A selfie taken at Hickison Petroglyphs Recreation Area
The morning of Tuesday, July 14, I started the 1,600+ mile round trip journey from Carson City, Nevada, to Hanksville and Moab, Utah, for a photography workshop with Benton Downs Photography. The workshop was led by David Downs and David Begis, and there were five attendees. I’ve only ever done one workshop before, and it was basically a 2-day deal (a few hours of classroom and then a few days in the field the next day) for Eagles & Agriculture, here in the Carson Valley, waaaay back in 2006, so attending one that was six days was really a new experience for me. I chose this one primarily because I wanted to improve my drone photography/videography, and I thought Utah’s landscape was similar enough to Nevada’s that it would be useful for me. In other words, I didn’t want to learn how to do better drone shots in coastal regions of the U.S., because while I’m sure there’s a lot of crossover in skills, I still wanted to focus on something “closer to home,” as it were. Secondarily, my night sky photography could definitely use help, so this workshop seemed perfect for me.
There were a few zoom chats leading up to the workshop, with “assignments” for us attendees. Things like knowing how to change settings on the drone, being able to swap out filters, etc. Plus, it was good to get to know people a little bit, too, before the workshop.
I really enjoy road trips, and more and more I appreciate doing them on my own. Putting it bluntly, I can stop when I want, fart when I want, and listen to the music I want to listen to. Ha! This particular one, I admit, did come with some anxiety, as I was leaving almost one month, to the day, after I was in a rollover accident at freeway speeds. Though I came out of that accident mostly physically unscathed, I definitely have some lingering mental/emotional issues. Early on, after the accident, I considered canceling this workshop, just because I wasn’t sure I was up for the drive, but as time went on I realized I needed to force myself to do this, so off I went.
My first night was spent in Ely, at the Bristlecone Motel. I’ve stayed there before. It’s no-frills, but it is clean and convenient, and surprisingly quiet. On the way, I stopped at Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area, which is one of my favorite stops on trips across Nevada on Hwy 50. It has a small bathroom, picnic areas, and a really nice trail system you can take for a short walk out to an overlook of one of my other favorites in Nevada: Big Smoky Valley. Though the petroglyphs themselves have been damaged in recent years by vandals, there are still many to be seen along the way.
The end of the main trail at Hickison Petroglyphs Recreation Area, overlooking Smoky Valley.
A woman fishing at Cave Lake State Park.
A very friendly bicyclist at Cave Lake State Park.
I got to Ely fairly early, so I had time to head out to Cave Lake State Park, which is another favorite for me. We are running a story on this park in our Fall/Winter issue of Nevada Magazine & Visitor Guide, and the editors had asked if we had more pics of people recreating, to include in the story. We didn’t, but I was lucky that day and got a photo of someone fishing, and also met a very friend biker who agreed to do a little staged riding for me so I could get photos. There’s a nice little Mexican restaurant, La Fiesta, near the motel, which is great for enjoying a margarita at the end of the day, and then just walking back to your room.
Night Heron at Cave Lake State Park.
Young fawn at Great Basin National Park.
I got up pretty early the next day, not long after sunrise. After another quick trip out to Cave Lake to see if I could get more recreation photos, I came away only with a few fleeting images of a night heron, and then was on my way. I forgot I was losing an hour going into Utah, so I decided to go explore Great Basin National Park a bit. I opted to drive up to the top of the Wheeler Peak scenic road, forgetting how long that takes, so unfortunately I got to the top, ate my breakfast while enjoying the cool winds coming off the mountains that still have snow showing, and then made my way back down. At one point a tiny spotted fawn decided to jump out in front of my car. Thankfully I was going slow (anything else up there is crazy), so once my heart started up again, I got a quick snap through the windshield, and continued on.
Western Utah is boooo-ooooring! Ha. I was kind of surprised. Unlike Nevada’s Hwy 50, there were not very many offshoot roads that you can take out to explore the mountains – it’s just flat, dry, nowhere to explore, nowhere to pull off on the side of the road, even. So for 60+ miles I yawned my way along. There aren’t a lot of towns, which is very rural-Nevada-esque, so I was 100% ok with that. Eventually I made my way into Hanksville, which has a population of roughly 160 people, two gas stations (one of which has a burger joint attached), a convenience store, a restaurant, and some lodging. We were staying in Muddy Creek Mining Company’s cabins, and they were really nice! The cabins across the street, at Duke’s RV Park, look to be exactly the same build.
