"life not shared is not worth living"

I was going to meet Danny for an afternoon hike at the Entrance to Goblin’s State Park. The roads and the park were crazy busy with the Memorial Day weekend travelers getting out of town. Jim and Ed whom I met in Capitol Reef suggested Little Wild Horse Canyon and Bell Canyon Loop – coincidentally Danny had the same plan. It was a 8 mile hike up the Little Horse and down the Bell. If you plan on taking this route this is the preferred direction as going down the Bell Canyon at the end of the hike is easier. Both canyons are very pretty with LIttle Wild Horse being quite a bit narrower. It’s amazing what the wind sand and little time can do. Danny and I made a good time hiking this route and since there was no hope of finding a place to stay the night we decided to make our way all the way to Park City.

In retrospect – I had another excellent week of travels and adventure. If you are stuck at home reading this blog – GET OUT – take a leap of faith the world will not end if you call in sick for a day or two, take a leave of absence or give up the life of luxury, mortgage and car payments for while.

I arrived late and there was no place available at the park campground. Even each camping site was very big and it would be very easy to setup more tents. As I drove into the campground I spotted two guys looking over a topo map. I asked if they would object to sharing the site with me and they said’ “Nope – you are in”. That’s how I met Jim and Ed two college professors, Jim from Main and Ed from North Carolina. Both are avid hikers and travelers I think Jim mentioned that he hiked in over 35 countries. Since the school was out boys were playing. In return for their hospitality I drove back to Torrey’s only grocery store and picked up stakes for dinner. Y’all know how I like to cook!!!
The highlight of the evening was a presentation by the traveling astronomer of the video about the Saturn which was followed by him setting up three 12 inch telescopes so we could take a look at the Saturn and other planets, stars and celestial objects in person. The next morning Jim Ed and I went for a short hike overlooking the Park, after the hike I continued on with my drive to meet Danny at the San Rafael Swell.

From Bryce I headed over to Escalante. The state campground at Calf Falls was full so I stayed “in town” . The next morning I was planning on hiking the Calf Creek Falls. It was a short hike along the Calf’s Creek. The vegetation along the creek is plentiful and contrasts with the red walls of the canyon. To my amazement the creek was loaded with trout – note to myself – fishing for lunch could be nice.
The canyon was used by the local population for hunting and farming. There are numerous granaries built into the cliffs of the canyon where corn and other food sources were stored. All that happened before the local population was “displaced” by the the LDS missionaries. The falls were very picturesque and provided a welcomed reprieve from the heat of the day multiplied by the red stoned walls of the canyon. I should have go for a swim but there were children present.
I left the Calf’s Creek and drove to Burr Trail where on recommendations from Alyssa from the Burr Outpost (link ) I took a quick hike to a slot canyon not marked on the trail map – it was very nice – I hope to be back to follow Alyssa’s other suggestions – she was very pleasant and helpful.

I continued my drive NE to Boulder and on to Capitol Reef NP.

I left Joshua Tree I headed back to my favorite state – Utah and Bryce Canyon was my first stop. I found camp site at the North end and near the Sunrise point. It was a good location. Next morning I hiked down to Queen’s Garden and back up the Navajo trail. It was an easy hike and fairly popular. The Bryce Canyon may be one of my favorite lately destinations – the colors of the trademark Hoodoo’s are amazing from white through yellow to pink and deep red. There is no shortage of trees and flowers as well which only adds to the charm of the canyon. One thing that I found interesting in the park literature is: “Paiutes were displaced by the emissaries of the Church of Jesus of Latter-day Saints who developed many small communities in Utah.” That must be politically correct way of saying ” The LDS church members kicked local indians ass and took over their land” – either way the place is beautiful. The next day I hiked Fairyland trail which was the best hike I did on this trip – approximately 8 mile hike to the bottom and back up to the rim of the canyon. If you haven’t done it I highly recommend it. I’m going to be back to do more exploring of this area. Maybe backpack the Under the Rim trail.

I left PC on sunday morning. I knew the trip to Joshua will take about 11 hours – well – I didn’t know but Betsy my trusted Road Bitch – Garmin GPS knew it and again she was right. Plan was to hike the park for a day or so and visit friends in Palm Springs. Drive was pretty uneventful but I learned couple if things – traffic in CA is SLOW – like 15 mph on the Interstate slow, and everyone has to have vanity plate on their car – it’s the LAW. Again following Danny’s suggestions I camped at Hidden Valley campground. He is like a personal guide – when in doubt – call Danny. Next morning I went for a bike ride – rode to the Keys Viewpoint where from you can see Palm Springs and the San Andreas Fault – pretty impressive view. Even the ride was only 15 miles rounds trip it was a perfect start. Then I went to hike around the Hidden Valley. I just missed blooms of most of the cacti and the Joshua Trees – desert was desert like. Apparently Joshua Tree is not a tree but a variety of Yucca Next morning I drove to Rattlesnake Canyon and also to 49 Palm Oasis. It was a nice hike to the oasis – it’s a popular hike – so popular in fact that some people feel compelled to carve their name into the palm trees – just to distinguished themselves as as a pure A-holes – ignorance is alive and well. Weather in CA was nice but fairly cold – down to low 40′s at night which I guess is not that unusual in the desert at this time of the year. Visiting friends in Palm Springs didn’t work out as planned so the next morning I headed out back to Southern Utah – Bryce Canyon to start with. Along the road there are extensive salt flats where calcium chloride is polluting a vast area of California desert.

Most people that I know are not that excited about a long car trip – not me – I love it. Following the black ribbon of asphalt to an unknown destination brings a lot of excitement. I also like the fact that I’m alone, able to listen to whatever I choose – even if it is the same song over and over again, it also gives me time to catch up with my favorite shows that I download to my iPod without being able to listen to them. On my last year trip to Alaska my iPod and the downloaded podcasts kept me sane as above certain latitude there is no satellite radio reception hence no Coffee Shop or NPR or Stern. This trip was no exception. I’ve listened to most of my newly downloaded podcasts of my favorite NPR show – This American Life. If you are not familiar with Ira Glass and This American Life you need to be. I’ve listened to many shows but this one in particular struck a cord with me. Listen to the act #3 and see what it does for you. You can also download the podcast on iTunes. I grew up in a middle class family in Poland, even neither my parents nor I would often verbalize the love for each other I felt loved. I don’t now what it is in polish language that the words like “i love you” don’t play a prominent part in our vocabulary. When I speak english I’m not afraid to use those words, but in polish I can’t remember when is the last time I said those words to anyone including my parents. I never said “thank you” -either for giving me the best childhood they could. I left home when I was young first to go to college and then for good. My folks are in their mid 70′s now and I often think what will happen when one of them dies. They have been together for over 50 years and it would be very hard for either one of them to be alone. I know they wouldn’t be interested in coming here to live with me. I’m going to go and visit them again soon – I think there are some things I want to say to them.

Think about your own experience – is there anything you need to say?

Woke up this morning, looked out the window and it’s white again. The forecast is for 3 feet of snow above 8000 feet. That’s where all the fun is, all the hiking all the biking. I’m not sure if the spring or summer will come this year. Thankfully I’m leaving on another trip south. This time I’m going to Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, Escalante Staircase, San Rafael Swell and who knows where else.
If the weather is good in your part of the country send me some vibes – I need them.

Last year on a spur of the moment I made a trip to the Arches NP – since I was there only for one day I was able to see only a small portion of the park. This year I wanted to visit some of the arches I’ve not seen yet and with the help from Danny I was able to add to my collection. We arrived at Moab on friday . We met Paul, Renee and Rachel at the campground where they were staying. They quickly convinced me to go on a bike ride. We road MOAB trails which were above my ability level – as I suck at mountain biking but I managed not to get hurt and that’s a success on it’s own. Back at the campground rain spoiled our stake dinner plans so Danny and I went out to Moab Brewery – food was good and by the time we got back rain was tapering off as well. The next day was going to be all work.

Danny and I went hiking Corona Arch which was located outside of the park and after lunch we made a quick loop through Negro Bill Canyon to Morning Glory Bridge – one of the few hikes that are partially shaded. Overall a great day – with a little over 10 miles under the hood.

Sunday morning looked like a perfect day – temperatures low, gentle breeze and sunny. We left a little earlier than usual as I wanted to get back to Park City before the nightfall.
We drove all the way to Devils Garden and set out for a hike on the primitive trail to Double O, Navajo, Partition and the Landscape arches. The hike was fabulous! I learned that most of the arches were formed because the whole area is sitting on a large bed of salt which is unstable under pressure. The heavy layers deposited on top of the salt bed cause it to crack and shift. The shifting of the earth is most evident just above the visitors center where Moab Fault shifted 2500 feet. Vertical cracks caused the layers to separate and crumble, the stronger ones contributed to the formation of the arches. Entrada Sandstone was no match for the forces of wind, rain and ice – with a little time and a lot of patience mother nature created all the glorious arches – and that’s the rest of the story.
In retrospect I’m so glad that I inherited adventurous gene from my mother – I know that she would have loved to be here and hike in step with me. There are a lot of things that I wish could have turned out differently. Live love and learn. For now Trudy is going back on my dashboard but I’m sure she will not be there long – as soon as the snow in the high country is melted – we are going to be on the move again.

I received a text message from Danny that he is going to Moab and then to the Canyonlands NP to do some hiking in the Needles area of the park. That was all I needed to know and in the morning I headed out to the Canyonlands NP. I met Danny at the Needles Outpost Campground. It wasn’t long before we had fire going, cooking parts of the dead animals and partaking in adult beverages. I was very glad that I was able to hook up with Danny – not only is he very knowledgeable in the hiking of the southern Utah which comes from guiding tourists through those parts, but he is also a nice guy. We have one more thing in common – but I’m not going to talk about her.

The next morning Danny was like a man on a mission. We wanted to backpack into the park and spend a night at one of the remote sites but there were no permits available. We settled for a day long hike into Chesler Park, The Joint and the Joint Loop – all together about 12-14 miles. The weather was made for hiking do so we did. In process we discovered and named an unnamed arch, but most of all we had a great hike. Pictures below – I hope – convey some of it. I think Trudy is taking liking to Danny!!

Trudy and I arrived at the Natural Bridges Campground and decided to that in the morning we are going to hike all of the bridges, about 12-13 miles but a fairly easy hike. The weather was still windy but fairly mild so we set out on a hike. There are three brides along the canyon with some ancient ruins along the way. The canyon was empty – I was the only person venturing that way and that’s how I liked it. The hike was very pleasant. I think it’s interesting to note the difference between an arch and a bridge – the arch is formed by the erosive action of the seeping water, frost and wind where the bridge are formed mainly by the action of the moving water as in a stream or a river. Natural bridges have three bridges formed by the erosive forces of the stream below – the Sipapu, Kachina and Owachomo bridge were formed by the river and the flood waters. Now the annual precipitation is about 13 inches but a strong thunderstorm could turn a lazy creek into raging waters. The hike was very pleasant and quiet. Here are some pictures of what I liked – the first image is actually from the Monument Valley – but I couldn’t resist posting a picture of the nature conversational finger.