As we set up camp, we noticed signs referring to the strangely named “Makoshika State Park”  only 2 miles away from the camping. So we decided to go take a look and were totally amazed by what we saw. Weird, alien looking landscapes, with “mushroom-like” geological formations, clearly caused by many of years of erosion.

We later learned that Makoshika (pronounced as “ma-KO-sh(ih)kuh”) is derived from “Maco sica” the Lakota term for “Bad Land” or “Land of bad Spirits”. The Lakota are a Native American people and one of the three prominent subcultures of the Sioux people. 

Dinosaurs too

As you can see in the image at the top of this post, there is a Triceratops on the entrance sign as the park also houses fossil remains of such dinosaurs as tyrannosaurus and triceratops. One of the visitor centers at the park entrance houses a triceratops skull.

Making our way through the park we could certainly see why they referred to this area that way. Parts were downright “Spooky” and so unreal we had never seen anything like this before. Yet it was hauntingly beautiful!

Here are some pictures to give you an idea.

You could walk right through these area as you can see in the picture below, with a little bridge.

Being out there late afternoon and early evening, presented some fabulous shots too.

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We just had to find out what that was and if we could drive down. So we visited the Park’s visitor center to find out more about this trail.

We learned that this was The Shafer Trail, an iconic road that descends 1,500 feet (457 m) through a colorful, massive sandstone cliff. Original a route made by Native Americans to access resources on the mesa top it is now a challenging, unpaved backcountry road for recreational users seeking the experience of a lifetime. We also learned that our “All-Wheel-drive” Subaru would not do – we would need a High-clearance 4WD vehicle with a low range gear in order to do the trail..

Determined to do the trail, we ended up renting a Jeep Rubicon 4×4 for a day, a car that met these requirements. We had set aside a full day for the adventure and headed off to the trail head, totally not knowing what to expect. The only bit of advice we received was “Turn left at the old shack, otherwise you’ll get lost for a few days and we’ll need to come rescue you”. So, with that, very, reassuring snippet of information, we set off on this adventure. Here is a brief video as we start the Trail (but before it gets “scary”).

After about a mile, along the relatively flat and even dirt road, we got to the hair-raising switchbacks seen in the picture above. We figured that the “easy approach” was just to calm your nerves, before it got scary! And scary it is! You look out the window and see . . . nothing. A sheer drop. You are literally just a foot away from the edge. I found myself not looking out the window, just white knuckling the steering wheel and focussing on the dirt road in from of me. Talk about an adrenaline rush!

After what seemed like an eternity, we got to the bottom. We were IN THE CANYON. The first thing I did was get out and kiss the ground!

After out heart-rate returned back to normal, we set out to explore the rest of the Trail. We knew the Trail was “one way”, you emerge near a tiny settlement called Potash, where you get back onto paved roads, not too far from Moab.

We were not really prepared for the sheer magnificence of these canyons! They are nothing short of amazing! No number of superlatives will do these scenes justice, and the following picture don’t even come close either.

This whole area is referred to as “The Colorado Plateau” and the canyon formations is a product of the Colorado and Green rivers, which snake through the area, eroding and carving away the red sandstone. A process that takes millions of years. Driving through the area gives one a distinct “Wild West” feeling, an atmosphere few people today will aver experience. Only American Indians, cowboys, river explorers and uranium prospectors have dared enter this rugged corner of Utah. This is wild America! 

As we approached the end of the trail, the geography returned to “somewhat normal” .. i.e. not the barren, eroded, red-rock formations we saw on the Shafer Trail. Instead a more tranquil views of the river and sandstone rocks with the odd sign of civilizations, not the wild, rugged and rock sight we experienced all day.

We arrived here late afternoon, having spent a full day on the Shafer Trail… and yes, we DID turn left at the old shack (which was very easily identifiable) and NO, we did not get lost nor did we need rescuing!

