At The Backroads

Bryce Canyon Amphitheater

First, let me point out one major change I made in this blog that may not be very obvious. The title is no longer “San Diego Backroads”, but instead, it is now, “At the Backroads”. It is not that I am tired of San Diego, I love this city that I now call home. San Diego is probably one of the very few places on Earth which offers a remarkable geological diversity for a given area. It is amazing to me that I do not have to leave the city to enjoy the wilderness a lot of the times, I just have to hide in its many rugged coastal canyons and mesas and boulder strewn foothills and I felt like I have escaped civilization in a matter of minutes. In as much as I love San Diego’s sparkling blue waters in the Pacific Ocean, yet I still go to its oak and pine clad mountains, and spend time with the surreal beauty of its desert. I am glad to be experiencing all these 3 environments within San Diego County. However, talking about the desert, I must say my favorite part of the desert region of the West lies outside of San Diego, and outside of California. I am a big fan of the desert landscape in Utah and Arizona. And this is why I decide to change my title. To be able to share the wonders of other places. And for my first post outside of San Diego, I am sharing the magical hoodos of Bryce Canyon National Park, in Utah.

Hiker Gazing at the Hoodos Lining the Trail to Queen’s Garden

The hoodoos are pillars of rock left by erosion. Hoodoo means to cast a spell. The fantastic shapes of these rocks are accurately known to cast a spell on every visitor, drawing them to come back, to hunger for more discovery of hoodoos. Seeing these magical hoodos for the first time transformed this poor lady to a giddy little girl. For me, Utah rocks rock, the hoodos rock me with their spells.

Hoodos @ Queen’s Garden Trail

There are very few hotels nearby Bryce Canyon National Park. When planning to visit, try to make some reservations first especially during summer, or you may end up 20 to 30 miles away from the park. One of the very few places near Bryce Canyon National Park to have a comfortable stay is at Bryce Canyon Lodge.

Bryce Canyon Lodge is the only hotel inside Bryce Canyon National Park and is also 18 miles from Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, another amazing natural park that Utah offers.  

Though a lot of tourists are already amazed looking down at the hoodos from the rim of Bryce Canyon, saying “aahs” and “oohs”, but I must say the experience is different when you experience the hoodos much closer when you hike down the canyon. And there are several easy to moderate hikes in Bryce Canyon. One of these hikes is the Queen’s Garden/Navajo Loop Trail. It is only an approximate 3 miles loop hike with approximately 600 ft elevation loss/gain. Since this is a loop, one can start at Sunrise Point going down to Queen’s Garden and climbed up at Navajo Trail to Sunset Point or vice versa. We started our hike at Sunrise Point taking the Queen’s Garden trail first. The trail winds down through colored pinnacles and sculpted spires,

Queen’s Garden Trail

Amongst the Hoodos at Queen’s Garden Trail

Hiker @ Queen’s Garden Trail

Hiker Looking Down at Queen’s Garden Trail

passing through tunnels,

Hiker Passing through the Arch Tunnel @ Queen’s Garden Trail

where each step seemed to bring another set of amazingly sculpted magical hoodos. It is hard to walk fast in this trail, as I kept on gazing at each hoodo in front of me. It was hard to leave a spot, but I just kept on telling myself to move for there are more hoodos to reward me.

The end of the Queen’s Garden Trail is of course, the Queen’s Garden. There is a short trail that leads to the formation known as Queen Victoria.

Queen Victoria in Her Natural Majesty

It is amazing that this lightly colored rock, sculpted by the forces of nature, has some resemblance to the many statues of Queen Victoria found in Europe. From Queen’s Victoria Garden, instead of returning to Sunrise Point, we continued on the trail that will bring us to Navajo Loop. This part of trail follows the Bryce Creek where the trail is now lined with bristlecone pines. Interesting to find a lot of pines down the canyon after the hoodos. But this trail is not all pines, mixed with the pines are still some intresting rock formations of various colors.

A Colorful Hoodoo down the Bryce Creek

The trail comes to a junction with Peek-a-Boo trail, but we chose the one going to Navajo Loop trail. Some of the popular hoodoo formations in the Navajo Trail are: 1. The Silent City ,

The Silent City @ Navajo Trail

Hikers at The Silent City

2. The Wall Street, these narrow canyon was named after Wall Street due its resemblance of NYC streets and skyscrapers.

Navajo Loop Trail to Wall Street

3. The Thor’s Hammer.

Thor’s Hammer

The trail from Wall Street to Sunset Point at the rim ascends 521 ft on steep switchbacks.

Hikers traversing the Switchbacks on Navajo Loop Trail

What is amazing about this hike is that for a short 3 mile distance, you get to see a lot of different characters. It seems to me that Bryce Canyon National Park is a community of stone characters, and what character they represent depends on one’s imagination. What is magical about this is that they were carved and shaped by the natural forces of the Earth. Millions of years of wind, water and geologic mayhem shaped and etched the pink cliffs at Bryce, which isn’t actually a canyon but the eastern slope of the Paunsaguant Plateau. Water erodes rock mechanically and chemically. Scouring, abrading, and gullying occur at these iron-rich reddish-pink rocks from which the hoodoos are carved making it so uniquely and fancifully Bryce Canyon National Park. I really could not think of any right word to describe the enchantedness of this park, truly, this is one of the world’s geologic masterpieces. It is a place where we can be giddy as a child again, and marvel at the magical hoodos which seem to bring ENCHANTMENT!

