Abbey's Road

After leaving Kodachrome Basin we drove over to Bryce Canyon NP. It’s only about 20 miles away, but the elevation change was enough that we found snow still at Bryce where Kodachrome Basin was very dry and hot. We got there early enough that I was able to take a real nice hike down into the natural amphitheatre that is the main highlight of Bryce Canyon. Close up the hoodoos, as they’re called, look like a good heavy rain could wash them right away. Obviously, they are a bit more stable than that, but you can easily see where erosion will continue to wipe them away. When I finally got back to my campsite I was surprised to see this huge RV in my spot. It was an older couple who somehow didn’t see my receipt tag on the post. I pointed out my chair that was still sitting there and they said they were going to bring it to the host thinking that someone had left it. At least they were nice and left right away.

Bryce Pics

Friday morning I got up early and made the 2 hour drive to Zion to try and get a spot in the first come, first served campground. Enough people left that morning that I was able to get a spot. It wasn’t the nicest campground, but it was real convenient being next to the visitor center and the shuttle bus stop. From April to October in Zion they don’t allow cars up into the main part of the canyon. It actually works out quite nice because you don’t have to fight over a small number of parking spots or wait in long traffic lines. There was actually one trail that Abbey could walk on so I took on it both mornings before I took off hiking for the afternoon by myself. The first morning she got attacked by a friendly-looking dog who was off leash. It really wasn’t anything and she seemed to recover her wounded pride pretty quick. I had heard a lot about Zion before going there and a few people had told me that it was one of their favorite parks. I kept struggling to figure out what captivated them so much. It is a beautiful canyon, especially now that spring is here and the trees are turning green, but the hiking is a little limited and the terrain is not too varied. I think the other thing that tainted it for me were the crowds of people. I was really surprised how many people were there for Easter weekend, even families with young kids. How was the Easter Bunny going to find them there? Another thing that surprised me was how many people were hiking on the more difficult trails. And many of the people didn’t look like your typical, fairly fit hiker, but they were going on some pretty steep trails. Usually in the national parks, once you get out on the trails a little way the crowds dwindle quite a bit.

On Saturday I did a hike to a place called Angels Landing. I can see where the name came from. The trail was cut right into the rock in many places and they built these switchbacks, called Walter’s Wiggles, up a steep face.
Before this I think only angels could have made it to the top. One section traverses a very narrow ridge before climbing steeply up to the landing on top and a beautiful view of the canyon. They’ve added chains to hold onto in some of the hairier parts. I couldn’t believe some of the people that were going up this part.
Some were parents with little kids. Some people didn’t make it the whole way, though. They finally succumbed to their fear and turned back. It was actually a very cool hike. My niece, Rachel, would have loved it. On the top I met a guy from Austria who I hiked back down with. He likes to climb, go canyoneering, paragliding and kayaking. He’s on a 6 month sabbatical from his job, but is nearing the end very soon. Somehow I always seem to meet these people, though he is going back to his job. He invited me to come to Austria anytime and he would take me climbing, paragliding or whatever I want. Sounds real tempting to me. Now I just have to find someone to watch Abbey for 2 weeks or so and it just might work out. On Sunday, after catching the last 10 minutes of Easter mass (I missed the early shuttle and the priest did a speed mass), I did another hike with quite a bit of a climb. It wasn’t quite as crowded as the day before, but the views were as good, if not better.

More Zion Pics

On Monday morning I took off early for Sedona. What should have been about a 5 hour drive turned out much longer. The wind was pretty strong the whole way, but at one point it got so bad I even had to pull off the road. It was in the Painted Desert north of Flagstaff. Sand was blowing across the road and I did all I could to keep my box on wheels on the road. I pulled off for a few minutes when I saw a bunch of other RVs and trailers pulled over. I was real happy to make it to Sedona where a nice cold beer was waiting for me at Michael and Diana’s. They live right near the center of town, but they are up on a hill so you don’t really notice. The house is very nice, but the views are what knocks you out. From their loft, you can see 360 degree views of the red rock cliffs and formations surrounding Sedona. It’s quite amazing. I’m housesitting for 3 weeks and watching their cats. (Abbey has been very helpful keeping on eye on them so far.) I told them when they get back from their cruise they may have to kick me out of the house. I might not want to leave, at least not until the weather starts getting real hot. Well, that’s all for now. Soon I will update with pictures from Sedona and the views from my temporary home here.

