Lee's Ferry, Arizona

Baba and Poppop were visiting Sedona, Arizona. We took Ellen to see them. It was the Blizzard of '08. We drove through a storm on and off from Escalante to Page. It was pouring in Page. We spent the night and found things a little better in the morning. So we went down to Lees Ferry. It was beautiful there--warm, sunny, quiet. We hiked up to the old ferry site and imagined crossing the river 80 years ago. During the afternoon we drove to Sedona. What can be said? Sedona has its good points, but is, um, busier than what we are used to in southern Utah. It was, however, great to see the folks, along with Art and Judy. The next day we drove back to Page. It was a beautiful evening in Page, and we spent another night. That was our second mistake. On Sunday morning it was snowing. It never stopped. Between Kanab and Escalante we were driving in the teeth of a blizzard. Much of Highway 12 was not plowed, and by the time we got to the Upper Valley we were surfing through eight inches of snow. It was a long day.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/LeesFerryAZ

Bryce Canyon, Utah

Valerie wanted to play in the snow on her birthday. So we went up to Bryce Canyon on Thursday afternoon and stayed at Ruby's Inn. The snowpack was thin, hard, and crusty. Not much good for play. But, we went for a nice walk as the sun set. The next morning we went for a hike in Red Canyon, on the Dixie. Again, the snow was crusty, but the hiking was good. Until, as the sun got warmer . . . there was enough soft snow for a little play.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/BryceCanyonUT

Cathedral Valley, Utah

I wanted to see the east side of Capitol Reef. We went down the Burr Trail from Boulder until we got to the Notom-Bullfrog Road. We went north from there with the reef on one side and Tarantula Mesa on the other. When we got to Notom, we went East. The sun was low in the sky and the lighting of South Caineville Mesa was spectacular. We had dinner at Blondies in Hanksville and spent the night in Caineville. In the morning we headed up Caineville Wash right at sunrise. Again, the low winter lighting was incredible. We got to Cathedral Valley by mid-morning. It was too cold--and the day was too short--to do much more than a drive-by. But we went up to Hartnet Junction and down the west side--across the Bentonite Hills and over the river ford near Notom.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/CathedralValleyUT

Forty Mile Spring, Utah

I spent the fall in California. But there was one week off at the end of October when went down Hole-in-the-Rock for a few days. We camped by Forty-Mile Spring. That gave us time to climb on Dancehall and Sooner Rocks. Plus, there was hot-chocolate and a campfire. The only disappointment was that the washboards just about destroyed the camper. (Low quality engineering.)

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/FortyMileSpringUT

Cortez, Colorado

Valerie was invited to an artist's reception at the Cortez Cultural Center as part of her Aspen Guard Station Artist-in-Residence Program. We went early and spent some time looking around. We drove out and stood on the monument marking the Four Corners. We played by La Plata Creek. We did a quick loop through the Valley of the Gods. We went down to Aztec and wandered through the Ruins. (We returned via Farmington, which was very unpleasant.) And, we spent a lot of time in the campground swimming pool. Finally, there was the reception--which was well attended after a nice write-up in the Cortez Journal.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/CortezCO

Blue Spruce, Utah

During August, we spent one day at Posey and one rainy night at Blue Spruce Campground. While we were there, we found the Jesus Aspen. We also played by the creek and wrestled around in camp. On the morning of the fifth, we went for a hike and discovered a forty inch Ponderosa Pine that had blown over a few days before. It was to become the major portion of our winter fuel for 2007/2008.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/BlueSpruceUT

Cuchara, CO

Pagosa, Alamosa, Cuchara, . . . Salida, Delta, Fuita. This was the grand tour of southern Colorado. We drove over Boulder Mountain, through Capitol Reef, into Hanksville, and across the river at Hite. We stopped for gas in Monticello, eyed Dove Creek, felt the rain in Pleasant View, and spent the night in Dolores. We passed Mancos, Durango, Bayfield, Pagosa Springs, South Fork, Del Norte, Monte Vista, Alamosa, Fort Garland, and La Veta. We spent three nights at a dude ranch in Cuchara. We slept in a cottage, rode the horses and hiked. Then we returned. Down to Walsenburg, up the freeway to Pueblo, west to Canon City, and along the Arkansas to Salida. Over Monarch Pass, through Gunnison, a two hour drive-through of the Black Canyon, and the night in Montrose. The next day we passed Delta and Grand Junction, stopped in Green River, and turned south to Hanksville, completing the loop. Then, back through Capitol Reef and over Boulder Mountain. Twelve hundred miles in six days.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/CucharaCO

Stump Springs, UT

It hadn't been too hot in Escalante, so we thought the temperature would be comfortable up in Stump Springs. It was. But, to our dismay, the gnats were out. We had dinner inside and went for a short hike. By the time the sun set, the bugs didn't seem so bad. After a very quiet night, we hiked for a couple of miles under Powell Point. The sun was pretty hot by late morning, so we packed up and went back to town for lunch.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/StumpSpringsUT

Circle Cliffs, UT

Five of us went down the Burr Trail headed for Lampstand Road. After a stop in Long Canyon, we spent a couple of hours driving around the Flats lookin for a place to camp. It was hot, and most of the roads were washed out several miles in. After a few camper backing lessons, we found a shady place near on old mine on the northwest edge of the Flats. The next morning--and without the camper--we bounced our way over a break in the cliffs and down into the Gulch. When we reached a deep washout, we parked the truck and hiked to Stair Canyon. It was getting hot by then, so we sat in the shade of a juniper tree to have lunch. The afternoon was spent, likewise, in the shade--mostly napping. On the third morning, we set out to drive a loop around the Onion Beds on the east side of the Flats. The roads were not good, and we found no onions, but the views down into Muley Twist Canyon from the western edge of Captitol Reef National Park were well worth the effort. By the time we got back to our camp, the winds had picked up and a few sprinkles were reaching us out of the virga hanging from the clouds above. It was still cloudy the next morning and the clouds kept us cool as we cleaned-up. We stopped for one more short hike where the Burr Trail crosses the Gulch before returning to Escalante.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/CircleCliffsUT

Horse Canyon, UT

We spent just one day in Horse Canyon--a cold, rainy day in April. In some ways Horse Canyon is no different from any of the others that surround it. It has the same low, broken, buttery walls; the same pinyon and juniper shrubs; the occaisonal ponderosa or douglas fir; a dry, sandy, somewhat-cobbly wash; and a few crusty cow pies. But, upon closer inspection, there are a number of interesting things to see. We found a Moqui grainery, a layer of sandstone full of ancient leaf and log imprints, and a camel shaped rock to sit on.

http://picasaweb.google.com/aorlemann/HorseCanyonUT