TRIP REPORT PHOTOS
Grapevines WSA Road is labeled as 4WD but didn't have very many rough spots as we followed it steadily uphill toward the distant peaks:
Upon staying right at an important junction and reaching the top, the road follows along the rim of Grapevines WSA Canyon. We turned right and continued driving:
This stunning peak is a false summit directly in front of P8460:
The Rim of the World portion of the drive follows right along the canyon rim with nothing but 500 feet of air on the left side. Notice the vast landscape visible including Tin Mountain and Dry Mountain:
Looking down into Grapevines WSA Canyon while on the Rim of the World drive:
Parking area after completing the Rim of the World drive and crossing over the DVNP boundary:
Walking along the canyon rim to the west, we still needed to find a way to drop the 500 feet in elevation down into the main canyon:
Looking a long ways up Grapevines WSA Canyon with the Rim of the World drive located along the left canyon rim:
Zooming in on a pretty dry fall that we spotted from above the canyon:
A vast undocumented area of the Grapevine Mountains stretched out in front of us:
We decided to follow this gully down into the main canyon:
Upon reaching the canyon floor, this was the view looking up canyon to the east:
And this was the view to the west in the direction we would be heading:
The canyon reached an area where the landscape shifted into stunning tafoni walls:
Tafoni, or honeycomb weathering, can be found in isolated locations within Death Valley. We were surprised to come across this area with so much tafoni:
In the next two pictures, notice how lengthy vertical walls give way to tafoni at the upper portions:
This was the entrance to Slot #1. We will showcase Slot #1 in detail, but if you'd like to see Slot #2 and Slot #3, you will need to come out here and see them:
Slot #1 begins as shallow slot narrows trading off frequently between shadow and light:
The canyon walls are not straight and flat but rather quite bulgy with odd shapes and designs:
A small wash winds through this section of the slot with curving lines near the bottom right:
This wall is filled with distinct grooves which are withstanding erosion:
Boulders that roll down the hillsides and into the canyon or that break off the walls have nowhere to go:
This slot was so impressive because it constantly changed and took on new character around each bend:
There were plenty of spots where the slot tightened up and you could touch both sides at the same time:
Such beautiful curves to walk through in the slot:
Check out this dramatic bend in the slot. You can imagine how a flash flood would look coming down canyon around this bend:
Getting a close-up of some of the amazing patterns on the slot canyon wall:
You can see why I refer to this slot as having sculpted white narrows. This area is truly beautiful:
I was constantly at the back of the group slowing everyone down while I photographed scenes like this:
In the center of the picture, you can see how the slot canyon has gained great height to the walls:
Notice the shapes in this picture. On the left, there is an overhanging oblong block. Just below it to the right is a sphere-shaped passage for water:
All around this embedded boulder are rocks that are smooth and polished:
There was so much variety on display throughout the entire slot:
Check out the immense overhanging wall on the right side:
At this spot, we could see above the slot canyon wall and noted that the hillside was still covered with tafoni:
One of the longer straight sections within the slot:
There were many small obstacles which were fun to work around:
Some of the most impressive portions of the slot are found close to the end:
It was almost dizzying to walk through here with the chaotic lines on the walls:
It's hard to believe that a beautiful slot of this magnitude has been hidden away in the Grapevine Mountains for all of these years:
What a truly impressive area we had just passed through:
The slot narrows gradually come to an end but the good news is that Slot #2 and Slot #3 are not far away:
Slot #1 ends as the narrows transition into a wide open area:
After emerging from the narrows, we immediately climbed the hillside to the right. This was the view during the climb looking back over the large area of tafoni:
In this panoramic, Grapevines WSA Canyon, Slot #1, and the tafoni hillsides are all visible (click to enlarge):
It didn't take long to climb up the hillside and catch our first glimpse over the other side:
Looking down into a neat section of canyon that we missed by taking the shortcut over the hillside:
Tiffany's hiking clothing contrasted greatly with the tan color of the canyon wall:
We were now hiking up the north fork of what we would later call Rosy Canyon, passing by some impressive walls:
Rosy Canyon proved to be quite interesting all the way through. The canyon goes through so many changes as it progresses:
Here we noted a massive landslide of small boulders with a much larger one at the bottom:
Major shifts in both the color of the hillsides (or canyon walls) and the composition:
The canyon steadily climbed toward the snow-capped distant peaks of the Grapevines:
Solid white colors took over one side of the canyon:
This was the only significant dry fall on the route. Some of us climbed it, while others bypassed it:
