snapshots than actually working on any real photography. So far, there wasn’t any indication of fall foliage. All the trees were still bright green, and while they were pretty, it was a little disappointing. My vision of getting beautiful oranges and reds and yellows amongst the red rock walls there in Zion just didn’t seem likely any longer. On top of that, when we made it to the lower pool, the water level was almost non-existent. The pool was just a bit of mud, and the waterfall was less than a trickle, so all the images I’d thought I’d get there disappeared as well.
We continued on to Middle Emerald Pool, and I really enjoyed that part of the hike. The trail started to lead up through the rocks higher along the wall and involved various sections of stairs, rock cuts, and tree tunnels. It was definitely my kind of hike. I took a lot more photos in that section, even though they were still essentially just snapshots. When we arrived at the pool itself, we were pleased to find it had much more water. It was quite a pretty little spot with arching trees and the reflection of the rock formations across the valley. There were large rock ledges nearby from which the waterfalls, when water levels are much higher, drop off to soak the trail below.
After spending a little bit of time getting photos and relaxing, it was time to start heading back. From our location at the middle pool, we had two choices. We could either return the way we came or continue on another trail to the shuttle stop at the Grotto. Because we needed to make sure we didn’t miss the last shuttle out of the canyon, and we didn’t know how long the other trail would take, we opted for the safe choice and went back the way we’d come. The hike back was uneventful, and we reached the shuttle stop in plenty of time. There, we found a few deer milling around, and it was kind of cool, the way the deer didn’t seem to care about any of us.
We boarded the shuttle a few minutes later, and when we arrived back at the visitor center, we headed out of the park. That morning, one of the rangers we’d spoken with had suggested going to check out the nearby ghost town of Grafton, so that was our plan for the evening. After a few wrong turns, we made it to the abandoned town. We had dinner in the parking lot, and by the time it was completely dark, we were ready to do some night photography. Another car arrived just as we were getting ready, and it turned out to be a young photographer. She had been there the last several nights with a class learning all about night photography. She was a big help, giving us pointers on light painting, experimenting with different light sources. The three of us had a blast working together, but when she decided she was done there and wanted to head into the park for some photos of Watchman, we were ready to call it a night. So, she said goodbye and headed out, and we decided to just go ahead and camp right there for the night.
The next morning, we decided to wander around the ghost town for some photos in the light of day. The town wasn’t as we’d originally imagined. Instead, it consisted of a single room schoolhouse/church and a handful of houses nearby among the fields. It was very small but still interesting, and in that beautiful morning light with all the cows milling about just beyond the buildings, it was definitely nothing to be scared of. It may be abandoned, but it definitely didn’t feel like a ghost town. Instead, it felt like when I find old remnants of stone foundations or little tiny cemeteries in the middle of the woods here in Maine - just a small peaceful piece of history.
After photographing the town and the countryside in its vicinity, we headed back to the main part of the park. After breakfast in the parking lot, we spent some time photographing the area near the visitor center. I started at the edge of the parking lot looking into the canyon. From there, I moved down to the bridge by the campground. I did some long exposure experiments with my polarizer and ND filters down at the edge of the Virgin River. It was a really great morning, so nice to slow down, relax, take my time with the photography, but also to just soak in the peacefulness of the day.
After finishing up at the river, we boarded the shuttle to head all the way to the end to the Temple of Sinawava. The plan was to spend the day hiking. There’s a relatively short trail that leads to the entrance to the Narrows. Savory wanted to hike some of the Narrows, while I was going to spend my time photographing the entrance and the general area of the trail. Then, after we were through, we were hoping to have time to stop at the various shuttle stops on the way back for more photos, as the main canyon really was quite pretty. Once we reached the end of the line, we didn’t set off on our hike right away. We spent quite a bit of time wandering around the area of the shuttle stop. I worked on photographing the play of sunlight on the trees and other interesting aspects of the landscape. Then, by the beginning of the trail, we found a doe and her fawn. They were just so close, it made it easy to work on getting good images, and it was a lot of fun.
Eventually, we started our hike of the Riverside Walk trail. Along the way, we still took some time for photographs. Occasionally, I used my tripod, while at others, I just hand-held my camera. A few times, I even decided to just snap a quick photo with my phone with the idea I’d stop for better photos on the way back. That was a mistake on my part, but I’m glad I at least got the images on my phone. It’s an important lesson to remember, one I often have trouble with - there may not always be a later. There might not be time when you return, the light might not be as good, you might take a different route back altogether, etc. If you see something you want a photo of, you should always try to take the time to get an image, in one form or another at that moment, rather than putting it off until later.
