riding the intrepid trails

With Milton giving us a reproachful look, we headed off to Dead Horse Point State Park for a Monday morning MTB ride.  Again, when we arrived, there were only one or two other cars in the main lot; and although the place was noticeably busier by the time we finished up, we had only seen four other riders out on the trails - can't complain about that!

The sky! The view!

We did our usual route: starting on the east side trails and doing the big loop, then taking Crossroads across to the newer trails on the west side and doing the Whiptail/Twisted Tree lollipop.  H felt good and rode Twisted Tree better than he ever has, while I, in a moment of not paying attention to what I was doing, fell over while getting onto my MTB.  I landed square on my right buttcheek and the bigger bruise was to my ego.

Not currently tipping over

After riding, we (as usual) spent some time in the parking lot with our sandwiches and beers.  We talked for quite a while with photographer Howie Garber, after we gave him some ice to supplement his cooler.  We were back into chill mode for the afternoon: getting on a video call with H's family for his mom's 80th birthday; and then strolling into town for a quick beer at Woody's.  The town may be opening up but early on a Monday, there were still just a handful of people there.

Ride stats: 16.48 miles; 1:49; 9.0 m.p.h. avg. speed / 18.4 H's max speed

hellroaring rim trail

Sunday: time for a hike with Milton!  We loaded up and left before 8 a.m., driving north of town and out a ways on 313 to the Jewel Tibbetts Arch trailhead.  It's gotten a nice sign and designated parking lot by the highway since we first did it back in 2015, so it was much easier to find.  (If you cross the cattle guard, you've gone too far.)  We had a plan to make a loop out of it: park by 313 and walk in to the arch and then continue on 4x4 trails not quite as far as Horsethief Campground, taking an access road out and returning along 313. 

Boys on the canyon rim

As we walked in the dirt road, Milton was in his element, bounding through the sagebrush.  He managed to flush out a jackrabbit but lost it when the rabbit went through a fence but he ran into the fence.  Lucky rabbit.  And lucky us because we didn't want him to catch it.

Cairn marks the spot

Even walking the road in, the loop to the arch viewpoint is not long.  It's easy walking, through sandy sagebrush fields and over rocky ledges.  The arch is cool but difficult to see: it's on a fin but the fin is in front of the far canyon wall, so the arch blends into the scenery.  Hellroaring Canyon is pretty dramatic; I'd love to find a way down into it.

Jewel Tibbetts Arch

From there, we continued southwest-ish along the Hellroaring Rim ("HRR") 4x4 trail.  This double-track climbs slightly past the head of Hellroaring Canyon, up to Horsethief.  It was getting warmer, so we had put Milton's white t-shirt on him (at this point, it was somewhat less than white) and stopped every half hour to give him water. 

Hellroaring Canyon

Somewhere along the way, there was a dirt road turn-off, leading back out to 313, that would have cut a couple of miles off our total.  But we missed it and we surprised to find ourselves at the Horsethief MTB area.  We checked out the trail map, noted a possibility for later in the week, and hied ourselves back to the truck on the shoulder of 313.  If we had taken the turn-off, we still would have had a mile to go back on the highway; since we missed it, we doubled it. 

Everyone gets apres

Milton was wiped out when we finished, both from romping around the desert off-leash as well as towing H - on-leash - for the two miles back to the truck.  We then drove down to the Navajo Rocks parking lot for lunch and beers.  It was hot so we didn't linger too long, however.  It is possible that there was napping back home later (not much later) that afternoon.

Hike stats:  8.87 miles; moving time 2:43 / speed 3.3 m.p.h.; overall 3:17 / 2.7 m.p.h; 860' of climbing

getting into the swing of things

We actually made a plan for this year's May vacation, planning out what we would do each day ahead of time, instead of flailing around each morning, trying to figure out where we wanted to go.  Since it's starting to get hot in Moab, it made sense to have a plan so we could get up and get going each morning - we even got our stuff ready the night before on occasion, which really streamlined things.  Plus, we set out to alternately hike and MTB - including hikes that Milton could do - as well as leaving room for siestas, afternoon beers and general chilling-out.  After March and April, I was looking forward to some time to chill.

As we like to do, we started our week with a Saturday morning MTB session at MOAB Brand Trails.  Utah, not so hard hit by the pandemic as other parts of the country, is starting to open up (although not the Moab-area national parks or public camping yet) and we were interested to see how busy things got as the week went on.  We got out of the house at 8:30 a.m. and there were about fifteen other vehicles at the parking lot; there would be 30+ by the time we finished. 

Riding the line (sort of) on the Circle O trail

After H rescued a couple of pretty girls with a flat tire (I noticed the full-face helmets; he noticed the short shorts), we did the first part of Lazy EZ to Rusty Spur, to the back half of Lazy EZ, to the parking lot cut-off, reversing on Bar M to Circle O, then finishing out on Bar M to the Copper Ridge [jeep] Road.  Even with the increasing crowds, we really didn't see many folks out on the trails. 

It was getting hot by the time we finished, but not too hot for parking lot beers, of course.  The rest of the afternoon was spent back at home with Milton, chilling out.  That's how I like to start my vacation.

Ride stats:  13.21 miles; 1:45 hours; 7.5 m.p.h. (average) and 23.8 m.p.h. (H's top speed)

post dump imminent

We just got back (yesterday) from ten days in the desert.  After a later than expected start two Fridays ago, we got to Moab around 10 p.m., and then proceeded to hike or MTB each day.  It was wonderful and I promise I'm going to tell you all about it, starting tomorrow.

This was the sky all week

happy valley

We did go back to Park City on Sunday, this time for a little MTB session at Round Valley.  The trails are open but the Quinn's Trailhead restrooms are closed (so plan ahead).  Although the parking lot was medium busy by the time we got there, we didn't see all that many MTBers - I suspect a lot of those folks were dog-walkers.

Bottom of Rusty Shovel

As soon as we started, I was reminded (as I am every year) that it is better for my legs to MTB on Saturday and hike on Sunday; I can hike fatigued but struggle a bit to MTB that way.  Still, the air was cool, the sun was mostly out, the trails were dry so no complaining!  We did our usual start from the parking lot, then did a PorcUclimb/Down Dog loop, then down the Hammerhead hill (that's our name for the feature) to the back side so we could climb up the sagebrush switchbacks of Rambler.  We did another PorcUClimb climb (I love that trail) and, after crossing the ridge, we descended via Rusty Shovel.

When we were done, we met up with our friend Ted (with appropriately socially distant fist-bumps and subsequent hand sanitizer).  He's recently gotten a place near Deer Valley so we had a beer with him on his sunny patio and caught up.  Great day for a short ride and a chat with an old friend.

Ride stats: 11.35 miles; time 1:20; average 8.5 m.p.h.

springtime comes to park city

It has been a minute since we were in northern Utah for a weekend.  The long lawn, weedy flower beds and dirty windows were evidence of such; the chores were definitely piling up and we thought maybe we wouldn't go to Moab.  Instead, we took Milton hiking in Park City!

Spring comes later at this elevation

Like Moab, Park City had a dramatic close-down in reaction to the virus.  And so, even as Utah is beginning to loosen restrictions, there are no tourists and few locals on the trails yet, especially if you go on the early side.  Since we were planning to MTB on Sunday, we decided to hike on some of the Wasatch Back trails.  This spring has been bone-dry and we were confident that the trails would be in good shape, even if we ran into snow at elevation.

Happy, happy boy

We parked in the PCMR lot with just a couple of other vehicles and walked up to the trailhead at the Silver Star.  We got on the Armstrong Trail, which is a multi-use trail (but uphill only for MTBs), and let Milton off-leash.  I have read differing information on whether dogs are allowed off-leash in this area or not but (1) it wasn't busy and (2) we met another couple hiking with their dog off-leash, so I'm not too conflicted about it.

For a desert dog, he sure likes the snow

Armstrong is a wonderful trail, one that we could walk forever.  It is wide singletrack and packed dirt (no rocks), which means that even though it climbs consistently, you never feel like you're working that hard.  We took it up the mountain to Dawn's Trail (hiking only), then kept going up on Spiro.  We did not get up as far as the Mid-Mountain trail because at this point, the trail was snow-covered, so when we crossed a ski trail, we came off Spiro and walked down the access road to reconnect with Dawn's.  The snow is compacting and melting and I only post-holed once.

Post-holing casualty

We stayed on Dawn's all the way back to the trailhead, meeting a handful more hikers and trail runners at this point.  Milton, who had run and run and run and run and run, was happy to lie in the sun back at the car while we had our quick sandwiches and beers.  A few more vehicles had turned up in the meantime, mostly with MTBers taking advantage of the dry trail conditions.

Hike stats:  7.64 miles; moving time 2:40 / speed 2.9 m.p.h; overall 3:19 / 2.3; 1,340' elevation

diverging paths

For Sunday, H wanted to MTB again but I wanted to hike so Milton could go too.  We all got what we wanted by going to MOAB Brand Trails.  H and I each knew what the other's route was going to be, and we decided that we'd just go out for two hours and meet back at the truck if we didn't see each other on the trail.  Milt and I left first, so he would stay with me and not chase after H.

H on the front side of Lazy EZ

Us hikers were doing this: out on Lazy EZ, then right onto Bar M, staying on Bar M past the Bar B and Rockin' A junction, then left onto the cut-off back to the outbound leg of Bar M and retracing our steps there back down the hill, then right onto the back half of Lazy EZ and back to the parking lot.

H's bike route was: out Lazy EZ, right on the cutoff to Rusty Spur, around Rusty Spur to Bar M, out onto Rockin' A, then Circle O, then reverse direction on Bar M to the above-mentioned cut-off back to the outbound leg of Bar M and then right onto the back half of Lazy EZ to finish.