Posted by Ed at 12:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

On Tuesday morning, after leaving Moab, I drove to Capitol Reef NP. It’s the least known, and least visited, of Utah’s National Parks. It’s not all that big and only has a handful of hiking trails, but it is another interesting place for geological formations. We made a short stop there and did a scenic drive before continuing south. This part of Utah is pretty sparse and the towns are barely a blip on the map, but the scenery is pretty cool.
After leaving Capitol Reef I picked up Hwy. 12 which heads south over Boulder Mt. and then goes through more of canyon country sometimes winding along ridges only 2-3 times as wide as the road. The landscape is pretty desolate with sandstone everywhere. Unfortunately, it was getting late and I should’ve stopped for the night in Capitol Reef. The few small campgrounds I found were all full so I pulled off in a sand and gravel clearing on top of Hwy. 12. I kept waiting for someone to come along and tell me I couldn’t stay, but no one did. I left early just in case, but not before watching the sunrise over the desert. We hiked a few trails that day, both to waterfalls – Upper and Lower Calf Creek Falls. It was pretty hard to believe that not only would there be waterfalls in this desolate, barren landscape, but one of them was over a 100 ft. high. Abbey again had fun in the water and this time she even had some fish to chase.

After the troubles of the night before, I started looking for a campground earlier. I got one of the last spots in Kodachrome Basin State Park. I was surprised but Abbey was up for another walk. We didn’t go far, though, because it was pretty warm. This park is known for its “sand pipes” or spires. The theory is that millions of years ago this area used to be active with geysers and hot springs. When the geysers and springs dried up, their spouts filled with sand, or liquefied sand, which hardened over time. The surrounding sandstone was softer and was eroded away over time leaving the spires. They were interesting enough for the hike we took in the morning, though they probably won’t really impress you in pictures. It was a good hike to tire Abbey out with since I was heading to Bryce Canyon afterwards. As usual for the NPs, she’s not allowed on the trails there. Well, I’ll leave Bryce for another day. That’s all for now.

Posted by Ed at 3:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Early in the week I didn’t feel real good so I took it easy, did a few short hikes with Abbey, did laundry, cleaned the RV and did other exciting things like that. Tommy arrived early Thursday morning and we kicked off his visit with a stop at the venerable Moab Diner. He had been salivating over one of their breakfast burritos ever since he booked his flights to come out, and the diner did not disappoint. I had rented bikes for a couple of days so after breakfast we did a nice warmup ride to a place called Gemini Bridges, where there are two, you guessed it, natural bridges. It was also convenient that the ride was mostly downhill except for one killer climb at the end. It was a good way to start the trip. The next day we decided for a little more ambitious of a ride, even though the guys at the bike shop seemed to think it would be fairly easy. We started up in Canyonlands NP and right in the beginning we rode down some very steep switchbacks dropping about 1000 ft. in a few miles. The views from the top were spectacular.

After lunch overlooking the Colorado River (see previous pic), we rode further out on a 4WD trail called the White Rim. It is actually a 100 mile loop, but we didn’t entertain the notion of doing the whole thing for even a second. We made it out to Musselman’s Arch where Tommy decided to show that he still had some of the guts of his youth by riding across the arch. The drop was well over a 100 ft. so I decided to just take pictures and leave the riding up to him.
We underestimated the time it would take to get back to where we left my RV down by the river. There was no way we were riding up those switchbacks so we left his car at the top and my RV at the bottom as a shuttle. Unfortunately, the “easy” road down was about 10 miles and it actually had quite a few uphill parts with a lot of gravel. So it took quite a bit longer than we had hoped. All day Tommy would cruise by me on the downhills, but I usually beat him up the hills. Well, on this last stretch to the RV I was pretty proud that I beat him back by enough of a distance that I went and picked him up about a mile back. We were about an hour late returning the bikes but they didn’t say anything.

