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Serious question.. I know there's a few other places with hoodoos like Bryce Canyon.. but the Grand Canyon, canyonlands, all the endless cliffs, canyons and slots, etc.. Where you can just walk drive or bike for days on end surrounded by dramatic scenery.. Does this kind of terrain exist anywhere else?
And as a sidenote, is biking the white rim road a good time or are there better trips to do in the area?
There's this little place called the Himalayan range, you might have heard of it. And Argentina has a little spot called Torres del Paine, which is on the SW edge of Patagonia. Patagonia itself covers 1/3 of a continent and presents endless opportunities for travelling in sight of the Andes range.
The American SW is unique in North America, and even in the world. Nowhere is exactly like it, but there remain lots of places in the world that have similar characteristics, and that are just as spectacular in their own ways. As Americans we tend to be woefully ignorant of Africa and Asia, and even of South America, not to mention the northernmost reaches of North America.
I've been lucky enough to spend some time in canyon country, and will again. But my bucket list also includes places like Yangshuo and Huangshan in China, the Drakensberg range in S. Africa, and a number of other places that are different than, but I suspect just as scenic and dramatic as the desert SW.
That depends. The White Rim is akin to a river trip except with bikes. You have all your stuff, chairs, good food etc and ice cold beer, you ride all day, do some side hikes and then kick back and watch the stars come out over some very pretty country. The riding is 2x track jeep trail, nothing terribly challenging but you are having fun.Quote:
Originally Posted by marving
This movie asks that same question.
Pakistan
Full movie is on Netflix, FYI. Highly recommended.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tuckerman
Watched part of that on Netflix with the mini-Chups -- thought it was funny how the narrator(s) talked about how they were bored with going to the same old places in Utah and the southwestern US, year after year, so they wanted to travel.... in order to locate places all over the world that look exactly like the same places in Utah and the southwestern US.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tuckerman
Not sure what the point was.
In terms of just natural terrain, parts of northern China / Mongolia are very similar. Of course there's *slightly* less access! ;-)
I thought that Torres del Paine, like Fitz Roy, was divided by the border. I could be wrong, yet another reason I should get my ass down there and check it out for myself.Quote:
Originally Posted by TruckeeLocal
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Originally Posted by TahoeJ
But in terms of air quality, one's better off biking in Los Angeles, Mexico or the Calif. Central Valley.
Not up there - barely any population to cause much pollution.Quote:
Originally Posted by Viva
Cappadocia, Turkey looks fucking cool.
http://www.famousplacefinder.com/wp-...key-Hotels.jpg
Well lots of the old western were shot in Spain.
OP asked
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Originally Posted by marving
Want to know why people here call you a smug douchebag? Posts like this. The Himalayas are amazing (yes, I have been there) and I certainly doubt the OP would dispute that or turn down a trip there, but they're not red rock canyon country, which is what he was asking about. Why you'd see fit to lecture him about huge mountain ranges is pretty odd. And your smug post is made all the more humorous by this:Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamespio
You're being a smug douchebag about places you haven't even been!Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamespio
he shoots, he scores!
Cue appearance by Greg and invite to AlpineZone...
Danno beat me to it; it was bizzarre reading that smug non sequitur after the original post. It's like Pio can't stop himself even when he has no clue what the topic is.
I started thinking he was on to something, there are impressive dry areas near Tibet and in Argentina. But then it went into crazy rantland
When you add all the factors together, Rocky Mountains with long winters mixed with hudge number of arches, red rock canyons, graffiti-ridden petroglyffs, the rivers and long seasons for recreation around Moab, I think the answer's no. Pio needs a bong rip :)
There are a lot of cool places that are worth visiting but I don't really think the others match the totality radicality that is SW USA. Maybe the Dolomites though?
Arches National Park contains the world's largest concentration of natural stone openings. (1)
Rainbow Bridge in southern Utah state is the world’s hudgest natural bridge. (2)
The Sahara has some cool arches (2)
http://cdn2-www.webecoist.momtastic....2/arches_2.jpg
China - recognized as the hudgest (vertically) natural stone arch on Earth, Shipton’s Arch stands 365 meters (1,200 ft) tall (2)
http://cdn1-www.webecoist.momtastic..../arches_10.jpg
1 - http://www.discovermoab.com/faq.htm
2 - http://webecoist.momtastic.com/2010/...atural-arches/
Well I've been to the Himalayas and the Andes and while they're are amazing mountain ranges I'm not sure what they have to do about my question regarding dessert scenery and the canyon paradise that is the southwest US. I've also been to several countries in the Middle East and Namibia, both have huge desserts and lots of sand, but nothing even remotely similar to the landscapes of the southwest. I've also been to yangshuo and the drakensberg, again very scenic (so is lofoten, iceland, isles of Scotland, the alps, the Dolomites, the Rockies, isles of Greece, cappadocia, etc). But again, I'm asking about what appears to be a unique and singular quality of the southwest, with it's mind blowing dessert landscapes of endless cliffs and canyons.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamespio
I've been fortunate enough to travel a lot, but I found utah and parts of Arizona to be among the most unique and impressive places I've ever been. I'm sure there's a lifetime of exploring to be done but I'm curious if this kind of landscape exists elsewhere.
Cappadocia is very cool, but no canyons, big or small.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tippster
Anything else we should look at or that you recommend?Quote:
Originally Posted by Bunion
You guys don't read very well, do you? Then again, the OP doesn't write very well.
OP asked if ther was anywher else on earth "Where you can just walk drive or bike for days on end surrounded by dramatic scenery.. Does this kind of terrain exist anywhere else? " And my smug, douchebag answer, was, "yeah, several come to mind right off the bat where there is dramatic swcenrey for days on end" which is what I thougth you asked, since that's what the words you used meant. My less smug answer was, yeah, the SW is pretty dam cool, but it is a small part of a an entire freaking world full of really cool places. So, there are plenty of places to go for days at a time with dramatic scenery.
But that wasn't the confirmation bias -laden answer that Danno and BMills wanted, was it?
The SW is awesome, but there is literally no end to awesome places on earth. There are more abandoned dirt roads in the Boise National Forest than you coudl mountain bike in a lifetime. There are spots I can think of in central Pennsylvania, N. Carolina, and W. Virginia where it is likely no human has set foot in 100 years. The most stunning sunset I ever saw was over the Shenandoah Valley, the most stunning sunrise over the Puget Sound. And the most awe-inspiring man-made spectacle was the Rhine Valley and the effects of 1000s of years of culitivation.
Canyon Country is awesome, but while the land and its geography itself is unique, its awesomeness can be found in almost any landscape, because the awesomeness comes from the viewer and the viewing, not from the scenery.
Sorry if that's not the info you were hoping for. I took your post and did with it what I wanted, becuase I don't owe you crap.
I never get tired of posting this:Quote:
Originally Posted by Jamespio