Left my Washington home three weeks ago. 3,600+ miles later the Jeep and I have returned, along with my wife. We picked her up along the way in Arizona! Spent time in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California. Had weather ranging from the 20's to the mid 80's. Snow, rain, serious wind, thunderstorms & beautiful sunshine.
Front driveshaft of the Jeep wore out on the White Rim Road, Canyonlands. Got a new one made at a rally-car shop in Flagstaff a few days later.
Learned to NEVER carry five gallons of water in a plastic jug, INSIDE my watertight camping trailer... It leaked, all of it, and got all of my wife's clothing wet along with much of my camping gear.
Hiked a lot! Saw things and places I'd never seen. Ate too much good southwest food. Spent great time with my wife and our friends.
We nearly had a head-on with a semi on Hwy 97, Oregon. It was too danged close!
Great trip. I'll add some photos. If you haven't spent time in the Southwest, you should.
NINE MILE CANYON, Utah:
Just spent a night in the Alabama Hills outside Lone Pine myself. Stunning place.
East side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, from Lone Pine:
Thanks. Kath and I have wanted to go roam the southwest for quite some time, and finally made it happen. I think we'll return for more!
Guy
Amazing. And to think that most of the worlds population will never venture out to see these amazing perspectives.
Well done, Major!
Danno
We only spent a day at the Grand Canyon. I could have spent weeks there, hiking and exploring:
Walnut Canyon, Sedona, and Oak Creek were each wonderful:
While still in Arizona, we visited several ancient sites. Ruins, petroglyphs, and pictographs were seen:
Wupatki:
Titus Canyon & Death Valley - we were running short of time when we hit Death Valley, so only spent one day in the area. It's worth much more than that! Our descent through Titus Canyon was incredible!
Then there was Ubehebe Crater, site of a massive explosion 2,000 years ago. It's a half mile wide and 500' deep!
And we exited Death Valley after snapping a few photos at the Stovepipe Wells sand dunes:
Looks like an amazing trip.
Stunning photos, Guy. I am so stoked to be able to get back to Moab in June. 4 years is waaay too long to be away. Thanks so much for sharing your experience! Looking forward to the second installment of this trip!
Dan
Murhpy Hogback, bit of an obstacle requiring me to use 4-low:
The geography is immense!
Desert bighorn sheep:
More to follow as we hit Arizona & beyond!
Canyonlands, the White Rim Road. This is leftover from the 1950's uranium exploration in the area. A wonderful opportunity for overlanding. Get your campsites reserved well in advance.
Near Mineral bottom, along the Green River:
Switchbacks leading from Island in the Sky to Mineral Bottom:
Zeus & Moses rock formation: