Once again, we loaded up the truck on a whim and headed out late Friday night for another adventure. Sometimes we just have a general idea in mind for where we want to go and let the flow of the journey decide where we end up. We have found that this takes out all of the stress and worry of planning a trip and we are truly able to enjoy getting out. With Friday night being the New Moon and knowing that the sky was going to be extra dark that night we decided we had to take advantage of it and go somewhere we could appreciate the night sky.
Looking at the sky and trying to see the stars in the city is rough. The stars look dull and there are only few here and there and honestly… it’s not that significant. When you are out in the wilderness where there aren’t any city lights and light pollution to interfere, you get a completely different experience and stars seem to come out of nowhere to light up the sky by the millions. We can’t even begin to put what we saw accurately into words. Pictures just don’t capture the full effect and the feeling of isolation you get when there is literally nothing around you. Sitting here on the back of the tailgate in the frosty air made us wish that we lived here so we could look at this every night! The Milky Way flooded the sky and we saw shooting star after shooting star. If anyone has any tips or tricks for taking pictures of the night sky let us know because none of ours turned out!
Besides the night sky one of our favorite things to see are the sunrises and sunsets. This trip we camped in one of the coolest spots. It was on the edge of a gorge with the most dramatic view all around us. We laid out the sleeping bags in the back of the truck and woke up to this. I definitely would say this is waking up on the right side of the bed!
There are always so many interesting and peculiar things you can run in to when you are out hiking and exploring, along with random animals and wild life. One of the highlights of this trip was finding some red spotted toads in a crystal clear pool of water.
After an afternoon of nothing but blue skies we watched an unexpected storm creep in. Storms in the desert are always fast moving and intense. They were fun for us to watch from a distance, but if you were caught in one of these they can ruin your trip and be extremely dangerous if you’re not prepared. We saw the power of this storm after it had passed through and the unlucky campers with flooded camps that weren’t prepared.
We were lucky enough to see the head of the flash flood as it raged down the canyon and filled the wash in a matter of seconds. As we went down the road a little further we saw the storm water shooting off the cliffs that added to the raging waters. We thought it was entertaining to watch, but we also realized how careful you have to be when exploring down the bottom of a wash and in slot canyons.
We definitely had another successful adventure to add to the books. Living in Utah has allowed us to see so many different locations in various seasons and with the weather always changing, we constantly feel like we have a new experience each time we go out, even if we have been there before.
Awesome pictures!! I have to check this place out!
Thanks! It’s amazing and this was one of our favorite weekends! We saw some cool stuff!
You are so lucky to be living in Utah! These pictures are amazing and I wouldn’t mind waking up to that view either! 😉 Thanks for sharing and stay safe!
Thanks! It was seriously the best! We just woke up and were surrounded by the most amazing views! 😊
This post is like window to your adventure for me!
I really enjoyed reading it and knowing about the adventurous trip.
I liked your idea of not planning too much and reducing the stress. Go with the flow. 👏😍😁
Thanks!! It was so fun just to kind of see where we end up and make spontaneous decisions! Lol.. for a quick random road trip it definitely gave us some great memories and photos!
Exactly! The photos are too gorgeous and I am sure that you made memories that will last forever!👏👏😁
Awesome pictures!!!! 😀
Thank you!! 💜💜
Beautiful photos! You are very lucky to be living in Utah. Thank you for connecting with me, and I look forward to following more of your amazing journeys 😃
Thanks so much! Utah is so pretty! It’s so fun to meet other bloggers and make new friends!
I like your photos of the landscape and the videos of the flash flood. “Canyon Land”: are you in Canyonland National Park? We are leaving Friday (from Idaho) and heading to Utah for some camping – probably around Moab. Would like to see more of Utah before we head on further south for the winter.
We were in an area called the San Rafael Swell… I have a few posts on this area it is so pretty there! You get a lot of the same type of scenery as those areas but it’s not a National Park so it’s not as touristy. Moab is definitely a must see for sure! There are so many amazing spots in Utah it would be hard to pick just one to visit!
We spent a week at Willow Flat in Canyonland, then a couple of days in Dead Horse State Park. Clifford camped at Horsethief Campground for two weeks while I took the bus back to Montana, as my dear old mom passed away. Now I am back in Utah and we are camped in one of those campgrounds sandwiched between HIghway 128 and the Colorado River. Today we are in Moab getting caught up with email, and we just enjoyed lunch at the Moab Brewery. We are lingering a bit, as there is so much to see and do here. But New Mexico calls and we will be leaving sometime next week. It has been great being here and I hope to get a blog and some photos posted one of these days.
Wow sounds like you have had an amazing time camping and enjoying the scenery! It’s so beautiful in that area and there really is so much to see, seems like you can never fit it all in! Can’t wait to see he blog post about it! I love to read about other people’s adventures there!
Thanks for swinging by and thanks for the follow. As a trail runner, Utah is on my bucket list big time so I’ll be gleaning what information I can from your blog and your lovely pictures!
I’m in the desert here in New Mexico as well and I’m familiar with the dangers of the desert storms. Happy to see you two were safe.
Trail running is great! I’ve done half marathons before.. and thought about getting into trail running but it’s on a whole different level! Utah has the greatest trails and the best scenery so follow along for sure! I look forward to your posts as well! Stay safe in those desert storms too! 😊 happy running!!
Be careful, once you hit the trail you will never want to come off them again. All your hiking ..you two are already at the heart of trail running.
Magnificent! Amazing that you got footage of the river filling up. Dramatic, and yes potentially dangerous.
Your star gazing sounds heavenly. Bliss. Nothing quite like the huge big sky and stars without the onstruction of city lights.
Terrific post, footage and photos.
Peta
Thank you so much! We were very excited to catch the water in the video! Isn’t star gazing the best when you can actually see everything? It’s amazing! I need to brush up on my photography skills so I can capture it!
Splendous pictures. Great post.
Thank you!! 😊
I love Utah! I can’t wait to get back there again.
Im so glad I love Utah too! There are so many great things to do and see!
Wow, being an Arizona native, you make me miss the desert! Beautiful photos and what a fun hike.
Arizona is gorgeous too! The desert is so captivating and has so much to offer! Thanks for your comment! 😊
Utah looks amazing! I can easily imagine falling in love with it…and making it my home.
Thanks for sharing your adventures, and cheers!
Trin
I’m so glad you like them! We love it here and there are so many cool places to see!! Thanks for your comment!
Glorious post! Truly wonderful photography which I really enjoyed viewing. Thank you so much for sharing your journey. <3
Thank you!! I’m glad you liked it! Sure makes me feel good when I hear that!!
Some really nice photos here. I think it’s great how you appreciate the place that you live, and take full advantage in exploring it
Thanks! We love to get out around where we live! It makes for quick easy trips, but we see some gorgeous places!!
I love your blog. I subscribe to several photography blogs and am always blown away by the gorgeous photographs. Love the flash flood – and the fuchsia sneakers! Thanks for stopping by my blog and commenting 🙂
Thank you for reading! The flash floods were the craziest thing to see it actually happen in person! It was fun to capture it on video! It’s always nice to hear that others enjoy our photos and reading about our trips!