ASCEND & WANDER

  There is a nice trailhead off highway 18 to the north of St George and one of the maps did show a complete route North south ending at the small city of Ivins. I would want to see if possible by day tripping the southern side since the topography on Gaia doesn't make the route feasible but I ran into a group of 3 older folks who said they have heard of it being done before.  GPS Red Mountain Trailhead Desert snakes freak me out every time  The top of the rim where the trail continues south to Ivins Peering through the wilderness area and West Canyon Road  Wilderness area boundary

  This trailhead is maybe 20 minutes outside of St George Utah and I just parked in a grocery store lot ten walked to the official trailhead. This area is also frequented by mountain bikers but they probably stay away from the washes where I was hiking with Anna! <3 The empty and nice Cottonwood Trailhead  Terrain towards the junction of Cottonwood Creek Heath Wash  I met a cool guy who was mountain biking and sleeping out of his van. He had 2 bikes in there and a custom pull out drawer for internal storage with just the front wheel removed. Thanks again for the beer!

  The Valley of Fire state pack is a good day trip from Vegas. I took it as a long route while driving to St George by connecting with highway 169 that goes north from Moapa Valley before re joining the interstate 15 Crossing paths with this biker from WA state on the Valley of Fire highway There were camped out in an RV outside the state park. Apparently a 50 mile ride today and much better weather than a couple weeks ago when it stayed above 90. Those silly American units of measurement... Herd of sheep. This would be a great place to hunt if you were allowed Dark red colour rocks I asked if one can drive through the state park to the Moapa Valley without stopping but they explained it is still a toll road in this case and you pay 10$. This is a map from the visitor center. White domes and apparently The Professionals 1966 movie site Slot canyons The prospect trail goes back to the visitor center away from everything else and would be a good route on a chill day and with a shuttl...

GPS This is another great day trip from Vegas as you suddenly leave the interstate and start hiking down into the canyon that eventually reaches the Colorado River. Some parts were pretty technical and the ropes deteriorating The trailhead off interstate 11 You are close to the Hoover dam as the crow flies but the sounds of the road quickly dissipate as you enter the canyon The hot springs It was pretty chill on a mid week day with locals from Las Vegas Nice to see clear water of the Colorado River with normal water levels  Green colours at the bottom of the canyon where it gets wet The Cruz of the climb back out  White Rock Canyon Trailhead This was actually from a different trailhead on the Arizona side of the Hoover Dam. Apparently there are hot springs here too. One of the guys at the bottom of the Nevada side to be careful not to get any of the warm water in your nose. Apparently he was right if they are posting signs about the warning Hoover Dam from the highway bridge I...

  On the last day before my flight, I was still looking for new places with ski terrain in Kluane and my research brought me to Quill Creek which was mostly frozen and had a nice crust on it with made the ski up rather chill and the way back was fast with ability to clip in and skate ski on many parts of it. These must have been my fastest kilometers on low incline ground ever in my life. Ski options here are limited as the distances following the creeks are far too great for a day objective, despite the looming mountain in the distance. Many other spots but I think Kluane is more of a traverse kind of park rather than day skiing Quill Creek  Haines Junction Walking on the frozen Kluane Lake at dusk Rental car parked in the empty trailhead. Great time of year to visit The long dunes of Kluane Lake with numerous signs for no offroad driving allowed. There is also a parks visitor center nearby here as the scenery of the drive really opens up as you cross near Kluane Lake on the ...

This was an amazing full day of the trip. After overnighting in Whitehorse I drove South towards White Pass and visited Skagway Alaska after. Then back to Whitehorse in the evening. Wish my timing would have lined up for a ferry loop to Haines. More on that in Skagway post next... I had always known there was a desert (though maybe less of an official one) this far north in Canada but had no idea it was close to Whitehorse. So passing it on the drive to White Pass was a cool surprise. It looked like some folks were ripping around the sand dunes on ATVs.  The glacial lakes formed and deposited silt, then when they dried up it the dunes were left behind.  Town of Carcross Bove Island roadside stop On the South Klondike Highway Log Cabin Parking area was a wet mud pit  A pretty straightforward summit view from the bottom Parks Canada lot but no fee or pass required My ski line back to the car Uptracks View of the road where I had driven down I had met this party of 3 as the ...