We were promised this would be the trip of a lifetime, and it is. We will treasure the memories of this trip for may years to come.

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We now know why and, no, we actually never made it to Hana. There is SO much to see and do along the road, that getting there is a full day’s drive, despite the fact it is only about 50 miles from the airport. The road is also amazingly narrow and windy, usually allowing speeds of only 20 miles/hour. This makes the (one way) trip about a 2 1/2 – 3 hour at the very least. Add several stops and a fair amount of traffic and it is easy to comprehend that getting all the way to Hana requires a significant investment of time. Going there and back all on the same day is pretty much impossible.

The road itself is quite spectacular and passes though the “jungle” side of the island. Extremely dense vegetation, rocky cliffs, waterfalls and lots of interesting stops, many of them have small stands with fresh fruit smoothies, freshly baked banana bread, coconut ice cream and many more Hawaiian delicacies. All to keep the traveller well nourished and snacked-up, until the next stop.

Right at the start of the road is the famous “Mama’s Fish House” restaurant. We did not stop (it was morning), but have heard lots praise about its fish menu. You pass some small villages before you get to “Twin Falls”, our first planned stop.

Twin Falls

As you would expect from the name, there are two waterfalls here. The first is just a brief walk from the carpark and is the fall that most people go to.

A lot fewer people make it to the second waterfall (which is way more beautiful). I suspect that the main reason is this “scary” sign that is posted at the beginning of the trail that leads there.   

Throwing all  caution into the wind, I set off expecting the worst! But it is a delightful hike and not too hard at all! This is what you find when you get there.

There were very few people there and I suspect the sign, at the beginning of the trail, was put there just to deter people in an attempt to minimize the environmental impact to this pristine location.

Needless to say, I had to get into the water and swim over to the falls. The water was surprisingly cold, but, as this was a once-in-a-lifetime occasion, I got in and swam up to the fall and treaded water for a little, while letting the water splash onto my hear. Quite the experience! 

Along the trail, you can observe several other beautiful aspects of this tropical paradise.

Moving further along the road to Hana, we kept passing these creeks and cascades. So much water, no wonder the vegetation is so lush and green! 

At some stage we decided to head back, it was mid-afternoon, we were still quite a ways from Hana, but still had to get back to the other side of the island to get home. So we turned around. The day turned out to be quite full and interesting, but actually reaching Hana itself will have to wait until another time. We will go better prepared book a place to stay a few nights in Hana. 

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As we had come from Sacramento via Hwy 80, we entered the Utah at Salt Lake City, so we decided to check that city out.

We did not know too much about the place other than it is where the Mormon Temple is located. Additionally, we also wanted to see the actual great salt lake, after which the city is named. This lake is where the great salt lake land-speed records were established and wanted to see where these were occurred.

So we found a nice campground at the KOA, which turned out to be in the middle of town. It was also a camping place with the fastest WiFi speeds we had ever experienced when at a camping. It was a massive 101 Mbs (we usually were happy if we got anything faster than 7 or 8 Mbs).

Without a real plan to explore the city, we made the local “Tourist Information Center” our first port of call, because that is what one does in a new place. Turned out it was a beautiful historical building and (bonus) it is situated right across from the Capitol Building, the seat of Utah’s government.

After now knowing what else to see, we first checked out the capitol building before heading off to find the Mormon Temple.

The Mormon Temple

This is the 6th temple completed by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and the most recognized LDS Church building in the world. The site for the temple was selected by LDS Church President Brigham Young just days after the first wave of Mormon Pioneers entered the Salt Lake Valley, in July 1847. The official groundbreaking for the temple took place on February 14, 1853. 

We are not mormon, but both knew people who were and they spoke very highly of this temple, hence our interest to see for ourselves. Upon arrival, we were stunned to see how beautiful the building is. Simply SUPERB, as shown in the following pictures..

What surprised us was that we were not allowed in! Unless you are a registered Mormon, you cannot step inside the building, we found it somewhat strange for a church, which normally is open to all. Very disappointing.

