January 31 & February 1, 2018.

Michigan is the best state in the union.  That said, in winter the days get short and gray, and a typical day for me has me driving to work in the dark, and driving home in the dark, and the entirety of my exercise coming from walking to and from the building from the back of the parking lot each day.  As I get older and wiser, I now seek to venture away from Michigan once a month during the winter, the get a guaranteed dose of sunshine, hiking and photography.

Flying into Vegas from Detroit and renting a  car makes for one of the cheaper vacation options out there.  Vegas also happens to have plenty of nature if you can resist the bright lights and point your car in any direction out of town.  One of my favorite places to spend time near Vegas is Valley of Fire State Park, an oasis of multi-colored rock formations about an hour north of town.  It is certainly beautiful from a car, but with the help of the Scott and Mike from Aperture Academy, I was able to photograph the classics, plus a few formations I would not have known to look for.

The Fire Wave is probably the most photographed spot in the park, and with good reason.

Nike Rock is another must see.

Hiking the White Domes loop could provide one days of great photography opportunities.

In two days of photography, we got to capture many amazing sights.

So much more to see, I will be back to discover more!