Some photos, finally

We are sitting at a Starbucks in Rifle, Colorado, catching up on business that requires Wi-Fi.  For the past few days, we have had little to no phone service (so can't use the phone as a hot spot), though occasionally some emails came through on the phone.  

The car was totally filthy after being towed through rain, picking up lots of road dirt, so we took it through a carwash and I'm now enjoying a Pumpkin Spice Latte, to celebrate the first day of fall.

So here's where we have been:

 Goblin Valley SP, Utah

Dead Horse Point

 

Rifle Gap

Day 22 and 23: Dead Horse Point State Park

We are now at Dead Horse Point State Park, just outside Canyonlands National Park.  It was hard to get a reservation here, so the site we managed is a small one but it has a covered cooking area (which given the weather---first rainy day of the trip) is a good thing.

It was a hot afternoon when we arrived.  We left Ranger for awhile in order to check out the visitors center at the state park and also the one at the national park, about ten miles down the road.  On the way back to the campsite, we drove up to the actual “point” from which you could see for miles, including the very green Colorado River way down in the canyon.

While taking a late afternoon walk, Dan and Ranger saw a kit fox crossing the road in front of them!

When Ranger and I headed out the next morning around 7:00, there was Mr. Fox again, this time about 25 yards from the door of the camper.  He and Ranger stared at one another for a few moments; then Ranger barked.  This did not seem to frighten the fox, as he moved a few yards closer.  Then, as if having second thoughts, he turned and headed off. An hour or so later, he was back, this time right in front of the RV.  He sat nicely while I took his pictures, not intimated at all.

Dan, Ranger, and I went out for a hike in the state park in the early morning, figuring on that being the cooler part of the day. (This proved wrong----more on that later.)  We took the 1.5 mile East Rim Trail, which had great views of the canyons below.  The trail took us back to Dead Horse Point, which Dan and I had visited the previous day.  From there we picked up the 2.5 mile West Rim Trail which led back to the campsite.  Enough hiking to leave all three of us ready for a rest and lunch.

Dan and I left Ranger in the RV in early afternoon so that we see some more of Canyonlands.  However, by now, clouds had moved in, the wind picked up, and the temperature dropped into the mid-60’s.  Not having carried along a jacket or rain gear, we visited a few overlooks and then headed back to the RV.  We did manage to see Mesa Arch, one of the more famous parts of the park.

Although I have been able to pick up email on my phone in this location, it’s still too weak to post photos.  Hoping the next location (in Colorado) will allow me to go back and put some of the pictures up from the past three or four days.  

Day 24: Rifle Gap State Park, Colorado

We had talked about checking out of our site at Dead Horse Point, hooking up the car, and---on the way to Colorado---stopping at Arches National Park, about 30 miles away.  However, we awoke to clouds and drizzle.  Checking the park website, it noted that there was little parking for oversized vehicles, and the webcam from the entrance showed a long line of cars waiting to get in.

So…we headed back to I-70 to travel to Colorado.  We DID see some of the arches in the distance from the highway as we came down off the mesa from Dead Horse Point.

There was not much to see along the interstate except desert and sign and after sign at exits “No services”.  Once past Grand Junction, CO, things started looking greener and much more dramatic as we approached the mountains.  The highway follows the Colorado River, which flows right through the town which was our destination: Rifle, Colorado.

We fueled up and picked up some needed groceries, then drove north of town to Rifle Gap State Park.

First impressions were not positive.  The park is built around a reservoir which was only half-full (or half-empty?), leaving expanses of rock and mud along its edge.  Our site in the “Lakeview” section is high on a hill, in an open area with no trees.  And the ranger said that there are no hiking trails in the park.  I guess during the summer, people come here to swim (beach closed at this time of year) and to fish (and we later saw the red and green lights of a boat out on the reservoir as we sat around our campfire). 

On the other hand, the campground seems almost new: level site with a concrete pad and covered picnic table, full hookups (electric, water, sewer), hot showers (as long as you bring along your quarters---4 minutes for a dollar).  And there are mountain bluebirds everywhere!  I saw more birds, and more different types of birds, in the first hour here, than I have in the past two weeks.

The weather remained overcast all day, with occasional light showers, lasting only a few minutes each.  At one point in late afternoon, as I was just returning from my shower, there was a full rainbow to the northeast, very bright.  But after dinner, there was a long enough break for us to have a campfire, as did a number of campers around us.  (Note: It’s off-season and mid-week, so only about a dozen of the many sites here are occupied, which is quite nice.) 

It was a very quiet night, up here in the mountains.  I awoke early this morning to the sounds of coyotes barking, yipping, and howling, as did Ranger, of course!  Foxes at the previous campground, coyotes here; he is well-entertained, though he really looked puzzled about this morning’s chorus!

Day 22: Goblin Valley to Dead Horse Point

We had a relatively short drive today, just about 100 miles, to our next destination.

Along the way, we stopped in the very small town of Green River, UT to pick up groceries. Before leaving Goblin Valley, we dumped and made sure we had full tanks of water, as the next place specified that they did NOT provide any.

So here we are at Dead Horse Point State Park, about 35 miles from Moab.  We are just outside the entrance to Canyonlands National Park.  This was a tough site to reserve:  When I looked for a site, back in May, there was only one available, and it said it could accommodate up to a 24-foot unit.  Ours is 25.  So I called on the phone and spoke to a ranger who said "no problem".  And it is a small site, but we managed to get in, along with some space to park the car.  It has junipers along the side, providing quite a bit of privacy, and it comes with a covered picnic table with wind-break.  The downside is that they are renovating the campsites, so there is much construction activity, and our site has obviously been worked on by a tractor or Bobcat of some sort: piles of red dusty dirt on one side and much of the previously-graveled area is now just dusty dirt.

Of course, Ranger is very happy to lie in the red dust, and he is filthy; his legs are all red, as was the tip of his nose, before I wiped it off.  

Once set up, we had lunch, then left Ranger in air-conditioned comfort while we toured the visitors center of the state park and then drove to Canyonlands.  We watched the movie and picked up print materials to look over, to decide how we want to spend the day tomorrow.

Grilled pork chops for dinner.....Ranger and Dan saw a kit fox while doing an after-dinner walk around the loop of the campground....now just relaxing.  So nice to have electricity again though given the shortage of water out here, there are no showers for campers.  We have plenty of water, so it will be sponge baths for the next couple of days.  

Still hoping to post photos soon, but this wi-fi is just too weak for it today.  

Day 21: Relaxing at Goblin Valley

It was a chilly night with a full moon that lit up everything like daylight.  We awoke early and after breakfast we went out to hike the Curtis Bench Trail.  This trail was an easy one that followed the ridge line (bench) over the valley.  Within a short time we were looking down onto hundreds and hundreds of goblins!  

Coming up a small rise, Dan stopped me to “Look!”.  There, right ahead, was a buck antelope---beautiful.  He did not seem particular spooked by us, but as we approached, we moved off, and as we got closer to where we had first seen him, we realized that below, in a little depression, was a herd of females and young.  He must have given a signal because off, they all went. 

We lounged most of the afternoon.  With no cell phone service (to use as a hot spot) and no Wi-Fi, we just read books and looked at the scenery.  We had a repeat of last night’s dinner:  burgers grilled over our campfire.  With no electric hookup and dark coming earlier and earlier, we were soon in bed.

Hoping to reach a place soon with stronger Wi-fi so that I can put up some of my photos.  I have been taking plenty of them!

Day 20: Arrival at Goblin Valley

We left Torrey and continued along Hwy 24.  The first part of the road went through Capitol Reef, so we enjoyed the amazing red rock formations for awhile.  Then the road followed the Fremont River, lots of vegetation and quite pretty.  Once past Hanksville we were out in a very dry, barren stretch,  not much to look at.  We turned off the highway, still in rather ugly environment, past Temple Mountain, and arrived at Goblin Valley State Park.

The advantage of state parks is that they are dog-friendly: Ranger can hike with us.  The disadvantage, at least of this one, is no phone service, no internet. 

Our site is a pull-through in a small campground of about 25 sites, tucked into a hollow with huge red cliffs along the west side and a LONG view across the desert to the east.  It has a covered table, so we have some shade---Hurray!  This being a Saturday, the campground is full, with quite a few families with small children who seem to love climbing up the brown, dried-mud hills and sliding down.

We took a short hike to the actual valley to see the goblins.  The trail was in a gully between the dried-mud walls, not much of a view, but Ranger seemed to enjoy himself, climbing up onto the side walls and sliding down again.  The end of the trail was at the overlook of Goblin Valley, where we saw the weird, rounded, mushroom-like towers for which the park is named.

Day 19: Visit to Capitol Reef National Park

We awoke to a temperature of 38 degrees with high wind.  Brrrr!  Ranger was very happy on his morning walk but I certainly was not.

We have had intermittent problems with the refrigerator, and since there was an RV repair service next door to the campground, Dan got in touch with “Biggie” who came over in late morning and maybe….maybe…fixed the problem.  We’ll know for sure when we camp at the next place, which does not have electrical hookups.  (The problem was only evident when the fridge is supposed to be running on propane.)

So it was about noon when we headed out to Capitol Reef.  What amazing scenery!

We started with a short hike at Goosenecks Overlook and then Sunset Point, where the red rock formations were almost hard to believe.  We then proceeded along the ten-mile scenic road through the park, passing all sorts of weird shapes along the way.  The paved road ended at a 2 ½ mile dirt road that led to Capitol Gorge, where a mile-long trail went between the huge rock walls.  The walls had some very old petroglyphs on them, as well as names inscribed from the late 19^th/early 20^th century when this path was used by Mormon settlers who set up a community along the river.

At the end of this trail, we opted to continue onto the Tanks Trail, which led to large round indentations in the rock that collect rainwater and become home to tadpoles and other small critters.

Strangely enough, after such a cold start to the day, by late afternoon, we felt hot and a bit dehydrated from our hiking.  (It got into the low 70's, but that sun was HOT.)

Back at our campsite, we had dinner and planned on an early bedtime after a busy day.