It had been 3 years since I last won a lottery permit to visit The Wave at Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. More and more people are showing up for the dreaded lottery so its been difficult to get a permit. They only issue 10 per day for walk ins and I was fortunate to get one. About 5o people showed up for this days’ lottery. A few years ago, only 7 showed up for a weekday drawing in January. On one day during the this past year’s Christmas Holidays, 390 hopefuls showed up for the 10 spots, an all-time record.

This visit was worth the effort as me and my friend Alison toured in and around the main area. By the time we made it to The Wave, everyone else had left, leaving this special place to us alone to photograph.  It’s difficult to photograph when there are about 20…