On Saturday we decided to take it easy and do a little hiking. We took Abbey up Negro Bill Canyon for the 3rd time since I had been there. It’s a great hike for her because there’s a creek the whole way and she has a ball running in the stream. After tiring her out in the morning with that five mile hike, we went up to Canyonlands again and did what we thought would be a leisurely scenic hike. About halfway through we met a group who had turned around because they lost the trail. Undaunted, and not wanting to go back the way we came, we pressed on and found where they made their mistake. Unfortunately, the way out was quite a steep climb out of the canyon we were in and our legs were really feeling it. Our rest day turned out to be 11 miles of hiking.
So, on Sunday, we took a real rest day. We drove out to Goblin Valley State Park. We had no urge to do any of the short trails, but we did wander into the valley itself where the “goblins” were. They are actually strange stone formations that look like some kind of cartoon stone babies. At least, that was an alternative description that we had read. In any case, we took it easy and didn’t wander too far. It was a little warm so even Abbey didn’t want to wander.

We thought about renting bikes again on Monday but Tommy wanted to see Arches NP and I didn’t mind going back. I found out that Tommy is a closet geologist. I never saw anyone who was so awed and excited by rocks. OK, there not just any rocks. Utah really is a geological wonderland and Arches really is pretty amazing which was evidenced by the crowds on the trails. We even tried going back at sunset to get some pictures, but it clouded up right before the sun went down.

We capped off his visit with some good food and beer at a place in town. If you’ve ever been to Utah you probably know about the strange, arcane alcohol laws they have. While waiting for our table we had a beer in the bar, which has to be completely separate from the restaurant. When our table was ready, the waitress had to carry our beers to our table. Seeing that she was pretty cute we really didn’t mind, but it was kind of funny. There are more strange laws, but I will spare you.

All in all we had a great visit and we didn’t even get a scratch from the biking. We both left all in one piece and I left with more “Tommy” stories that I hadn’t heard before. That’s one good thing. He always keeps you laughing, even though you might not be able to repeat some of the stories in mixed company.

Posted by Ed at 3:04 PM | Permalink

On Thursday I went to Arches National Park just outside of Moab. As usual in the NPs, Abbey couldn’t go on the trails so she had to be satisfied with getting out once in a while in the parking lots. The trails at Arches aren’t all that long so it wasn’t too bad for her. The park and trails were very crowded, but it was still worth it to be able to see a lot of the natural arches. This area has the largest concentration of them in the world. In order below are: Landscape Arch, Wall Arch, Partition Arch, Double O Arch (2x), Delicate Arch, South Window seen through Turret Arch, and, of course, the Aching Arch.

The Arches:

Friday morning we left Moab and headed for the Needles District of Canyonlands NP. I was able to get a spot in the campground which was one of the nicer ones I have seen. It didn’t have a lot of facilities, but the sites had tons of space between them and they were backed up to a big sandstone mound. The views were also fabulous from the campsite. Friday I managed to get in a pretty nice hike, but I saved a real long one for Saturday. The only problem was that I couldn’t drive my RV down to the trailhead for Saturday’s hike. So, I figured, no problem. I’ll ride my bike down the dirt road to the trailhead. Well, my legs were pretty tired by the time I reached the trailhead as it was longer than I expected. And I hadn’t even started the hike yet. Well, I managed the hike OK anyways. The middle part of the hike was kind of boring, but at the end you had to climb out of this canyon and you didn’t see the final destination, Druid Arch, until you were almost at the very end. It was one of the cooler arches I’ve seen as well.
As if that wasn’t enough I took a detour on the way back through an area called Chesler Park which takes you in amongst the Needles themselves. All in all it was a really cool hike with some fun scrambling up the rocks and gorgeous views in every direction. On the way down from Chesler Park I saw a woman’s watch on the trail. I figured I might run into someone at the trailhead who had lost a watch, but, more likely, I would take it to the Visitor Center and leave it there. When I got back down I was unlocking my bike and dreading the long ride up (did I mention that it was mostly downhill and a very rough road on the way down?) when a woman asked me if I wanted a ride up with her and her husband in their pickup truck. I guess she was thinking the same thing about that ride as I was and was feeling sorry for me. She said her husband was just up the hill a ways and that she had a young baby who was getting restless so they wouldn’t be long. I almost said I’ll start out and if you pass me you can stop and pick me up. But then I thought, “Are you crazy? It’s a free ride up that nasty, long hill.” So I accepted. I ended up waiting about 20 minutes for her husband but in the meantime a group of hikers came back to their car and I overheard one of the women saying she couldn’t find her watch. It turned out the watch I found was hers. She was quite surprised but very grateful. So I was happy I accepted the other woman’s offer of a ride in more ways than one. And when we got to the top of the dirt road I was really happy because I didn’t remember it being that long.

