Monthly Archives: December 2019

Posts from Base Camp

Trip Debrief…and revealing the next destination

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(Kingston, Ontario, Canada)

From the natural landscapes to the 24-hour loss of heat and power, there certainly was no shortage of drama on my recent trip to Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.

Antelope Canyon

Ultimately, however, the loss of power was just an inconvenience. We met people the day before who cannot connect to the electrical system at all, so that put our temporary loss into perspective.  It also reminded us how utterly dependent we have become on electricity.

Antelope Canyon

From a travel strategy perspective, I was thankful that I had journeyed to these relatively remote areas as part of a group. Having that additional level of support was quite helpful, even on the days when the power remained in force.  I will continue to use small group travel in situations where I don’t think I’m properly equipped to manage on my own if things go wrong.  Off-season travel to remote locations certainly falls into that category, even if there is no language barrier.

Antelope Canyon

Having said that, I am very much looking forward to my next independent adventure.  Later this winter, I will be skiing in countries that are very familiar, but in locations that are new to me. I’ll start by spending several days in and around Les Diablerets, Switzerland. This is in the French-speaking Canton of Vaud, just a few kilometres west of my 2018 ski adventure in Lenk.

Me, hiking determinedly in Zion National Park

From there, I will travel further west for a full week of skiing in Morzine, France. While I have been in France a few times recently (including a wonderful summer 2018 trip to Normandy and Brittany), I have never been skiing there. In fact, I have never been skiing in any French-speaking part of Europe…so far, my only French-speaking skiing has been in the province of Quebec.

Antelope Canyon

Morzine should be a great base. It is part of the vast (201 ski lifts!) Les Portes du Soleil ski region, linking thirteen resorts in both France and Switzerland. We’ll be able to ski back and forth between countries, not just villages!  Stay tuned for lots more on this exciting destination in the Haute-Savoie.

Antelope Canyon

I will end this post by mentioning one more benefit of travelling in a group: being able to get great photos! All of the photos in today’s post were taken by other travellers who graciously allowed me to use them in this blog. If you want to read more, you can check out these recent posts on Antelope Canyon (Arizona) and Zion National Park (Utah).

Posts from the road

Redemption at the Grand Canyon

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(Tusayan, Arizona, and Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S.A.)

As depressing as Friday night had been, something very special happened in the wee hours of Saturday morning: the now-24-hour-old power cut suddenly ended. I was happily jolted awake by the clank of the radiator, as it began an extended mission to restore warmth to my frigid room.

First glimpse of the Grand Canyon on Saturday morning

Unbelievably, the power and heat remained in force for the rest of the day. Our group now had some decisions to make. Although we were scheduled to visit the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, would we be prepared to forego that and get a real glimpse of the Grand Canyon? We unanimously voted in favour of the canyon. There was a chance for redemption!

Looking east from the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

The canyon did not disappoint. Although we did not have much time, we still saw what we came here to see: a vast snow-covered canyon stretching out for miles, and gleaming in the long-overdue sunlight. I walked quickly to the east, to get some different views of the South Rim before our bus had to leave. Our walk into the canyon itself had to be cancelled, but at least we were getting some idea of what it was all about.

View of the main observation area

We returned quickly to our bus, ready to continue on to the legendary Route 66. But fate was not done with us yet. A much larger bus had skidded off the narrow access road to the bus parking lot. It couldn’t gain enough traction to get back on the road. As a result, we were now stuck too, as there was no other (plowed) way out.

Generic Grand Canyon photo, with snow!

After almost an hour, the large bus had still not made any progress. We made the decision to drive across the unplowed parking lot to the also-unplowed back exit, and just hope that the deep snow didn’t strand us as well.

Snowy hike along the South Rim

Finally, we caught a break. We didn’t get stuck, and we could finally continue with our journey. For the first time in days, it felt like everybody would make their flights back home and/or be able to enjoy a final night in Las Vegas.

A stuck bus blocks the only cleared way out of the parking lot

Not so fast. Of course, we encountered more challenges on the way back to Las Vegas. The roads were still very snowy, and we had to be very careful on the highway. Then, Interstate 40 was closed because of an accident, so we had to drive far longer on the not-very-direct Route 66 than we had been anticipating.

Route 66 in Seligman, Arizona

Our stop in Seligman, the most photogenic local remnant of Route 66, lasted barely a minute. Even so, we still managed to get an idea of how life used to be before the arrival of the Interstates. Family-run motels, soda fountains, and gas stations looked like they hadn’t changed for 70 years.

Route 66 in Seligman, Arizona

It was dark by the time we finally arrived in Las Vegas. Although it is not among my favourite cities, I was still very happy to get there. Our group had one final meal together, and absolutely nothing strange happened. It was a perfect way to end what had been a rather challenging day and-a-half. But we had survived, and we had some great stories to tell!

