DESERT TRAILS CRUNCH DIFFERENTLY
There’s the sound that’s made when hiking shoes and boots walk on gravel. The crunch of hiking on a desert trail is different.
The sound of gravel is almost as if the earth is trying to slip progress away. You may as well be walking on ball bearings. Even walking on gravel or rocky surfaces through a desert preserve still feels as if they were added rather than naturally occurring.
Of course, that’s not true, but it’s how it feels.
On old-time Western radio serials, the sound of walking on a desert trail was created by the sound effects of man crunching shoes against cornflakes. It’s not quite like that. Putting the description into words is challenging. Even if stepping firmly and not dragging feet, a slight rolling crunch can be heard when shuffling shoes to clear sand from the beach.
And there’s the crunch. It’s something that has to be seen and heard rather than imagined. It’s a satisfying sound, a sound of progress, a soothing sound, as if each step, each crunch, takes you deeper into nature.
The trails in Capitol Reef National Park are all that way. Located between the Maze District of Canyonlands National Park and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument, Capitol Reef is a modest-sized national park with hiking trails into the canyons and many flavors of history.
The trail into Capitol Gorge narrowed after passing the junction with a side trail up the cliff to The Tanks. It moved deeper into the canyon towards the copse of scrubby juniper trees. Here in the canyon, Capitol Wash channels water in the canyon walls and blocks the hottest summer sun, allowing trees and shrubs to flourish.
Few trails on the Colorado Plateau are straight lines. Inside the steep, narrow canyon, coming around every bend, a surprise reveals itself. Not far from the junction with The Tanks trail, after making the turn and exiting the cluster of junipers, a visual surprise awaited.
The powerful, artistic combination of wind, rain, ice and snow carved miniature arches in the spit of sandstone poking its way into the trail.
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Co Founder & Director of Photography @ Every Mile Creative | Full Service Photo + Video Production Company Based in Alaska
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