Muddy Creek Mining Company cabin.
Hanksville’s real draw is the fact that it’s centrally located among a BUNCH of really cool stuff: Lake Powell, Capitol Reef National Park, Goblin Valley State Park, Factory Butte, Moonscape Overlook, and Little Egypt, to name a few.
The back side of the Factory Butte (on the far left) area.
I had just enough time to get some stuff unpacked and decompress a bit, before we would all meet for dinner and plan our first evening of shooting together. The food at Duke’s restaurant, across the street from our cabins, was remarkably good! I’m always surprised when small towns like this have good food, because they kind of have you over a barrel, and you’d just have to eat whatever they served, but I did not have one meal there that I thought was bad. Breakfasts were particularly excellent. People who know me well will be surprised that I have zero food photos to share! Ha. I was preoccupied.
After dinner that night (Wednesday), we drove out to the back side of Factory Butte. I had originally planned to follow in my 4Runner, but I’m glad I didn’t because those were some rough roads with soft sand back there, and I appreciated being with drivers used to it, and with higher clearance than I had. My shots from that evening were mediocre, but that’s ok. I was tired, and after all, that’s why I was attending this workshop!
First attempt at drone shots of Moonscape Overlook.
Thursday morning, we left the cabins at 4:40 a.m., to get out to Moonscape Overlook, which was probably one of my favorite spots in this Hanksville area. There, we shot with non-flying cameras at first, and then after sunrise we broke out the drones. Both Davids (instructors) milled around among us attendees, answering questions, making suggestions, and just generally getting a feel for people’s different comfort levels with gear and photography in general.
I was the only one there who is currently Part 107 certified, with a fair amount of flight hours, and I will admit, I was nervous flying around people who were not as regimented about their processes, newer to drone photography and just getting more comfortable and familiar with their drones. I tried to keep myself a bit away, but there were times, with that many drones in the air at one time, there was signal interference, and that was a bit unnerving. We got through it, but I admit to being a little anxious.
That said, this is one of the few times I was flying just for fun and learning, and there is a certain amount of freedom in that. My manager had commented, before I left, that she was glad the workshop wasn’t in Nevada, because I could just let go and learn, without feeling pressure to get all the best shots for Travel Nevada. She wasn’t wrong about that! I learned a lot more at this workshop than I would have if we were in Nevada.
The rock we’ve lovingly titled “The Castle.”
After we were done at Moonscape (my shots were ok, still not where I wanted them), we did some scouting again around Factory Butte. There was a darker rock near there that looked like a castle, and we coerced the Davids to head over to that rock, which we were able to actually climb. I got one of my favorite photos (not drone) from the top of that rock!
Factory Butte in the dying evening light, with a rock fire pit in the foreground.
Thursday evening, we headed again toward Factory Butte, but we were a little thwarted by storms moving in. In fact, for the entire time we were at the workshop, we never got to have a starry-night session, because there were monsoonal storms every single night. It was hotter than average (triple digits each day) and much wetter, which added unique aspects to the experience.
Looking the opposite direction from the prior photo, this was the storm closing in on us. Very ominous! There was one tiny break in the clouds, which allowed a tiny bit of a rainbow to shine through.
It’s been a long time since I’ve experienced a storm like the one that came through that evening. The thunder literally shook the cabin I was in. Kind of exciting to experience that, because these storms came with so much rain, there wasn’t really the fear of lightning-caused wildfires, like we always have here in Nevada. The excitement built, though, and kind of burbled over, later in the week, as deadly flash floods came along with the storms.
Capitol Reef National Park.
