Rose of Sharyn

"...a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys." - Song of Songs 2:1

My romp around the continental southwest began in Las Vegas, which is a town that holds nothing of value to me... except the thrill ride on top of their 1,200 ft tall Stratosphere Tower that dangles you over the edge.

"I can see every iteration of the Blue Man group from here!"

The cornerstone of my entire trip was my hike into the Grand Canyon [West] to visit the Havasupai land and their system of waterfalls. Due to the single digit temperatures that made for some pretty difficult nights, I decided last minute to combine my two days of hiking into one because pain is temporary and wrong.

I got going very early in the morning around 4am, driving more than an hour down an unmarked road to the trailhead. Once there, I got to meet a number of fellow masochists travellers who were all gearing up from their individual journeys. A moment of comradery occurred when people realized what pieces they were missing. I needed batteries since my headlamp had been turned on in my bag during travels, and was able to trade with someone who forgot their wool socks and I had an extra pair. ...Also someone forgot water??
We helped him out.

The Canyon was wonderfully quiet and allowed for hours of meditation, prayer, and the occasional monologue of sound effects.

The waterfalls that awaited the end of my 30 miles round trip were well worth each step. 

Havasu Falls

Mooney Falls

My next stop after a day full of hiking [besides an Epsom Salt bath] was to Sedona, AZ to visit with my friends Kelly and Andrew who lived in Cottonwood. They treated me around the town, brought me to the little town of Jerome tucked away in the mountains, and otherwise provided me with good company, good rest, and good beer.

Sedona, AZ has it's own unique and fantastic type of beauty

My next major stop was Zion National Park, where it was like walking among giants...

Every destination was beautiful in its own way, and I never thought I would find such beauty in a place like Death Valley.

Over looking Badwater Basin, the lowest point in the North America at 282ft below sea level 

It takes a long time to drive through the valley, and with some of the cliff banks... you have plenty of time to work out your salvation with fear and trembling...

This is Artists Drive, a winding stretch of four miles running through picturesque landscape that is all one-way with no speed limit ... amazingly fun to drive.  

Leaving the valley eventually opened up to the plains of Owens Valley, where I got drive a great length of I-395, which quickly became another one of my favourite stretches of road in the country as it winds through the Inyo/White Mountains and the Sierra Mountains. 

What I should have learned from my trip through the Rockies was to remember that some snow mountain passes aren't open in .... February. So to get to Yosemite National Park, I had to tack on an additional 250 miles and 6 hours to go to the only open pass through the mountains [which, if we're being honest... probably shouldn't have been open given how terrifying that driving was].
But all of it was worth it to end up in Yosemite National Park, the last destination of a beautiful and serene trip. 

The winding cliff roads leading into Yosemite Valley

Tunnel View

Yosemite Falls

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Post-script

It wouldn't be a roadtrip if I didn't check out abandoned stuff!

The Ghost Town of Rhyolite 

These statues we on the way into the town... awesome. 

Gray Mountain, AZ

While not a ghost town, only a gas station remains along with the remains of multi-building motel...

Death Valley Roll-off

Way off the side of one of the road's cliff sides I spotted this beauty. It was a pain in the butt to get down to it and back up without dying. 'Not dying' is a pretty common goal of mine, despite evidence.