The Great Salt Lake land-speed records

As stated earlier, we definitely wanted to see the Great Salt Lake. As Travel and Landscape photographers, unique places like that are of extreme interest to us, especially because salt lakes are not a common thing to find.

And we were not disappointed!

Words kinda fail me! Statements like; “Amazing”, “Awesome”, “Immense”… somehow don’t come close to the actual emotions and overwhelming sense of awe that wells up in you when you stand there looking out over this immense, flat, salt expanse. This brief video shows how large it is.

The place is also famous for the world land-speed records that have been set here. The attraction, of course, is the immaculately flat surface, which makes it (somewhat) safer to drive at these high speeds.

There is a plaque there commemorating these events but the speeds are listed are in “Miles per hour”. The internationally recognized “World Record” is typically measured in Kilometers/hour. So the 666.407 miles/hour listed on the plaque below is equal to 1014.656 Km/hour and was the FIRST EVER record set that was higher than 1000 Km/hr! That was back in 1970!

This record has since been broken several times, but not at these salt flats. The current standing record (an amazing 1223.657 Km/hour!) was established at a similar speed-event in the Black Rock Desert in Nevada (north of Reno). The same Black Rock Desert that is known for the annual Burning Man festival.

There are still speed events going on at the salt flats, but there are growing environmental concerns about the salt. The thickness of the salt crust is a critical factor in the racing use of the salt flats. Recent studies sho shown a reduction in this thickness, especially in the northwest area where racing occurs, and the events of 2015 and 2022 were even cancelled due to the poor condition of the salt.

With all that, we were really very happy to see these salt flats up-close. We even got to walk on them. A great experience.

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There are literally beaches everywhere! Small ones, large ones, wide open ones, intimate ones, straight ones, crescent-shaped ones, you name it, it is there. Many of them are open to the public. Picnic tables, ample parking (paved as well as unpaved) and portage-potties are provided at most of them. It does say a lot about the Maui “culture”. You’ll see interesting types on those beaches – surfers, families with kids, tourists, “hippie” types (complete with VW Combi-vans), lots of Jeep Wranglers, fishermen and, sadly, homeless people.

There was a beach just next to the hotel we stayed at, literally a 2 minute walk from our room. I went snorkeling there as we could see turtles swimming around. No, I did no get to see a turtle while out, I guess they made a point of avoiding me . 

The other thing that struck me was how few people were on the beaches. Perhaps because there were so many to choose from, but we did not see a single beach that was busy, certainly none that were crowded! Even the small beaches, those that were only 50-100 feet wide, were sparsely populated, no matter how pretty or idyllic the location..

Flora

The flora of the island was spectacular. You would expect the iconic hibiscus and plumeria (known as “Frangipani” in Australia), but there was so much more! We saw all kinds of amazing, spectacular flowers growing everywhere.

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We started to think about Hawaii after my daughter and her husband’s family went to Hawaii a few weeks earlier. Their pictures and stories inspired us to check into the travel rules a bit deeper to see if we would be comfortable with going too. Eventhough we have both been fully vaccinated (Linda with Pfizer and myself with Moderna), we were still somewhat concerned and put off by the thought of flying and being in a hotel. However, any concern we may have had was pretty much put to bed when seeing the details on the rules and conditions that were set in place by the state of Hawaii.

