Comic Con/Zion Canyon picspam

[astridv]

San Diego loves Comic Con. Witness: the trolley signs at the Convention center, in Klingon.

jwaneeta/cyn took this pic. Me, I forgot my crappy camera in Germany and didn't find the time to buy one during the first days, so I don't have any photos of San Diego.

I got into almost all the panels I wanted, except one on comic design (meaning, the cover design) I really wanted to see. That room was filled to the brim with people, many of them apparently not interested in comic design but instead waiting for the Pixar panel that came after. That happens a lot at comic con. They really should do something to keep the technical/comic panels and the movie panels separate. Stuff like that defeats the original purpose of the con. I don't even mind the movie business taking over more and more, I just want to be able to hear panels on storytelling and cover art, too.

I went to Michael Lovitz's Comic Book Law school again. That's one of the most interesting panels, if one is the least bit interested in matters of copyright, trademark, fair use etc, and the nice thing about it is that you can always find a seat. :) Mr Lovitz seems to really enjoy talking about IP law, even with laymen like most artists are; he presents it understandable and not buried in legalese, and he always takes his time after we get kicked out of the room to answer individual questions.

(I asked him a couple of questions, among them if a paragraph in the TOS of a social networking site or a site like Deviantart saying something like "all your works are belong to us" is legally binding - yes, it is. Usually those phrases get noticed by someone and start a shitstorm and the maintainers realize it's bad publicity and take it down... but you never know. I guess I'll try to actually read all those TOS from now on. I did read the Deviantart one to make sure this wasn't in there, and a pain in the ass that was.)

Cyn and I also went to the (hehe) Hawai 5-0 panel. Why? Because we were promised a free t-shirt. And I collect t-shirts. We got our t-shirt and were happy. The show itself looks sortakinda interesting... probably a bit too action focused for my taste. It does have Daniel Dae Kim which is a plus. Maybe I'll check it out. It looks like the kind of show the slashers will be all over, but that's not really what I'm into so... well.

(As a sidenote, I really felt for Grace Park, who plays Kim's character's niece. She'd come in on the redeye and was so tired that she was totally off her game. At one point I swear I saw her almost falling asleep in her seat and tipping over into Daniel. I seem to remember that he poked her? but I may be imagining that. He seems to be a very sweet guy. It looks like the two have a great working relationship.)

I stayed in the room for the panel after which actually turned out a lot more promising: A tv-adaptation of the comic series The Walking Dead. Post-zombie apocalypse. Cinematic quality. The trailer definitely looked good, and I want to take a look at the comic book when I find the chance.

On Sunday we sat down at the booth of the San Francisco comic art museum and did sketches for an hour. They have artists all four days who donate sketching time to the museum. Usually I duck behind a large rock when it comes to things like public signings, but Cyn talked me into it and it really was fun. The hour passed like that *snaps*. I'm glad I did that.


After the Con we left for Zion National Park. As our first hike we chose a lesser known, underappreciated hike to Observation Point. Here's a view from relatively close to the bottom (but we didn't know that then)


in a little canyon further up


(unfortunately some of these are a little overexposed. I'd just gotten this new camera and hadn't figured out much beyond the auto setting.)

The writer, fashionably wearing a t-shirt wrapped around her head (it was pretty damn sunny that day)


Jwaneeta, doing her siren impression


The view from higher up...


... and higher yet.


I think it was about that point that we, um, ran out of water. Total newbie mistake. Cyn got distracted and forgot to pack her second bottle and me... well, in the past I'd hiked 8 miles, I'd hiked mountains, and I'd hiked in very hot weather - but apparently not all three at once. I thougt 1,5 liters per person would be enough but you need twice that much.

*cough* Anyway. That certainly made the hike more interesting.

These stone sculptures are all over the trails


We made it to the top. I pasted together my pics to make a panoramic view. From up there we were actually looking down at Angels' Landing, the famous hike everybody talks about. This one here is more like the red-headed stepchild for some reason. I don't know why... just look at this view!



The next day we followed another secret tip and went to Kolob canyon, another redheaded stepchild. Very few people there, but a view that was simply breathtaking. The pictures do not do it justice. Majestic, was the word that came to mind.

(pics by jwaneeta)


We chose an easy breezy hike to give our poor abused muscles some rest. Hiking up was not really the problem, but going down uses muscles that apparently don't get a lot of workout usually. For two days after Observation point, whenever we left the park shuttle it was "Ow ow ow" (three steps). When we went into our basement room: "Ow ow ow ow ow ow" (six steps).

Picture of me in a bizarre pose. I don't know why.



The next day we made a day trip to Bryce Canyon. This here is the eastern part of Zion. When you drive through the part of Utah, the landscape changes like every five minutes.



Bryce Canyon. Some call it a one trick pony; the landscape in Zion is a lot more diverse. But the trick it's got sure is amazing.











These next pics were taken on the way back. I was just pointing my camera out of the car and clicking. I love this new camera. Finally I can take photos again that don't suck.









Then, finally, Angel's Landing Day. It's a much-hyped hike. A bit too popular for its own good - we started at seven to beat the crowds and that turned out to be a very good idea. Later we heard that it gets so crowded during the day that the trail actually becomes dangerous, because not everybody can reach the chains that serve as handrails in some places.

Early birds ftw... The final (and most fun and interesting) stretch of Angel's Landing, before rush hour.


The view down from the ledge


climbing down from the summit


Zion is an excellent example for studying various ways of erosion. Here we have the lesser known human erosion... thousands of footsteps carving holes in the sand stone.


An intrepid chipmunk foraging for food.


After the hike we still had energy to burn so we went to hike the Narrows, along the Virgin river until the canyon becomes very, well, narrow.

This is the trail


Unfortunately we didn't make it all the way to the end... turns out this is a day hike, and one with a high risk of injury too. The ground is stony and because the river carries a lot of sand, you can't even see it. So you have to test every footstep before shifting your weight. Takes an enormous amount of concentration. Apparently foot injuries are very common, we even met a woman limping back with a swollen foot.



It was really fun though.

There are signs everywhere saying Don't feed the wildlife, $100 fine. But you can bet that wildlife is being fed. The squirrels are so conditioned, they come running whenever someone opens a bag of snacks.



The lady here is not actually feeding, just posing as if she were.


Cute though...


This is the aforementioned Globe, a boulderers' favorite. :) I went almost every day and at least mastered one side from right to left.

Cyn


and I


And finally, the front yard of our B&B, the "Under The Eaves" in Springdale. Cozy and a great location... highly recommended.


There's so much you can do in Zion... We went swimming in the river, also rented innertubes to float downstream (I got kicked off mine twice and ended up in the water) and horseback riding. It's a great place to spend a vacation. I'm feeling a lot more relaxed now than before my vacation, in spite of my (considerable, ugh) jetlag.