Jeep rigged for summer

The Jeep, set up for summer with boss visor.

 

Mineral Bottom Trip Report, Vol. 3

Enjoying being here now. 

The place was truly amazing, and it was fun to be there with each other, and our friends.

A Westy in its natural environ.

Hmmm. Is this place more "awesome", or more "epic"?

Here is the deal. I will spend a year learning to rock climb if someone will take me up on the plan to crawl into this alcove some evening, set up a pair of *sweet* speakers with the iPod, rope in, kick back, and listen to some arias while the sun sets over the cliff walls on the opposing bank.

...Or maybe Dark Side of the Moon, or both. Who's in?

Yaayy!

The towers upriver at sunset.

"Yonsson Point"

Mineral Bottom Trip Report, Vol. 2

The road heads north for roughly 3 miles from the boat launch until it intersects a side canyon. We followed it 2.3 miles upriver, and encountered one moderate obstacle before finding camp. Just after that point, there was a short wash and a boulder hazard that would have put the kabosh on further progress in the van.

This is our campsite at "Yonsson Point".

Looking downriver - the canyon of the Green.

Looking upriver in the noon-day sun from camp.

And from the bank.

Good dogs helping with cooking. Note the fancy boots we have on Rufus to help with sharp grasses and even sharper cactus quills.

Contemplating the canyon.

Mineral Bottom Trip Report, Vol. 1

When heading to Mineral Bottoms, it is important not to confuse Horsethief Road with Mineral Top Road, which begins at Horsethief Campground just off of 313 prior to the White Rim Entrance to Canyonlands N.P. Pass the campground on your right and 1/4mi later, take a right onto Horsethief Road (marked). The road is a dirt highway, and is well maintained up to, and in to the canyon of the Green. The drop is sudden, and I had to stop to eyeball the situation just after passing the cattle guard before dropping in.

My first thought was, "Holy $**t! But upon closer observation, it was apparent that the road is well maintained.

Take a deep breath, and off we go!

Once you are on the road, its not so bad. Even a 2-wheel drive car would be ok. I wouldn't recommend an RV due to length. Also, it is a well established fact that 9 out of 10 rental RV drivers will crash and burn on this thing, so stay away if that is what you are traveling in.

There is a road in Capital Reef N.P. that is similar in steepness, but much shorter in height than this road. Other than that, the only comparable roads I can think of are the paved Fall River Road in Rocky Mountain N.P., the paved road up to Jerome, AZ, and the BooolShyte that the government of British Columbia calls a road from Lillooet in to Whistler that we drove in a U-Haul with a trailer attached in a fog so thick that I was driving with my head out the window to see the sideline on the raod so we didn't drive off of a cliff into the river. We turned around on that one and barely made it back down in to town. It was the only time I have truly been scared driving. Had there been a place to pull off, we might have done so and slept in the vehicle. So this was nothing compared to that.

The Westy rolling in behind us. Colin has a manual, which would have been nice. I just burned brake pads.

The home stretch down to the Green.

My Co-Pilot

Doodles love road trips!

Look at this little guy. We spoil him, I know...

Lucky Doodle.

Late April Yard Clean Up

Rufus prior to his spring haircut with custom 2-tone mud markings

A grey and damp weekend was a great opportunity to clean up the yard, and set a fire to get rid of the sticks. It was also a good time to give Mr. Puppy his spring shearing.


Buh bye, Mr. Fuzzy Bear...

...Hello, Mr. Fancy Pants!

So fancy with his new trim!

Enjoying the afternoon

Springtime in Durango

A fire requires proper supervision. And fire supervisors *require* proper sized mugs of beer to properly perform their job.

Texas Flat Trip Report

The weather hit just right, and we were given a June weekend in April. We capitalized on this by rolling the van out to the edge of Cedar Mesa in canyon country. The goal was to camp at an amazing site accessible by the AWD van that was not too far from home. The Arch Canyon overlook at Texas Flat delivered in spades.

This is view back to camp from a pinnacle of rock that juts out into Arch Canyon proper.

These two were pretty happy about having morning coffee out here!

To reach the rim trail, take the southern split in the road to the end. It is a definite 4WD road, and we stopped just after this sign due to steep grades and a rock ledge. The sign is 1/4 mile from the trailhead proper.

We bushwacked to this point from where the trail crosses the head of the canyon for lunch. The trail is not too aggressive, though the haul out to the end and back would take all day.

UTAH!

Sleepy Puppy!

Relaxin' with a view.

Oh Yeah!!!

Girls trip to the Weminuche

A second spring excursion to Vallecito Creek with a much bigger doodle!

Jess & Rufus!

He hehe hehehe.

Summertime!

Catching up with friends out on the deck downtown back in June.

Summertime - finally!

Animas River Days 2011 Pt 2

Owner/Operator Mike deftly guides the New Wave towards the maw of the wave. Note Enis (rear right) squealing like a biaatch at the first taste of cold water.

The New Wave takes the brunt of the wave.

Drama ensues as owner/operator mike looses his right oar.

Will they make it?!?

WILL THEY MAKE IT?!?

I think they're gonna make it!

Uh - OH! SwimmerS!

Which way did they go?

Oh, SHIT!

Owner/Operator mike wondering what n' tha frick jus' happened?