Friday morning began, again, at 4:40 a.m., and took us to a field that was unfortunately affected by the night’s prior rains in the form of mosquito infestation! I am a magnet for them, and get fairly strong reactions, especially when there are a lot. I got bitten about 7 times on the way to set up my tripod, and once I got bitten on the butt, through my jeans, I was done, deciding to camp out in the car instead. The sunrise was kinda lackluster, and soon there were a lot of us hiding out in vehicles, hoping for magical light that would light up the buttes in the distance, and also chase away the skeeters, but it wasn’t to be. So we loaded up and headed to Capitol Reef National Park, mostly just to see what was there. By that point it was pretty much mid-day light, so it really wasn’t prime shooting, just experiencing.
A drone pano with the pieces shot by hand, rather than allowing the drone to choose the images. First time doing this.
Automated drone pano, same location.
That evening, I can’t remember the name of the place we went (lots and lots of dirt roads out there), but it provided a lot of opportunity for drone practice, and I finally found myself getting better shots, trying new things, fiddling with settings. I could sense myself starting to improve. Once more clouds moved in it was once again impossible to try for a Milky Way shoot. Which, honestly, was ok with me because with the mornings starting at 4:40, I don’t think I could have managed staying out ‘til midnight+, shooting stars. I think if there were to be another workshop that was focusing on starry nights and also sunrises, it might be best to move it more toward the fall, where the days are shorter, and would allow for a little more sleep in-between.
Moonscape Overlook.
A detail of the shot from above – our vehicle is the one closest to the edge. This is so you can gauge the scale of this landmark!
On most of these excursions, there were four of us in one vehicle, and the remaining three in the other. So, early on, in our vehicle of four were David D., Roberta, Ramesh, and myself. In the other vehicle, David B., Catherine, and Roger. David D. had been experiencing what was originally thought to be allergies, but in fact turned out to be a really nasty head cold, so he was completely out of commission on Saturday, staying back at the cabin and sleeping as best he could, to try to knock out what was ailing him. Roberta and Ramesh decided to sleep in on Saturday, so David B., Catherine, Roger, and I went on an adventure of four, in one vehicle. That was kinda nice, to be able to chat with attendees I’d not spent much time talking with previously. We went back out to Moonscape Overlook, where I finally feel like I got a good feel for the drone, and a shot I was proud of.
My favorite personal shot of Factory Butte, with the very patient pronghorn in the foreground.
On our way back out, we headed again toward Factory Butte, and came upon a very calm and patient female pronghorn, who let us photograph her to our hearts’ desires! Probably my favorite Factory Butte photo is the one with her in the foreground.
Goblin Valley State Park.
Catherine, Roberta, Ramesh, and I decided to check out Goblin Valley State Park after that. Roberta and David B. had gone earlier in the week and flown drones there (they have a very cool system where you can pay to have an hour to fly your drone from the park overlook), so the rest of us wanted a go at that, but found out they don’t offer that on the weekends. Bummer! But oh well. It was H.O.T. and mid-day, with all that heat radiating back up from the rock all around us, but Catherine and I, feeling adventurous, took off to cross the Goblin-filled valley, Ramesh took off on his own to shoot, and Roberta (probably the wisest of all of us) stayed near the car (and the a/c). We had planned to try to find the slot canyons afterward, but here’s where I need to split off from this story for a moment.
In 2019, Jeremy and I went to Africa and kayaked the Okavango Delta. We were out there for 4 days, 3 nights, and spent the last 2 nights at the same camp spot. Usually when we are on a kayak camping trip, we want to be on the water at least for sunrise and sunset, for the best light. Unfortunately you can’t do that on the Okavanago, because that’s when the hippos are on the move and more aggressive. So during those times, one of our guides would take us on a nature walk. If you were to read my journal from those days, you’d see my frustration increasing, because our guides wouldn’t let us get into spots where I thought we could get better photos. Looking back on it now, I just cringe. Those folks were out there risking their lives, to keep my foolish self safe, and I was upset because I couldn’t get a better photo. All of our guides in Africa did such an AMAZING job keeping us safe, I didn’t even realize how much danger we were in at any given time. I’m not sure I’m saying this right, but what I’m trying to say is my journal reads like a petulant, ungrateful child. Hindsight is 20-20, and reality came roaring in on our last night out in the Okavango as we were charged by an elephant in musth – one of the most terrifying times of my life. But this is a story told elsewhere, and the reason I bring it up is because back here in Utah, at Goblin Valley, when we were asking the State Park Ranger for directions to the slot canyons, he was extremely vague, and stated several times that they did NOT recommend going into the slot canyons right now, because of flash flooding in the area. We didn’t even find the canyons that day, and boy was I vocal in complaining about the ranger not giving us better directions, and continually warning us off them. None of us, at that point, had been paying attention to the news at all, and so we were completely unaware that just one day prior, in a slot canyon about 70 miles away from where we were, five members of one family had died in a flash flood that came down the slot canyon they were hiking. So, so tragic. I never said any words of complaint to that ranger, but I still feel like I owe him an apology for my crappy, entitled attitude. I’m going to try to keep in my mind the lessons taught by African elephants and Utah’s flash floods. I was to experience a more directly-impacting message later in the trip.
