Just got back from kayaking on Lake Powell. Eight of us escorted by guides from Hidden Canyon Kayak. We spent the week exploring the now flooded Canyonlands of Arizona and Utah. The highlights were the skies at night, the slot canyons by day, and the alpenglow at the edges. With the clarity of the stars, planets, satellites, and the moon, and canyons with their array of sunlight-decorated, endless meanders of orange and pink, we felt like we were in another world.

The Colorado River that John Wesley Powell explored was 500 feet below us, below current lake level (more on his trip can be found in Saving the Places We Love). But we got some sense of the barrenness and the (more…)