These rules include: getting a negative COVID test 72 hours before arrival, a re-test upon arrival, a state-wide mask mandate, a mandatory COVID tracing app on the phone, reduced capacity events (such as tours, dinner cruises, etc) and lots of social distancing. Additionally, Hawaii has implemented a “Vaccination Passport”, which (currently) only applies to Hawaiians traveling inter-island. We had hoped that the fact we had been fully vaccinated would help us, but applying vaccination passport control on “non-Hawaiian visitors” is too hot a potato in the current political climate of the US (note that some states have even gone as far as outlawing vaccination passports). The whole set of rules is clearly outlined on the official Hawaiian Government website which has 6 basic phases”

1. Mandatory Account creation on the website.
2. Upload of travel details (flight, hotel reservations, etc) to the website
3. A location to upload your COVID test.  Note that only results from certified testing institutions will be accepted! Also required is some some sort of official ID (like passport or driver’s license).
4. Completion of a Health Questionnaire.
5. When all done and verified you will receive a QR Code via email (an automated process) that you need to save on your phone (we advice printing it too)
6. Upon arrival at the airport, you need to present that QRCode, the same official ID you uploaded to the website, a cell phone that is charged (you NEED to take a picture of a form they present to you).

Each adult visitor needs all of the above (obviously, parents with children can include their kids in their submission). Linda and I both needed to do this.

Your arrival and positive verification of everything will automatically trigger an update to your account on the website. I assume this is for tracking, as they now know you are in Hawaii and know where you are staying.

Please note: Failure to meet ANY of these conditions will require a mandatory 10 day quarantine period! At your own expense!

All-in-all, we agree and like how Hawaii has not only set these guidelines in place, they have set-up an infrastructure aimed to TRACK the fact you are following the rules. By default, all travelers need to quarantine, UNLESS YOU MEET THESE CRITERIA! We have heard of people getting arrested and cited, who did not abide by the rules and order to quarantine! 

This all added up to us feeling safe enough to decide to book a 7 day trip to Maui! Linda found an amazing deal that included hotel, airfare and car rental. We even scored a one bedroom suite with ocean view at the Royal Kahana in Lahaina (which is located in North-West Maui). We were all set!

Arrival in Maui

We arrived late at night and after getting the rental car, drove in the dark to the hotel. Kinda frustrating because we could not see a thing (very few street lights on the island ). The room turned out to be awesome! Not only does it have that ocean view we were expecting, we are right above the pool and, because we are facing West, can see some awesome sunsets right from our balcony!

We are also pleased to report (now that we are here), that Hawaii businesses also follow the rules outlined above. For example, the hotel has a rule to only allow two people in the elevator at one time (unless a family) and that masks must be worn throughout the hotel. Of course you are allowed to take it off when in the pool or when (socially distanced) on the beech. We also heard the resident tour guide tell people that tours are all operating at half capacity, so availability is limited. We would therefore advise anyone traveling to Hawaii, to prebook anything they may want to do, as waiting until getting there may be too late. We have heard that we are not the only ones who feel safe traveling to Hawaii (we can also see it on the roads), so be forewarned.

Another note of advice, the influx of people traveling to Hawaii has strained the local car rental business who were all forced to sell their un-rented inventory when the pandemic started. Now that visitors are returning, there are not enough rental cars to go around and the ones that ARE available are very expensive! So please book well in advance!

Aloha from Maui

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We made the trip to the Haleakala National Park, about 90 minute drive from our hotel in West Maui. The weather was dreary, some rain and heavy mist. So dreary, we almost did not go. But being lazy was not really on our agenda, so up the mountain we went…. rain or not. We then realized that we would go right through the low hanging clouds and emerged in glorious sunshine and blue skies. How wondrous!

And how amazing it turned out to be!

Our hotel lies behind that mountain in the middle of the shot. That “shadow” of land in the background is the island of Lanai, the nearest Hawaiian island. As you can see, we are still below the clouds here.. still a long way up to the top.

Once through the clouds, we were rewarded by beautiful clear skies. We walked up to the rim and looked down into the crater which displayed magnificent sections of reds and greens. What a breathtaking view.

We had been attracted to the “Sunset tour”, an event you need to prebook as they only allow a limited number of people. We decided against that for several reasons. Firstly it meant leaving the hotel at 3am and second, it meant driving the route (which entailed multiple switchbacks and tricky rods) in the dark.