Little Egypt
Saturday evening, we were supposed to go out to Bentonite Hills, but because of recent rains and floods, the “small river crossing” we were supposed to make, ended up being a “raging river crossing” we were unwilling to try. So we pivoted and went to an area called Little Egypt. We got there kind of late, so didn’t have time to explore its own “Goblin firled” in sunlight, which is a shame because I would have loved to’ve flown my drone around the little hoodoos. As per the pattern, a huge storm blew in, with wind and rain that forced us to bring the drones in, but then subsided a bit so we could once again fly … until the lightning started. We shot with non-flying cameras for a bit more, and then called it a night.
Little Wild Horse Canyon.
Little Wild Horse Canyon.
Sunday morning, I decided to sleep in a couple extra decadent hours. We had been averaging about 4 hours of sleep per night, and it was catching up with me. I knew on Monday I had to start the 800+ mile drive back home, and I didn’t want to do it completely exhausted. We all met for breakfast, then packed up and made our way over to Moab. One car went the southern route, through Canyonlands National Park, and Catherine, David B., and I went to explore Little Wild Horse slot canyons. Again, at this time we didn’t know of the recent deaths associated with flash flooding in canyons, but I think we likely still would have gone, because it was early in the morning and none of us had received any flash flood warnings on our phones yet – the storms didn’t roll back in ‘til later in the day. It was hot, and challenging for me with my bad knee, but I had a blast with them, just out exploring. Eventually, my knee told me it was done, so I stopped and sat in the shade, and waited while Catherine and David went up about another half hour. We eventually made our way back out and headed to Moab via the quicker northern route.
Dead Horse Point State Park.
Once we arrived at our hotel, we had about an hour and a half to eat dinner and decompress, and then we were once more off. First we went to the Mesa Arch in Canyonlands (where we would be shooting Monday for sunrise) to scout the location, and then made our way to Dead Horse Point State Park. I never did get that iconic U-shaped river shot from the observation point. Storms had been steadily moving in, and as I made my way up to that spot we were quickly surrounded by wind, rain, and lightning. It hadn’t reached us yet so I thought I’d get a quick photo. David D. mentioned that he didn’t really like the looks of what was around us, and no sooner did he say that when a lightning bolt hit so close, it made my teeth ache, my ears ring, and the hair stand up on my arms. We — and everyone else out there — ran for the covered shelter nearby, where we all huddled and nervously laughed about the closeness of that lightning.
Dead Horse Point State Park.
Of course photographers being photographers, as soon as the sideways rain subsided, we rushed to the edges of the overlook, to get photos of the lightning storms surrounding us. Because that’s what we photographers do. Ha. The Davids were watching, though, to make sure we weren’t putting ourselves in unnecessary danger. I’m not entirely sure what was the tipping point, but they made a near-instantaneous mutual decision at one point, that it was time to go, and it was time to go NOW! I don’t think we’d ever loaded up our gear and gotten out of any other location as quickly as we did that one.
