I spent the last month in the wilderness, from the Great Sand Dunes in CO to the might five National Parks of Utah and then down to the north rim of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. As you might imagine, I’ve got a lot of photos. Until I write about the trip, here’s a “thanks for waiting for me” present, my (so far) top ten favorite images from the trip.
Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado
Canyonlands National Park, Utah
I fell in love with Utah with this view.
Arches National Park, Utah
Early one morning, I hiked to Tapestry Arch near the campground. Just me and the arch, no one else within sight and I treasured that momet of solitude.
Capitol Reef National Park, Utah
The biggest surprise of the trip, how much I loved this place.
Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
To experience Bryce is to be almost overwhelmed by the immensity of the place.
Zion National Park, Utah
I camped underneath the Watchman and so got to watch the colors from sunrise to sunset.
Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona
I’d been to the South Rim but not the North Rim till now. It’s a whole different level.
Navajo Bridge, Arizona
Two mirror-image bridges, one built in 1927-1929 (on the right) and one built in 1993-1995 (on the left here). Bonus was seeing four condors hanging out on the girders of the new bridge.
Horseshoe Bend, Arizona
Despite the hordes of people taking selfies, this was an amazing view and I’m glad I saw it.
Antelope Slot Canyon, Arizona
Checked “slot canyon” off my bucket list for my birthday.
I saw and felt so much it’s going to take a while to digest it and then write about it, so be patient and I’ll share more images while I’m working away on the writing.
(The cover image for this post is the Vermillion Cliffs National Monument in Arizona.)
Nothing is less real than realism. Details are confusing. It is only by selection, by elimination, by emphasis, that we get at the real meaning of things.
Georgia O’Keeffe
Lucky you, 30 years exploring Southern Utah, well before the crowds showed up, I bet 🙂 And, yes, the Alto makes camping very nice, enjoy!
Thanks for the welcome back, Andrea. I have a lot of thoughts, and need time to organize them. Thinking to do a series for the trip itself, and then a separate post/essay on social media, and how to tame/control it in my own life.
Yay Annie!! I’m so glad to see your top 10 best pics during your month of digital reprieve? deferment? silence? Well, dog gone!
Anyway, glad you have returned and with such visual beauties..
Looking forward to the written reflections regarding your travels, photography and digital silence.
Thanks, Andrea
Thank you, Sarah! Also, I’m impressed you found the website, and thanks for reading it! And thanks for that amazing massage, I’m so relaxed and mellow, even after driving all the way back to Salida 🙂
Your photos have me exited for my upcoming roadtrip! You are quite the traveler. Thanks for the inspiration
Beautiful photos from your trip Annie! Happy belated birthday. Wonderful that you saw four Condors in the wild.
We were fortunate to see the baby Condor in Zion this month. Southern Utah is a special place. We’ve ventured there for over 30 years. Now with our Alto (Talus) it’s a whole new experience!
Love to see you back❣️ Fantastic photos.
Oh! So glad you fell in love with the Southwest. What a brilliant way to do it by being off-media. Your photos capture the vastness, uniqueness and just how approachable the Southwest truly is.
what a life you are living. I’m in awe, envious and inspired.
Wow…wow…wow! Absolutely breathtaking photos. I love Utah and its many parks. Thanks for sharing. I’ll watch for more. (And hope you enjoyed your time of solitude. Hope your birthday was wonderful.
Stunning photos Annie. Happy to see your work again but can appreciate the time away you needed and took. Love Georgia’s quote…what makes her art so soulful and what can make photographic images so intriguing.
Great photos! Your comments are very in sync with ours since we’ve camped or hiked in each of these places. We cannot get enough of the American southwest, which is why we head that way from the midwest most winters with our petite camper…
Between your last month and my last month it seems like a year since we’ve been in touch. Great photos!
Glad you had such a great time— beautiful pictures!
So glad you got to finally see Utah. Your pictures are beautiful and do the amazing scenery justice. You’ve captured some real majesty.
I love the slot canyon photo, and I have a picture of the same outlook as you have for your canyonlands photo. But I have it flagged as dead horse point state park. Beautiful pictures, as usual, and I’m looking forward to seeing more about your adventures.
Beautiful photos- looking forward to seeing many more!
Welcome back from your hiatus! You were missed!
Wow! You did a lot in a month! Some day I hope to get back out there. Beautiful photos!
You visited such beautiful places, and took stunning pictures along the way. Can’t wait to read about your adventures.
Welcome back! I’ve missed your posts. And thank you for continuing to share your amazing photography of your amazing adventures.
Glad to have you back online. I don’t know how anyone takes a picture of the Grand Canyon. It’s too big. Eager to hear about your journeys over the last month.