Rain in the Desert
by Nathaniel Bluedorn, Copyright July 28, 2004, all rights reserved. 358 views
This is the story of how we failed to climb a mountain because of altitude sickness and succeeded in swimming up a narrow canyon in the desert.
I’ll try to tell this story with pictures.
July 17, Horsethief Trail, Ouray, Colorado
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| From 2004-07-19 Bridge of Heaven |
Adam, Hans, Jason and I are at the Dexter Creek trail head just outside Ouray. The elevation is 7,000ft and we feel great.
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| From 2004-07-19 Bridge of Heaven |
We look down down into Ouray from about 10,000ft. Most of the hard climbing is behind us, but some of us are feeling headaches.
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| From 2004-07-19 Bridge of Heaven |
Jason’s headache is getting worse, so Adam and Hans invent a way to carry his pack between them using a bit of rope. This doesn’t work well and they have to shift the load every few minutes.
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| From 2004-07-19 Bridge of Heaven |
What a mountain looks like to someone with altitude sickness.
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| From 2004-07-19 Bridge of Heaven |
We decide we should turn back while we still have the time to descend the mountain. But we see a hiker coming our way from up the trail, and we ask her if there are any camp sites further ahead. She says there are and there is a water source below a field of snow. We work our way a little further and find a place to pitch our tent.
After we pitch our tent it begins to rain. Some of us go looking for the water source while the rest of us cook supper.
July 18
After a perfectly quiet night, a squirrel announces it is time for us to get up.
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| From 2004-07-20 Bridge of Heaven |
The white thing you see in front of our tent is a rain trap.
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| From 2004-07-20 Bridge of Heaven |
We look down the mountain we climbed the day before and plan what route we will take today. We failed to reach our destination the day before, so we do not have enough time to make the full circle we wanted to make. We decide to descend the same mountain by a different path.
We all feel great. No more headaches.
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| From 2004-07-20 Bridge of Heaven |
I am looking at my GPS instead of the path.
July 26, Wet Beaver Creek, Sedona, Arizona
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| From 2004-07-26 Wet Beaver Creek, Sedona |
We read the map and warnings at the Wet Beaver Creek trail head, several miles south of Sedona.
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| From 2004-07-26 Wet Beaver Creek, Sedona |
We walk though hot desert until we reach a cool stream. We follow this until there is no way to walk and we have to swim.
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| From 2004-07-26 Wet Beaver Creek, Sedona |
The canyon walls grow taller and taller and the water gets deeper and deeper. Eventually we swim with sheer walls on both sides.
As hot as it is in the sun we are very cool down at the bottom of the canyon. It is very green and lush here.
We turn around when it starts to rain. We hope to reach our car before dark but we miscalculate and hike though the dry desert in the dark.
July 28, Wild Horse Canyon, Green River, Utah
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
We are perched on the narrow canyon walls. This canyon is totally dry and anytime we step into the sun we cook.
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
Adam holds a small lizard who is trying his best to pretend he is a rock.
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
The walls of the canyon are like frozen waves of rock.
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
An old cedar tree captures us, but we are rescued by a mysterious wizard.
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
Some of us try to find a way to get down from the predicament we climbed into.
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| From 2004-07-28 Slot Canyon, Green River |
Back at our car it begins to rain again.
I called this “Rain in the Desert” because it rained on us at the end of every hike, even in the desert. Very refreshing.
Comments
1 • Ralph • September 10, 2008 • 10:02 AM
Let’s go!
2 • Mandy M. • September 21, 2008 • 7:50 PM
Kelli, I’m assuming you wrote this? Just wanted you to know, at this point in my life, this is very encouraging to me. Thanks for sharing. It’s amazing how God can worth through a simple blog post.
3 • Johannah Stanford • September 24, 2008 • 3:00 PM
The quality of this video looked good to me, and it didn’t take hardly any time to download on our computer. Did you get more climbing equipment? 
4 • Kristen • October 04, 2008 • 3:39 PM
Sounds like tons of fun. 
Ryan took me rock climbing indoors for the first time a couple weeks ago and I loved it! (I’m his sister.)
