Stardate 2017.060

Sandstone Dreaming
What can I say? I grew up amongst the stuff. I miss it.

I can feel the rough grit of sandstone on my bare skin. I can feel the gritty, suspended sediment load in the runoff. I can smell the heady scent of wet sand, silt and clay. I can smell the earthy scent of rain and snow wetting the stone. The ultra-fragrant wet sage teases my senses. I can smell the hard-to-penetrate river-lining tamarisk. Fragrant cacti blooms catch my nose. I can feel the cool, wet wind retaining a hint of winter. The high desert spring taunts my soul...

Catching a bit of weather, four major towers from the Fisher Towers group are shown in the following pic. Left to right rise Kingfisher, Echo Tower, Cottontail and the Titan. In short, big leagues climbing on dangerous and difficult mudstones with a colorful climbing history. Look them up.


I've previously posted the following pics along the way in one form or another. Since the Moab mountain bike and hiking season begins a little over a month from now, I thought it all right to have a little tease post of one of my favorite regions. Let's start with the Onion Creek area of Professor Valley. I hope you enjoy the pics.




Amasa Back, Moab, Utah




Behind the Rocks, Moab, Utah




Princess Plume




Horsethief Bench, Loma, Colorado




Big drop onto Horsethief Bench from Mary's Loop, Loma, Colorado




Horsethief Bench, Colorado




Moab, Utah




Behind the Rocks, Utah




Dead Horse Point, Utah area and a sand-trap




Climbers on Ancient Art, Fisher Towers, Utah.




Sunrise on Castleton Tower (far left tower), Utah




Success on Ancient Art's summit




Arches National Park




I hope you enjoyed the show.

Adios

Stardate 2016.419

Prickly pear cacti (Opuntia)

My Secret Place

Surreal rock colors and formations




Difficult to access creek




Towers from left to right: Mongoose and Sari (yes, they are climbed)




Above a hidden canyon




One-lane road access and watch for flash floods




24 stream crossings




Hindu (yes, it is climbed)




Peak flows carrying today's mountain snowmelt won't arrive until wee morning hours




Poppymallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea)




Prickly pear about to blossom... big-time




Professor Valley




Thanks for reading!

Adios

Stardate 2015.030

2014 Favorites

Part 1

Snowcatcher and I had a very busy 2014. The next several posts will portray a handful of shots taken throughout 2014. I hope you enjoy the pics; I enjoyed living them!!



Wave and Wave II surfing in January


Moab + birthday = perfect!

June training on Vail Pass

Crested Butte mountain biking in July

July training in my backyard
Don't be blue, see you with Part 2!

Adios

Stardate 2014.860

Ancient Art

Our fourth day is a travel day. While driving through the Professor Valley, we turn onto the Fisher Towers Road for a short side trip up to the Towers.


Four prominent towers rise here. They are King Fisher, Echo, Cottontail and the Titan – the tallest. Yet, there exists myriad of climbs on non-distinct formations and connecting ridge lines. In the above photo, Ancient Art and King Fisher collect morning light.


We heard the Cobra formation had lost its head and was no more. Hiking in, we were saddened to see that rumors where true; the Cobra was dead. On the other hand, it's our lucky morning. Directly above us, a pair of climbers was ascending Ancient Art. The climbers were making their final moves onto the exotic corkscrew summit.


Success! Many climbers try to stand on the tiny summit. However, listening to the above climbers' conversation, it was too windy to safely stand.


We were hiking in and out of drainages, being showered in niceties such as sun-hit on Castleton Tower, and company (see upper left photo). Left to right: Castleton Tower, The Rectory (large butte), The Nuns and The Priest. The upper right towers in the photo are known as the Sister Superior Group (a.k.a. The Professor and Students).


King Fisher Tower


King Fisher and Ancient Art pose from another angle.


Dock Rock is one of the last to greet the day's sun. Our hike over, we ate a snack, pointed the 4-Runner toward Colorado and with a fair amount of sadness, drove home... sniffle, sniffle.

The Fisher Towers area is unique. I have numerous photos of the area, and I think I may save them for a winter post. The area can be haunting, it can be magical, it can be mystical and it can be miserably cold and wet. Up next, Argentine Pass, Colorado. Thanks for reading!

Adios

Stardate 2014.844

You Can't Beat a Dead Horse
Part I

Day Two of our trip finds us driving down a spectacular causeway of red and buff colored geologic time. Stopping at our usual camera stops, we get... photogenic.


A siren emanating from the Fisher Towers area is about as spellbinding as it gets. Four massive desert towers rise out of the desert; it's hard not to turn in for a visit. We decide, once again, to visit this enchanting place on our way home. As is, we're only 20-miles from Moab, Utah, and would like to get a ride in before sunset.


The tranquil, yet deceptive, Colorado River carries its load of sediment past us and through the east portal of the Moab Valley. Not long after entering Moab Valley, the river will exit the valley via the west portal. The river visits some remote, wild and wooly desert before being stopped in its flow by Lake Powell's slack water. We had rooms reserved in Moab for the next two nights. Hence, we don't worry about finding a camp-site. Off we go to Dead Horse Point State Park to ride the Intrepid Trail System. Neither Snowcatcher, nor myself, have ridden this collection of mountain bike singletrack.


I'm in heaven! I can't get enough of the canyon country, perpetual erosion at its finest.


Wingate Sandstone, of the Jurassic Period, erodes into massive, time-diseased cliffs.


Snowcatcher hones her off-road skills on the Great Pyramid Trail, part of the Intrepid Trail System. The riding feels similar to many mid-1980s trails. I reminisce about a Moab of years past, and how far mountain biking technology has come since its infancy. Bikes didn't have suspension, disk brakes or light weights when I started frequenting Moab.


The ancient, rounded fin formations of the Behind the Rocks area always draw my attention. The 12,000-foot summits of the La Sal Mountains, rising in the background, add contrast, especially in the spring when they still have a coating of white.


Sinuous, flowy, singletrack of the Whiptail Trail meanders through a pinion/pine forest ecosystem. I end the day riding myriad stone steps and drops along the Twisted Tree and Prickly Pair Trails back to the car. Prickly Pair has two somewhat parallel versions, hence the intentional non-cacti spelling.

With daylight winding down, Snowcatcher and I drove back to our hotel and checked in. After dinner, we slid into the outdoor hot tub, enjoying the cool autumn evening of the high desert.

There will be more sandstone in forthcoming posts. So, check back in a few days.

Adios