milton's seventh adoptiversary!

 We interrupt the vacation recap posts for a very important announcement: on this day seven years ago, we adopted Milton!  Seven years on, we are all quite a bit grayer, but Milt is still sweet and polite and needy.  He's a weirdo, for sure: scared of the fridge; favorite people foods are roasted butternut squash and peanut butter pretzels; doesn't like to snuggle but loves a bellyrub or a butt rub; hates having his picture taken (unless it's by his girlfriend KW); has convinced two of our dogless neighbors to keep dog jerky treats in their garages for him; loves to meet people and dogs on our walks.  Because of him, we are better friends with our closest neighbor (who tells his children and grandchildren, "Milt is my dog, he just lives next door") and we know way more people in our neighborhood than we would otherwise - one of them has dubbed him "the Mayor."  I know everyone says this about their dogs but Milton really is the best dog ever.

How it started

Cool guy

Our happy place (PC: KW)

Ears (PC: KW)

How it's going (PC: KW)

vacation middle (2)

We mostly have good weather in Moab, it being a desert and all.  But Wednesday was really the last good weather day of our vacation week.  And I think we did a pretty good job of taking advantage of it.

Gap as we made our way down

While H did a five mile trail run and an 24.3 mile road ride, A and M hiked down Grandstaff Canyon, from the Sandflats antenna to the Colorado River.  We've done this several times before, most recently just in July (the Squirrel Episode).  We may not do it again for a while.  In July, it wasn't too overgrown but this last time, the going was tough once we got down to the creek.  Numerous times we just couldn't press through - forcing our way through Russian thistle over the dog's head left me badly scratched - and we scrambled up high, along one of the benches for much more of the upper hike than we have in the past.  Milton is such a good hiker, really agile and good at finding the trail, but the prickly parts weren't fun for him either.

Art al fresco

We made it out and H picked us up, having packed lunch and beers for some post-hike picnicing at our spot above the bike path/river.  That afternoon, after getting cleaned up, we walked to the in-town ball fields to meet our friends C and F and watch their four year old son play soccer.  That kid is far better than anyone else on his team and scored like eight times in a fifteen minute game.  After that, we strolled back to their house for a yard beer, and when it was time for their son's dinner, bid them farewell and strolled over to Woody's for a bar beer.

From whence we came

Thursday brought some rain.  We tried to time it for activities and did pretty well, all things considered.  A and M did a 2.2 mile town walk while H did a 4 mile trail run.  After a late morning grocery run (A had to shelter under a tree for a few minutes on the walk back), the weather cleared up.  H and A got their bike ride in and, more than that, rode all the way up "the hill" on the bike path (28.4 miles, 2:19 time because I'm slow), going up past the entrance to Arches National Park, all the way to the first kiosk at the Moab Brand MTB trails.  Having gotten my bike in for service pre-vacation certainly helped with the shifting and braking - I still much, much prefer riding up hills than down them.

Appreciate that sky

vacation middle (1)

 Monday was another beautiful, clear, temperate day, and we three did a family hike at Amasa Back.  I love this hike: going up Hymasa to the Colorado River overlook, then returning via the jeep road.  It's an acceptable length (just under six miles), never too steep, with some of my favorite scenery in Moab and the potential for entertainment (watching off-road vehicles navigating the obstacles).  Plus the trailhead parking lot is ideal for post-hike beers, with all types of outsdoory-types (MTBers, hikers, trailrunners, off-roader, vanlifers, etc.) to talk to.

Heading down from the overlook

Later that day, H did a solo 24 mile road ride on the bike path; then we took Milton to the vet to get a bump on his leg looked at (lipoma); then we three went to Spitfire to bask in the sun whilst drinking beers on their dog-friendly patio.  We'd all earned it.  And we even had a backyard firepit that night, once the stars came out, after dinner at home.

Yay hiking!

Tuesday we felt quite virtuous, actually.  A and M did a 4.2 mile town walk, sticking to their every-other-day-off-leash routine, while H did a four mile trail run.  Then we humans did a 25 mile road ride - a little further up the bike path than A usually does.  For lunch, we packed a cooler and went to "our" picnic spot above the bike path/Colorado River.  And then the afternoon and evening were spent at home, working through our library books and catching up with our neighbor.

Yay beers!

vacation beginning

 Since we got our little Moab place, we really don't go anywhere but there anymore.  It's got all we need for vacation: easy access to the outdoors for hiking and biking; easy access to town for walking to beers, food, shopping and friends; world-class landscapes; great high desert environment; dog-friendly.  Every now and again when I hear of a trip friends took, I get a momentary pang and think, "Ooh, that sounds nice."  And then I remember that we can go to Moab whenever we want and I appreciate our privilege.

