From 2011/03/28 to 2011/04/03

-- From Halls Crossing to Grand Canyon

 

 

 

The road tracklog 
from Halls Crossing to Grand Canyon
from 2011/03/28 to 2011/04/03 

USA's National Parks

 

Monday March 28 I moved towards “The well-known Monument” in the whole world by Hollywood movies oin particular with John Wayne in 1938, Monument Valley. The Hwy 261 head down by a dirt road for 5 miles towards Mexican Hat which owes its name after a rock like a Mexican hat. I lunched in the vicinity.

 

 

 

Dirt road towards Mexican Hat 
Hwy 261 
28/03/2011 

 

 

 

Mexican Hat Rock 
Hwy 261 
28/03/2011 

Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park

 

 

 

Museum 
Navajo Country 
28/03/2011 

 

 

 

Museum 
Navajo Population 
28/03/2011 

Hwy 163 offers an unforgettable approach of Monument Valley in spite of a bad luminosity. The museum inside a Visitor Center gives a short outline of the Navajo's culture as their participation at WWII. The 17-mile trip inside the park meanders between the geological sculptures, called as The Three Sisters, Totem Pole, John Ford Point etc There too in spite of a bad luminosity the sight is stunning, with imagination it is possible to hear the Hollywood cow-boy's ride. I bivouacked on a Primitive Campground. The sunset is exhibited by the Gallery.

 

 

 

Monument Valley, Landscape 
Hwy 163 
28/03/2011 

 

 

 

Lookout 
Monument Valley 
28/03/2011 

 

 

 

Totem Pole 
Monument Valley 
28/03/2011 

 

 

 

John Wayne 
Monument Valley 
28/03/2011 

The following day I attended as from 7 a.m. the sunrise which was also impressive but difficult to take in photograph without special filters. After Monument Valley nothing appears beautiful, landscapes are without glare nor majesty. On the way towards Page at the edge of the Lake Powell, the Square Butte attracted despite everything my attention. The town of Page did not appear very attractive, along a street Churches of all allegiances followed one another in litany, Church Row.

 

 

 

Sunrise 
Monument Valley 
29/03/2011 

 

 

 

Square Butte 
Hwy 98 
29/03/2011 

Alas on Wednesday March 30 I got up one hour too early, Arizona is one of the states not to practice the summer-time –DST, Daylight Saving Time– I was as of 7:30 am at Glen Canyon Dam to collect booklets in the Carl Hayden Visitor Center. The remainder of the morning was devoted to administrative tasks, address of the Central Post Office in Salt Lake City for receiving some spare parts in poste restante, phone call with the Michelin tires dealer in Salt Lake City, piece of bravery, but an American gentleman noting my embarrassment carried out this call for me, prolonged stop at McDonald's for email sending. In the afternoon I visited Wahweap and its marina without nautical activity, then Lone Rock. The landscapes of the Lake Powell in low water were not very attractive. At Lone Rock some campervans occupied the edge of the lake, I decided to bivouac in front of this insolated rock.

 

 

 

Glen Canyon Dam 
Page 
30/03/2011 

 

 

 

Dam & Bridge 
Page 
30/03/2011 

 

 

 

Coal power plant 
Page 
30/03/2011 

 

 

 

Lone Rock Beach
Page 
30/03/2011 

The sunrise on Lone Rock Beach was stunning.

 

 

Sunrise, Lone Rock Beach 
Page 
31/03/2011 

 

 

 

Sunrise, Lone Rock Beach 
Page 
31/03/2011 

On the move towards Lees Ferry in Glen Canyon I made several stops of which the first was at McDo to read messages in my mailbox. Then it was a lookout on Horse Bend, dramatic meander of Colorado River; in a few million years there could be a Natural Bridge. At the crossroads between Hwy 89A and a road to Lees Ferry the Navajo Bridge offers a view over the Colorado River.