Lizard huntin'

It all worked exactly as planned except that when H passed us on the front side of Lazy EZ, Milton took off after him and chased him down.  So H had to ride back to me and I had to keep Milt on a leash until H was far enough away.  Then, when we were on the outbound leg of Bar M, Milton was really ranging far afield.  I think he was looking for H, could sniff out that he'd ridden past.  To solve this, we went the reverse direction on the Bar M loop portion, getting off of H's trail.  Plus, the lizards had started to come out and Milton was mightily distracted by that.

By the time we reached the last leg - the wonderful swooping turns of downhill Lazy EZ - it was getting warm and I put Milton's white t-shirt on him to try to reflect some of the sun's rays.  We were also stopping for water every thirty minutes and he's smart enough to wait in the shade for me to catch up.

Sego lily, desert-style

H's ride was a success except that Rockin' A, which is the most technical of the trails in the planned route, took him a lot longer than he had planned.  (Milton and I got back to the truck about fifteen minutes before he did.)  It's a tough call: we want to ride the harder, more technical stuff so we get better at it, but it's not as much fun as the trails where we can just ride, and not fret about obstacles.

A shady spot

There were about twelve other vehicles in the parking lot when we finished, so we were able to do some people-watching while we changed our of our riding clothes and had our sandwiches and beers.  It will be interesting to see how quickly the trails get busy, as the state tries to slowly reopen.  For now, with just a handful of people out on the trails, it still really feels like it's our own private playground.

Ride stats: 13.51 miles; 7.1 m.p.h. average speed; 1:54 hours (no hike stats because H had the GPS)

slight return to normal

Utah has not been as hard hit by the COVID-19 virus as other places (thankfully).  On May 1st, the governor started easing some of the restrictions the state has been under, which meant that businesses could, if they wanted to, reopen under stringent protocols.  We had a feeling that Woody's would be open when we got down to Moab that afternoon and it was, so we went by for a beer and to check in on our favorite bartenders.  There were just a handful of people there, all locals, and everyone was all smiles.  We were all so happy to be talking to strangers!  In a bar!  H and I were very mindful, however, and only stayed for one pitcher, but it sure was nice to be there.

The black hat is his formal hat

Another thing that felt like we were inching back to normal was that we were able to go up and MTB at Dead Horse Point State Park on Saturday.  It was a spectacular day, bright and sunny and only getting up to the low 70s by the time we left, so it was perfect riding conditions.  Which made it all the more surreal when we were literally the only ones in the parking lot at 9 a.m.  Under normal conditions, at this time of year, there would have been 15+ other vehicles there.  But it was just us.  It was super-weird but also super-awesome.

H's bike enjoys the views

We did our regular loop up there: Intrepid to Great Pyramid to Big Chief, across Crossroads to Whiptail and Twisted Tree, back on Crossroads to Raven Roll and back to the start.  We saw four other riders when we were approaching Crossroads the first time; we saw another three on Crossroads when we had just finished Whiptail.  That was it.  It was great.

Looking good on the flats

H hadn't eaten much breakfast so he sort of bonked towards the end of the ride.  Despite that, he felt like he rode Whiptail as well as he ever has.  Still ran into that one tree he always runs into on Twisted Tree, though.  As for me, I felt pretty solid.  It helps that those trails are in good condition right now, plus not having to dodge other riders was a bonus.

I have a cowboy hat too

When we finished up, there were more vehicles in the parking lot but far fewer than there would have been in non-pandemic times: under normal conditions, the place would have been packed.  So things are most definitely not back to normal, but it did feel like we were edging closer to it.

Ride stats:  16.38 miles; 8.2 m.p.h. average speed; 2:00 hours

adding to our repertoire

Sunday was a little bit warmer but with some thin clouds in the morning, the sun wasn't so strong.  We loaded the MTBs back up and, after a little discussion, headed back to the MOAB Brand trails.  We had considered Navajo Rocks or Seven-Up but this entailed slightly less driving, plus we were both a little stiff and sore from the prior day's ride (embarrassing!).

Stunning claret cup cactus

There were even fewer cars in the parking lot when we got there, although there would be around ten vehicles when we finished our ride.  To switch things up a little bit, we did Lazy E-Z first.  We'd hiked the whole thing early in the year, and we'd ridden the front bit which follows the rocky ridge where it meets the field.  We both felt like we rode the front side pretty well.  The route then crosses over into the ridge and climbs through some very pretty scenery, gaining elevation quickly via switchbacks.  I was able to ride 95% of it, which tells you that it isn't particularly technical.

Looking like I know what I'm doing

The descent is super-fun, swooping down through the meadow on wide turns.  I don't know anything about building MTB trails but it's evident that whoever built Lazy E-Z knew what they were doing.  Then, to get our mileage in, we did a loop around Rusty Spur/Bar M afterwards, our legs and backs having loosened up during the first part of the ride.

All fixed

When we were done, we had sandwiches and beers on the tailgate, per usual.  It was awfully nice to get back on the MTBs - hooray for getting the truck fixed!

Ride stats:  13.88 miles; 1:33 time; 8.9 avg. m.p.h.