The sunset visit is an event rooted in Hawaiian history and legend. You can read all about that here. But in summary; the Hawaiian Demi-God Maui’ s mother Hina complains that her kapa (bark cloth) is unable to dry because the days are so short. So Māui climbs Haleakala and lassoes the sun’s rays as the sun comes up. The sun pleads for life and agrees that the days shall be long in summer and short in winter. This event is perpetuated today, by these sunrise events. 

The volcano crater lies well above the treeline with only small shrubs and plants growing among the distinctly volcanic rocks. Noteworthy is the Haleakala Silversword, a silvery plant that has adapted to the climactic conditions on the volcano. They are protected and we saw lots of them. 

[See image gallery at hitthefrogandtoad.albertdebruijn.com] Click on a thumbnail for a larger view.

This unique plant flowers only once in its 50 year life, the flower produces over 50,000 seeds and then the plant dies. It is believed to have evolved from a California Tarweed that arrived in Maui more than a million years ago (probably by a bird). It is now unique to Hawaii and only grows on the slopes of Haleakala and nowhere else in the world. Its Hawaiian name is “Ahinahina”.

Also unique to Hawaii is the Nene (pronounced “nay-nay”), a goose that is a relative of the Canadian Goose. The Nene is an endangered species and we saw two. Unfortunately, we didn’t get a shot.

At the very top of the volcano is an observatory that is dubbed “the Science City” because its near-absence of light pollution, as well as the high-altitude air and the mountain’s tremendous height. The combination of these conditions render it one of the most superb and valuable planetariums in the world.

Here are a few more images taken at the top of the volcano.

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In past visits to the “City of Sin”, we visited places like The Neon Museum, the Brain Institute and Red Rock Canyon, this time around we checked out Fremont Street in old Las Vegas and visited the Valley of Fire, which is just 40 miles North of Las Vegas. We were SO delighted with what we saw in the Valley of Fire, we went twice! It’s was THAT beautiful and interesting, we simply could not see it all on one day.

Valley of Fire

The Valley of Fire is aptly named as the dramatic sandstone formations that make up the park are firey red which intensify in the late-afternoon sun. As the rocks and cliffs get eroded by the elements, amazing colored patterns and shapes emerge, shapes that are continually being polished by the wind, often leaving perfectly round holes in cliffs.

The valley, located in the Mojave desert, offers many aspects that are common in places like Utah and North East Arizona and offers a variety of features typically only found there. For example, the Valley of Fire has numerous arches, not unlike those found in Utah’s Arches National Park. These arches are all carved from that red, rusty-colored sandstone that Utah is so famous for.

One of the prime attractions of the park is a feature called “The Fire Wave”, a distinctly wave-shaped piece of red-and-white-colored sandstone similar to a rocky formation, simply called “The Wave”, in Northern Arizona. While the Valley of Fire’s Wave is smaller than the Wave in Arizona, it is way more accessible – a mere 30-45 minutes easy hike. In contrast, the Arizona version not only requires a permit, it is a 4 hour hike over treacherous terrain.

Hiking Trails

We found some extremely photogenic locations sprinkled through the park, lots of color and hugely interesting canyons and hiking trails. One such trail was to a location called Mouse’s Tank, a natural basin in the rock where water collects and can remain trapped there for months. The 3/4 mile round trip hike is very easy, and passes several historic petroglyphs carved there some 3000 years ago by the Ancient Pueblo people. Finding and spotting them on the rock face makes for a fascinating (and fun) game as you go down the trail. Some are easily seen, some are very obscure and hard to make out.

A far more recent bit of history is found just off the main road where three stone cabins stand. They were originally built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1930 as a shelter for travelers. This is before the area was designated a State Park, which did not happen until 1935. The three cabins each have a fireplace and an opening for a door and window, although they are now long gone. The cabins blend perfectly into the surroundings as they are constructed out of the native sandstone. The area is now a picnic area and makes for a wonderful stop and photo opportunity.

