Waterfalls in Tahoe BMU

22nd to 25th May 2009

On Memorial Day weekend I went camping near Fallen Leaf Lake. It was sometimes fun, sometimes stupid, sometimes solitude and always beautiful. I filled my days with wildflowres and waterfalls ...

I started from Bayarea on Fri at about 6:15PM to avoid traffic. We think so, in reality can you ? I had a long wait at the intersection of CA-237 and I-880. From Mission Blvd exit on I-880 to I-680 uptill Pleasanton I was driving in 10 mph. Later some more delay on I-580. Ahh ... I ran out of patience ... but then what to do ?

On Saturday, I thought I will try to climb Mt. Tallac. My idea was if there is a lot of snow then just go up to Cathedral Lake and return. The rest of the group was also doing the Cathedral Lake hike and so I planned to join them. It was a steady climb with lots of snow patches on the way. Mt. Tallac looked so dominant in the whole set up with carpets of snow on it. I made it up to the Cathedral Lake easily as most of us did. The group organizer had a loop hike planned, with Fallen Leaf trail as return trail. As I always say ... life throws unexpected situations ... Fallen Leaf trail turned out to be a nasty beast to beat ... very steep right down to the lake ... the trail was unmaintained, narrow, rocky and steep ... very steep. At the end of it I felt like my ankles and knees were dislocated. That was not enough we had to walk accross two waterfalls ! Not on the top or bottom ... right in the middle !! It was not very scarry but was of concern as the water was flowing with a considerable force.

On Sunday, the organizer had another ambitious hike from Lake Aloha to Lake Lily which I didn't join. Later in the day I came to know they had FUN. I have different definition for fun though. I went looking for waterfalls ... and I visited Upper and Lower Glen Alpine falls. Lower falls is on the roadside and much more beautiful.


For Upper falls a mile hike is required. We can see it from a distance. When I was at both falls everything was all me alone.


Then I went driving around Lake Tahoe, YES the 71 miles perimeter. Stopped at several State Parks. It was nice though not wonderful. The stops I would like to mention are Sand Harbor on Nevada Side Popes beach on California side. You know Emerald Bay and few other popular places ...

On Monday, I hiked down to Lower Eagle Falls. It was so beautiful. So much of water with so much of force gushing down sprinkling the mist all around ... I stood there like heavely angel in the mist. Everyone has their own fantasies :) It was fun standing there as the cloud of mist covering me. Unfortunately, it covered my camera too. It was just impossible to avoid the waterdrops on the lens.

On the way back I saw Horsetail falls from a distance ... It wasn't a great long weekend trip but, I am happy with my Glen Alpine Falls picture. And the experience of hiking down the Fallen Leaf trail was something :)

Zion National Park

11th and 12th May 2009

It was a last minute dicision to visit Zion National Park. I didn't have much time to visit a National Park but, I had lot of time just to spend it on nothing :) So, I decided to go ... When I reached the park it was later in the day ... Sun was setting ... and in that golden light the gigantic rocky peaks and walls were looking so out of the world ... I was so happy about my dicision ! I kept on smiling to myself. The road here inside the park is so well maintained and it has so many varieties ... it winding uphill and then all downhill you enter so long tunnels ... tunnels have windows ... absolutely beautiful.

I drove around before I could settle for spending a night there. I was so excited to see such beauty around and I wanted to stay longer ... even when it was getting dark I simply drove around till the last ray of light was masked by the darkness of the night ... When I looked for campsite for the night stay, only I could get to see were "FULL" plaques. Then I drove a quarter of a mile out of the park and found a RV resort where I got a place to pitch my tent. It was fully equipped with flush toilets and showers which was a relief. I slept thinking about how to spend those very few hours next day in the park before driving to Las Vegas.

