NEW DESTINATION! Join in early June of 2027 for a new trip to slot canyons and wild red-rock desert of central Utah. We'll spend two days exploring the slot canyons that cut through the southern edge of the San Rafael Swell and making a visit to Goblin Valley State Park, before moving on to Capitol Reef National Park where bizarre rock formations, and epic dark skies await. Trip starts and finishes in Grand Junction, Colorado.

We will meet around mid-morning in Grand Junction, Colorado. Grand Junction is home to a good-sized, regional airport. We will then transfer as a group to Green River, UT, our base for the first two nights of the trip. We will make stops at the Book Cliffs and Colorado National Monument, near Fruita along the way. First milky way shoot in the desert outside Green River, UT.

About an hour south of Green River lies Goblin Valley State Park, and the immense wild country of the San Rafael Swell

It's only about a 2 and a half hour drive to Torrey, our base for exploring Capitol Reef, but we'll spend most of the day at it, enjoying a picnic lunch along the way, and stopping for many photographs of the sprawling red cliffs and canyons of the San Rafael Swell. We'll arrive in Torrey with plenty of time to check in and take a rest before dinner and another shot at the milky way.

We'll have a full day to explore Capitol Reef National Park, and (road conditions allowing) Cathedral Valley. More night sky photography in this dark-sky designated area.

We'll depart in the morning for the drive back to Grand Junction, but the trip isn't over with many opportunities for photography along the way. It's about 4 hours back to to the airport in Grand Junction, but we'll be keeping an eye out for things we missed as we retrace our steps. We'll have lunch along the way, and arrive back in Grand Junction in the mid-afternoon, in time to catch evening flights home, or stay on for independent explorations in the desert.