A visit to the desert

We headed out to the desert for the weekend, to enjoy a couple of last days relaxing in the sun before winter arrives in the form of a snowstorm tomorrow. We arrived at a favorite campsite in the evening, as the sun was setting over the Colorado River.

As the sun peacefully sunk below the horizon, the world turned orange and red.

After dark, one star rose before all the others and sparkled with furious intensity. I opened the shutter on my camera for a few minutes, and the star turned into a streak above the opposite wall of the canyon.

In the photo above, you can also see lights down in the canyon, regulating the flow of train traffic along the tracks that parallel the river. A train came, and I captured its beam as it rumbled by. The million stars are all streaks due to my long shutter time.

The spot where we camped is one that we've visited many times, and it's always almost completely empty. Alas, this weekend was different. In the middle of the night, a boy scout troop arrived. Because all of the designated campsites were filled, they decided to erect their tents on the desert floor surrounding our campsite. It is an understatement to say that the rest of the night and the following morning were not peaceful. I even had the honor of a flashlight beamed on me while I peed behind a tree in the middle of the night. We kept wondering what values the scoutmasters thought that they were teaching those kids. Camp in illegal places. Trample all over the fragile desert floor. Make lots of noise.

Not surprisingly, we moved to a different campsite the next morning, and, although we had a less spectacular view of the river, we enjoyed peace and quiet again. The river looked different at sunrise than at sunset.

I, of course, enjoyed long mountain bike rides on both days, teetering on the edge of cliffs.

Sometimes, I was teetering over the awe-inspiring Colorado River as I pedaled my bike on the edge.

Little did I know that I would continue to teeter, metaphorically, when I arrived home. Life isn't always easy. Sometimes I feel like the gnarled old Utah Juniper near our campsite who has somehow survived centuries despite the harsh and parched heat of the desert.

Unlike that Juniper, I have my pack around me. I feel very lucky in that regard!

I'll tell you more about my gleeful desert bike rides tomorrow. Believe it or not, the stories include a bear who must have accidentally wandered into the desert. I'm starting to think that bears accompany me everywhere!