Thursday, April 24/2014

The sun is shining today and although there is a little wind blowing, it looks like we are headed out on the quads.  A bit of wind is a good thing as it takes care of most of the dust so Kay and I aren't eating it all day!!
We had a 13 mile jaunt on the wide trails of the bench land before we got to the trails that would lead us to The Behind the Reef Trail.  It was along these wide trails as we travelled across McKay Flats that we saw a herd of wild horses.  There were about 10 of them all standing looking at us.  They looked healthy and totally awesome.  One was actually returning to the heard at a canter and I noted that his tail was so long, it was brushing the ground.  They all stood and watched us pass, not really making any motion to leave.   We had heard there was a herd of wild horses out here but I really did not expect to see them.  The other day, when we were watching the wild burros, a woman who was also watching them mentioned that there was a herd of wild horses out here.  She said in all the years she had been coming out here, she had never seen them so I guess, once agin, we have been blessed.
We accessed the trial that would lead us to Behind the Reef trail and I noticed that it was considered a "black" trail.  In other words….most difficult.  Now Kay has been my pilot since she arrived and I hoped that she did not see the marker.  As it turned out, she did not and mastered the moderately challenging trail down off the mesa and into Little Wild Horse Canyon.  The canyon trail was wide and sandy and we were able to travel with some speed.  The scenery was once again awesome (I am not sure just how many ways I can say that!).
We accessed the Behind the Reef Trail and the fun began.  If the one trail we just came off of was considered and black trail, then this trail would be considered a "double" black trail.   It was limited to 52 inch or less wide vehicles so it was quads only and once we started on this trail it became abundantly clear that there was a reason for this restriction.   It was a combination of narrow, rocky shelf trail.  There were many spots one did not want to "go over the edge" as it was a very LONG way down!!   Kay managed this trail very well despite the fact that I kept reminding her that my life was in her hands.   I can safely say that she had become a very skilled driver.   When we were finally done with the  trail and back on wide roads, I mentioned to her that the trail was considered a "black" trail.  She just grinned and said "that is messed up"!!   I am sure that she would have been totally intimidated but the signage.

There is a wild horse there.  He is hard to see
but this is the extent of my camera zoom.

The herd was tucked into these trees.  There were
about 10 of them.

I moved a tin can and found this little scorpion
hiding under it.   It is off to the left of the pic.

Down we go….

Little Wild Horse Canyon

Incredible sculpting by Mother Nature

A miner's cabin we passed in our travels today

Spring has sprung 

John, way ahead of us

This kind of gives one a perspective as to just how huge this terrain is.
John and the quad are dwarfed by it!! 

Looking down on the trail we had just travelled.

Time for a break

Even in this harsh and unforgiving terrain,
God sends us a floral reminder of the beauty  it contains.

Trail and….

more trail

We have passed several abandoned vehicles here in the Swell.

We headed over to the Reds Canyon trail and the most exciting part about this trail was the down grade to get into it.    It consisted of a often narrow shelf trail that lent for no errors.  It was a VERY LONG WAY down and I had to go to my "happy place" in my head so that I would not panic.  Kay handled the trail beautifully and at no time did I actually feel in jeopardy!!
Once we accessed the canyon, it became clear as to why it was named Reds Canyon as there were so many different colours of red on the rocks and the trail.  It was awesome.   It was a wide, sandy trail and we were able to make good time on it.

Skyline

Our trail to Reds Canyon - looks like we are going down...

We made it home after a 75 mile ride today.  The wind blew off and on throughout the day but it was a good ride.   All is well.

Family Butte (in Reds Canyon)

Tan's Seep - a makeshift corral for the cattle that roam this area.

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.