I was later told it looked like I was doing some sort of bizarre, avant-garde dance: Whipping and whirling and hands flapping wildly as my legs bent at completely unnatural angles, scrobbling and pedaling cartoonlike for purchase on the water-slicked rocks. We were hiking up Boy Scout Canyon — just one stop on our daylong kayaking trip down Black Canyon — and I’d clearly met my nemesis in the form of this rocky keyhole waterfall.

From mild to wild, here are nine trips to ‘wet’ your appetite for adventure, relaxation and family fun A (worthwhile) trek to Eden in the desert Baker Lake, Nevada Get wet: If you’re looking to evade not only heat, but also neighbors and civilization in general, get out a Nevada map and circle Great Basin National Park, 286 miles from Las Vegas, near the Utah border. The 77,100-acre park is often overlooked because of its distance, but Great Basin offers something many nearer parks don’t: water.

Take the plunge — and rediscover the lake you thought you knew Psst. Here’s a secret: You’re missing out on Lake Mead.

Oscar Goodman once glibly proposed imploding the Union Plaza to pave a better prospect to what would later become Symphony Park. Today, the former mayor’s name is stamped on a restaurant in the resort that’s now slicking and primping for maximum swank in the New Downtown.

Bishop If a Memorial Day road trip is on your bucket list, consider a trek through the White Mountains to the charming hamlet of Bishop, Calif. This route would be splendid enough the last week in May if it only offered mountain views and blooming wildflowers.

Leave Great Basin in the dark Here’s a bright idea: Turn off the lights and look up. Unfortunately, light pollution is a growing problem in the United States, so you may not see much.

Secreto Iberico at Jaleo I didn’t know pigs had skirt steak on them. Leave it to the innovative mind of José Andrés to re-invent pork.

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The first rule of backcountry hiking: Be prepared. But what if you’re too prepared? The discomfort: His first big solo backpacking trip — carrying everything but the kitchen sink The zone: Zion’s beautiful — but rugged — West Rim My feet were hamburger, socks soaked through with blood.

A year after the reclusive eccentric’s death, the fight for the estate of Huguette Clark continues to generate headlines — and it’s all thanks to Las Vegas A massive fortune made in Clark County is slowly being scattered to the four winds, in accordance with what is surely among the most hotly disputed wills of the 21st century. Reclusive heiress Huguette Clark, daughter of the man who literally sold Las Vegas, died on May 24, 2011, a fortnight shy of her 105th birthday.