Great Basin National Park, Nevada

One thing I truly love is our national parks. I have said that before and I will most defiantly say it again. They provide us with endless entertainment, glorious stories, and spectacular views that people travel across the world to see. Not to mention we are already paying for them with our tax dollars so we might as well get the most out of them!

Great Basin National Park is a little known gem in the middle of the Nevada desert. Honestly, when we were on our way to the park I was thinking "there is no way anything great is actually out here." Yeah, chock that one up in the "face palm" category. This park is magnificent! The benefits of going to a park that is less known is there will be fewer people, less traffic, and more opportunities to see the park with out waiting. 

We rolled in to the very small town of Baker, Nevada just outside of the park and headed up towards the visitor center. An excellent place to pick up trinkets, shirts, or in my case, patches. The center pointed us in towards a winding road leading up to Wheeler Peak; a point just shy of 10,000 ft elevation. Stunning views surrounded us. The mountain peaks rose thousands of feet above our heads, capped with snow and casting a chilly shadow over the valley below.  

Being in the middle of nowhere, Great Basin is an ideal spot for taking pictures of the Milky Way galaxy during the night. Now, it was a matter of finding a suitable camp ground. The Rangers said every camp ground was full but there was a chance some spots might be open down a dirt road at Garrison. We took a cut off road, hitting the dirt with our fully loaded KLR's, but they didn't mind. Gravel roads were what the Kawasaki engineered them for. We stopped at every site, checking for open spots but to no avail. The sites were all full. At this time, the sun was setting and the shadows were getting longer. We were stopped at the end of the road; a parking lot leading to backpacking trails. "Well, looks like we are camping in a parking lot!" I said.   

The site turned out to be a stellar location for night photography; something I hadn't done until this evening. For all of you who use long shutters, I applaud you. It is a tough technique to learn, requiring patience, knowledge, and an extreme level of dedication. The low light pollution of G.B. means that the Milky Way is in full view of the naked eye; providing breath taking views and stunning photography opportunities. 

It was more than worth getting up at one a.m. to see such a spectacular thing. I am hoping to improve my photography skills in order to incorporate more pictures like this. Every day is a learning experience and every time I pick up the camera is another opportunity to develop a new skill. Thanks for reading!

-Rhino