This was the area where the birds completely took over the canyon wall and surrounding hillsides:
The next two pictures show Gray-crowned Rosy Finches that I got zoomed photos of:
The finches were quite tame and would allow us to walk around and photograph them:
A hillside that was topped with some jagged peaks:
As we gained higher elevation, Joshua trees became part of the landscape:
Three pictures showcasing a vivid canyon wall with a mixture of purple, red, and orange:
The orange and red colors became very bright and took over the whole area:
The colors extended high up the canyon wall:
I used this as one of my sample photos because of the striking purple color with a polished chute in the middle:
Notice how this colorful canyon wall extends far off into the distance:
This wall had pastels, or softer and more delicate shades of colors, as seen in the next two pictures:
The hillside boulders have all converged on this location in the center of the wash:
A small pinnacle rises out of the canyon wall on the left side:
The canyon was truly a wonderland of colors everywhere we would look:
Finally arriving at the area of big trees which was our set objective for the north fork of the canyon:
Trees rising up out of the colorful hillside all around:
We spent a fair amount of time walking around the area and checking out some of the larger specimens:
Getting a picture with one of the largest trees in the background while climbing up the exit gully:
A flock of Gray-crowned Rosy Finches flew in while we were climbing up the gully and took over the hillside:
Upper portion of the gully that we used to reach the pass:
Finally arriving on the pass, which was located at 5,950 feet in elevation:
This distinct peak doesn't have a name or label, but it is located halfway on the ridgeline between P8460 and 7932T:
Panoramic view taken from the pass separating the north and south forks of Rosy Canyon (click to enlarge):
Looking back down the gully we had come up with one of the big trees faintly visible down below:
Looking to the north, Stonewall Mountain can be seen in the distant center (the rounded range) and faraway Gold Mountain can be seen on the left side:
Brother and sister back together again in Death Valley:
Heading over the saddle and down the other side into the south fork:
Passing by patches of snow in the wash. This was kind of a light dusting for February:
These unnamed peaks are the most dramatic that are visible. Height is approximately 8,125 feet, nearly 3,000 feet above our location:
Tiffany posing by an unusual plant that we found in the wash in order to give perspective on its size:
This is a White bear poppy (or a Desert poppy) plant. It produces beautiful white flowers in the Spring which grow up to 12 inches in height:
Notice that the White bear poppy has a leaf with rounded teeth that is covered with hairs:
We turned right up ahead and went over the little hillside bump into the next canyon over, which was smaller:
This was our hiking group for the day. All smiles as we really enjoyed every aspect of this hike and all the interesting areas we came across:
Notice that the leaves of this Joshua tree have been chewed off. We wondered what animal or bird might have done this:
The next two pictures show very unusual formations that we passed by:
This is the obscure entrance to the targeted colorful area we wanted to check out:
A myriad of colors are passed through even while walking toward the amphitheater:
This is the beginning of the central area of what we call Rosy Amphitheater. Notice we have two hikers ahead who have climbed up to a vantage point of the surrounding area:
Near the entrance off to the left were these rocks which are literally covered with interesting designs:
Take a closer look at some of the intricate patterns visible:
A variety of colors and shapes are spread out all over the landscape inside the amphitheater:
There is so much to see within this area up each mini-fork:
The various shades of purple, pink, orange, red, and white all blend so well together:
Dropping down below from the vantage point provides additional perspectives of the colorful formations:
Full panoramic of Rosy Amphitheater as seen from the vantage point (click to enlarge):
Three more pictures of some of the rocks with unique designs:
After leaving Rosy Amphitheater behind (due to the late hour), we continued down the south fork and came across some more interesting rocks, such as this one:
A heavily-eroded wall with a mixture of white and pink:
A look back at the towering Grapevine peaks as shadows crept across the landscape:
The hillside has eroded away and left these unusual overhanging rock slabs up high:
Two more pictures of the overhanging slabs:
Here is where the south fork of Rosy Canyon connected with the lower part of Grapevines WSA Canyon. In this view, we are looking to the west toward Grey Wall Canyon:
Heading up a portion of Grapevines WSA Canyon that we had missed earlier:
The junction of Grapevines WSA Canyon and the north fork of Rosy Canyon (to the right):
Two pictures of an impressive wall covered with patterns which we had not seen earlier because we used the shortcut:
On the hike back, it became pitch black outside. But we enjoyed a nice sunset with Venus above the horizon:
