csa summer 2023: week 8

 Our eighth CSA haul was basically summer in a box: mini-watermelon, corn on the cob, green and yellow beans, two cartons of blackberries, tomatillos, tomatoes, jalapenos, garlic, green peppers and Anaheim (?) peppers.  As always, the corn and beans got eaten the first night, and the incredibly sweet blackberries were devoured the next day.  The watermelon wasn't quite as good as previous ones so I cut it up and froze it for smoothies and margaritas; the tomatillos, garlic and spicy peppers were roasted and made into a chile verde; and the green peppers, jalapenos and previous box's cabbage made Korean veggie pancakes.  The tomatoes, well, they were just peak summertime lunches with olive oil and a little sea salt.

a humid millcreek hike

Both Milton and I were itching for a hike and we were able to talk H into joining us in Millcreek Canyon (SLC) on off-leash Sunday.  It had rained overnight and the skies were still a little overcast as we left the house just before 7 a.m.  As we drove up the canyon, it seemed busy already: there were lots of cars already parked at various trailheads.  But as we didn't encounter all that many people - just eleven dogs during the whole hike - maybe everyone up there drove themselves and didn't carpool.  We were the first to park in the large lot between the Terraces trailhead and the Burch Hollow trailhead and we walked down the road to hop on the Pipeline trail.  With all the recent rain the creek looked healthy but the trails were dry with no mud.

Mountain mahogany very frilly right now

We ground our way up the switchbacks to where the Pipeline trail levels out, and then cruised up to Elbow Fork, stepping off the trail now and again to let trail runners pass.  Temperatures were very pleasant and still almost cool, but it was quite humid for a day where it wasn't actually raining.  At Elbow Fork, we crossed the canyon road and crossed the creek for the Terraces trail.  This trail, shady but steep in parts, doesn't get nearly the traffic that some of the others do in Millcreek, which was evident by how overgrown some sections were - could have used a machete a couple of times.  

By the end of it, my ankle was a little sore from the sidehill portions, but generally that loop has good footing - mostly level and good dirt underfoot, not too loose or chunky.  It's also nice to be able to make a loop, which is always better than an out-and-back.

Hike stats: 6.33 miles; moving 2:11 hours / 2,9 m.p.h. and overall 2:24 / 2.6; 1,410 feet of elevation

Here's an old map from a 2016 hike of this loop

csa summer 2023: weeks 6 and 7

The week that we should have gotten our sixth CSA box, I went back east for a family visit and Milton and H went down to Moab.  So I paused our pick-up and opted for a double box the following week, knowing how good the local produce is right now.  H didn't miss out entirely on the local produce situation, however, as he found a surprise zucchini at our front door.  The note reads: "Hello Neighbor! Today is YGP's favorite holiday: National Sneak a Zucchini on Your Neighbor's Porch Day! We hope you like summer squash.  In community, your neighbors at the Youth Garden Project."

When we got back and picked up our two CSA boxes, each box came with a big watermelon.  That's a lot of watermelon!  We also got double rations of a different melon (Krenshaw, maybe?), gorgeously perfumed donut peaches, regular peaches, beets (sigh), tomatoes, banana peppers, regular cucumbers, lemon cucumbers, green cabbages (that's a lot of cabbage!), eggplants, blackberries and corn.  As always, we ate the corn on the first night; bananas and leftover red cabbage went into a tofu scramble; I put my box of blackberries into oatmeal; tomatoes and cucumbers were sliced for lunches; I prepped miso-glazed eggplant for work lunches; put green cabbage in spicy gochujang noodles and also vegan cabbage rolls (which were frozen for future consumption).  The peaches ripened very quickly so some got frozen and some got put in smoothies.  And the melons were all quite good, eaten fresh and also put into frozen margaritas.

csa summer 2023: week 5

 Ooh, we're getting to the good stuff now!  Summer produce is in full effect and the boxes are bomb: for our fifth box, we got green beans, corn, cantaloupe, blackberries (huge!), apricots, red cabbage, green peppers, tomatoes, beets (sigh) and summer squash (sigh again).  

We had corn on the cob, green beans and the tomatoes that first night; shredded the summer squash for freezing and later use; and froze the apricots.  The beets will be pickled later.  H ate his half of the blackberries fresh but I put mine in my oatmeal.

better but still behind

 A couple of weeks after I did my Alta hike, I did a Snowbird hike to see how the wildflowers were progressing.  I got up there for a 7 a.m. start, and got a really good parking spot.  It was about ten degrees warmer than it had been for the Alta hike - less good for those wanting it chilly, but easier for me to eat my trail bagel when I could still feel my fingers.