Wild Life

As you can imagine, the park is full of wildlife – coyotes, snakes, desert turtles, Gila Monsters (a lizard) and bighorn sheep. We did not spot anything “exotic” like the turtles or Gila Monster, but we DID see some bighorn sheep. They stopped the traffic and were nibbling at the vegetation alongside the road. They are very majestic animals when you get up close.

In Summary

As a park goes, it is not too large – about 11 by 6 miles, with only one single road that goes through it. There are two campgrounds with a total of 71 sites. While no sewer hook-ups, all have water and about 20 of them even have electricity.

As compact as the park is, it is packed with lots to see and do , from hiking, photography, spectacular scenery and access to other interesting locations such as Lake Mead and, yes, Las Vegas.

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As you can see from the pictures on this post, the building is spectacular and after doing some research, learned quite a lot more about it.

About the organization behind the building

The building is called “Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health” and it is an outpatient treatment and research facility for brain-related diseases. In fact, the Center is planned to become a national resource for the most current research and scientific information for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington ‘s Diseases, Multiple Sclerosis and ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease) as well as focusing on prevention, early detection and education.

To give you some context, my mother had Alzheimer’s, so learning about the function of this center really hit home and we were delighted (and impressed) to find this kind of research center right here in Las Vegas. However, the heart-warming story behind its creation is what really struck as it filled us with a sense of warmth and gratitude towards people who do great things, because they CARE.

You see, the organization behind the center is called “Keep Memory Alive (also known as KMA)” and was founded by Larry Ruvo, his wife Camille, Bobby Baldwin and his wife Donna. Both Larry’s and Bobby’s father were a victim of Alzheimer’s Disease and they set-up the organization and built the building in memory of Larry’s father, Lou Ruvo.

Today, the Keep Memory Alive (which is a nonprofit organization) owns and supports the Brain Health Clinic and aims to increase awareness and raise funds for the research. In a mere two years after they treated their first patient, their fund raising efforts surpassed the $100 million mark in raised funds. An outstanding achievement and what a beautiful cause to help find some cure for these horrible diseases.

[See image gallery at hitthefrogandtoad.albertdebruijn.com]

About the building

The Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health was designed by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry who wanted to create a place that would be memorable. He is quoted for saying “The mantra is Keep Memory Alive, I’m trying to make a building that people will want to visit, remember, talk about, and enjoy, and ultimately will want to partner with us at the center to help cure brain diseases.”

Frank Gehry is generally considered the “most important architect of our time” and his work is famous around the world for their beauty and unusual design. The Lou Ruvo, just one of may of his designs, has some impressive statistics – the building has 199 windows, none of which are alike and the roof is constructed with 18,000 stainless steel shingles, each cut to unique measurements. A massive 65,000 hours of engineering went into the construction which took 3 years, 3 months and 13 days to complete.

Outside, there is a courtyard with seating and a “reflections garden”, a serene and peaceful place to sit, relax and reflect.

[See image gallery at hitthefrogandtoad.albertdebruijn.com]

About our photoshoot

After parking the car and walking up to the building, we were simply in awe by the design and architectural detail. We simply could not stop shooting, using both a wide angle and standard zoom lens.

The best part was meeting this nice guy, who, after watching us take picture after picture, asked “would you like to see inside”? Of course said “YES”, after which he unlocked the door to the main atrium and promptly let us in. WHAT A TREAT! and What a sight! This building is equally fascinating on the inside as it is on the outside! Amazing. The building is “hollow” on the inside with several large “tree-like” structures supporting the roof. Not a single straight line, just elegant curves and intricate angles. Just beautiful.

[See image gallery at hitthefrogandtoad.albertdebruijn.com] Check out the pictures on this page and let us know what you think.

If you want to learn more about the Lou Ruvo Center, click here

If you want to learn more about Frank Gehry, click here

To see more of the buildings that Frank Gehry designed, click here

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