Moab - Canyonlands WOW!

Our first night was a nice boondock about six miles down the Mineral Bottoms Road in BLM lands just outside of the Park. We had gotten a tip to stay at the Horse Thief campground, a few miles away in the same BLM area, which was full. The host suggested the remote isolated spot, and it was a ultra-quiet delight!

Next morning we moved into the Park's fabulous "Island in the Sky" section, which is actually a huge mesa about 2000 feet above the confluence of the Colorado & Green Rivers. Kim decided we must see the "Gooseneck" of the Colorado and that the best vantage point was from an overlook about halfway down the near vertical canyon off the East (Moab) side of the mesa.

The map showed it could be reached by Shafer Trail (a 4WD Road??) .... let's see the Ranger at the Visitor Center said "it's actually in pretty good shape now" and gave no clue as to how steep and tight this was!!! definitely not for the faint of heart! Even in four-wheel drive, I felt the tires slip on the tortuous dirt & rocks scratched into the canyon wall. That was unsettling, given the deadly drop-off to my left, and the overhanging rock threatening to rip the kayak off the top on the right (which required driving much closer to the drop-off side than I'd rather). Unfortunately, these pictures were taken AFTER the steep area, where Kim wouldn't dare let me stop and get out to take a picture, for fear of the truck sliding off the edge.

We missed the warning signs at the top of this dizzying series of switchbacks that warned there would spots on the 1,400’ plunge to the White Rim, our vantage-point, that would require "jogging" the long wheelbase F-150 in order to make the turns without sliding over the edge! Kim clutched the passenger door handle and armrest so tightly, I thought she would tear it off. It was bad enough being the driver, it must have been really tough for her to sit there without any feeling of control! This pix is at the last steep switch, looking straight ahead onto a sheer drop, where I had to "jog" the pickup the last time to make the hairpin!

As it flattened out, the "road" was showing signs of washout in many places....

The vistas across the deeply incised mesa, where the higher rock of dusky reds and browns was beautiful, is a dangerous distraction anytime, but especially under these conditions. So I saved my sightseeing for a pullout about two-thirds of the way down. We were rewarded for our pain by this panoramic view of the Gooseneck!

The scenery along the way was diverse, and that along with a nice picnic lunch, provided a nice relief from the nerve-racking drive above.


Nearing the bottom, and on into Moab, Shafer Trail turns into Potash Road, which passes alongside the luminous aqua-green pits of this large operation.

Over the next few days, we learned that almost no one goes DOWN this thing! most run up it where your view over the edge & down the dropoffs is less distracting. Later that evening, we opted for the more traditional view of the Gooseneck, from Deadhorse Point and in spite of lots of haze managed to get a nice shot right before sunset!

The short drive across the mesa back to the Island campground provided the perfect platform for watching our "local" star surrender it's bright light to the night....



I joined the twenty-some dedicated photographers up at the crack of dawn to capture the famed Mesa Arch. According to the experts on hand the "light this morning is not favorable", but I guess that provides the reason for another trip. In spite of having to work around the large group of snappers & tripods, I did capture a few images that give a feel for the dynamics of change as the great fireball rose!

With that beautiful morning light still over my shoulder, I decided to drive over to the Crater, on the way, capturing a nice flat-topped bute between the western side of the mesa and the Green River....


A short hike up a little hill, and sunken below me the Giant Mesa Crater was waiting in the still cool morning shadows!

Looking downward on the hike back, an array of interesting colors, shapes & textures caught my eye...

Later that morning, Kim & I explored the southmost point of the Island, looking down on what has to be one of the Earth's most moving sites, we gaze mesmorized as we follow the stark cuts in Her crust that lead ultimately to the Green!

Recovering from this gravity defying view, we move along the ridgeline only to bump into two bandits....wonder if that had anything to do with my breaking out the peanuts? When we stopped a bit later for lunch, one of the two instantly swooped down from above, armed with new courage as the larger quantities of food were brought out.

I walked further along the precipice, and standing on a far perch, spotted Kim gazing again at the splendor below....we lingered half the afternoon, wandering Nature's magical path along this edge, enjoying perhaps Her greatest gift to mankind....infinite beauty!

Capitol Reef NP & Highway 24

On our way to Canyonlands & Arches (Moab area) we passed through Capitol Reef. We really hadn't heard much about this place where one of the earth's most unique geological features exist, a "waterpocket fold". http://www.nps.gov/archive/care/geology1.htm

Besides that uniqueness, the Park is a stunning example of one of the most lush & picturesque canyons man could encounter. Some early Morman settlers recognized this and stayed there, giving it the name "Fruita" because their orchard grew so well. http://www.nps.gov/archive/care/fruita.htm

Unaware of the Park's popularity, and arriving late, the camp host informed us "sorry, we're full" but went on to suggest boondocking on the BLM lands just outside of the Park boundry. Wow, what a great suggestion! Arriving just prior to sunset, we found this beautiful spot and nestled in for the night...

