1:00AM November 22nd 2012 Thanksgiving…I am stirred back to consciousness by the gentle sound of Andrea’s twinkling alarm. I am rising to make the 4 1/2 hour drive south, to a location on the edge of the Island In The Sky, to stand shoulder to shoulder, tripod legs entwined, with a dozen or more photographers…Giving Thanks for the beautiful sunrise we were about to be graced with rising through the opening in Mesa Arch.
I arrive at the Mesa Arch parking lot an hour before the sunrise. Thinking that I would be the only guy crazy enough to be out there on Thanksgiving morning. Much to my surprise, there were already several other cars in the lot. I could see someone at the car next to me preparing his gear for the hike out to the edge of The Island In The Sky and Mesa Arch. As I prepared my own gear, he passed by commenting “don’t you have anything better to do on Thanksgiving?”. I simply replied, “I can’t think of anything that I’d rather be doing!”.
In the complete darkness, I donned my headlamp and made my way to the trailhead. The hike out to the arch is only about a quarter mile or so on a well established trail. But in the darkness, with my poor vision and a totally inadequate headlamp, I soon was stumbling disoriented through the desert towards the 1000 foot cliffs on the edge of The Island. It was then and there that I promised myself that I would invest in a better headlamp when I had the chance.
As I crested over a small rise, I could see the lights of other photographers already out at the arch which at least gave me a beacon to head for. And soon after arriving, I was jockeying for a position to set up my tripod and wait for the upcoming show.
I had been to Mesa Arch several years ago, but had arrived later in the morning and missed the actual sunrise. The spectacle as the sun rose was absolutely beautiful! All that could be heard was the sound of camera shutters being released as the entire underside of the arch began to glow a bright orange!
After the show, I made my way to the only campground in the Island In The Sky and secured my spot for the next two nights. From there I drove out to Grand View Point and made the several mile round trip hike along the edge of the cliffs out to the point. The views from here never cease to amaze me. The vastness of the area is overwhelming! And the cliffs that you walk along are literally 1000 feet tall. One misstep out there would be all she wrote!
From there I ventured out to the Upheaval Dome area and did a bit of off trail exploration. I was able to find what I am sure is a rarely, if ever, visited location which provided some very interesting views of Canyonlands with the Green River snaking its way through the canyons by landmarks such as Candlestick Tower and Turks Head. As well as provided me with some quality time to sit in God’s cathedral and contemplate one of the worlds wonders and reflect on all that I have to be thankful for.
After that I made the hike to the top of Aztec Butte to explore some granaries that the Ancient Ones had left behind. Before 1300 A.D., there were many Anasazi Indians living within the boundaries of Canyonlands National Park. They generally lived in the canyons below the mesas where water was more abundant. Particularly along the Green River. But they also made frequent trips to the mesa tops for the purpose of gathering food. There is still a great deal of evidence of their existence on the Island in the Sky. And one of the best places to see these remnants is on Aztec Butte, where the Anasazi’s built a number of granaries for storing the food they had collected.
With the sun dipping low to the horizon, it was time to make my way out the edge of the cliffs once again. I chose the Green River Overlook area to enjoy the sunset and catch some wonderful warm light being cast upon The Island.
For my last day on The Island, I decided to capture the sunrise back out at Grand View Point. This provided some nice views from the cliffside to the east with the La Sal Mountains in the distance.
The balance of the day was spent exploring the renowned 4 wheel drive trail called The White Rim Trail. I had always wanted to explore this Jeep trail and drove it as far as Lil Tig felt comfortable taking me. The different perspective of being a 1000 feet down from the top of the Island In The Sky Mesa was very interesting and I look forward to the day when I can actually take a more suitable vehicle deeper into this amazing area.
Another evening out around Green River Overlook for sunset rounded out what was a wonderful Thanksgiving adventure.
