Another trip to the Needles District (southern area of Canyonlands National Park) was on our agenda, this time to catch the sunrise. We arrived in the dark and set up at Pothole Point with thirty minutes to spare. Fortunately, there was very little wind to accompany the biting cold. From our position, we had a 360-degree view of the horizon. It was difficult to say which direction yielded our favorite views - we liked them all.
What a magical morning! It felt like we had the park to ourselves.
We drove to Pot Hole Point, found the tree surrounded by sandstone, and managed to climb up on the rise - all in the dark.
The peak in the picture below was named North Six-shooter Point. It's in a lot of our pictures and when we were closer it did kind of remind us of an old revolver pointing straight up. There was a South Sixshooter point as well, but it was hidden in this picture.
Ok, it was cold, but the sights made it worth the discomfort.
It was 7:30 am and the Needles were barely visible, but the sky was alive!
Below, at the very right edge of the picture, was the end of the mesa where the Canyonlands Island in the Sky Grand View Point Overlook was located.
The sun played peek-a-boo, poking through the clouds and...
...finally made an appearance on the Needles.
The colors around us were changing continuously...
...as a result of the sun filtering through the clouds, here and there.
One minute a streak of sandstone would be raspberry red...
...and the next, it would be peachy salmon.
The clouds were trying to steal the show.
This freaked me out a bit, it was so, so cool! I had never heard of anti-crepuscular rays (David even knew what they were called).
Our back was to the sun, yet we could see the rays, they seemed to be converging to one point (an illusion). (Seen in the previous picture above and at the far left of this picture)
A tall desert good morning selfie!
It was time to say goodbye to our perch atop the sandstone at Pothole Point and explore more of the Needles section of the park. Thawing out in the car played no part in the timing of our departure!
We decided to venture down Cave Spring Road.
"Fall" followed us with all its glory!
First, we explored the gravel road out to Horse Canyon, but the hikes to prominent features were too long, 7.5 to 10 miles and Sam was with us (he was our excuse to skip the long hikes). We backtracked to Cave Spring Road and continued to the Cave Spring trailhead.
The Cave Spring Trail was a billed as a 0.6-mile round-trip, but I suspect it was more. It meandered past a "cowboy camp" in a sandstone alcove, (interesting).
The trail took us past a spring (with very little water) tucked away under a massive sandstone overhang.
Who'd guess that you could find Southern Maidenhair Fern in the desert!
Cave Spring offered a few Petroglyphs, but no information was given estimating their age.
The trail quickly ascends...
...with the help of two ladders.
After climbing a gently sloped expanse of sandstone slick rock...
...you have a spectacular view in all directions.
Make sure that you climb all the way to the top of the bright red layer...
...or you will miss some of these vistas.
The sun continued to play peek-a-boo through the clouds.
The climb back down was quite easy, just follow the cairns.
I imagine, in the heat of the summer, these sandstone overhangs would offer a welcome respite from the heat.
It was only 11:30 am, but it felt like we had done a full day of exploring (we started our day at 5 am.)
This unusual formation is on Hwy 191, right at the intersection of Hwy 211 (the road that takes you into Canyonlands). It is known as "Church Rock" and it is as colorful as its history!
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