October Road Trip

Trip Syllabus:

On Oct. 7, I departed for the great West on a train (sleeper car!) to Flagstaff, where I rented a car and checked out the desert (Petrified Forest, Painted Desert, Meteor Crater) before going on a 3-day hiking expedition into the Grand Canyon. I then went to Las Vegas to see family. On the 16th I headed to Los Angeles, dropped off the rental & headed up the Pacific Coast Highway with my friend Ellen. Back in L.A., I stayed with Uncle Taki & enjoyed an excellent barbecue at Tim & Karen's before heading down towards San Diego to hang out with my cousin Martin.

The Lithodendron Wash Petrified Forest National Park needs a better name. It has so much more than the name implies. You've got petroglyphs, pueblo ruins, the Painted Desert, rock formations called the Teepees, and of course lots of petrified wood. I took a back country hike by myself in the Painted Desert -- on the recommendation of 3 different park rangers. I was hoping to get to a formation called Onyx Bridge, but didn't make it. I either over-shot it or didn't get far enough. Hard to tell from the hand-drawn topographical map they gave me. At any rate, I wanted to be back by a certain time so I just gave up. I did get pretty far, though, about a mile out. It was a breath-taking journey!

The Grand Canyon Just below the rim, on the Havasupai Indian Reservation. Brian was one of the guides for this leg of my journey; a 10-mile hike into the Canyon & 3 days of camping.

My first view of Havasu Falls, after the day's hike. We camped just downstream from these falls for two nights. OK. Standing before an incredible sight, with one's jaw firmly planted in the ground, makes for great writer's block. I wanted so badly to write a poem, but just couldn't find words to even come close to the beauty before me. All I ended up with was a description of sorts (mind you, this is as raw as writing gets)... Havasu Falls 2 plummeting thrill-ride shafts screaming down, the water droplets spreading like flailing arms. Dozens of tiny, elegant strands dancing downward, braiding in & out of the roaring pillars, serving as graceful curving accents. A lush green backdrop, dripping velvet and leafy tassles clinging to ancient clay, sculpted by water hands into jagged tongues & gothic balconies. Tranquil pools below, turquoise & Carribean clear, gently gulp the power of centuries. What can be said upon hearing God's own pulse?

A very drippy spot. We explored the side-canyon next to Havasu Falls, and the stunning scenery I mentioned earlier just got better & better! The ferns you see all along these rocks were dripping with water - not flowing, mind you, just drip-drip-dripping. The sound was amazing & I felt like I was in paradise.

Mooney Falls as seen from a natural balcony about a third of the way down what I like to call the "perilous descent" (see below).

The Perilous Descent. The trail from Havasu Falls led me to the top of Mooney, at which point it started off friendly enough -- stone "steps" along a 200 foot drop. But then I had to duck as I carefully stepped down jagged cave tunnels. Then it opened up to a steep cliff. There were plenty of foot holds, but there were also chains on either side of me that I was told to hang onto or fall to my death. Some of the foot holds were too far apart for someone of my stature, so I really had to work at it. It was so excellent!! I felt like a kid again, climbing around like a monkey.

Mooney Falls seen from further downstream.

The obligatory and amazing Grand Canyon Village. I made a brief stop here on my way up to Vegas.

Nora & Joe, my cousins and gracious hosts in Nevada.

Uncle Sam & me.

Stanley & me.

Once in L.A., I met up with Ellen. I saw her band, Blue Eyed Doll, play at a club called Goldfinger. It was fun -- the music was very ethereal, and her band-mates were real friendly.

In San Francisco, we kicked around the city, checking out Haight-Ashbury, Fisherman's Wharf & Chinatown before heading to Becky's party (Ellen's cousin). I was sorely tempted to get a tattoo on the Haight. I loved the vibe there!

We had a delicious lunch with Sam & Anne at the Wharf. What a dizzying place! Lots of hustle-bustle -- I hardly knew where to look first.

The drive back down to LA was stunning, to say the least. We took Highway 1, of course. The sky was overcast, with some high fog. We sort of felt ripped-off since there was no sunshine, but I think the fog really added something to the trip. Thankfully, we could still see the coastline & a bit of the ocean. The fog gave everything a real Middle Earth feel -- I kept expecting to see Hobbits & Elves picnicking by the side of the road. It is amazing to look down the cliffs & see the violent Pacific crashing down on the ragged rocks along the coast. On the inland side, there were a lot of what Ellen called Narnia Nooks -- beautiful & mysterious valleys. We stayed in Carmel for the night. It is a quaint little up-scale tourist town, which was a little cheaper given the time of year. At the beach we saw an otter swimming close to the shore, and these weird piles of seaweed that looked like props from Plan 9 From Outer Space or something.

Still to come: More pictures from LA & San Diego

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