Sunrise from Camp
Sunset from Camp
Invasion of the Cairns
Newspaper Rock (or Primitive Graffiti)

On Sunday I took it much easier, though I did take another bike ride. This time it was mostly on a paved road and mostly flat. I’m learning that you use different muscles to bike than you do to hike. I’m a little worried about mountain biking when my cousin, Tommy, comes out this week. Luck for me, he said he’s not in very good shape right now so I just might survive. Monday morning we headed back to Moab to stock up again, find a new campground and get ready for Tommy’s arrival. Hopefully, I’ll make it through the rest of the week all in one piece.

Posted by Ed at 5:57 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Believe it or not I did do a little skiing near Moab, but it was of the cross country variety. They still have a lot of snow in the La Sal Mountains above Moab. The conditions weren’t great, but at least I finally made use of my x-country skis that I have been carrying around. I also used my snowshoes and took Abbey with me. She had a ball rolling in the snow, of course. The funny thing was that we did a short hike in the desert that morning before driving up to the pass to play in the snow.
Morning
Afternoon

I arrived in Moab on Saturday not realizing that it would be so crowded. Spring break is a popular time in Moab, the mountain biking mecca of the country, since it is so hot during the summer. There is a ton of stuff to do around Moab like rafting, hiking, mountain biking and, of course, cross country and backcountry skiing. Today I rented a Jeep and Abbey and I went four wheeling. Unfortunately, it was pretty cloudy most of the day so the light wasn’t too good for pictures. The scenery was still spectacular though I’m not sure Abbey thought the very bumpy ride was worth it. She seemed to do OK though and had fun running around when we stopped for breaks. There were a few hairy spots and a cool set of switchbacks that reminded me of the Moki Dugway if you remember that from last year (see the May archive). It was fun, but I’m not sure I got excited enough to want to get into it like the fanatics do. You wouldn’t believe some of the “trails” they drive their vehicles up.

This part of the country is just so unique. I wouldn’t want to live her due to the extreme summer heat and lack of trees and grass, but it sure is beautiful especially in the spring. We’ve also done a little hiking here and I’m hoping to try out some of the bike trails if my ancient bike is up to the task. If not, I’ll just have to rent one. You can’t go to Moab and not ride any of the mountain bike trails. If I didn’t I think my cousin Tommy would die. He loves this place. Speaking of him, when he found out I was out here it was killing him. So I invited him to come on out and he couldn’t resist. He’ll be here next week so I have to rest up and get in shape. More next week.

Moab Area Pics

Posted by Ed at 6:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

I left Idaho early Thursday morning and settled in for a long 2 days of driving. Driving through Ketchum/Sun Valley, Idaho there was a long line of cars going the other way, even at 7:30am. I felt like I was going the wrong way and I was missing something, but happy not to be in the traffic. I never did figure out what all those people were doing going to Ketchum that early in the morning on a weekday. The drive through eastern Idaho and northwestern Utah was pretty boring. I know 2 areas I don't want to live. Instead of taking the interstate through southern Wyoming, another one of those places not to live, I opted for the scenic route and headed to Park City, UT. I only stayed a few hours, long enough to get Abbey out a bit and to find a coffee shop with internet access to check email. It seemed pretty nice, though fairly touristy. I managed to find a state campground on a reservoir a few hours east, just before you get to Colorado. It was kind of a strange campground, but it was cheap and not an RV park, and I was tired of driving. Abbey got riled up by all the rabbits running around the grounds. She wasn't happy that I wouldn't let her chase them.