Gentian

Flax (maybe)

The route was up the Peruvian Gulch trail, to the Cirque trail, and then back down a combination of the Peruvian Gulch trail and access road.  I have to admit that I don't love this route.  It is very steep and the portions along the road can be loose.  With my ankle still not back to normal, I am extra-cautious and don't want to slide and twist it again.  I did want to see those flowers though.

Hillside of lupines

False hellebore (maybe)

Long story short: the flowers are much further along than they were for the wildflower festival but they are still behind where they should be.  I saw sunflowers, lupine, paintbrush, geraniums, gentians (just starting to bloom), flax, sulfur buckwheat, horsemint, fireweed, bluebells, clover-headed mint or scorpionweed, wild roses, anemones, columbine and coneflowers (not blooming yet).  No elephantheads, though, as the spot they are usually found was just barely uncovered by snow.

Sulfur buckwheat

At least eight varieties here

Critter-wise, I saw lots of marmots, potguts and birds and heard, but did not see, pikas.  I got passed by a trailrunner on the Cirque ridge on the way up.  On my way down, I counted thirty hikers and one avalanche puppy slogging their way up the trail.  And I was rather dismayed to have to swat a bunch of mosquitoes before the sun cleared the mountains.

Gad Valley/Twin Peaks

Snow bridge

While it had been pleasant and breezy at first, chilly on the ridge even, the sun was getting stronger and the clouds had cleared by the time I got back to the car.  Things were heating up quickly in the valley - H texted me to say that the A/C had come on for the first time at 10:30 a.m. - and a steady stream of cars was turning into the Bird's lots as city folks attempted to escape the heat.  The way the snow was clinging to the shady gullies, they'd come to the right place.  

stay hydrated

Like everywhere else on the planet these days, Utah is stupid hot.  The last time we were down in Moab, it topped out at 108F and didn't really cool off at night.  We went from air-conditioned car to air-conditioned house to air-conditioned bar ... you get the idea.  That sort of heat is dangerous to be out in: you need to take precautions to protect yourself from the sun and make sure you stay hydrated.  And if you want to be out on the trail, you gotta go early to capture the coolest part of the day.

Sunny at the start (and the finish,

since this is an out-and-back)

It was a state-holiday long weekend (Pioneer Day or, if you aren't Mormon, Pie-and-Beer Day) but even so, with the heat Moab was not that busy.  H reassured me of this as we drove out to a Castle Valley-adjacent hike Saturday morning: he had gone for a road ride first and I was fretting that the trailhead parking lot would be too full by the time we got there.  He was right.  There were only two other cars in the lot when we got there.  No need to fret this time.

Heading into the canyon

Our starting time was around 8 a.m., which normally would be kind of a late start in this heat.  But we were hiking in a narrow canyon, with our feet in the creek the whole way, so it never actually got hot until the last half hour or so.  We each had two liters of water in our hydration packs, plus I was carrying an extra liter or so - not for Milton, who had the lovely creek to drink from, but in case we ran into any ill-prepared hikers.  It happens.

Nice and shady

We met one guy on our way in: first we met his dog, who looked confused, and then fifteen minutes later we met the guy who was heading back down the canyon, muttering, "I don't know how we got separated when there's only one way in and out."  He had a point.  (When we finished the hike, he wasn't still there so we assume he found his lost dog and left.)

Goal attained

There was not as much water in the creek as there has been on previous hikes but there was still a healthy flow.  I was slow, picking my way over the rocks and utilizing my hiking poles, while H and Milton were ahead of me, pausing now and then to make sure I was still coming.  Milton loved running and splashing in the water, and seemed to enjoy jumping the whole thing when he thought it looked deep.  (It was only ever knee-deep at most.)  He did not enjoy the waterfall itself - too loud and splashy.

"No thank you"

The way out was uneventful as we simply retraced our steps.  We did notice a stretch of canyon wall decorated with muddy handprints; this is the kind of art-in-nature that I can appreciate, as it will simply wash away without a trace after the next flash flood.

Art

We met fewer than ten hikers on their way in, and a couple of dogs.  Milton was too tired to do more than say a cursory hello, however, and after we downed our Gatorades and beers, we got out of there.  It was nearly 11 a.m. and things were starting to heat up in earnest.  Hike stats: 8.24 miles; moving 2:44 time/3.0 m.p.h. speed; overall 2:56/2.8; 570' elevation.

Post-swim

Monday, Milton and I were on our own for another water-friendly hike, while H did a longer road ride.  We went back to Millcreek and did our loop: out along the rim, while the sun came up over the mountains, down into the canyon and up the creek to a much easier crossing, back down canyon on the shady side past the cowboy jacuzzis and out.  It was moderately busy for how early it was, mostly with dog-walkers, looking to avoid the heat.