In Zion, we cannot drive to reach the viewpoints, we have to take the free shuttle and from the bus stop take a shot hike. I had time either to take one hike of few miles or take the shuttle ride to all the view points. I chose the later option as I was all worn out by my Grand Canyon hike, driving and so on. The only very short I took was to weeping rock. It was okay something different but I know Zion has mush more exciting places :) I am not posting any pictures :(

I will go back there ... very soon ... I already have plans :)

Wupatki Ruins and Sunset Crater

10th May 2009

Wupatki National Monument wasn't a must see destination in my trip plan. I thought when I had some time between two important places I will check this out ... I exited Grand Canyon National Park from east side and drove down around 100 miles on Hwy 89 to Wupatki Ruins. Along the way it was amazing to see the changing landscapes of Arizona. Unimaginable ! At one place it is all red sand stone mesa, next few miles ashy boiling bubbles, or just red sand all around ...

To enter the National Monument I took a left on Scenic Hwy 545. It is around 39 miles on this scenic hwy which covers both Wupatki and Sunset Crater national monument before joining back to the Hwy 89 again. In Wupatki National Monument, there are three ruins which belong to three different tribes. Lomaki and Nalahiku seem to be smaller and there is hardly anything to see, but Wupatki pueblo is the largest and there is a $5 entrance fees.

When I was hiking at Lomaki ruins I saw a mountain boomer or common collared lizard. It was so sparking fluroscent green and was very swift. I was so exhausted of the heat in that place and my movements were very slow and since the lizard was startled by my presence it moved away in a second and vanished in the near by bush. No luck ... if it were 20 degrees less heat I would go behind it for a shot ... the heat was drying my fluids out and the energy along with it ... I returned feeling fortunate to have seen that colorful creature ...

Then I drove towards Nalahiku ruins. As I went around I saw the strong side winds. These are so unexpected ... I could sense it only with the sound it makes. 'chatt chatt chatt' ... all the bushes and trees on its way swayed at high force and a lot of sand and dust in the air ... rest of the place seemed still and unmoved. It was like an army of ghosts charging at something invisible ... I thought it would be nice to be inside the car than in an open place ... Not sure why did these tribes take all the pain of building something to live there ... such a harsh place with no water, no shade ... I can definitely understand the reason for them to abondon those pueblos and moving though :)

Made my way to the major attraction of the National Monument ... Wupatki pueblo ... surprisingly here there were no sidewinds ... in fact, there was nothing moving ... it felt like making the way through a block of hot dense still air ... after talking to a Ranger Officer at the Visitor Center I explored the ruins ... The booklet I picked up at visitor center explained the history and archeology of the place ...

I wondered the roads are so well maintained here ... and I saw many visitors ... In that unbearable heat people were discussing about the Hopi tribe and trying to understand and guess the reason why Hopi's might have left that big mansion ... I continued my journey towards Sunset Crater National Monument ... It is a protected area and hence we can only see the cinder from the bottom but, cannot hike up to see the crater. At one view point I saw painted dunes far way ... considering the direction, may be it was Painted Desert of New Mexico ... :)


All along the drive through this area I was blessed with the sight of Humphrey range. It is a view to behold. May be the Hopi tribe spent their days of despair watching this view. People who like history and appreciate archeology may like to visit Wupatki Ruins ... I like history and archeology but, sometimes I feel not so strongly ... if you are around this place then you can explore more ... driving 200 miles may not be ... well, this is just my opinion !


I was back on Hwy 89 now ... made my way up to Page ... after driving about 70 some miles ... the sky was becoming deep pink ... sign of setting Sun ... and when I glanced at my left ... I saw a Mustang ... may be there were few more as I could see light dust raising up ... I saw a lone brown mustang standing with the background of pinkish orange sky ... just like in fairy tales ... the tail lightly moving ... it was wonderful ... as if a wish come true ... It was Hwy and I could not stop for a picture ... but the picture of it is caught in the camera of my eye and is saved in my brain forever ... and so I would never forget this trip to Wupatki Ruins ...