When we reached the end of the trail, Savory set off into the Narrows, while I set about doing more experiments with long exposure with the Virgin River and the masses of people. There wasn’t much in the way of cascades and ripples, but there were tons of folks, so it was a lot of fun to see what would happen. Savory returned before long, having discovered that you need some specialized gear to get very far. But, she was really happy with what she’d managed. We packed up and left to catch the shuttle back down the canyon.
We hopped on and off the shuttle at the various stops for some quick photos. At the Weeping Rock stop, you could see the Organ, Angels Landing, and the Great White Throne above the trees. Across the road, you could see trails and tiny dots of people crisscrossing the giant curved wall that led to Weeping Rock. At the Grotto stop, we went a little ways onto the Kayenta Trail for images. At the Court of the Patriarchs stop, we were on the opposite side of the river with some different views than we’d had on the trail ride.
Eventually, we made it back to the visitor center. We ate dinner right there in the parking lot, killing time. My goal was to do some night photography there before driving deeper into the park for some other locations. Once it was dark enough to start, we spent some time getting images of Watchman, the visitor center, the campground, and the mountains. When we finished there, we moved on to the museum at the second shuttle stop. Savory disappeared into the night, while I stayed at the parking lot working on Milky Way shots near Watchman. Eventually, we moved on to the final photo location for the night, Canyon Junction. This was the location where all the iconic photos of Watchman and the Virgin River are taken from, and I was hoping for some really great photos.
Unfortunately, I never got the chance. There was too much traffic still at that time of night, and the headlights of all the cars were wreaking havoc on our shots. In addition, it didn’t feel safe out on the bridge in the prime location with all the cars going by in the dark. And, we heard some rocks tumbling down the slope above us shortly after exiting the car. Not long after, Savory saw something dart across the road, but wasn’t sure what it was. It was all just too distracting, and we were both pretty tired after our long day. I was disappointed to not get the shot I’d wanted, but looking back now, I know it wouldn’t have happened anyway. One, the timing was off. The Milky Way wasn’t in the right position in relation to Watchman. Also, with all the foliage so green still, there just wouldn’t have been a way to reproduce the image I’d seen before. Two, I now know that my camera’s sensor just wasn’t sensitive enough to light. It could do ok with getting star trails, but even then, only with completely black silhouettes for the landscape. To really get the landscape to show at all, I would have needed to do a really long exposure (hours probably) or a lot of light painting or both. But, the image I had in mind was for star points to really highlight the Milky Way, and the sensor wasn’t strong enough to capture much for stars on short exposures. I didn’t really know any of that at the time. I was only just starting to experiment with night photography once more, so I was rather disappointed in missing the chance for yet another image I’d so hoped for. We headed out of the park and drove through town. It was about midnight by then, and we were surprised to find several mule deer munching the flowers in people’s window boxes. Savory tried to get photos out her window. But, the deer left the flowers behind, meandering into the road and creating a bit of a traffic jam until they eventually moved out. We continued on, turning onto the road to Kolob Terrace once again. We made our way back to the spot from the first night, pulled in, and went to sleep. In the morning, we got ready and headed farther north along Kolob Terrace. This was our last day in Zion, so I wanted to check out the viewpoint up that way showing on my map and also possibly Kolob Reservoir on BLM land beyond the park’s boundary. Not long after we set out, the road dipped down into a meadow with a small herd of elk just to our right. I started to slow down, not wanting to scare them, and found a place to pull over just up a small hill. We grabbed our gear and walked back, but by the time we got there, they’d all disappeared into the brush at the far end of the meadow. We would have been better off pulling over right there and getting photos from the car windows, using the vehicle as a blind.