And it was a good thing! Because guess what? I never thought for a moment about flash flooding when coming down out of a mountain, but there were three low-lying areas we needed to cross that were, indeed starting to flood. Lower-clearance passenger cars and those towing campers were lined up, unable or unwilling to pass. Thankfully, our workshop leaders knew their vehicles, and gauged the risks, and got us safely through those three areas. I was never afraid for my safety, but I can tell you if I’d been following them in my 4Runner, I would have been far too inexperienced to try to get through those areas on my own. I would have been in the line of cars waiting out the storm for hours, up on that mountain. I firmly believe that even another 5 minutes up at Dead Horse Point, and we would have been in the line of cars waiting, as well. This certainly underscored for me the importance of having the proper guides for experiences like this – they knew the things to watch for, and knew how to get us out safely. We eventually made it down the hill (video above, with a snippet of what it was like driving out of there) and back to our hotel, where we all basically collapsed in our beds, sleeping as much as we could before our 4 a.m. departure time the following morning.
I’ve never experienced an area with flash flooding like that. I’ve seen flooding before, but nothing like that, that is so potentially devastating, that comes on so quickly, and subsides in time to start up again the next day. When they send out flash flood warnings to your phone in that area, it’s nothing to take lightly, that’s for sure.
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park.
Mesa Arch in Canyonlands National Park.
Monday morning, we left the parking lot of our hotel at a couple minutes before 4 a.m. At about 4:03 I realized, as we were on our way, that I’d forgotten my tripod. I wasn’t about to ask a carload of photographers to turn around for my boneheaded mistake, and I figured I’d just figure something out once I got to Mesa Arch. David D. generously insisted I use his tripod, though, and so I was able to get that iconic shot of sun rising below the arch, with the layered valley in the background. I walked around afterward, taking other photos (including taking photos of people with their own cell phones), and chatting with other visitors to the area. It was a really nice way to end the week.
We returned to the hotel, had breakfast together, said our goodbyes, and then all went our separate ways. Those of us who were driving were given the opportunity to have a late checkout in case we wanted to get a couple more hours of sleep, but at that point I was already awake and ready to be on my way, so I headed off. When my Maps app offered a route that said there were no flood warnings, I couldn’t click on it quickly enough!
There’s a section of Hwy 50 in western Utah — right before it gets to the really boring part — where they caution people against driving while tired, and encourage you to take a break at a little rest stop, so that’s exactly what I did. I stopped there and snoozed for about 45 minutes, which was enough to get me all the way through to Baker, NV, where I stayed at the Border Inn (casino and check-in in Nevada, rooms in Utah). It’s a pretty basic little place, with a decent convenience store, and food, but honestly, I was asleep probably within an hour of checking in, and I slept 12 hours straight, right on through to sunrise the next day.
Border Inn, in both Nevada and Utah.
So on Tuesday the 21st, one week after I left Carson City on my way to Utah, I made my way home from Baker, stopping a couple times to get some photos for work (again – it was a good thing the workshop was not in Nevada, or I would have been ‘working’ the whole time!) and eventually getting home around 2 p.m. No rest for the weary (or wicked, as my mom used to say), I was right back at work the next morning, because we are in the final stages of production on our Fall/Winter issue, which ships to press on Monday.
I’m still pretty beat, but finally recovering. Took my knees a bit of time to start talking to me again, and exhaustion sets in pretty quickly right now, but this is a weekend of rest and rejuvenation, so that’s where things are at.
I really, really enjoyed my time out with this group of folks, and David B. was able to share a lot of tips for shooting starry nights, offering to help later on with any questions I might have. Not much you can do when Mother Nature does her best to thwart you. I would like to go on another workshop with David D. to also experience him at full power, when he’s not being taken down by his angry sinuses (and in fact it turns out he’s taking a scouting trip to the Isle of Skye the exact same time we’re going to be there in October – maybe we’ll see him out at a Fairy Pool!) But even with all those things working against us, I learned a ton, and had a great time. There’s no way I would ever have found all these locations on my own, nor would I even have been able to get to them, because I’m not as experienced at off-roading as they are. I would absolutely recommend Benton Downs Photography workshops to anyone looking for a very personal, small-group setting, while exploring some amazing locations. You can learn more about them and what they have to offer at https://bentondowns.com.
