Monday 29 April 2013

TRIPPING PART 2: DESERT MAGIC.



Behold The Valley Of Fire! Ancient wood, petroglyphs, gorgeous red sandstone, mountains in the distance, winding roads, endless blue skies, and NO buildings in sight.


I've never gone on a trip where the geography has been vastly different, so The Valley of Fire blew my mind. I don't even know how to explain the vast beauty of this place, but these panoramic shots below come close. Who knew that rocks could be so gorgeous? And the quiet? Don't even get me started. Just kidding. Let's talk alllll about it. What a great break from the noise of city life. Even if just for one day.



Here's Rob doing his best 127 Hours impression. We came across a few people on paths, taking pictures on the side of the road, or a gaggle of bikers here and there, but for the most part this state park wasn't very populated. You could really get lost out there, and that's kind of a wonderful feeling.

(When I was a kid, my buddy and I used to ride our bikes somewhere we didn't know well and attempt to get lost. But we lived in a small town, so we never really accomplished getting lost. It was fun to try though.)


GET REAL, NEVADA.


One of my favourite parts of this drive was putting on Anna Calvi's record, turning it way up, and just looking out the window and taking it all in. That was a perfect hour. Anna Calvi was made for the desert.

We also checked out Lake Mead and the Hoover Dam. It kind of blows my mind that people use these roads to drive to work or whatever. If you're in Las Vegas, you should definitely rent a car for a day and get out of the city. It's really a perfect way to break up the craziness. Balance achieved!



Got a sunburn. Didn't care.

Lizard count: 2

Fun fact: this Lana Del Ray was partially shot in The Valley of Fire.


I also really can't believe palm trees are real. Look at these stumpy little dudes!


And this is what it looks like when you land in Toronto when the sun is coming up.

Ok, gonna go fantasize about road trips and living in the middle of nowhere again...

4 comments:

Unknown said...

I want to go there now.

Also? Your graphic art and photography and commentary make your blogging better than anybody's. [This may or may not have been grammatically accurate.]

anabela / fieldguided said...

So crazy! You really should do marketing for the Nevada tourist board because I've never really cared about visiting until your posts!

That last picture is amaaaaazing.

DEADWEIGHT said...

Jason: YOU ARE KIND. And yes, you should go there now. Right now!

Anabela: Awesome! Thanks :) I would really like to work for the Nevada tourist board. Maybe it's time to take my career in a wild new direction...

Mallory said...

This is a delayed response because I had bookmarked your travel recap posts to go back to later - but I LOVED THEM!

My family went on a Arizona / Nevada (Vegas) trip when I was a freshman in high school and I had a good time, but I've always wanted to go back as an adult. Now I want to go back even more! The end.