Looking down onto the meadow where we had seen the elk a few minutes earlier and the greater Lee Valley and Lower Kolob Plateau. Zion National Park, Utah After that, we were soon climbing steeply before reaching another plateau. We stopped a few more times for photos before turning onto the road for Lava Point. As we drove through the woods, happy to finally see some fall foliage, we came across several deer. I stopped the car, and both Savory and I were able to get photos out the window. It worked beautifully, and we had several minutes with the deer not bothered by our presence. When another vehicle eventually arrived on the scene, we moved on and made it out to Lava Point shortly thereafter. It was quite the view, and was a great place to relax and eat breakfast. We got some images, both of the big vista and zoomed in on the details in the distance, before heading back out. From there, we returned to the area where we’d exited the highway a few nights earlier in order to fill up on gas and get a few supplies at the grocery store. This was the first time I was able to see the terrain we’d gone through that first night, and it absolutely blew me away. The landscape opened up, and you could see layers of canyons going on forever. It was like mini Grand Canyons, one after another, each lower and farther away, as far as the eye could see. It was simply amazing.
Mule deer in fall foliage along the road to Lava Point. She was very patient with us and stayed there for several minutes, allowing us to get plenty of photos. Zion National Park, Utah
When we were all set, we turned around and headed back to the main part of Zion for the last time. It was past lunchtime by then, so we drove straight to Canyon Junction, rather than visiting the museum as we’d originally planned to do. I got lucky, arriving just as another vehicle was leaving. I took the vacated spot, and we wandered around for a while getting photos. I got the iconic shot of Watchman from the bridge I’d hoped for the previous night. Then, I headed down to the water’s edge to work on some photos there. Honestly, I actually think I like the photos I got down along the river better than the one from the bridge.
Eventually, it was time to head out along the Zion-Mt Carmel Highway. We drove through the switchbacks, with a brief stop for photos of the Great Arch before entering the tunnels. On the other side of the tunnels, in the east side of the park, we found the landscape to be quite different. We pulled over a few times for photos, but not as often as I would have liked. There just weren’t that many safe spots to get off the pavement. At one point, we got lucky and came to a big turnout. I parked the car so I could walk back for a photo of a lone tree I’d seen a moment earlier, while Savory wandered around the area by the car. I wasn’t able to get the photo I’d wanted, as the perspective was all wrong, but I spotted another interesting tree on the way back.
I headed down into the gully and was photographing it when Savory found me. There was a herd of bighorn sheep on the other side of this rock outcropping! She led me over so I could see them, and I got a few photos before they moved off. I ran back to the car to swap lenses while Savory kept an eye on them. When I got back, we moved to a better location and spent quite a while watching them and getting photos. It was awesome! I’d never seen any bighorn sheep in real life before, and to have a whole herd so close was really cool. The photos I got weren’t the best – hand-held for some of them, not the best angle as we were up on a rock above them, cluttered views – but I was still extremely happy with the whole thing.
It was late in the afternoon by the time we got back in the car and continued on. We pulled over one more time, at Checkerboard Mesa, for a few more photos, then left Zion National Park behind. Not far outside the park, we came across some horses with an amazing backdrop of pink canyon cliffs in the distance. It was a bit surreal for me, really making me feel like I was in the Old West, the real West, more so than anything else I’d seen on this trip or on the trip to New Mexico all those years before. After getting some photos, we continued on, eventually stopping for the night at a motel about a half-hour from Bryce Canyon National Park. I was exhausted and thought my photography was done for the day, but it wasn’t. As I was starting to unload the car, I found a little cottontail bunny in the grass next to it. I spent several minutes getting photos before he disappeared into his burrow. What a great way to end the day.
Painted horses at the Zion Mountain Ranch with the painted cliffs of what may be the Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park in the distance. Mt Carmel, Utah
The next morning, we found the truck and grass coated in frost, making us very grateful we’d spent the night in a warm motel. We let the truck defrost while packing everything up, then headed out towards Bryce Canyon. Along the way, the road passed through Red Canyon in Dixie National Forest. We pulled over and spent a little while getting some photos of the red rock hoodoos in the morning light. It was our first glimpse of the famous rock formations, and I was definitely intrigued. A little bit later, we pulled over again, as the road passed through a pair of rock arches. They were just too cool to pass up, so we spent a bit of time trying to get photos in between all the vehicles passing by.
Dixie National Forest, Utah Unfortunately, it wasn’t long after that we passed into an area of cell phone reception, and Savory got an urgent message from home. Apparently, there was a family emergency back in Salt Lake City, so our trip was being cut short. We spent the rest of the morning bee lining back to the city. As soon as we got back to her place, she took off in her car, and I set about unpacking the rental. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen for the rest of my trip, but I knew I wouldn’t need such a large vehicle going forward. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Click here for Part II to hear the rest of the story. |