Water levels dropping

The five creek crossings were much, much easier than last time.  The creeks have come down a lot and were barely more than ankle-deep at the crossings.  Last time, it was knee-deep and moving quickly enough that Milton got concerned about the current.  Not so much now but still plenty of water to keep cool and hydrated, an oasis in the desert.

P.S.  On Sunday, we got back on our MTBs and did a great morning ride at Moab Brand Trails (without the dog).  We road nearly thirteen miles and were out for about an hour and twenty minutes.  There were hardly any people there but, strangely, quite a few very annoying gnats.  We haven't been MTBing that much this summer (see above re: hot) and it felt good to get back on the bikes.

csa summer 2023: week 4

 This was a big one!  We got lots and lots (and lots) of kale, cauliflower, one summer squash and one apricot, cherries, blackberries, two ears of corn, huge purple carrots, big scallions and a mini watermelon.  Like the broccoli last week, the cauliflower is a first-time CSA offering; unlike the broccoli, it's not a huge favorite of ours and we had to cast about a bit to figure out what to do with it - without turning on the oven, since it's been high 90s/low 100s for days.

The corn we had the first night, of course: it was pretty good but not the best we've had.  The kale and scallions went into a tofu scramble (we love a good tofu scramble).  H ate his half of the blackberries fresh while I put mine in my oatmeal.  I chopped up the carrots and sauteed them with onions, then portioned them out and froze them for future soup starters.  After some searching, I found a recipe for vegan escabeche - spicy pickled cauliflower.  

And since the watermelon was a tad overripe and mealy, we obviously made it into watermelon margaritas: watermelon, lime juice and tequila in a blender.  Couldn't have been easier and very watermelon-y! 

csa summer 2023: week 3

 Our third CSA box was quite good: Swiss chard, broccoli, cantaloupe, cherries, small onions, apricots, zucchini (of course), beets (golden and regular) and carrots.  Swiss chard is a new favorite of ours, after we got some that was incredible at the Moab farmers' market a few weeks ago.  And broccoli is probably our favorite vegetable: the farm stand said that for some reason, this spring was particularly good for broccoli - they've never been able to offer it as a CSA item before.

We put all the chard into a tofu scramble, with black beans, scallions and jalapenos.  A curry encompassed lots of veggies: with broccoli, carrots, zucchini and onions.  I quick-pickled the beets since the first batch turned out so well,  The melon and cherries just got eaten and I put the apricots in morning oatmeal.

snow going

 In my previous post, I mentioned that the wildflowers are behind schedule due to all the snow (903 inches, in case you forgot).  That huge snowpack melted fairly quickly this spring but there is still a decent amount up at Alta, depending on the aspect: anything north- or east-facing is holding onto it.  When I went up there July 15, I opted not to do my favorite Catherine's Pass/Catherine's Area loop because I had a feeling that there'd still be a lot of snow.  Instead, I did the back-to-front loop ... where I still encountered more snow than I thought I would.

The entry to Gunsight looks a little rough

I parked above Albion base, getting up there before 7 a.m.  It was 50 F, super refreshing and cold enough to make my fingers numb.  I walked up the Summer Road, munching my bagel, and took the connector to the Albion Meadows trail.  This gave me a clear view of Gunsight and, if you can scramble down through the entry, I'm pretty sure it's still skiable, at least for four or five turns.

Very cold and flowing fast

At Alf's, I turned right and continued up the service road to Germania Pass.  I passed one guy but otherwise had this uphill stretch to myself, if you don't count the marmots and pikas who took turns yelling at me.  The runoff creeks were flowing enthusiastically and the trail got wetter the higher I went, as the snow banks melted in the strong sun.

Two hikers/skiers heading to Baldy on the EBT

As I approached the Collins saddle between Collins Gulch and the backside, I saw two hikers on the EBT, skis strapped to their packs, en route to climb Baldy for a run at the Main Chute.  I sort of wished I had my skis myself (not really) as I started down.  Up this high (around 10,000 feet), the snow was deep enough that I had to scramble up on top of the banks.  It wasn't too slippery but it was firm and any place that the morning sun hadn't yet gotten to had frozen up overnight.  

The Ballroom

Main Chute.  Bring your rock skis

Conscious of my weak ankle, I picked my way down through the Ballroom.  There I saw three more hiker/skiers: two on their way up and one who was just finishing a Main Chute run.  There were a few more snow banks for me to navigate but once I got to the top of the Strawberry run above Watson Shelter, it had all melted.  From there it was just steep, loose service roads down to the base areas where my beer was waiting for me.

Some wicked green