I have spent only 5 of the last 25 nights in a bed (4 different beds, to be precise). At this point I feel a touch claustrophobic in bathrooms and feeling clean is certainly a novelty. My Wilderness Medicine elective is over and I have had an exceptional visit in Moab (more on that in another post). Tomorrow I head to the mountains of Colorado for one last stint in the wilderness before heading back to New Jersey where I will start a radiology elective on June 3rd. From a month in the wilderness to an elective spent in dark, windowless rooms- the change in environment couldn’t get much more extreme (which is saying a lot, coming from someone who has gone from alpine camping to desert camping in the course of 3 weeks).
This is the final installment of “Pic of the Day”, at least for the Wilderness Medicine Elective. I may not be able to resist a “Pic of the Day, Moab edition”… we shall see.
For the desert portion of the course we headed to Canyonlands National Park, specifically The Needles District of the park. We spent 4 nights in 3 different sites, hiking up to 12 miles a day with heavy packs. I found this portion of the course the most physically demanding, but at the end of the day it was unquestionably my favorite section.
I’ll write details in future posts, but for now: Pic of the day- desert edition.
Day 1- Canyonlands
The geology of Canyonlands (actually, the geology of much of Utah) is stunning and fascinating. This is in the Needles District, near Lost Canyon, where we spent our first night in the park.
Day 2- Perspective
Looking back at Lost Canyon as we hike out to Elephant Canyon, our next campsite. From many vantage points in the park you could see the snow capped La Sal Mountains in the distance.
Day 3- Druid Arch.
Before we hiked our big packs out to Chesler Park, we took an early morning hike out to Druid Arch.
Day 4- The Joint Trail
One of the coolest trails I have every hiked, The Joint Trail winds through a narrow slot canyon.
Day 5- Sunrise and out.
We left camp at 4am for the 3+ hour hike out. I led the group of 19 by head lamp for 2 hours before stopping on a bluff to watch the sun rise around 6am. Pre-dawn hikes are something I will be adding to my repertoire.
I did not expect to fall in love on this trip, but I have certainly fallen in love with the desert. I don’t know when I’ll be back, but I hope it is soon…
Chesler Park.
principleintopractice 
Gorgeous scenery. Along with the radiology rotation, returning to your small, albeit nice, apartment in Milburn may seem a mite dark and cramped too.
Indeed… Perhaps I’ll take to sleeping in the park across the street.
wow, very nice pictures, me like, it is a shame these areas are enjoyed only briefly because of society demands, (and I don’t mean your neighbor next door society either)in a real utopia these areas would be visited as often as you like without constraints of work, bills, other unjust demands. without risk of injury or anything to mar the enjoyment. this is why I like psalms 37
It is certainly great to enjoy these areas, and I wish I could be there more, but as one wise resident said “It is better to leave a place before you are ready than to stay there past the point of enjoyment.” (or something like that).
Something I have found very interesting about the 3 national parks I have visited in Utah is the varying degrees of commitment (or perhaps ability) it takes to experience and enjoy the environment. Really getting “to know” Canyonlands requires extensive hiking, camping, and time. Arches national park is much more accesible, with much being visible from the car or short hike. Dead Horse Point is the most accesible- with busses literally dropping people off feet from stunning vistas.
Part of the magic, I suppose, is that really experiencing a place like Canyonlands really requires you get away from the demands of every day life… and I agree that it is a shame we only get to do this briefly.
Wow stunning. Beautiful pictures. I just got transported back to 1986 when I spent 3 months driving with a friend visiting your amazing national parks, tramping (i.e. hiking in NZ lingo) and camping. Every national park is stunning and the variety is incredible.
Thank you! I’m rather embarrassed to admit how few of our national parks I have actually visited, and I’ve promised myself to amend this issue. They have so much to offer, and as you point our they are very diverse. It’s wonderful you had three months to explore them- once you start exploring you realize how much there is to see!
[…] A number of schools (and programs) offer Wilderness Medicine electives for medical students, but I chose (and was fortunate to get a spot in) the elective offered by UMass Medical School. A few things drew me to this program. First- it has been running for 20 years, so I initially suspected they were doing something right. Second- many Wilderness Medicine courses are taught in classrooms with field trips and forays “into the wild” for practical experiences. The UMass course is taught in the wild. With the exception of our first day of lecture, conducted in a hotel meeting room, all our lectures were done outside on snow, in boats, on beaches, or sitting in the desert. Thirdly- we got to experience three different environments in the course of three weeks. A few other courses are taught in the wild, but they are taught in a single environment. Utah gave us access to three, very different, environments (as shown in my previous posts: alpine, river, and desert). […]