New articles and adventure reports http://www.wildernessutah.com The deserts of the American Southwest abound with ancient literature. Countless people sweated, bled, and died on these lands, and many of them left their marks. Carvings litter the desert like windblown newspaper clippings. The Southwest's ancient inhabitants must have worked hard to scrape their living out of the barren soil. As a result, I've always believed the figures painstakingly chipped into rock were either highly functional or highly ceremonial; certainly more than the idle doodling of bored, shiftless teenagers... http://www.wildernessutah.com/brain/waterglyphs.html Every chemical reaction has an ideal temperature at which it takes place. Temperatures outside a given range can make undesirable things happen in a reaction; that’s why you may find your digital camera’s lithium battery has mysteriously lost all its power after a frigid night in the mountains... http://www.wildernessutah.com/brain/hypothermia.html On July 19, 2003, Rick and Lisa Goff were enjoying an idyllic afternoon of fishing with their three children.  They set up base near the shore of Crystal Lake, in the Uinta Mountains.  As an early afternoon storm gathered overhead, the Goffs moved their lawn chairs under a tree for shelter.   A bolt of lightning struck the tree and killed both parents instantly... http://www.wildernessutah.com/brain/lightning.html I’m cautiously hugging a serpentine mountain road beyond the Book Cliffs, bordered by sheer drop on the left and a steep mountain on the right. There’s not much room here for either passing cars or acrophobia... http://www.wildernessutah.com/adventure/rangecreek.html The Lakes Backcountry, as it’s referred to by the Forest Service, is a prodigious chunk of roadless land almost one fourth the size of the High Uintas Wilderness... http://www.wildernessutah.com/adventure/lakesbackcountry.html Cliff Dweller Flat is an oddly perfect place to park your transportation before you set off in search of Eardley Canyon. Old USGS topographical maps show it has an aircraft landing strip... http://www.wildernessutah.com/adventure/eardleycanyon.html