We are making plans to spend spring vacation at Utah again, I am not sure if we will visit this Park again, as Utah’s sculpted and painted desert really has so much to offer. It is nice to take a break once a while from the blue waters of the ocean and the woods in the mountains to experience the amazing works of nature in the desert.

For more information about Bryce Canyon National Park,  please visit http://www.nps.gov/brca/

Lance Armstrong, in an interview before the start of the race at Ranco Bernardo

Last Sunday, February 22, 2009, was the last day of the Amgen Tour of California. Since it is their first time here in San Diego, I did not want to pass the opportunity of getting a chance to see Lance Armstrong and also to experience the event. The start of the race was at Rancho Bernardo, and ends in Escondido. Though these two places are probably just 10 miles from each other, but the tour passed through the valley and climbed up to Palomar Mountain.  

Palomar Mountain, San Diego County

The complete tour was 96.8 miles which loops from Rancho Bernardo to Valley Center to Palomar Mountain to Valley Center and ending up in Escondido. And since San Diego County has a lot of hills and valley, before and after the climb at Palomar, the bikers also had to go through several mountain climbs, but the major climb is at Palomar Mountain.

Palomar Mountain, summer

Palomar Mountain, Fall

Palomar Mountain, Winter

The racers peaked at 5123 ft, which is the highest summit climbed by the tour so far. Palomar Mountain is about 40 miles from the race start, and is one of the quiet and scenic nature escape in San Diego County.

Going back to the race, because of road closures, we knew we only can pick a few places to experience and be a part of the tour. However, I have read beforehand that it is only at the start of the race where there will be autograph signing and interviews with some athletes, that it was easy to make a decision to go to Rancho Bernardo. Once at the plaza, we did not know which one to prioritize, do we join the line of people and cheer the athletes as they start the race, or go to the parking lot where the participants park and take our chance to see and meet Lance Armstrong. We decided to go to the parking lot, instead of simply sitting on the streets. It was fun at the parking lot, I got to see a lot of the bikers who I did not even know actually, but they were very friendly. They entertain the crowd, talked with them, have picture with them, sign autographs, etc. And then, we saw the Astana truck. There were not a lot of people yet in front of the truck but we were not that early to be right in front of the row, kind of in the middle. When Lance Armstrong and the rest of his team mates including the eventual winner of the tour, Levi Leipheimer,

Levi Leipheimer, 3rd time winner of the Tour of California

came out of the truck, people got so excited and keep on clicking their camera and asking for autograph. Some media took their time to interview Lance Armstrong. I could not take any picture, I am not that tall after all. Maybe, if I were in the Philippines, being in the 3rd row probably I would be able to take picture as I am not really that short, I stand 5′6″, for a Filipina that is tall enough. However, I was amongst tall Americans, and at that situation I was not tall enough to take pictures. I tried, but all I took were the heads or the hands of people raising their camera to take a picture of Lance Armstrong. Until I probably say out loud, ” I see him, I see him, but I can not take any picture”, and suddenly, the guys in front of me, and beside me who blocked me in a way told me, ” go on, you can move forward, we have enough pictures already.” I am just so glad for these very kind people who let me move forward after hearing me “I can not take any picture”. So, I was able to finally see him closer without being blocked by the heads and shoulders of other people.

Lance Armstrong in an Interview

But it was kind of fast as well, since the participants had to be in the start line at exactly 12:00 pm. When the team Astana finally went to the line, we were kind of late already to secure a spot on the road to take picture of the race since again, there were a lot of people on the road already. We ran as fast as we could to get to an uncrowded road, but the start was like a lightning! After 12:00, the bikers kind of just flashed out of sight.

@ the Start of Stage 8 of Amgen Tour of California

Anyway, even if I was not able to take a good picture of the start, but I was not sorry for not securing a spot on the road because we were at the parking lot instead. Where, I got to see Lance Armstrong, and also, I got to experience the kindness of the crowd, who let this poor lady inch forward just so she can take a picture.

My laptop has actually a “Live Strong” logo and signed by Lance Armstrong. But the signature was from the manufacturer, HP. Live Strong is Lance Armstrong Foundation that is committed to fight cancer. As we all know, Lance Armstrong is not only an inspiration for winning the Tour de France for a record breaking seven consecutive years, but also for battling and fighting cancer, and even managing to win the Tour de France in the middle of his fight against cancer, he exemplifies a person of amazing determination to live, to survive, and to move past the challenges.

Anyway, I do not know if the Tour of California will go back to San Diego again, and if I will have  a chance of experiencing the tour again. But I am happy enough with the experience I had last Sunday and the pictures I got, I am thinking of complementing my “Live Strong” laptop with a “Live Strong” mouse pad, and I will be using one of the pictures I took of Lance Armstrong. I may have to design it first so my mouse pad will look good . But I know, I will be asking the services of Kodak for my photo mouse pad.