On Friday, we headed out again and got to drive through Dinosaur, CO, the gateway to Dinosaur National Monument. Sounds like a great place to take kids, but we didn't stop. We made it to Steamboat Springs by noon, another nice ski town. Unfortunately, it was mobbed with people but we still managed to do a short hike to a waterfall. We didn't go too far cause it was real hot. We eventually made it to the Gibbons' house in Loveland around 6 or so.

Dan and I got up early Sat. morning and headed up in the mountains. He chose a trail to the top of Signal Mt. Not a real popular trail, we were about the only ones on it, but it was pretty nice. It was long and steep and we were real tired by the time we finished, but the views from the top and along the way were worth it. It was also nice not to have any crowds. It was the longest hike (almost 12 miles) with the highest elevation gain (3300 ft.) I've done so far. Abbey stayed behind since it was so hot. Since tomorrow is Sunday, I think we'll rest and I'll take Abbey for a walk around the local lake.
Longs Peak - highest peak in Colorado
View of the Mummy Range

Posted by Ed at 4:00 PM | Permalink

We left Muley Point early and went back down the Moki Dugway. It was just as cool going down as it was coming up. Next was Monument Valley. I decided to do the driving loop even though it wasn't recommended for RV's 24' and over. It turned out to be no problem, though I didn't do any of the scenic turnoffs. The road was pretty bumpy, but it was worth the bumps. Afterwards, we drove straight to Flagstaff. I stayed the rest of the week with Michael & Diana, old friends from Austin. Unfortunately, they have 3 cats and I didn't think Abbey would behave around them, so she had to stay outside or in the RV the whole time, and I slept with her in the RV at night. It was good to see those guys again, even though I just saw them in March. I was actually visiting them when I bought the RV. Not much to add for this day, except for some pictures.

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Yesterday morning Abbey and I left Navajo Lake State Park and headed for Utah. The wildflowers on the way, near Shiprock, were pretty spectacular. I took the short detour off the highway to see the Four Corners Monument. It was pretty underwhelming but it didn't take too much time. We ate our lunch at Sand Island BLM area. It was pretty hot and not especially scenic but Abbey got to cool off a little in the river. We probably should have waited til we hit the Valley of the Gods. That was pretty amazing. I was thinking of stopping and camping for the night on one of the many pulloffs, but decided to keep moving. I think the length limit for an RV must be 24' because I bottomed out on a few washes. But it was only twice so it didn't hurt much. The road was washboard in a lot of places so it definitely gave the RV a shake test. I think it came through alright but I haven't tried the TV or DVD player yet. Everything else is working and my pack job held up pretty good.

Next was the Moki Dugway, a series of steep, sharp switchbacks on a gravel road up the side of the Cedar Mesa. It climbs 1100 feet in 3 miles. Luckily I ignored the warnings against RVs (see picture) because it was incredible. And, it allowed me to get to Muley Point (down another washboard road) where I wanted to camp for the night ' my first night of boondocking (not camping in a park of some sort.) Now I feel like a real RVer. Muley Point overlooks a place called the Goosenecks of the San Juan River. It sits about 1000 ft. above the river, which is in a canyon complete with many S-turns, hence the name. The view is unbelievable. (OK, I'm running out of adjectives to describe the scenery.) Abbey had fun chasing rabbits and lizards while I checked out the view. I made a nice dinner from leftovers and watched the sun go down over the canyon with a glass of wine. Not a bad way to end the day even if it was a plastic glass. It is so quiet up here except for the wind. At least at night, that is. During the day you can hear a lot of planes overhead, which wouldn't bother me, except that they bother Abbey. We took a nice hike along the canyon rim this morning and the planes were scaring her (they sound too much like thunder to her), but luckily she got distracted enough by more lizards and a rabbit. I don't think she'll ever catch one but she'll never stop trying. The sun was pretty strong, even in the morning, and we hiked about 3 hours. We were both pretty tired so we took a well-deserved nap when we made it back 'home'. The wind really picked up this afternoon. I was planning to cook dinner over a campfire, but I don't think I would have ever gotten it started. I'll have to stink up the RV instead. Abbey's not liking the wind because it shakes the RV a lot. (Are you getting the idea that she's a bit neurotic?) Hopefully, it will die down later so I can get some sleep tonight. Tomorrow is another long drive through Monument Valley and on to Flagstaff.

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