 

 

 

Horse Bend 
Hwy 89 
31/03/2011 

 

 

 

Navajo Bridge, Colorado River 
Hwy 89A 
31/03/2011 

Finally I wished to see Cathedral Wash a walk of -3 mile round trip- announced as moderate. Alas my progression was stopped by a descent in the canyon which proved to be impossible for me without endangering my physical integrity. I gave up the death in my heart close to the target  -a wise man knows his limits- Clint Eastwood.

 

 

 

Lower Cathedral Trail  
Road to Lees Ferry 
31/03/2011 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lower Cathedral Trail 
Road to Lees Ferry 
31/03/2011 

 

 

 

Balanced Rock  
Road to Lees Ferry 
31/03/2011 

At the end of the road an huge truck unloaded boats for Colorado River's descent in raft. I bivouacked on the spot.

 

 

 

Boat Ramp 
Road to Lees Ferry 
31/03/2011 

At the departure from Lees Ferry the sunrise emphasized the colors of the Vermillon Cliffs. The Hwy 89 up to Cameron then the 64 up to Little Colorado River are not of any interest.

 

 

 

Sunrise 
Lees Ferry 
01/04/2011 

The first stop was thus at the gorges of Little Colorado River in Navajo territory. The river takes its source at Mt Baldy before joining Colorado River in the Grand Canyon. Their narrowness marks a great difference with the width of the Grand Canyon.

 

 

 

Little Colorado River 
Hwy 64 
01/04/2011 

 

 

 

Little Colorado River  
Hwy 64 
01/04/2011 

Grand Canyon National Park

After the entry in Grand Canyon National Park several stops on Desert View Drive offer some lookouts; most remarkable were Desert View and Grand View Point. The luminosity at the beginning of afternoon was not favorable for pictures. Some snow plates were still visible on the wooded slopes exposed northwards. In Tusayan I lunched at McDo for surfering on Internet.

 

 

Desert View 
Desert View Drive 
01/04/2011 

 

 

 

Grand View Point 
Desert View Drive 
01/04/2011 

 

 

 

Grand View Point 
Desert View Drive 
01/04/2011 

After having established my camping in Mather Campground for three nights I took two free shuttles to go to Hopi Point to attend sunset, always magic moment. I must say that the organization of the park moved since my first visit, it is in all remarkable points.

 

 

 

Sunset 
Hopi Point 
01/04/2011 

 

 

 

Sunset 
Hopi Point 
01/04/2011 

Of course I should go down in the Grand Canyon. Saturdays morning I undertook the Bright Angel walk up to Indian Garden given for 4.6 miles i.e 7.4km one-way. The GPS posted at the back 17.3km that I walked in 1:55 to the outward journey and 2:20 to the return. The uneven was approximately 1200 meters. The landscapes is gigantic, it is giant. Nature made in disproportion…

 

 

 

Bright Angel Trail 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

 

 

 

Trace GPS 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

 

 

 

Bright Angel Trail 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

 

 

 

Indian Garden 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

 

 

 

Indian Garden 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

 

 

 

Ground squirrel 
Grand Canyon 
02/04/2011 

The next day I went down again in the Grand Canyon with a target to reach the Colorado River by South Kaibab Trail -in red- then by going along it up to Pine Creek and back by Bright Angel Trail -in black- with a new passage at Indian Garden. It was a trekking of 6:30 to walk 26.7 km by leaving at the altitude of 2178m to arrive at the bank of Colorado River at 720m and to go up to the village at 2055m, given GPS. Landscapes were always also imposing with a more favorable lighting. I returned exhausted but happy.

 

 

 

South Kaibab Trail-Bright Angel Trail 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

Trace GPS 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

South Kaibab Trail 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

South Kaibab Trail 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

South Kaibab Trail 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

Auto portrait-Colorado River 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

Silver Bridge & Black Bridge 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 

 

 

 

Bright Angel Trail 
Grand Canyon 
03/04/2011 


Grand Canyon, le 2011/04/03

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