So for our fall vacation - we do a week's vacation in the spring, after ski season ends, and then again in the fall, before ski season starts - we went to Moab.  We drove down Friday late afternoon, noting the increase in traffic on I-15, both for the weekend and for the temperate season.  It took us a wee dite longer than it does when we go down Thursday afternoons, so we stayed in and cracked beers at home rather than venturing out.

Moody skies Saturday morning

On Saturday, we hit the Pipe Dream trail: A and the dog doing a six mile hike and H doing an eight mile trail run.  Later in the day, H ventured out for a quick 16.5 mile road ride.  We got lucky with the weather, at least in the first half of the week, as it was mostly clear and lovely, with highs not getting out of the 70s.  That evening we met up with our friends C and F who had scored a babysittter: we swung by a block party hosted by a local realtor, then moved on over to Dewey's for beers and noshes.  And then that night, we were delighted to discover that our neighbor A had returned home from her summer commercial fishing in Alaska.  (Milton was pretty excited to see her dog Moscow.)

Brand new bar tape on the ol' Cannondale

Sunday was another beautiful day.  A and M did a 3.3 mile town walk (trying to alternate off-leash and on-leash days for Milton so he doesn't exhaust himself).  Then H and A did a 24.2 mile road ride on the Moab bike path.  For a change, it wasn't windy!

So rad

The afternoon saw us three having a picnic up at the Slickrock trailhead parking lot - where H and M did some long-boarding - then a quick stop by Woody's for the humans and a backyard firepit after dinner at home.

hiatus

Unintentional hiatus here due to vacation and post-vacation laundry.  New posts resuming shortly - promise! 

csa summer: fourteenth and fifteenth boxes

 The end of the farm boxes for 2025.  We were going to be out of town for box #15 so instead I requested a box of apples to be picked up with box #14.  The apples were huge!  Like, grapefruit-sized apples.  Last year, when we got a box of apples, I was able to peel/core them using my peeler/corer and then cook them all down into apple pie filling.  This year, at least half the apples were WAY too big for that peeler/corer.

So I did the apple pie filling with the smaller ones; and for the big ones, I made orange-cinnamon apple butter in the slow cooker and also unsweetened applesauce on the stovetop.  Jeesh.  Apple stress.  At least they keep a good long while when airtight in plastic bags in the fridge.  (Huge thanks to Freeze Fresh for the storage and recipes - that book is invaluable during CSA season.)

Seriously look at those apples

For the regular produce box, we got a couple of peaches (past their prime) and plums, tomatoes, green beans, onions, pears, green peppers, potatoes and a couple of squashes (acorn and a giant spaghetti).  The tomatoes were chopped for cream cheese bagel toppings; the potatoes roasted; the peppers and onions sauteed for vegan grilled sausage toppings; and the squashes will, of course, be roasted and mashed for that weirdo Milton.

remote

 Sometimes we go to Moab and H has to work.  That's what happened the last weekend we went down.  We'd planned to go Thursday, taking Friday off, but deadlines didn't allow it and we drove down Friday afternoon instead.  (When H let the people he was dealing with know that he would be unavailable for four hours that afternoon/evening, they were all, are you kidding?  Like it is inconceivable to city folks that there are place where you can't be online - like whilst driving through Price Canyon and the desert, for example).  

Hot dog

So H was pretty much tied to his computer all weekend.  He was able to get out for a trail run Saturday and Sunday, and I dragged him off for a Woody's beer Saturday late afternoon, but other than that, he didn't get to have much fun.  

Milton and I managed to enjoy ourselves a bit more.  Saturday we went out for a Pipe Dream/Pipeline trail loop.  We didn't leave until 8:30 a.m., however, and it ended up being a little too warm for M with the strong sunshine (6 miles).  On Sunday, we went to Millcreek a bit earlier.  There were lots of nice dogs to meet and Milton got snacks from three different people.  He also played chase with another dog towards the end of the hike and very much overdid it.  We just hung out at home for the rest of the day, reading, and it was very pleasant in the shade.  

Rabbitbrush (?)

Since we hadn't gotten to take Friday off, we took Monday instead.  Sort of.  While H worked, Milton and I did a three+ mile town walk to give him some space.  And as soon as we got back to SLC Monday afternoon, H got back on the phone/computer.  Oh well.  Sometimes it happens, and it hasn't happened much recently, so we're grateful for that.

taking the low road

 The next time I got up to Alta for my "exercise loop," I did exactly what I did when I went to Cecret Lake.  Except I took the low road and didn't go to Cecret Lake, which was preferable all the way around.  As before, I parked above Albion Base and walked up the Summer Road until I could access Albion Meadows.  From there, I went up through the Sunnyside beginner area to the Catherine's Pass trailhead, then continued up to Catherine's Pass.  The morning was lovely and cool and there seemed to be slightly fewer people on the trail than the time before.

