Uprising

The following takes place on Saturday, April 16th. This was my last real hiking adventure on my Utah trip. It was the toughest hike of the trip that was made a little rougher by a lack of sleep. I hadn’t slept well all week, and on this last night I had noisy neighbors camped near me that woke me up during the middle of the night. Fortunately, it was not as bad as a certain night in Yellowstone N.P. a few years back. Anyway, I got up before sunrise and made the trek to Canyonlands, which was around an hour’s drive from where I was camped. At Canyonlands, I hiked the Syncline Loop Trail. The trail is a little over 8 miles. The Syncline Loop Trail circles the controversial Upheaval Dome and Crater. The debate is how the dome and crater were created. I didn’t get a good look at dome or crater, but I did see lots of beautiful canyon scenery.



A view along the Syncline Loop Trail




The trail goes down and around the massive rocks on the right.






The Trail







Rock Cairn








The ground was covered in salt at this spot of the canyon floor.







Me







Me again








The way out.







Looking back







Looking back again






I was tired after the hike. The temperature was not really hot, but the sun’s rays were draining. Plus, the lack of sleep was getting to me. I also had an ankle that was tender. I think my boot may have been too tight. So I decided just to make a few stops at overlooks and call it a trip. And a good trip it was.




Green River Overlook







Lizard





An overlook on the way out of the park





Until the next hike,

-MM

200

For my 200th post, I figure I’ll celebrate with a jug, a bowtie, and a Corona. After Fiery Furnace tour, I went back to my camp and had dinner for lunch. After lunch, I followed the road on the north side of the Colorado River west of Moab. I came across Jug Handle Arch on this drive. The arch can be seen from the road.



Jug Handle Arch







The trailhead for Bowtie and Corona Arch is also on this road. This was my next hike of the day. It was only about a 3 mile round trip. Here are the pictures.


Railroad cut on the trail to Corona Arch





Bowtie Arch on the left and Corona Arch on the right







Bowtie Arch







Bootlegger Canyon








Corona Arch







Cactus and Corona Arch







Bowtie Arch







After the Corona hike, I did a hike on what I believe is called the Portal Overlook Trail. The trailhead is also on this same road. It has great view of Moab, the La Sal Mountains, Arches, and the Colorado River.




Cactus







Colorado River







Tightrope walker




Moab







Moon







Stay tuned...

-MM

Into The Fire

Friday morning, I took the Fiery Furnace tour in Arches National Park. The Fiery Furnace is a sensitive area that the park service is trying to keep as natural as possible. It is a maze of fins. There are lots of dead ends. The only way to visit the Fiery Furnace is by tour or possibly a special permit if one has done the tour before. The tour I took consisted of 25 people. It is 3 hours long and goes by rather quickly. The hike is only 2 miles. Everybody follows the ranger in single file over rock, between rocks, and through washes. My pictures for this hike don’t come close to capturing the beauty of the place. My camera was less than a week old, so I haven’t figured it out yet. Regardless, I doubt I could have captured the beauty even if I knew my camera better. Below are the pictures that came out okay.



Sunrise from the park road.


Three Gossips & The Organ on the left. I'm not sure what the big boy on the right is called.




Skull Arch in the Fiery Furnace











In the Fiery Furnace







Kissing Turtles Arch











Ranger Casey





Looking towards Balance Rock from inside the Furnace








Fiery Furnace






Surprise Arch





Looking back on the Fiery Furnace





To Be Continued...

-MM

Into The Great Wide Open

Last week, I was in Utah for a soccer game and a little R&R. So I’ll share the pictures and story of my trip over several posts. The first stop of the trip was Salt Lake City for the first leg of the Rocky Mountain Cup between Colorado Rapids and Real Salt Lake. This is a bitter rivalry that did not end well for the Rapids. RSL won 1-0 in stoppage time on a goal that was clearly offside. The Rapids have been snakebitten against RSL in recent years. As fans, we were waiting for something bad to happen as the clock hit the 90th minute. Hats off to the Rapids players. After such a bitter defeat, they still took the time to acknowledge the fans that made the road trip.

The next day, I drove to Arches National Park. I found a campsite outside the park, and then went for a hike in the park. The first stop was Delicate Arch. I had done this hike before in 2005, but I wanted to revisit it when there was snow on the mountains. I figured it would add to the already beautiful scenery. That it did. Here are the pictures from the hike.


Delicate Arch with the snow covered La Sal Mountains



Delicate Arch with one of the Window Arches in the distance




Delicate Arch from Frame Arch







Frame Arch






Me and a different view of Delicate Arch






View from inside Echo Arch





Echo Arch








After the hike, I had some time to kill so I stopped off at one of my favorite arches.




Double Arch





Sunset from Double Arch






More to come…

-MM

VI

Happy Birthday Cara! I guess. I'm not sure. Look at my Calendar. I'm so confused.



I guess you don't have a birthday this year.



This dinosaur was upset about it. I was worried it might get out of its fenced in area.



This is what Rex had to say.







I hope your missing birthday was great!

-Uncle MM

Uncertain Weather

On Saturday, I went for a hike at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. The weather was beautiful with record highs in some parts of the state. There are some nice trails at the Monument. They are all pretty easy. Here are the pictures from the hike.




A petrified redwood stump







Me and a view of Pikes Peak







Snow/ice that is trying to survive







Me and the boulders of Boulder Creek







Looking back on the boulders








View of Pikes Peak






I attended the Rapids game on Sunday. The weather was not that nice for the game. It was cold with some light snow. It was warm in the stands from the cheering of the die-hards that made the game. The Rapids won 4-1. No pictures from the game. Who knows, maybe some “find me in the crowd” pictures will turn up somewhere on the internet later this week.

-MM