Yes. It is in the United States. Yes. It exists. And yes. It is stunning. Where is it? It is in Utah. From Wikipedia, "The wave is a sandstone rock formation, on the slopes of the Coyote Buttes, in the Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness, on the Colorado Plateau'. In order to preserve this spectacular nature, only 20 people per day is allowed to go on this trail to see "the wave". You will need to enter a lottery to get the permit of this hike. It is only $5 to enter the lottery, and I got very lucky that I won the lottery in March and was able to experience this incredible scenery. (Apparently, there are people who try for years.... )
This whole area is basically compacted sand, and the wavy landscape is shaped by years of wind swirling around the sandstone. If you try to rub the sandstone with your finger (NOT recommended! We are trying to preserve this beautiful nature), the stone turns into sand. It is amazing how nature works, isn't it? The trail is very undefined, so we went with a tour guide (Dreamland Safari Tour). I do not want to risk getting lost, and dying of heat in the day/ dying in freezing cold at night, especially when I am a complete idiot when it comes to nature navigation. The tour guide is from Belgium, and 20 years ago, she decided to come to the states to learn English, and decided to stay here. After years of exploring difdifferent options, she finally found her passion in nature and decided to become a tour guide of the beautiful canyons. Very interesting and inspiring story.
It is a 7-mile hike round trip, and it was not very strenuous. Since we went in March, the weather was not too hot. Well..... it did get a little hot around 2-3 in the afternoon when the sun is right above you, but for the most part, it is a lot better than in summer. The very first picture above was the signature shot of the wave , which is spectacular, but on the way to this awesome destination, the scenery was absolutely amazing as well. Everywhere is sooooooo... what's the right word.... WAVY! In a way, I'd like to think it is the architecture of nature. We do have a lot of cool buildings, cathedrals, etc., but nothing like this. I can't help but feel humbled by the power of nature.
Speaking of the power of nature, 65 million years ago, dinosaurs went extinct because of some kind of natural disaster (there are a lot of different theories). And in the United States, Utah is one of the big playgrounds for the paleontologists, and fossils are constantly found in the area. (There is a Utah Natural Museum I believe.... if anyone is interested) Guess what we saw!! DINOSAUR TRACKS!!!! (Picture on the left) OMG!!!This is just too cool! They were not easy to spot, and fortunately, we have a tour guide to help us find them! Otherwise, there is no way on earth that we could have found it ourselves. Besides the ancient dinosaur tracks, there are also tracks of small animals that live around the area. You can see the little footsteps (picture on the right), and the tail being dragged along when it walks. (super duper adorable <3)
Below is one of my most satisfying shots of the trip. Believe it or not, as dry as it looks, it rains quite a bit here in the canyon, and it often causes flash floods. A lot of the hikers do not live in the area, and therefore do not understand the danger of flash floods. The current is so high that it can wash you away or even cars sometimes. (I was told by the tour guide) The day we were there, there is still water from the rain a few days ago, the reflection of the canyon and the sky in the water definitely made the shot!
This is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime kinda trip. Not that I don't want to go back to this beautiful landscape, it's just.... there are too many other places that I want to go..... and.... and...... there is only so much time and money..... Since I won this lottery, maybe it's time to invest on the money kind of lottery? (lol) If I have enough money, there is only ONE thing I want. Travel! I want to see the world, every corner of the world. From the common popular tourist cities (Paris, Rome, etc) to the very small villages in China to the safari in Africa to the glacier in Antarctica. Every accessible (Or inaccessible? I am very
adventurous) corner of the world, I want to see it! I want to take pictures of it to show the rest of the world what our world looks like. (I am working on the technique part.... ) What are the people like in different places? What are their cultures? What are their stories? Not to mention all the amazing scenery from different part of the world. I would die with regrets without seeing the world, which most likely is going to happen..... the world is big..... but I definitely would not forgive myself from not trying.
Go travel as much as you can! Experience the world! It is very different than watching the discovery channel or the national geographic channel, but I have to warn you, it is addicting.