Friday, 10-31 Warmest night Ive spent so far; 54° inside when I awaken about 6:45am. Its just starting to get light; sunrise is about an hour away. I look out the rear window and see a promising sunset; clouds over and around the Manti-La Sal Mtns just barely highlighted with very faint orange. Guess Ill have to get up and out to shoot the sunrise. Glad its not too cold outside... By the time I fully roust myself and make it outside to set up the tripod, things are looking pretty nice. I mount the camera onto the tripod and start firing away. The colors start brightening and deepening and spreading to the underside of other clouds scattered about. Very nice! I shoot. Then as the sun nears the local horizon formed by the mountain tops, the colors start shifting to yellows and golds. Very pretty. Looking westward I can see some big clouds all lit up by the early morning rays, a mixture of orange and pink. Colorful! I keep shooting until the sun is fully visible, then I just stand there for a few, drinking in and reveling in the views. What a beautiful morning! The promise of another great day has been heralded. I go back inside and proceed to get ready and to write up the previous days travels. I then have a that hits the spot breakfast of peach yogurt and blueberries while perched at the edge of the cliff thats maybe 30 behind the parked Expedition. The best seat in the house! Since I now had a clean-ish bike, and am in the Moab area, and am in a great spot to test my mtn biking skills, I unlock the bikes and pull off the new bike from the rack. I then spend about 20 minutes riding around, getting the feel of the full-suspension as I easily go up and down and over the rugged terrain there. What fun! So glad I went for the full-suspension. By the end of the testing I am already feeling comfortable riding over obstacles that I wouldnt even think of trying with my old, front-suspension only bike. After that little bit of fun it was time to head out so I pack everything back up and hit the road. I have decided that even though I didnt expect great photo ops, since I was so close to the Island in the Sky section of Canyonlands NP, that I might as well head there - at least to Grand View Point - because you just never know... (Ive been there, done that a number of times, so I hadnt really planned to spend time there.) I proceed to drive the 12-15 miles to the end of the road at Grand View Point, but stopping a few times to snap a few. The parking lot is almost half full, which is a little surprising to me, being late October and all, but it is a heck of a nice day... After parking I grab camera and monopod and walk towards the rim, but heading to the left; away from the crowds. The sun is playing peekaboo with the clouds, so I concentrate on capturing at least some of the different features without worrying about the light conditions too much. After getting some from the left side I walk to the right to see if there any good vantage points over there. On the way, I chat briefly with a group of 3 about the White Rim Road (visible below) because I heard them discussing it as they were approaching. I confirm for them that it would indeed be a great trip to make and that someday, someday soon I hope, I plan to drive the whole 100+ miles of sometimes rugged road, hiking and exploring and photographing the tantalizing world one mesa below where we were standing. Someday... I finish getting what the day has to offer in Canyonlands and head out back towards Rt 191, taking it north back up to the interstate (I-70). In Green River I gas and gulp then Im back on 70 towards the exit for Utah Rt. 24, at its eastern/northern end. Upon exiting, I spur of the moment decide to turn right, to the north, instead of heading south on 24. I do this because north is an unpaved road that appears to head up into some interesting formations, and it was beckoning me to explore. I swear I heard it. The road looked to be pretty easy going so off to the north I went. I drove up about 4 miles before turning around. The portion that I took wound its way through multi-colored eroded hills with huge rocky chunks broken off and scattered along the hillsides and around the bottoms of the slopes; boulders of all shapes and sizes. Scattered around the area too were old, abandoned mine sites and openings. I know I said I wasnt going to explore any unknown unpaved roads, but... I just couldnt help myself. So glad I have no self control! I leave the dirt and get back onto pavement, southwards on Rt. 24. Im heading towards Capitol Reef NP. For the night, Im thinking of maybe staying at a spot I know on Rt 12 on the other side of the park, up on Boulder Mtn. Its way up high and has a great view to the east of The Waterpocket Fold (the main feature of Capitol Reef NP) and behind that the Henry Mtns. But, by the time I gas up again in Hanksville, and reach the park boundary (on the east) the sun is about to set for the day and I start thinking that maybe I dont want to drive through Capitol Reef in the dark, foregoing any photo ops that may be present (and there always are some.) The Notom Rd is right there, going south to Bullfrog Marina and Hite Crossing. It traverses mostly BLM land which means... Thats right, possible overnight parking spots. I conclude that the best thing to do would be to head south on the Notom Rd and look for a spot to overnight off of it. I cross the road from the little info and rest area at the eastern boundary of the park on Rt 24 and get onto Notom Rd. In less than a mile I spot a dirt road heading off to a little canyon on the right so off pavement I go. In just a short bit in I spy a nice flat spot, with a nice view towards the east (for sunrise purposes). Theres a fire ring there already so obviously others before me have liked this spot too. I pull in and park so that my rear faces east (rear window view) and (mostly) level. Its twilight now and still pleasantly warm. I spend the rest of the evening downloading the days pictures, eating one of the few remaining dinners, and watching several TV shows. Tomorrow Ill drive through Capitol Reef and then work my way towards, if not to, the Bryce Canyon area. Today was another good day and Im betting that tomorrow will be too!
Posted on: Sun, 02 Nov 2014 13:44:52 +0000
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