On the Road at 8:10 AM and just got back to the RV at 9:30 PM. We did parts of 7 Mile Rim, Wipe Out Hill, all of Gold Bar and then went up to LaSal to have supper with Dave and Debi. Once again, waaaay too tired to even think, much less type. I'm getting behind - catching up will be tough but this has been a GREAT 3 days. Tomorrow we do The Kane Creek with the Austrian (not Australian) TV crew. Debriefing meeting is tomorrow night then have to pack up and get ready to move Tuesday to Green River. Busy day! After moving, we'll have a FULL day of wheeling: the MK Tunnels and Mountain Dew Trail. Then the next day we move to the Swell and will be without internet or phone service until Saturday. I can rest all I want when I'm dead. This is too much fun!
The day was great, as are they all! Instead of rambling on, will once again let the photos to the talking (primarily because I'm friggin' tired and have gassed out completely for the night!)
How many Jeepers does it take to remove a sway bar?
The view from the top of Seven Mile Rim trail.
Nope, not broken, just incredible flex.
It's a beaut!
Looking out over Moab Valley - and "waving" to the photographer.
Uranium Arch.
By noon we had done most of Seven Mile Rim, including the tippy spot. We descended Wipe Out (no photos, see previous year's photos). From there we headed up to Gold Bar Rim, a relatively difficult trail where Graham did exceptionally well. Grabbed a few photos and descended before the hordes of Jeepers hit the trail out before we did.
There are SO many more photos, much better than these, and so many more words, much better than these that could be used to show and describe the incredible beauty of the day and some of the gnarly wheeling. But I'm too damn tired to go on. Once again, "Goodnight Gracie."
Our group, ready to roll....er....shall we say...go on the trail.
Sherri got to try some of the obstacles and was having the time of her life.
Indian writings were right off the trail in one spot.
Dieter, Stefan, his friend Krista and her daughter, were with us also. Despite a flat tire on Stefan's Jeep, we had no breakdowns. Krista was a little nervous so I reassured her and was rewarded with a nice hug in return. Periodically during the day I continued to reassure her.
On the shelf road, we had a hell of a good time. Eric was spotting to the left, me to the right (as viewed from the hill looking down, as in the photo). The left line just didn't seem to work so all of us (except for Karaoke Dave and eventually Brandon) took the right. It's unsettling to get a foot and a half of air when there is a 200' drop to the side but all was well. It was a good line and provided some awesome photos!
Brandon tried the left side to no avail. At one point, he put it in reverse and the throttle stuck full bore. We thought for sure, as he backed out of there at a high rate of speed, that he was going to launch himself into the deep canyon. Fortunately he stopped JUST in time. Eric is working on the errant throttle linkage.
250' below, the folks on the motorcycles watched the show up above. Yes, it is a long way down! We all made it - and sadly even Eric had to give up his left line and come up the right side.
We all made it and stopped at the waterfalls to refresh ourselves on this warm day and marvel at the stream of water flowing through this arid land.
Got back to the RV by 4 and the TV crew was here. Seemed they wanted yet another retake where I say with a sweeping motion, "THIS is Red Rock Country............" Off we went down Potash Road where they found a spot and it took 27 takes for me to get it right. I shan't quit my day job! Then rush back to have a couple ATBs. Then shower. Then grab a bite to eat. Then go the to Arena for the debriefing. (I still have my briefs.) Then come back and put the FN JP on the trailer. Then type this drivel. Whew! I'm exhausted - perhaps I need a beer.
These days sound busy - yes they are! But they are also soooo much fun. This is great! Tomorrow Graham, Jeff and I go to Green River for some exploration of some tunnels and another trail. Dieter can't make it to Green River but by Wednesday we'll be at Temple Mountain and Dieter and Rolf will join us there, along with Graham who will be commuting from Hanksville. Yes we have a plan! (Scary, huh?)
6:40 AM. Still dark out. Looks like the weather will be sunny and in the 70s until Sunday when we might get some rain - sorry Tim & Jill - but then it will recover again. In a few minutes we leave for Green River. If, and it's a big if, we can get internet there, there will be one more update before Saturday when we return to Moab to meet Tim and Jill who will be driving out. After today, we'll be off to have Swell time and will be without cell or internet service until sometime Saturday.
The 8 AM view from Camp Dave this morning.
The camp at Green River.......yes we have enough room!
This is nice.
8 PM: And yes, we got here, there is internet, FTP works for updating the web page but they have no mail server. WTF!
Today we Jeeped 150 miles and had a Swell time, except for the part where Jeff bailed first and then Graham didn't go forward either while we were on a cliff edge ATV trail. Of course I continued on but eventually returned as I didn't want to finish the trail by myself. More about that later!
The main tunnel. "They" want to close the tunnel or restrict access. It was fun to explore but the graffiti on the walls took a lot out of the experience.
The tunnels became filled with sand at one point but of course I had to crawl through there to see what there was at the other end.
This is typical.....and also what was at the other end....big holes blasted in the top of the tunnel as part of their "experiments."
After the jaunt in the tunnels and lunch above them, we headed off to the Mountain Dew trail, about 12 miles northwest of the tunnels. BTW, thanks to Tim Berry who provided the information that led us to these two adventures today.
While allegedly fenced off, people can still get to the edge of the craters and look down the 60 - 100' deep holes, as Graham is doing here.
Mushroom Rock on the trail.
Part of the extended trail that we all took - up to a point.
Where the hell is it????
Found it! Pretty cool to think this footprint was made over 150 million years ago! It's twice the size of my hand.
Do you suppose the reaction back then to those who put these on the sandstone walls was the same as ours about the graffiti in the tunnels?
The old bridge over the San Rafael River.
One of the many parting shots of the Swell as we left and began the long trek back to town.
Camp Dave at Temple Mountain. Looking back, I've probably been here 20 times over the years with a number of the trips documented online, so some of these photos may be repeats.
This was the view of the canyon as we entered in the early morning. What a perfect day. In the morning it was in the 60s, reaching the 70s by late afternoon. The only minor complaint, no, make that an observation - was the 35 mph wind later in the day and the shifting, whispering, blowing sand.
"It don't get no better than this!"
Temple Mountain is a strange one. It's a weird conglomeration of many different rocks and minerals. Need to look it up online and get more information on it. But a link to that will have to wait as here at the camp we have no communication with the outside world......oh darn!
Dave's Garage!
A whole lot of mining was done here in the 1950s. Exploring these old
ruins and mines is a gas!
Car for sale - cheap: Has been in storage for many years. Needs minor repair, new tires and some body work.
After driving a ways on a dusty road, Dieter and Rolf found their "perfect" campsite nestled inside a series of clay monoliths hundreds of feet high just outside Goblin Valley State Park. Hard hats anyone?
The wind was fierce. Tarps were flying. Tents were flying. Sand was flying. We were all laughing. I volunteered to hold Dieter's tarp down while he assembled his tent. This was hard work and required a certain amount of skill.
After the tent was assembled, my next job was to hold it.
Setting up this site in the high wind was a blast, so to speak. Once we had completed this momentous task, Jeff, myself, Dieter and Rolf toasted our fun so far this day with a shot of pear schnapps.
Following the toast, we meandered over to the Valley of the Goblins. On the left is a perfect example. And while all this hiking was going on, I did what came naturally....took a nap! The schnapps had nothing to do with it.
How purty is it?
On our trek up to one of the mines, we found this little cove and decided to count Geigers. It was relatively hot, as the needle is pegged! You can only imagine the jokes and conversation that followed!
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Superman!
Our convoy, descending from one of the blocked off mines. All the fun entrances of years ago have been sealed shut to protect us from ourselves, I guess. Shameful. Maybe they should encase the whole mountain in concrete as the Geiger counter was sputtering away continuously even in the open air due to the blowing dust. This whole mountain is still pretty "hot."
Once we got to the basin, we found Pfosta's bar...a headframe with a 3' diameter vertical shaft going down hundreds of feet with rebar welded over the top. So here Jeff, myself and Dieter toasted, once again, the great time we've had today with, of course, pear schnapps. Dieter remarked, "I shall have to bring more schnapps next year!" Dieter and I did this last year also. Click here.
Graham, in a magnificent pose. I can only imagine the rebuttals and comments that both Jeff and Graham will make once we get back home and they read these lies that I've told about them.
After the schnapps, watching Graham descend the hill was too much to bear.
Ahhh-----what a good day. After returning we had to have an ATB. Then we planned tomorrow's trip. Graham retired to Hanksville. Dieter and Rolf retired to their dusty camp site. Jeff cooked up a couple burgers and we called it a damn good day!
A few ATVers (ones that I did not scare off) came by and we had a nice visit. After sitting outside watching the stars come out and the sun set (not necessarily in that order), we also retired to the RV as the wind then, and during the night, was pretty brutal.
End of day - the view from the camp looking East.
7:30 AM: Generator on. Coffee brewing. Getting ready for another tour today with temps in the high 60s but again, 35 mph wind predicted. It blew pretty hard all last night and we're anxious to hear how Rolf and Dieter fared. (Postscript: they fared just fine!) But for now - need to get ready for the day's adventure. And here's one of our first views:
After our "crew" was assembled and we woke
up Graham, we proceeded to the head of Little Wild Horse slot canyon
via a fun 4WD trail.
Dieter & Rolf negotiating one of the drop-offs. Yes, Jeff, Graham and I also made it down (and eventually up!)
Another spot was a little tougher to negotiate upward. Dieter went first, helped me up and I, in turn, helped Jeff. No idea how Rolf and Graham got back up!
Once we got up, we needed to rest and found this nice rock in the warm sun. A hiking family from Colorado came by and snapped our photo. We saw them again on the way out when we were in our Jeeps and, from the looks on their faces, we're thinking their teenage kids would have much preferred our mode of transportation.
The lunchroom.
The view of Hondu Arch and Tomisch Butte from the access road.
Once in the valley, we stopped at the Big Muddy. Trust me, it's not worth the bits for the photo of me with my sweeping arm motion proclaiming, "This is the Big Muddy!" (Photos available on request, however.) We paid a very short visit at this miserable little dirty river that has a sign posted "No jet skiing!" - say WHAT???? Oh well.....
Then we took off to find a labyrinth of mines above the valley floor. Dieter and I had been there last year and I was sure the mine we were looking at was the right one. So sure that I even shouted, "But I have photos....." Well, true, I do have photos but not of us on that specific mine. I was only off by one, however----one mine.
After driving up to the first mine (not the right one) and after listening to Dieter tell me it was the next mine over, and of course me ignoring him, we came down and there was this Emery County Sheriff in his delightful baby TJ complete with mars lights. What a cool cop car. I stopped to chat and we recognized each other from interactions (all good!) in years gone past. We had a great 20 minute visit and both complained about the closings of the mines and the roads. Nice guy!
Now comes the problem......once again soooo many photos......sooooo hard to choose. Here goes!
After some help finding the right mine, we had to drive up.
Jeff stayed below for a few minutes and got this great
photo of the framework used to dump the ore down from the mine to the
awaiting trucks.
Here are the Jeeps as viewed from one of the other openings. Yes, it was a fun climb to the top from the valley below!
Jeff......doing his imitation of Dave.....
"Thissssssss is Red Rock Country"
These were very big tunnels and all interconnected. It was great fun exploring. While Dieter and I did this last year, this year the weather was much better.
It's a bird, it's a plane, it's Superman......again!
What goes up must come down......carefully!
Graham, this one's for you.
From the mines, we headed the 25 miles back to camp via Red's Canyon, which by the way, was red. And, as is fitting for such a good day, here's a photo as we approached Temple Mountain and our camp to the right of the mountain.
Generator on, air compressor on.....the garage is open for business
as Dieter airs up. We're miles and miles from commercial
power here.
The gas station was also open for business.
The road to Molly's Castle. The reef of the San Rafael Swell is in the background.
Little Wild Horse Canyon with our trail to the Big Muddy below.
We had to work our way around a number of waterfalls. This would be a great sight to see in a heavy rain with the water rushing over the top....sans Jeeps!
Factory Butte from the Canyon.
Don't scratch the paint or you will pay dearly.
We're really on the BLM road!
By 1 PM we were out of the Canyon and on the main road where we stopped for a very quick lunch, but yet took time to poke around and look at the wonderful scenery and even found a mini-arch.
From there, we headed down to the abandoned ranch house and forded the Big Muddy. We were kind of hoping to find someone stuck there so we could winch them out but were disappointed. That disappointment didn't last long though.
BFG made it easier than Steve, back in 1996.
It really makes one wonder why someone would build a ranch out here in this arid, clay filled, barren land.
The beginning of the roads to nowhere numbers 2 and 3. But it's pretty, though!
Well, due to a navigational error on my part (surprise!), we headed up the well-graded road that Jeff and I took last time. Maybe there's a turn I missed. Now this road is graded, I mean graded! It was a smooth, wide gravel road and after 3 or 4 miles it just plain stopped in the middle of nowhere. WTF! Verrry strange. So now we have road number two to nowhere.
On the way up, there was a small road to the right so we elected to backtrack the 5 miles and take that one. It followed Salt Wash, an intermittent stream of very alkaline, hard, water. This water is so hard it could make soap curdle! Or you could pound nails with it. But, according to my up to date 1975 map, there's a road from there to Caineville and were gonna take it!
Someone had fun here...a LOT of digging!
Getting ready to get winched and not get my feet wet. Doesn't look I'm stuck in quicksand/mud does it?
This took about an hour to clean up back at camp. This stuff dried and is not easy to get off! It required a lot of beer to remove the "stuff," whatever it is!
Where's Waldo?
On the way back we came upon this uniquely "Hanksville" road side advertisement, I guess, and just couldn't resist going back and getting a shot of it. Where else would someone use a derelict cement mixer as a road sign?
What a way to spend a birthday!
All in all, what a helluva day. This was so much fun driving around with no idea where the heck we were going. This is 4 wheeling at its finest!
While all this was going on, Tim and Jill were making their way west and will join Jeff and me tomorrow for a few days more of wheeling in the Moab area.
So tonight I cleaned the Jeep on the inside to get the crust off from the bath, used the tanks to add almost 18 gallons of fuel and then finished this...along with an appropriate amount of adult beverage. Life is good.
Tomorrow back to Moab and will attempt to upload this drivel. Jeff will meet me there later in the day after he takes a slower, but much more scenic route via Utah 95 back to Moab. Hopefully we'll meet up with Tim and Jill and have an ATB or two.
WHAT A GOOD DAY ! !
My parting shot for today is Factory Butte.
