Wednesday, April 23/2014

We woke up this morning to more wind and a real gloomy day.  It looks like another road trip day in the truck.   More adventure in the truck coming up!!

starting out - good trail

The trail initially started of good.  It was wide and graded but eventually it became a two track cow trail and we needed four wheel drive to traverse the terrain.   We followed the San Rafael River for quite a while then had to traverse a real rocky area which offered a bit of variety on the trail.  We travelled along the wildlife management area for a bit (there are so many of those here) and only saw cattle so I am not sure exactly what kind of wildlife they are managing!!  Eventually we got back onto some good roads and made it back to the highway were we were on pavement for the rest of the day!!

lots of sand

a little "lean to" we noticed next to
the rocks

a lonely boulder

a cattle corral - these cowboys were waiting
for the semi to come and pick up their cattle

Where the cowboys sleep

abandoned buildings

logs and mud

nothing but desert for miles and miles

our trail is deteriorating!!

where we came from

awesome scenery - Capital Reef National Park

We fueled in Hanksville then headed down the highway to Capital Reef National Park in the heart of Red Rock Country.  This hidden treasure is filled with cliffs, canyons, domes and natural bridges in what is called the Waterpocket Fold - a 65 million year old geologic monocline (a bulge in the earth) extending almost a hundred miles.  It is the largest exposed monocline in North America!!  Erosion has carved these massive sandstone formations into extraordinary shapes.  It was incredible to see to say the least.

phenomenal structures

Behunin Cabin - 10 people lived in this tiny cabin

more incredible scenery

We eventually hooked back up to Interstate 70 but not before crossing a mountain that took us to almost 9000 feet in elevation.  There was still a bit of snow in the trees and we saw tons of mule deer.

Miles and miles of harsh unforgiving terrain

There was still a bit of snow up at this elevation - 8975 feet

tonight's sunset

The sun was setting when we arrived back at camp so I was able to get a few pics before it slipped behind the rocks.  All in all, it was a good day.  The scenery was incredible.