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Looking up, this cross caught my eye–it would be hard not to notice something man made in the middle of a sandstone forest. Reading the local log book, this is a tribute to a fellow hikers canine companion that had recently passed away. This is in remembrance of him. The application of heavy tone mapping brings out the natural textures of the rock.
Just beyond this natural arch is “Base Camp”, which is one of the stopping points for off-trail hikes in the Valley of Fire. At one of the highest points, it is a good location for side hikes and photographic vistas from the old “Parking Lot” back to the White Domes. Also, the arch and the way it is sheltered from all sides provide shade even during summer hikes where the temperature can exceed 110 degrees F. A log book (volume 2) is located in an ammo box brought up by the illustrious Shube. That hike his wine bottles were carried by pack mules. If you make it up this way, sign in! It’s great to see all those who have signed the log book and left the area clean of trash. The phrase “Take only pictures, leave only footprints” is something I try to live by.
Brisk morning air and rock warming in the sun. Climbing out of the canyons the upper rocks start to wake.
Hike in any one area long enough and you’ll come up with your own set of waypoints for a trail. In this case, the buttress marks the exit point to where I parked. I love this part of the trip as the colors in the foreground differ so much from those in the sunlight. The little ridges seem to lead you to the top of the buttress, although I’ve yet to find a way to the top. This area of Rainbow Vista is also where you start coming out of the slot canyons and upper areas. One second it’s dead silent, the next you’re looking at the valley with the access road. It’s still super quiet but now you’re back in “civilization”.
The Valley of Fire is one of my favorite hiking locations near to Las Vegas, Nevada. Located less than an hour from town (well, north side of the Vegas valley), the Valley of Fire (VoF) is a truly outstanding place to get travel through for a change of scenery, hike, or just get lost for a few hours to a full day. There are a good core of dedicated hikers (more in future image posts) that come out here in a weekly basis when the weather is mild. In told, I’ve hiked here 20-30 times a year while living in Las Vegas. I first visited the park back when I was in Boy Scouts, but the activities we did back then were close to the trail. Some of my DoE co-workers showed me some of the best day hike locations in the park I’ve yet to see. We’re talking massive buttes and other sandstone structures, but without the crowds you see in Zion, Bryce, or other “National” parks. By bushwhacking through the different cuts between formations, you get an understanding of the layout. That makes it easy to either climb to the Top of World or Hole in the Rock (Eye of the Iguana), or meander into unknown areas knowing you are no more that 90 minutes from seeing the access roads. Ironically, the VoF is used in a lot of movies and tons of commercials. If you ever see a car commercial where the car is cruising down a piece of dark black asphalt surrounded by sandstone, odds are it was videoed in the VoF. the last scenes of Star Trek Generations were filmed here too (Silica Domes area). For the upcoming series, I started the hike at a very odd time-sunrise. We normally would roll into the park around 10:00 o’clock in the morning, as that gives the rock some time to warm up and for the sun to be high in the sky for photography (good for some panorama shots). In this instance, I paid the entrance fee at the self-serve location and when I parked on the Rainbow vista road, was the only person there. I was able to catch just the last bits of the full moon before it went down in the west. Morning colors are very different as their is a lot of refraction from Lake Mead, which located due east of the park and where this photo was taken.
The temperature just went above 32 degrees F for the first time in a couple days. There is still snow on the ground here in Atlanta, and the kids are having a blast playing (and falling) with the ice and snow. I’d hoped to take some pictures of local architecture with snow on it, but work and other familial duties, and the cold, kept the camera in the bag. Here’s an interesting overhang where large chunks of sandstone have cleaved with some pretty straight lines. Final image from the late fall trip to Red Rock Canyon.
I don’t know how many millions have come and gone through Las Vegas without taking at least a small trip to Red Rock. Hit the buffet for breakfast in the morning, do some hiking till noon, climb a few south facing 5.10-5.11′s once the rock has warmed up, hit the Red Rock for a late lunch and massage, then back in town before your friends have woken up from their “Hangover”. This was taken from the scenic vista point, the highest point on the one-way service loop in the park. It’s cool to see the sandstone just out of the surrounding caliche and desert soil with the Las Vegas valley in the background. The normal winter haze (uh, smog), was settled in the valley, so no clear shots of the properties on the strip.
I’ve always wondered if these come down slowly over the years/eons or all at once.
Some interesting features are found in the desert. These are the last vestiges of desert varnish capping a piece of sandstone. I wouldn’t be using these for a hand hold anytime soon! Thought I’d post a new image while waiting for an Exchange 2010 install to complete.
While out shooting some landscapes in the Las Vegas area, I shot a few general textures of the local sandstone features. All of these are creative commons licensed, and all I ask is you drop me a line if you use them. All shot on a Nikon D200, so you may need to adjust the size accordingly. Each links to the gallery these are in.
Texture 1, white sandstone, varnish and lichen
Texture 2, white sandstone, varnish, lichen, wider shot
Texture 3, white sandstone, varnish, layered
Texture 4, white sandstone, varnish, sunlit
Texture 5, white sandstone, sunlit |
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Copyright © 2010 Photography by Gavin Adams - All Rights Reserved 
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