Utah Road Trip

On June 7, 2010, it was with a bit of pride that I printed off, signed, and submitted my completed Master's thesis. Titled "Identification of Optimal Evolutionary Intensity Measures for Evaluation of Liquefaction Hazards," this 203-page masterpiece represented several months of late nights and computer bugs, propelled along by my goal of finishing it by the summer so I could spend a few months recuperating in the great outdoors.

An hour after handing in my thesis, I watched Seattle disappear from my rear view mirror. For two and a half weeks, my Subaru and I would forsake the spring rains and Seattle traffic jams for a grand exploration of the amazing landscape and soaring temperatures of Utah. Camera always in hand, I headed for the highlights: the famous rockhounding at the Dugway Geode Beds, the wild rock formations of Goblin Valley State Park and the popular slot canyon of Little Wild Horse Canyon, the pictographs and petroglyphs of Horseshoe Canyon, the stunning geologic features of Capitol Reef National Park, the colorful hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park, the towering sandstone grandeur of Zion National Park, and the heights and caves of Great Basin National Park just across the Utah-Nevada border. Often, I felt like I was on another planet.

(Note: The arches of Arches National Park would have been a sure addition to my road trip if I had not already been there in April 2008. For that reason, I included it in my "trip itinerary" here).

As no trip can be complete without climbing, on the way home I detoured to the Californian Sierras to meet up with my friend Mark to do the classic Palisade Traverse. After this, I finally drove back to Seattle, stopping at several unique and scenic landmarks along the way and making a second climbing detour to look over the rim of Mount St. Helens.

This page gives some of my favorite photos from each place I went on my roadtrip.

Itinerary:

Road Trip Statistics: