Ridgerunners and Redrocks…a Utah Run Sept 2023.

[Haggis]

It was a long time comin’. We talked about this trip for a year and a half. Watched a myriad of YouTube videos, scrolled through guidebooks and got some intel from folks we know. We tested our gear and set up tuning it towards a long trip. We were dialed.

Then my job got to be more of a pain in the arse than I could bear so I took a chance at another company that had been trying to hire me for awhile and jumped ships. Part of that deal was I was going to Utah despite the new employment situation and once that was agreed to all that was left was to daydream until the trip date came along.

The Plan:

Two weeks to wander out west and explore south eastern and south central Utah. We knew we couldn’t see it all, we knew that pretty much anywhere you went was scenic and we knew that it would probably be busy with our trip planned for the following two weeks after Labor Day. Take 2.5 days to run out, the same back and that would give us 10 days to explore.

The Goals:

I had a list of things I wanted to do and experience…
*Drive a shelf road. *See a scorpion. *Hike a slot canyon. *Eat some authentic Mexican. *See Goblin State Park.
*Try some Navajo Fry Bread. *Spend a day just soaking it all in.

The Utah Run…Day -.05.

Michelle and I were itching to go, so much in fact that Friday night after we both got off work we said “fudge it” and took off in the loaded Mouser. Might as well get 6 hours of driving under our treads and we would grab a campsite at a state park in Ohio somewhere. Well, with it being Labor Day weekend, the Ohio officials wanted you to pay for a two night stay despite there being open sites for just that night. Ummm…no. We got a reasonably priced motel room instead and spent Friday Night west of Columbus somewhere.

Utah Run Day 1.

Up before dawn we were rolling west along I-70. Today we would burn through Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri and finally Kansas. Along the way we would stop at a pie shop in Missouri (strawberry rhubarb for me, lemon meringue for Michelle), stretch our legs at a restored railroad Bridge in Boonsville Kansas and spend the night at the Tuttle Creek State Park primitive camp also in Manhattan Kansas. Lunch and dinner was out of the fridge and we went to sleep that night to the songs of cicadas and coyotes.

The Mouser all packed up.

On the road burning interstate…

The things you see on the way…

Boonsville Railroad Drawbridge.

Campsite at Tuttle Creek…

Up the next morning we made use of the campground showers and hit the road before 5:00 AM, cause thats how we roll.

 

[Doug]

It
I had a list of things I wanted to do and experience…
*Drive a shelf road. *See a scorpion. *Hike a slot canyon. *Eat some authentic Mexican. *See Goblin State Park.
*Try some Navajo Fry Bread. *Spend a day just soaking it all in.

That's a right fine list for Utah, except maybe the authentic Mexican food. I'm sure there's some there somewhere, bu that hasn't been our experience. Can't wait to see if you checked all the boxes. I've been recommending Goblin Valley State Park for a couple of decades. It's surrounded by some of the most amazing National Parks and yet, I think it's still my favorite spot in the state.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 2.

Rolling through Kansas takes awhile, much like our home state of Pennsylvania, it’s a wide West/East axis. Up early we were Colorado bound as the sun rose.

We passed another home jopper Tacoma camper this day as well…

Entering Colorado Michelle was looking for a spot to explore not far off the interstate.. She spotted some volcanic crater on the Gaia map that looked just a bit off from I-70. Getting off the interstate at some small town we followed the road towards the crater. It looped behind a municipal building and past a dusty, old trailer court and became a dirt road. It started to twist up the slopes that framed the valley and began looking trailish. The ride started off pretty decent and than I started noticing the amount of trash that had been dumped along this road…couches, washing machines, an old microwave…and with the amount of beer cans and energy drink debris it began to feel very sketch. Definitely a local spot and we weren’t feeling it despite it being first dirt for this trip. We bailed and turned around before I punctured a tire on an old pallet or something. So back on the interstate for us.

Soon enough Michelle found another place she wanted to check out, a place called Garden of the Gods south of Denver. As an added bonus we could drop off on Route 86 and bypass Denver. 86 proved to be a scenic rural byway through farmlands and scattered small hillocks. We spotted a couple herds of pronghorns as well as a few muleys as we traversed its length.

Garden of the Gods is a scenic canyon on the outskirts of Colorado Springs and as this was Labor Day Weekend it was a madhouse. After a lot of idling in the traffic along the Park loop we found a spot to park the Mouser so we could stretch our legs. I wasn’t feeling this place with all the people but a good hike brought me around…

Firing the Mouser back up we headed north on I-25 which was bumper to bumper so we jumped onto Route 490 which, while slower, was a much better drive than the Death Race 2023 that was going on along I-25. Eventually we met back up with I-70 west of Denver and continued on.

Around 4:00 we decide to find a campsite and as we were entering Arapaho National Forest we’d start our search here. We pulled off the interstate at Georgetown, filled up the truck with gas as we noticed many western places aren’t open when we’re up and about and made our way up the Mountian switchbacks towards Guanella Pass. Here we found a little NF campground called Clear Lake and found a nice site to park for the night. Elevation here was 10,047’ and I for one sure could feel it.

As light faded and we crawled up into the GFC, it started to chill down and began to rain. Temps would drop into the upper 30s by morning. See, I knew what I was doing insisting that we bring packable down jackets and raincoats, despite the eye rolls before the trip. You’re welcome dear.

It would rain all night but we stayed dry and warm in the embrace of down bags and the Mouser’s accommodations.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 3

We got up around 4:30 to the sound of heavy rain on the roof of the GFC. And it was definitely chilly. We tossed the cushions and trans-forma-floor panels up on the rear of the sleeping panels and did a quick wipe wash and clothes change. So much easier to deal with the elements over our old Maggiolina RTT. There was some condensation from having the doors closed up despite the usb fan running all night but a quick wipe with a microfiber towel dealt with that. We jumped out into the rain and quickly closed up the tent in record time and fired up the Mouser. Down the switchbacks towards Georgetown we went my new fogs and fancy headlights combating the early morning saturated darkness. Maybe we’ll find someplace open for breakfast. Nope. We ran up I-70 and jumped off at Silverthorne and found a Mickey Dees open so sausage egg McMuffins it was.

Driving west as the day brightened we entered the Glen Canyon section of the interstate. Nicest few miles of turnpike I had ever driven with the cliffs, Colorado River and multiple tunnels.

As is Michelle wants, she pursued the maps further up along our path looking for cool places to stop and explore. Arriving at the New Castle exit she had me jump off the four lanes to head towards a Rifle Falls State Park. Did you know my wife loves waterfalls…I think that is an established fact hereabout. It was about a 15 mile detour but worth it. What we found was a small state park with a sweet set of waterfalls flowing over a calcium deposit.

There was a short loop trail so we meandered over and through the bones of the calcium cliffs.

Not bad for a quick morning stop…now it was back to heading westward.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Rub…Day 3: Afternoon.

Closer to the Utah border, we peeled off the interstate again to follow another one of Michelle’s leads. Soon we found ourselves entering the Colorado National Monument, and trucking up onto the Rim Road. This rolls along an escarpment of red rock cliffs for approximately 20 miles. Numerous turnouts and small hiking trails lead out to spectacular views.

About half way along the Rim Road we pulled off onto a turn out, dropped the tailgate and rustled up some lunch. Road trips deserve epic lunch stops.

Than we finished the Loop…

And kept on to Utah.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 3.

We did it, we finally were rolling through Utah.

We turnEd off I-70 and headed south on route 191 towards Moab. The only thing we had made reservations for this whole trip was for a campsite for two nights at Dead Horse State Park. This would let us get the lay of the land, access how populated the area was and put us in good driving distance of Arches National Park. We had timed entries for the next two days, both at 7:00 am for Arches. Heading up the campsite we stopped at an overlook to view the Monitor and Merrimack Buttes…

We continued on rollin into Dead Horse and found our spot for the next couple nights, site 10 in the Keyenta Campground Loop. Then we drove up to the overlook and gazed down upon the Colorado. There were only a handful of folks here and this trend would continue for the whole of the trip. BTW, The views were outstanding

We’d find ourselves on that road down there a couple of days hence.

Done gawking we went back to camp, popped the GFC and grilled up some steaks.

As night came the stars and the Milkyway shone with spectacular clarity. Around 9:30 or a little before a string of green lights raced across the sky like a Chinese dragon of myth. A neighboring camper informed us that it was the latest Starlink satellites speeding they’re way into orbit. Night passed quietly and before the glow of the morning sun was even a thought we were up and ready to go see some arches.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 4.

Arches National Park

We rolled through the visitor gate and began ascending up into Arches. At every corner and every rise, Michelle was almost floating out of her seat in her eagerness to experience the park. Still makes me smile as I reminisce. We pulled off at a few turn outs, mainly to let the pro and wanna-be photographers rush towards the oncoming morning light and Delicate Arch.

Still, for the day after Labor Day, there wasn’t much pressure from people as I had expected. So with the rising sun we started our Arch Hunt…

Windows Arch…North and South.

Turret Arch…

Double Arch…my second favorite arch.

Delicate Arch…Hiking the 3 mile in and out trail was fun and though it was the most bustling area, by no means was it crowded. At the Arch itself there was probably only 30 people max and it was early afternoon.

Munnin and Huggin were watching out for us here at the Delicate Arch..

Sand Arch…

Broken Arch…

Passing through the Broken Arch we found a shady spot beyond and sat down and just soaked the red rock landscape. Lovely bit of terrain to just absorb into your being.

As it was getting later in the afternoon and the heat was building, we headed into Moab town. Chores first…First was filling up with gas and the picking up groceries for the next few days. We walked around town poking our heads in various stores but what we were really looking for was some ice cream. That we found. Then it was back to Dead Horse to re-establish camp, cook some supper and take it easy until the sun set and the Milky Way came out. Again tonight we would see the Starlinks fly by. Tomorrow we would be back at Arches, this time to get some serious hiking done.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 5.

ARCHES.

We slept in, it was almost 5:30 when we wrangled our way out of the quilt. So we actually were on time for our 7:00 am timed entry getting us back into Arches NP. Today we had our sights set on the Devils Garden Primitive Trail. An 8 miler loop trail that begins at the base of Landscape Arch and circles into the Utah backcountry.

The trail starts off as a simple track through loose sand and then climbs up onto the rocks surfaces, where you traverse from ridge to ridge. Along the way there are many narrow spines and tall steps to navigate but they are framed with epic scenery.

There are a couple arches along off shot trails that are worth the extra hiking…

Navajo Arch…

We talked to a local to get some info but he wasn’t too chatty…

The best arch of the trip to my thinking was Partition Arch, the view out of it was stunning…

We hiked further on taking another side trail to see the Black Angel Tower…

Once back on the main loop the path got all mountain goaty.

Soon we came across the Hidden Arch…

And then the trail cairns disappeared. And there were countless people tracks leading off in all directions, every path looked like the trail. And we didn’t load up All Trails before we started. We came across a couple sets of hikers that were as confused as we were. This is when we met two European girls, Collette and Noma. Collette was from Switzerland, Noma was for Amsterdam and they were lost. Taking them under our wings Michelle and I started to puzzle out the route which often meant one person scouting ahead to find the infrequent trail markers or the remnants of trail cairns someone had kicked down. At one point I did a very, very sketchy section that was obviously not the trail to circle around the base of the boulders and locate the trail below. I found it and went back up the proper trail and guided the ladies down the proper way and a few other confused hikers as well. Here they came down the rock face…

Once realigned on trail, Michelle found just enough cell service to upload All Trails and our hiking got a lot easier. We walked out the remaining section of the trail with Collette and Noma as we shared stories of each of our travels and takes on the world around us. While I’m a known introvert, it’s the people you meet traveling that often enhance a trip’s experience. By the time we were done our 8 mile trail had become a 10 miler and it was hot. Thank goodness we had brought 2 liters of water for both of us because we were all but tapped out of water by the end of the trip. I myself am built for the tundra and Utahs dry heat had done tuckered me out…time to go find a camp.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 5. Evening.

Outside of Canyonlands NP, BLM Land.

Now was the best part of any trip, no itinerary. From now one we would make it up as we went along. So the first thing we decided to do was loop north westerly from Arches and Moab. Since it’s close we might as well visit Canyonlands. A look in the Gaia map showed BLM lands bordering the National Park and there were BLM campgrounds as well. Let’s go see what we could find. We found ourselves on a dirt road heading towards the Horsethief BLM campground on the look for a dispersed camping site. But once we got down to Horsetail the campground was virtually empty. Well over a hundred sites and we counted 5 occupied spaces. Hell, we won’t have to bother with the portal toilet and there’s decent cell service, might as well grab a spot here. Found a nice site with us being the only ones on the Loop, set up the new shower tent for a real shower and once we were cleaned up supper was cooked. Spent the remainder of the day, just hanging out or doing some odd chores to keep the travel accommodations tidy. The shower enclosure works great by the way. Looks goofy, but functions well.

The crows and ravens continued their overwatch of our wanders…

And the camp set up for the night…

With the tent popped and the doors in “cabana” mode, the GFC makes plenty of shade. Which is great because I dislike awnings.

Good views and a great sleep was had by us this evening.

 

[Haggis]

Canyonlands, Islands in the Sky District was just down the road from our campsite so it was easy to be there as the sun rose. Our first stop was at the Shaffer Switchbacks Overlook.

Next we stopped at the Mesa Arch.

Next we stopped to take a walk up Whale Rock.

The views of the Whale…

 

[Haggis]

Up from the Whale Rock we pulled over at Aztec Butte to hike the trail up to some ruins. The trails splits between two buttes, the larger of which houses a dwelling and the lesser a couple of hidden graineries. The trails were a scramble at times and there were many/legged snakes skittering about.

 

[Haggis]

Utah Run…Day 6: Afternoon.

Done hiking, we opted to partake in some truck time. Let’s run the Shaffer Switchbacks and the Potash Road. So after a quick stop at the Canyonlands visitor center to pick up a patch and a sticker we turned onto Shaffer Road just below said center. I tried to imagine old dump trucks running up and down the grades back in the heyday of uranium mining as we started down my first shelf road. The scenery along the whole stretch was epic and made me regret even more not being able to run the White Rim trail with the other staff members here a few years back.

Along the route we would pass but a handful of vehicles and at times it was like we were the only ones on the road. Stopping for a pic or just to soak up the scenery came easily.

Starting down the switchbacks…

Past the Moab Mining evaporation ponds and back on pavement we ended back on Route 191 north of Moab. It’s getting into late afternoon, we saw the La Sal mountains in the distance let’s head over there and find a campsite. So we took off on Route 128 along the Colorado heading for the La Sal loop road. But upon reaching said road it was covered in heavy oil and had a closed sign on it. So instead we headed further down 128 and found an empty campground below the Fisher Towers. Good enough for ole Curly, good enough for us.

The evening turned into a quiet and starlit night and as I went to sleep that night all I could think about was hunting Goblins tomorrow…

 

[Haggis]

Day 7…Utah Run.

Goblin Raid.

Up and moving once again before the rising sun, we traveled north on Route 128 and jump onto I-70 heading west. Today we were heading to Goblin Valley State Park, a spot I had seen on several videos. There were cool, rusted hoodoos there like redcap gremlins from the old folktales.

We arrived to find just one other car in the parking lot and a nice picnic pavilion overlooking the valley that the Giblins dwelled in. Made for a nice breakfast spot…

Fueled up we headed down into the bowl and spent a couple of hours wandering in the three valleys of hoodoos. Otherworldly would be as close as of a description as I could make and walking amongst the stone capped pillars felt like a real life D&D session.

Once done we stopped to check out the visitor center and bought a patch and sticker. By the way there is a potable water source available at the VC but as we were sitting pretty for water in the portable tank we didn’t need to partake. Leaving the Park we came to a dirt crossroads and on a whim took a left Onto Little Wild Horse Canyon road to see what we could see. Not far along the way we came upon the GVSP dispersed camping sites which hug the base of a Mesa.

Numerous sites tuck back in the folds of red rock but as it was not even close to camp time we continued up the road to see what wonders we could find…

 

[Haggis]

About 10ish or so miles up the road we came across a small wash with a parking lot besides it for a hiking trailhead. Well this here is Little Wild Horse Canyon and it turns out to be a slot canyon. Let’s go…

The trail is a long loop about 5 or 6 miles if I remember right and traverse through two forked canyons. Some spots are pretty tight but nothing crazy and it’s a fairly easy trail, though we’re some wet sections in the narrowest parts. And man there were a ton of lizards mucking about, which was cool because we ain’t got no lizards here at home. Newts and hellbenders yes, but no scaly fellers.

What a fun hike, our first taste of a slot can with non of the 187 hours vibe. Oh and we only passed one other couple our whole time exploring here.

 

[Haggis]

Leaving the Goblin Valley environs, we made our way towards Capital Reef National Park. Stopped here and there checking out petroglyphs, an old log schoolhouse and the orchards around Fruita. We ended up touring both drivable wash section of the Grand Wash and the Capital Gorge. We also hiked back into the Capitol gorge and check out some newer graffiti up on the gorge walls. By this time it was getting late in the afternoon and we needed to start looking fir a camp Site.

 

[Haggis]

We had a campsite in mind just east of Capital Reef along Notom road in BLM land. Some family members had shared some of their dispersed camping coordinates from their year long travel trip awhile back and this site was pretty convenient.

Not far off the road but it was screened by vibrant bushes and shaded by the canopy of a couple cottonwoods. An actual steam flowed next to the site which was an added bonus.

The wind picked up as the sun set but as we had faced the camper top into the wind we hardly noticed the breeze through the night.

morning found us traveling back into Capital Reef to check out the Gooseneck overlook. We hiked a short trail as the sun rose and checked out the views from this one of many Goosenecks…

We were getting low on groceries, clean clothes and gas so we went on a hunt for places to take care of those needs.

Along the way we stopped in Hanksville and had burritos and tacos at a place called the Outlaw Roost for an early lunch. Pretty good fare but I say it was comparable to the offerings back home. Than we found ourselves in the town of Torrey and stopping at the Chuckwagon general store, we found a small grocer with some good offerings and a laundromat. While waiting for the laundry to churn we picked up some local beef, some fresh fruit and veggies and hit up the deli for some lunch fixings in the store. All done we headed south towards the Dixie National Forest.

 

[Haggis]

Heading out of Torrey to the south we’re were soon entering Dixie National Forest and once again were entering more mountainous terrain. Steep, pine coverEd slopes broke up with meadows drew the eye and we began keeping an eyeball out for deer or elk. We slipped off several different dirt access roads to explore a bit and found many dispersed campsites scattered within as well as private ranches with gated roads.

We pulled onto a road heading to Lower Bowan Lake and found a nice potable water source. They water was cold and I topped off our water tank.

Along this road there were also a slew of camp spots and as the road began to descend off the mountain side the view opened up and we got a view of the lake…

Theres a NF campground on its shores as well and some dispersed camping on the other side of the lake. We posted up along the dam and took the opportunity to fix some lunch to pare with the views. Numerous fish were striking the surface and a plethora of waterfowl skirted about. I wanted to soak it all in.

But Michelle was eager to see more and had Grand Escalante in her sights so we moved on, much to my regret.

 

[Haggis]

As we entered Grand Escalante we came upon a trailhead for Lost Calf Falls. The trail is a 3 mile in and out and with it getting on in the afternoon the temps were getting on the hot side. The trail itself was scenic and the 120’ waterfall at the end was marvelous. The creek was ripe with brown trout and its waters were refreshingly chilly.

By the time we got back I was beat. We rolled back a bit north and found a nice BLM dispersed site off a windy two track up on the mess.

As evening rolled along dark thunder clouds rolled through the area but the rain kept skittering our campsite. When darkness came we went on the hunt for scorpions and were amazed by the phosphorus. And holy crap were there a metric ton of them scattered around. No bare feet here.

Evening passed uneventfully and the storm clouds never

 

[Haggis]

The morning found us driving back up to Boulder. It was time to start circling back east. We found the Burr Trail Road on the map and decided that would be our route for the day. Turned out to be a good decision as what started out as a lonely paved road turned into a dirt road with switchbacks into the backside of Capital Reef.

 

[Haggis]

Burr Trail comes to a tee, left takes you deeper into Capital Reef, right takes you through Hidden Valley and towards the Notom Road. We choose right as it was in our direction of travel but if I had a do over I would have turned left.

Once out on Notom we headed south to check out the Bullfrog area of Glen Canyon. Not much here other than the marina and it had a definite Cali- Bro feel. We filled up the truck at the gas station here and rolled north.