Colorado looks and sounds like a very fun place.
5 • Mandy M. • October 04, 2008 • 5:49 PM
Great post Heidi! You sure are brave. I’m glad you had such a great time!
6 • Nate • October 13, 2008 • 5:23 PM
Thats awesome….
Sounds like something I would do. :p
7 • Heidi Reiman • October 20, 2008 • 4:47 PM
Hans, You poor thing. I’m sorry you couldn’t get a wi-fi connection. By the way what is a wi-fi?
Is it like wiffer cookies with fine milk?
8 • Kelli • October 29, 2008 • 8:03 AM
Oh sheesh, Nathaniel, you’re hilerious! That was really roughing it.
9 • Nathan Nasby • November 04, 2008 • 11:28 AM
If you want a really creepy expirience stay at the Imperial Hotel in London! Wow, we had blood on the walls and in the sheets in our room. The Window was broken, and I’m not even going to mention the shared bathrooms!!!!
10 • Anna • November 05, 2008 • 8:01 PM
Haha! Nathan, this is just the beginning… Soon you’ll be cool with using towels unwashed from the last occupant, sleeping on bedbug-ridden mattresses, and, well, haha!
11 • Heidi R. • November 17, 2008 • 10:00 AM
Great story.
12 • A • November 17, 2008 • 7:01 PM
I just watched this a few days ago (was looking up vids of Marrakesh and then followed the rabbit trail) and thought about you guys… Odd, but fitting, to see it here as well!
13 • Kristin C. • November 17, 2008 • 10:13 PM
Haha!!! That is hilarious!!! :-D
14 • Debbie • November 25, 2008 • 10:27 PM
I have a problem with getting cave crickets in my basement and hate them. I don’t think I want to be their friend. But neat story on your adventure. God Bless!
Debbie
15 • Laura • November 29, 2008 • 12:49 AM
Wow! :D
16 • Estin • November 30, 2008 • 8:58 PM
That’s crazy.
17 • Trish • December 04, 2008 • 12:11 PM
Um…Ew. That is SOOO disgusting.
18 • Kristen B. • December 07, 2008 • 6:52 PM
You are a great writer, Kelli.
19 • Heidi R. • December 09, 2008 • 11:45 PM
Thanks, so are you.
20 • Heidi R. • December 09, 2008 • 11:46 PM
Oh, and I love your pics.
21 • Quentin Cooper • December 18, 2008 • 7:58 AM
This seems to have been written by people who have caved only once in their life or read about it in an armchair. What about the main thing warm clothes (be it a wetsuit or neo-fleece). Gloves completely unimportant as I have caved without them for 20 years and never wished I’d brought them. What about a survey of the cave? Going with someone experienced? Leaving a CALL OUT? that not feature in your essentials? Incase people ahave an accident in a cave then nobody knows about it….come on guys….
22 • Blue (Royal) • May 06, 2009 • 11:07 PM
Nice film guys. The water side looked like fun. I love a good natural water slide. Good job with not making it look to rigged.
23 • Royal Magnell • May 06, 2009 • 11:57 PM
That was fun… now we run so the cops don’t catch us!
24 • Rachel • May 19, 2009 • 9:36 PM
Hey! Hoping you get this soon. Just wondered what kind of camera, flash, etc. was used for these pictures. Also how the cameras were kept dry and clay free. Thanks so much!
25 • Beau • August 04, 2009 • 12:16 AM
Enjoyed it. I am curious if this is the Wilder cave in Pelham, AL?
26 • Dannity Kane • February 27, 2010 • 2:06 AM
Give me a little of that and I’d feel like a king.
27 • Stephen Nasby • May 28, 2010 • 9:09 AM
Good job.
28 • Stephen Nasby • September 02, 2010 • 9:58 AM
That looked like quite an adventure, exciting. Swim looked very refreshing. Cool camera, you can even go underwater with it.
29 • Katie Carter • September 18, 2010 • 10:11 PM
It is in Grady County Georgia, between Pelham, and Cairo. It is owned my my aunt. It is very pretty, it is not open to the public because people can’t seem appreciate it without breaking pieces off, and spray painting.