Coyote Buttes, Vermillion Cliffs & Bryce Canyon

[recordalley]

These are pictures are from a winter trip to Bryce Canyon, The Wave in
Coyote Buttes, & Marble Canyon at the entrance to the Grand Canyon.
There is a TR after the first set of pictures.


Condor flying just above the rim in Marble Canyon by psnative, on Flickr


Shelly @ Jim & Shelly Point by psnative, on Flickr


Wave Closeup by psnative, on Flickr


Condor 57 by psnative, on Flickr


Snowy Wave by psnative, on Flickr


We're moving here by psnative, on Flickr


jim & shelly @ bryce 2012 by psnative, on Flickr


Coyote Buttes with Snow by psnative, on Flickr


Hike to the Wave by psnative, on Flickr


Coyote Buttes by psnative, on Flickr


2 Condors by psnative, on Flickr



We took off late January on a trip to Kanab/Page area, Vermillion Cliffs,
Coyote Buttes, & Marble Canyon...the entrance to the Grand Canyon with a
side trip to Bryce. The forcast was for a storm the day we left & then
clearing & warming. Started off with a beautiful sunrise in Yucca Valley.


Yucca Valley Sunrise by psnative, on Flickr

We dodged showers through the Mojave, Vegas & then started up in
St. George turning to snow by the time we hit Zion. We couldn't see the
cliffs of Zion because of the snow/fog.


Deer in Zion NP by psnative, on Flickr

By the time we got to Kanab, there was about half a foot or more of snow.
Next day we went to Bryce with the fresh snow, very pretty. Saw 3
Golden Eagles & 2 Bald Eagles eating some carcass by the side of the
road. all flew off except this one we barely got a picture of.


Golden Eagle by psnative, on Flickr

Roads were icy by the time we got to Kanab the day before, can only
imagine what they were like later that night. This guy wrecked about
10PM on the black ice, we waited here for over an hour when this pic
was taken at 4PM the next day.


Black Ice by psnative, on Flickr

Next day, we went to the Wave in Coyote Buttes. It is extremely difficult
to get a permit as it is very fragile but during the winter your chances are
pretty good.


Half Wave by psnative, on Flickr

We met a guy at the visitor center who went there during the snowstorm
& snapped this picture.


Snowstorm @ the Wave by psnative, on Flickr

It normally looks like this:


Vacations 044 by psnative, on Flickr

Bummer!


Shelly's Shoes by psnative, on Flickr

4 Miles back to the car & still plenty of snow & of course the other sole
came off too.


Hike to the Wave by psnative, on Flickr

I love the hike to the Wave almost more than the Wave itself.


Coyote Buttes by psnative, on Flickr

& the nice snowy road in the AM turned to red gooey mud in the PM. This
was one of 2 cars that got stuck here. Good luck with your deposit on that
rental.


House Rock Road by psnative, on Flickr

We found this remote viewpoint on the north rim of the Grand Canyon
where we saw the condors. It's BLM land & you can camp right on the
edge of the canyon.


Shelly @ Jim & Shelly Point by psnative, on Flickr

Here's the view back toward 89A & the tiny town of Vermillion Cliffs


We're moving here by psnative, on Flickr

Saw these guys leaving on a 14 day trip through the Grand Canyon
in the middle of winter.


Marble Canyon in the Dead of Winter by psnative, on Flickr

This was an incredible trip, we watched the Condors flying around for two hours!

[Ellen]

Howdy Jim

Oh wow, wow, wow!!! I am breathless -- thanks so much for sharing these

Miles of smiles,
Ellen

[HikerBlatt]

Great pictures from a wonderful trip. Thanks for sharing. The condor pics were amazing. I liked Shelly's boots... a bit of duct tape and they'll be nearly as good as new.

[zippetydude]

"The Wave" is amazing. I would love to see that first hand. You mention it's extremely difficult to get a permit - I wouldn't have to actually go out and climb on it to be satisfied, as I wouldn't be doing the photography that you do. Is it possible to get right up next to it without the access being a problem? Thanks for sharing the pics - those are some beautiful places, and very nice job on the photography.

z

[recordalley]

I liked Shelly's boots... a bit of duct tape and they'll be nearly as good as new.

We were actually asking everyone around if they had any. We checked the boots out before we left & they seemed ok. The same thing happened to mine about 2 years ago.

Thanks Z. I really love the area around the wave esp since I've been there twice now. You need a permit to go anywhere near the wave, but there are so many beautiful places nearby that you don't need a permit or you can easily get one. Try Coyote Buttes South
http://www.zionnational-park.com/south- ... buttes.htm
or Buckskin Gulch
http://www.americansouthwest.net/slot_c ... anyon.html
Vermillion Cliffs
http://www.blm.gov/az/st/en/prog/blm_sp ... ilion.html

[bluerail]

Wow Jim, looks like an amazing trip you guys had, what a perfect time to go. Looks like great weather perfect and the colors are beautiful....great photos.

[Sally]

Absolutely beautiful, Jim! Those condor shots - wow! And those rocks! It looks like winter is a great season to be there, providing that the weather behaves.

Yep, I ALWAYS carry a few feet of duct tape with me. It is one of the 20 items in my 10 essentials! (I use it in lieu of moleskin for blisters, and I can think of a bunch of other things it could be used for on a hike.)

[Cy Kaicener]

Thanks for sharing those awesome pictures. I found more of your pictures here
http://recordalley.goods.officelive.com/Trips.aspx

Here is a blog you might enjoy. It has some videos too
http://desertsirena.wordpress.com/

[HH8]

I liked Shelly's boots... a bit of duct tape and they'll be nearly as good as new.

We were actually asking everyone around if they had any.

I keep several feet rolled on my trusty sharpy - comes in handy for so many things!

[HH8]

Saw these guys leaving on a 14 day trip through the Grand Canyon
in the middle of winter.

Tooling through the tules is worth it. Even after a major hypothermia event I declare so.