After quickly setting up the trailer, I turned westward to notice natures towers close by.

Morning brought anticipation along with a nice surprise.....the Visitor's Center was unusual in that it looked like a Frank Lloyd Wright design. If you've been following our escapades, you've already noted that we are big FLW fans.

Alongside the Center we noticed an example of the many volcanic rocks strewn about the Park. Since there were no volcanos anywhere near, geologist theorize these were all carried by glaciers.

We took the long drive down the Canyon to the very end of the Grand Wash Road, which turned out to be a continuous study in contrasting geology. The beauty of this place is indescribable!

Out the corner of an eye, I spotted this unique "ET" rock, at least that's what it appeared to be to me, what do you think?

Kim found more interest in the old Gifford Farmhouse and the delightful blossums of it's fragrant pear trees.

We had there wonderful pie for lunch, yep, that's right a whole 7" pie each! You'll have to let your imagination fill that shot in....It was so...oooo goo...ood, I didn't think about a pix 'til they were gone!

After lunch we continued East on Hwy 24, a fabulous drive to Hanksville. First stop, the Pioneer Schoolhouse. Mormon pioneers established the appropriately named community of Fruita when it was discovered that this was a good locale for growing fruit. The tiny 1896 Fruita Schoolhouse served as a church, social hall, and community-meeting hall, in addition to functioning as a one-room schoolhouse. Mormon pioneers established the appropriately named community of Fruita in 1896. The Schoolhouse served as a church, social hall, and community-meeting hall, in addition to functioning as a one-room schoolhouse.
A little further down the road are some interesting petroglyphs from around 700AD....

and an old farmplace across the road where I found some interesting colors & textures, making me aware that Spring has finally made it to the mountains!

The rest of the drive to Hanksville is like roving through another planet. Again, I'm in the delima of keeping the blog size manageable, so here's a sampling.....yes, we'll save the whole slideshow for you!

Ruins of images of a life gone by lay hidden around long sweeping curves....

In Hanksville you simply have to stop at Pop's Rockshop. And, yes those are actual dinosaur bones!

Escalante, Peek-A-Boo & Spooky

Escalante is a vast area of BLM lands that has also been declared a National Monument. So, it's a public, protected park, but being BLM lands, you are free to boondock on any part of it. We took advantage of this by driving a couple of miles in on the "Hole-in-the-Rock" Road and found this serene isolated spot!

Here's a late shot taken of our view while sitting in front of the trailer that first evening ....

The next morning, we took off down the Hole in the Rock, soon to discover what sharp rocks on a loosely maintained road will do for you. Oh well, I can't complain, we've had great luck so far with only a couple flats in over 30,000 miles of fulltiming. These tires have gone almost 60,000, so it's time for a new set.

Today we "monkied-up" & "monkied-down", and monkied round n' round! in a really neat place, very very tight squeezes though...These are the two best known of the many narrow slot canyons that are scattered throughout Escalante. The hike in through a large canyon area was easy & fun...

Above I'm making the intial climb into the mouth of the first slot canyon we come to, which is quite wide at this point...

We get in a ways and all of a sudden.... Kim says "Peek-A-Boo!"

Up,Up, hang on girl! don't fall! and, watch out Sam, it's a ways down here too!

and round n' round we go! the vertical height the top of the narrow slot was about 50 feet in most places....

I kept thinking about my Grandson, Jonathan. He would have had a blast in here, as evidenced by some youngsters we met along the way! (oh yes, us big kids sure did!).

Now on to Spooky, where it was extremely tight squeeze even for Sam ....
Kim took this one before I vanished into the narrow sliver...note the comment someone left on the wall....Kim said it looked too clostraphobic to enter this final section, which continued on for about a quarter mile...

Here, I'm straining to hold the camera because my shoulder is being pinched by the rock!

another self portrait, taken from above as I start to descend this twisted very narrow shaft. I dropped the pack first to the floor of the slot, about 15 feet down....then it required "presses" off the sidewalls as there are no hand of feet holes. The final day in this area was spent exploring some of the other, varied terrain. Out of several other areas, we really enjoyed the "Devil's Gardens", another great spot for us kids to hop around in & on!

So, everyone out there, this is a great fun experience, and if you have kids, well you simply must do this! The Visitor Center in Escalante can tell you how to find them, and advise you on weather conditions (you don't want to enter these slots if there is any probability of rain in the area...it could be fatal!).

So, plan a trip, maybe we'll meet you out here next Spring. And, you could put those climbing skills to work out here!