Heading towards the Apron

From the pass, I continued up to the trail junction for Sunset Peak and turned right to go to the top of Supreme.  In the week that had passed, they had gotten all the new lift towers installed, so that's progress, I guess.   I continued down the cat track/access road and again turned off on the trail that headed in towards Devil's Castle.  When I got in under the Apron, I got scolded by, and then was lucky enough to see, two busy pikas, scurrying about gathering grasses and other vegetation for the winter.  

Devil's Castle view

After I crossed that section, I kept to the right for the low road, where I'd seen some MTBers the last time.  This section of trail is pretty and shady and I had it all to myself.  Even though it looks so different this time of year, not covered in twenty-plus feet of snow, I eventually recognized where I was from having skied in there with H in years prior.  The trail brought me out well below the climb to Cecret Lake and although I did start to encounter people at this point, it wasn't nearly as many as the time before.

The low road

Now, having done both the high road and the low road (eight miles total hike), I can confidently say that in this case, I prefer the low road (contrary to Alta's unofficial motto - for traversing and etc. - to "get high and stay high).  

sixteen years

Happy moveiversary to us: we moved to Utah SIXTEEN YEARS AGO!!!  On every moveiversary, I like to do a year-end summary post; like last year and the year before, this year has also seemed a little diminished.  H again preferred to focus on his trail running, so we hardly did any hiking together.  I didn't get a ski pass this year and, to be honest, didn't miss it all that much.  We are very lucky people, we know this.  And despite getting older and set in our ways, we are lucky to be able to continue to be as active as we are.  Here's what this past year - we count our "years" from October through September, given when we arrived in Utah - looked like.

October - We always start our "year" with a vacation week (ten days, really) in Moab, with hiking and MTBing and H's really successful trail marathon, plus a coyote sighting on Pipe Dream, hanging with our neighbor and cheering on the Moab 240; bought a new washing machine.

November - First snowflakes in Moab and SLC; A doesn't get a ski pass but H does get to sublet the ski locker again; new bar (to us): The Midway; A starts baking in earnest; Thanksgiving in Moab; Alta opens with a 21" base.

December - Friendsgiving with E and K; the ski bus starts; skiing for H (cold and not much snow); A's college friend and her family are in town; Christmas in Moab (porcupine tracks in Mill Canyon).

January - H takes the week between Christmas and New Year's off to ski (crazy long lines); A makes a vegan Wellington for NYE dinner; snow; coyote sighting in Dimple Dell; H has a 3.5+ hour ski bus ride home one stormy ski day; MLK Jr. long weekend in Moab (hiking and it's cold).Fe

February - Skiing and long lift lines; A gets a new library card; M enjoys going to work with H; President's Day weekend in Moab (6.5 hours and hellish driving to get there); Alta finally gets some snow; skiing.

March - A goes to Maine for a week and H and M go to Moab, missing her terribly; we do our first Sandy garage tailgate (and get chilled); turning to spring in Moab; storms at Alta; skiing.

April - Days of unhealthy air in SLC; successful foccacia baking (!); spring skiing; Easter Jeep Safari in Moab; trees in bloom in SLC; wildflowers beginning in Moab; Utah Royals game; Alta closing weekend and 534 season inches at closing.

May - Traditional spring break week in Moab (flowers, hiking, cycling, seeing N and L when they're in town for a wedding, Moonflower Co-op and renew Sand Flats annual pass); backcountry/snowshoing day at Alta; Memorial Day weekend in Moab (cookout with C and F); Dimple Dell walks for A and H; H trail-runs and cycles.

June - Yardwork begins (overdue); Pride party at E and K's; Dimple Dell walks; starting to get hot; we make our hike list hahahaha; Juneteenth in Moab (M catches a ground squirrel); H trail-runs/cycles.

July - A hikes at Alta and Snowbird; CSA starts; July 4 holiday in Moab (hiking - including return to Gold Knob - and cycling, cooler than normal); H trail-runs/cycles; Pioneer Day holiday weekend in Moab (wildfires, bowling alley beers, cookout with C and F).

August - A goes to Maine for a week and H and M go to Moab, missing her terribly; Dimple Dell walks with M; A and H get summer colds; wildflowers in the Wasatch; A hikes at Alta (including ridge run); H trail-runs/cycles.

September - Labor Day weekend in Moab (hiking, cycling, yard work); A finds new trails to hike at Alta; backyard hangout with E and K; more time in Moab; Dimple Dell walks with M; A bakes strawberry jam bars; H trail-runs/cycles.

And now, October 3rd, happy new year!