wayfaringwordhack: (Default)
wayfaringwordhack ([personal profile] wayfaringwordhack) wrote2009-11-02 06:43 am

The Lottery

A quick clarification about my previous post: Ten people per day are chosen in a lottery at the Paria BLM office. Ten other people "win" their permits online, but they have to apply 4 months in advance. So, 20 people total have the right to be out there on the Wave on any given day.
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For once, we set our alarm, so we could be out at the Wave as the first rays of the Halloween sun lit the rocks. We got a "late" start, however, heading out at 7:30, only half an hour before sunrise. It was a 3-mile, hour and a half hike to the Wave, so one might think we totally missed out on the good morning light. Not so. Perhaps it is different at other times in the year, depending on the sun's position in the sky, but the sandstone formations were still dark when we got there.

We made a tea with our little cookstove (a camping post is in the making, which will prominently feature this little cooker) and waited. The first couple to arrive at the Wave (about 10-20 min before us) were not so patient or, judging from the girl's grumpy face, did not have the desire to wait for good light, so Julien and I were alone with our Warrior's Brew and the swirls of deepening color.

Julien could not contain his eagerness, and he had to jump in to take a swim:

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Just kidding; that isn't the Wave. This is, and obviously, you don't swim it, you surf it:

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and because the surrounding land is just as fabulous:

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We spent a full day out there, and every minute was worth it. We camped above the trailhead parking lot because we wanted to explore two slot canyons on the morrow, Wire Pass and Buckskin Gulch. Antelope Canyon is a lot more photogenic, but you have to be part of a tour and you can only stay about an hour.

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Today, we're heading down to Grand Canyon. The Great American Adventure continues. Amazing to think it is only a part of the Stupendous Round The World Expedition.

[identity profile] frigg.livejournal.com 2009-11-02 04:56 pm (UTC)(link)
Very impressive! It's the rock that's striated like that, it's not sand, right?

[identity profile] jongibbs.livejournal.com 2009-11-02 05:24 pm (UTC)(link)
You folks take the most amazing photos!

Thanks for sharing :)
clarentine: (Default)

[personal profile] clarentine 2009-11-02 05:45 pm (UTC)(link)
...and now I'm ashamed, because I never knew things like the Wave existed right here in my own country. Wow. Thank you for broadening my horizons!

[identity profile] footlingagain.livejournal.com 2009-11-02 06:33 pm (UTC)(link)
*happy sigh*
How beautiful! You're just the people to really appreciate it, too - your enjoyment shines out of each post. The pics, too :)
pjthompson: (Default)

[personal profile] pjthompson 2009-11-02 09:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Lovely! Every time I see pictures of those slot canyons, I'm filled with awe.

[identity profile] kmkibble75.livejournal.com 2009-11-02 10:35 pm (UTC)(link)
Gorgeous pictures!

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:03 pm (UTC)(link)
*nods* The rock is sandstone, though.

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:19 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you kindly, sir.

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:20 pm (UTC)(link)
You know what? I had heard of something called the Wave before, but I never really knew what it was until some French tourists tried to describe it. So, I'm getting broadened all the time, too. ;)

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:22 pm (UTC)(link)
I must say that we do try to maintain childlike wonder in our everyday lives (it's something we talk about on a regular basis), so I'm glad it peeks through for the rest of the world to see, too. :D

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:22 pm (UTC)(link)
They are amazing, aren't they? And we didn't even go to the "best" ones.

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:23 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks. I liked the Elephant in the Room, too. :D

[identity profile] kmkibble75.livejournal.com 2009-11-03 02:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks. :-)

[identity profile] cathemery.livejournal.com 2009-11-04 03:41 pm (UTC)(link)
I love your photos.

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-06 12:49 am (UTC)(link)
Thank you kindly. :D

[identity profile] rabiagale.livejournal.com 2009-11-15 07:32 pm (UTC)(link)
WOW!

[identity profile] mnfaure.livejournal.com 2009-11-17 05:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Yep, that about sums it up. ;)