Posts from the road

“Setback” in Arizona

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(Tusayan, Arizona, U.S.A.)

It is easy to write about the good things on a trip. It is not as easy to write about the things that go wrong. 

Arrival at the Grand Canyon on Thursday afternoon

We arrived at the Grand Canyon late on a Thursday afternoon. It was swimming in fog: we couldn’t see anything more than a few feet from the South Rim of the canyon. However, we weren’t too disappointed, as we would be staying in the area until Saturday morning. Some snow was predicted for the next day, but we figured that would only enhance the scenery (like the snow at Bryce Canyon had done a couple of days before).

First glimpse of the alleged Grand Canyon

When I woke up the next morning, the hotel room was cold.  And very dark.  The power was out. And yes, the heat was out too. I looked out the window: more than a foot of snow had fallen (see photo at the top of this post). This did not look good.

Best picture from Thursday – you can barely see the North Rim. Also a rare moment, with nobody on the usually-crowded observation deck

There were varying estimates on how long the power would be out.  The hotel could not serve breakfast, because the generators were needed to keep the hotel up and running at a minimal level. In fact, no restaurants anywhere in town seemed to be open. Not only were we cold, hungry, and without power, there appeared to be no prospect of an imminent return. The road to the Grand Canyon was closed.  And the snow continued to fall.

Looking down from the South Rim – you can see a large dropoff…sort of.

Interesting things happen when you are faced with no food, no heat, and no power.  All of a sudden, it’s changed from vacation to survival. Which explains why people jammed the only open business: a gas station with no power but some stranded staff. 

Preparing for the apocalypse in the gas station

What do you buy when this may be your only chance to get food for several days?  When a large part of the store consists of products in the “chips” category? And when you know that it will take more than an hour to check out, because the line-up is huge and the bills need to be calculated by hand? Making the best of a bad situation, I loaded up on trail mix, and hoped that the power would return soon.

The hotel parking lot, at about noon on Friday. The snow would continue into the night.

The walk back to the hotel was miserable, with high winds and even some freezing rain pelting my eyes. By Friday night, the gas station was closed, and power had still not returned. The roads into Tusayan remained closed too.  

One power-restoration deadline after another passed. With a nasty cold on top of everything else, this was not my finest hour. I’ve never worn a coat to bed, but there is a first time for everything.  You just don’t know how much colder it is going to get.

(To be continued)

Posts from the road

Page, Arizona

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(Page, Arizona, U.S.A.)

We had very diverse experiences around the essentially new town of Page, Arizona. We began with a scenic outlook over Lake Powell, which was formed by the damming of the Colorado River. The lake is very quiet now, but it must be teeming with activity in the warmer months.

View of Lake Powell, just outside of Page, Arizona

From there, we went to “Horseshoe Bend”. You may not have heard of it by name, but you’ve probably seen pictures of it. It is a dramatic and very deep (300 metres!) curve of the Colorado River that is shaped like a horseshoe. However, as our guide explained, its current state is a reflection of “Instagram” tourism.

Most of Horseshoe Bend, near Page, Arizona

Before 2018, the parking lot near the top of Horseshoe Bend was unpaved. There was no charge to get in. However, thanks to ever-more dramatic photos of Horseshoe Bend, people have flocked here to take a look at it…and take their own photos to post on social media. As a result, entry fees are now charged (and the parking lot is paved).

At the top of Horseshoe Bend

Alas, even in late November, it does not seem that the traffic has abated very much. Just like seeing Venice or the Mona Lisa, you do not get to enjoy it in quiet contemplation of its beauty and/or your own insignificance.

Our group touring Antelope Canyon

Our visit to the Antelope Canyon was quite a contrast.  This is another slot canyon, but completely different from what we saw in Zion National Park. Through erosion and flooding, the bright red rock has evolved into a kind of underground maze with massive rounded shapes, arches, and spires. 

Bizarre shapes deep inside Antelope Canyon

It seems like the kind of place that Antoni Gaudí might have designed, if he worked with geological processes. Other than that, I think the photographs will do a better job of explaining what Antelope Canyon is like…even though my photos are compromised somewhat by the very difficult lighting inside the canyon.

More strange things in Antelope Canyon

For lunch that day, we visited a Navajo community and had “Navajo Tacos” for lunch. They aren’t really tacos, but pieces of frybread with tacoesque toppings. Although historically associated with the Navajo and other nearby nations, frybread was only developed here in 1864 using colonial ingredients. It was also very interesting to hear about economic development from the Navajo perspective.

My “Navajo Taco”

The day concluded with a long drive to Tusayan, Arizona. The name may not sound familiar, but the nearby national park certainly will. I’ll have details about that in the next post…I have a feeling that it won’t be a typical tourist experience!