IntrepidXJ's Adventure Blog

Stud Horse Point, Water in The Wave & The North Rim of the Grand Canyon
Labor Day Weekend | Friday – Monday, August 31 – September 3, 2012

The phrase ‘once in a blue moon’ has long been used to describe rare or absurd happenings, which is definitely how I would classify this extended weekend trip. As an added bonus, this weekend was also host to a Blue Moon on Friday night, which won’t happen again until 2015. A few months ago I scored another set of permits to Coyote Buttes North, and after asking Amanda if she wanted to go again (she declined since she knew she would probably be working that weekend), I asked Jared if he would like to come along for the weekend. He was up for the adventure, so we planned the weekend around our trip to The Wave.

I only worked a half day on Friday so that we could leave a bit early and make it down to the area in time to catch the sunset. Jared drove down from the Salt Lake area to meet me at my house so he could load his gear into my Jeep and drive down with me. Once the Jeep was packed, we hit the pavement and started driving south. Very quickly into the drive I noticed my Jeep was feeling pretty bouncy whenever we hit a bump. It turns out one of my rear shocks was bad and causing this little issue. A bad shock is far from a reason to cancel a trip, but I did have to drive a little bit slower on the highways than I would have liked…just to be on the safe side.

As we reached Page after our long drive, a storm was approaching the area over the Vermilion Cliffs and creating some scenic conditions. We found a place to pull of the road and take a few photos. There were crepuscular rays filtering down through the clouds over the Vermilion Cliffs.

Rays by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Rain was falling in the distance and lit up by sunlight.

Rain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

We grabbed a very quick dinner in Page and tried to continue to our destination on Stud House Point for the sunset, but along the way we started seeing a lot of interesting light and lightning from the approaching storm, so we made a detour to the Wahweap Overlook so we could take a few photos.

Light striking the bands of cliffs in Lake Powell.

Layers of Light by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Friday – Sunday, August 24-26, 2012

After work on Friday I met Jackson at the Westwater exit on I-70, after the slower than usual drive through two construction zones, so that we could drop his car off at the Westwater takeout along the Colorado River. Our plan this weekend was to float through the Ruby – Horsethief Canyons section of the Colorado River from Loma to Westwater. This was going to be my very first overnight river trip and I have book looking forward to it for a while. Thanks to all my new backpacking gear bought earlier this year, packing the inflatable kayak was much easier, even though I decided to bring along a bigger tent this trip. This section of the Colorado is about 25 miles in length and is pretty mild, but it flows through some beautiful sandstone canyons. Once Jackson’s car was parked in the Westwater parking lot we took my Jeep back to the Loma boat ramp and got our inflatable kayaks ready for the trip. As I suspected, we had the launch site to ourselves on a Friday evening at about 5:30pm.

Our boats loaded and ready for our weekend adventure.

Loaded & Ready by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Jackson walks along the shore of the Colorado River with storm clouds building over the Book Cliffs in the background.

Clouds Building by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

We were a little hurried this evening since our campsite was 3 miles down the river at the mouth of Rattlesnake Canyon and we weren’t exactly sure how long it would take us to get there with the lower water levels. We were on the river by 6:00pm and had two hours of daylight to make it to our camp. To make us feel even more rushed, once we were on the water some storm clouds came over the cliffs in front of us and made us a little worried that we were going to get caught in the middle of a storm. Luckily the storm missed up and it only took us an hour to paddle those first three miles to Rattlesnake Canyon.

Jackson paddles down the river as storm clouds build in front of us and behind us.

Outrunning the Storm by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Colorado River Under the Stars by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Here’s a photo from my campsite last night along the Colorado River in Ruby Canyon. The full trip report will hopefully be done in a few days.

Friday – Sunday, August 17-19, 2012

I went to work on Friday with all my camping gear loaded in my Jeep, but no plans on where to go. I just knew I wanted to get up in the mountains for two nights, but not to the San Juan’s again. When I finally left work, I decided to make my way towards Aspen since I haven’t been that way for a while. As I was driving to Aspen I tried to think of any lakes that I could camp by to hopefully catch a good sunrise, and the only one I could think of was Taylor Lake, so that’s where I headed.

As I was driving up to Taylor Pass on the Express Creek Road, the late evening sunlight was filtered through a thick layer of smoke that has blanketed most of Colorado all week causing it to appear much warmer than normal.

Yellow Road by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Driving up the final switchback to reach Taylor Pass.

To Taylor Pass by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

The sun getting close to setting behind the Elk Mountains. The sky still filled with smoke.

Smoky Sun by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Monday, August 13, 2012

The Original Trip Report on ADVENTR.CO

This evening I headed west on the old Highway 6 to the Colorado – Utah state line to see about photographing the sunset. It seems there was some smoke in the air from wildfires burning in Idaho which helped add some interesting color to the setting sun.

Sun rays radiate out from behind the clouds along the old highway in Colorado.

Old Highway by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

I liked the way this lone tree contrasted with the yellowish grasses around it. I could have tried cleaning up the noise in this photo, but I kind of like the way it looks as is.

Between the Fences by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

The sun get closer to setting over the Book Cliffs in Utah. Smoke in the sky helps add color to the scene.

Flaming Sunset by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

A lonely and neglected road leads toward the Book Cliffs and the setting sun.

Road to the Sun by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

>> Old Highway Sunset Photo Gallery