Canyonlands and the Big Silence

I've been wanting to get out to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park for a while now and finally did recently.  It's quite a ways from where I live and the easier way to see the Park is from the Island in the Sky area to the North.  The Needles is 40 miles south of town and 20+ miles from the main road.  Nevertheless, the drive is gorgeous and well worth the trip.

The approach from the highway goes through Indian Creek Rec Area and was particularly scenic and a new area for me to explore.  I'm excited to get back out there when the temperatures are warmer and days longer.

While the topography is nearly the same as the rest of the area, what struck me was a sense of remoteness and utter silence.  A high pressure weather system has been sitting over the region for a while and we seem to be at the center of it.  Temps are mild, the wind is non-existent and there's not a cloud in the sky!  Perfect hiking weather.

After listening to a recent radio program on electronic smog and electromagnetic hypersensitivity, it dawned on me that going to remote places like this on a regular basis are essential to health overall. I recommend this show and advise people make attempts to remove some of this smog from their lives on a regular basis.  The point made by the guest that a 30min cell phone call affects the brain for hours later really hit home.

 

 http://www.groundzeromedia.org/puddle-in-a-microwave/

 

Days are too short for long hikes, but this one was pretty awesome even for a short duration.  I look forward to going back and getting lost for a day in the Spring.