IntrepidXJ's Adventure Blog

Over the Labor Day weekend I decided to head down to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park to revisit some rock art and to find some new panels. I explored a lot of the park in my Jeep and on foot. I drove over Elephant Hill a few times and I ended up camping just outside of the park in Bobbys Hole. I even found the time to take a quick side trip up into Beef Basin. Here’s some of my photos from the weekend…

Black Hands

A few black handprints.

Devils Lane

Driving through the Devils Lane.

Feet & Hands

A small section of the SOB Hill Panel.

SOB Hands

Many handprints of the SOB Hill Panel.

SOB Hill Panel

The full SOB Hill Panel.

Under Hands

A couple more handprints under an overhanging rock.

Framed Handprints

The Needles has no shortage of handprints!

Grabens Panelramic

This was the main panel I was looking for this trip, which I did manage to find. It’s a tough one to get a good photo of, so here’s my attempt at bringing out the pictographs.

Grabens Panel Right

A closer look at the right side of the panel. Very interesting anthropomorphs.

Middle Park Granary B&W

I got to revisit one of my favorite granaries in Beef Basin and took this shot in black & white.

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Sunday, August 28, 2011

On Sunday I met up with my friend Jackson and his wife Sarah to float a section of the Gunnison River from the North Fork to Colorado Highway 65 near Delta. It’s a pretty easy stretch of the river, which is a good thing since this was my first time in my own boat. Previously I have only ridden along in a larger raft, so this was a good learning experience for me. There were a few tricky sections that helped me work on my boating skills, but nothing dangerous.

Inflating

Inflating the boats.

Into the River

Ready to get on the river.

On the Gunnison

On the river.

Reflection

A reflection of Sarah and Jackson in their boat.

Besides spending a relaxing day on the river, I also had the goal of finding a rock art site along this stretch of the river. As we started hiking to the site, we noticed there was a group of people working up there. I had heard rumors that there was a group excavating the site, but I figured that no one would be working there on a Sunday. Guess I was wrong! As we approached the group, they welcomed us in and gave us the ‘grand tour.’ Apparently they have been excavating the site for about five years now and were ready to call it quits in the next few days. However, while we were there they managed to find part of a clovis point and decided they would now be staying at least another year. Pretty interesting stuff!

Lawhead Gulch Panel

The largest petroglyph panel at the site.

Elk Petroglyph

A faint elk petroglyph at the site.

Excavation

Digging and searching…

Documentation

Documenting their find.

Find

One of the arrowheads they found while we were there.

Back to the Boats

Getting back on the river after visiting the excavation.

Lunch on the River

Sarah & Jackson

Floating the Gunnison

It was a great day on the river!

Sunday, August 21, 2011

I’ve been falling behind on my trip reports again, so I need to try and catch up! Here’s some photos I took on a local day-trip into McDonald Creek and the Book Cliffs. Of course I was searching for rock art 😉

First up was the nice hike down McDonald Creek to the Colorado River. I’ve hiked this canyon before, but realized that I missed some rock art on my previous trip. It was a good opportunity to re-photograph the sites I had visited previously, too.

Small Pictographs

A very small and easily missed set of pictographs.

McDonald Creek Alcove

These pictographs are located in a large alcove overlooking the Colorado River.

The Bird and the Sun

My favorite panel along McDonald Creek.

After finishing up the hike I headed north to the Book Cliffs to revisit a few more rock art sites and find two new ones. I ended up finding the two new panels that I had not been able to find before, plus I found a third site that I just happened to stumble upon.

Waving Hello

This little guy welcomes you into the canyon.

Horned Shield with Legs

I’m posting this photo because if you look very closely you can see a faint shield-like figure that appears to have legs. This is the second shield figure like that that I have found in the Book Cliffs, and they are very similar.

Westwater High Panel

A busy panel high up on the canyon wall.

Ute Hands

Handprints….most like Ute or Paiute.

The Yellow Rider

A large horseback rider painted in a yellow pigment. Plenty of other figures and handprints painted here, too.

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August 8-10, 2011

Last Sunday I headed out to the Front Range area so I could do a little exploring. After getting caught in traffic on I-70 that turned the 4 hour drive into a 7 hour drive, I met up with Amanda and her family at the hotel they had reserved for a few days. We spent Monday at Rocky Mountain National Park, which was actually my first visit to that park. I started out with a drive up the Old Fall River Road and then just checked out a few of the main views along the road with a few short hikes. It was a good way to get acquainted with the park so that next time I can plan a little better.

Never Summer Mountains

After driving up the Old Fall River Road to the Alpine Visitor Center I met up with Amanda and her family again. After taking in the views from the Visitor Center we continued on to the Gore Range Overlook with this nice view of the Never Summer Mountains.

Forest Canyon View

Next we traveled over Iceberg Pass on the Trail Ridge Road and stopped at the Forest Canyon viewpoint.

Bear Lake

After stopping at a few more viewpoints along the way, we eventually made it to Bear Lake…..we even managed to find parking when we arrived!

Bear Lake B&W

We took the easy stroll around the lake…this photo is from the opposite side. We stopped at a few more places along the way and then left the park to head back to the hotel. We took part of the Peak to Peak Highway back.

On Tuesday morning I left early and parted ways with Amanda and her family so that I could do some exploring on my own as I slowly headed back towards Grand Junction. My first stop of the day was driving to the top of Mount Evans so that I could bag my third 14er (and the second one in a week!). After completing that goal, I stopped to take a few photos of the many mountain goats just below the summit.

Bah-ah-ah

The Look

Cute Baby Goat

There were even a few baby goats around.

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Saturday, August 6, 2011

This morning I set out with my friend Jackson to climb my second 14er (after climbing Handies Peak last year). We got a very early start and drove to the upper trailhead in Yankee Boy Basin. Unfortunately, about halfway up, Jackson started not feeling so well and had to turn around. I continued on by myself to the summit (well, there were plenty of other people on the trail with me). There were a few sections that scared me a bit, but I was able to face my fears and continue to the top…..and then make it back down again. It was a beautiful day and I had a great time and am glad I was able to accomplish this goal I set for myself this year 🙂

Gilpin Peak

A view of Gilpin Peak from the trail in the early morning light.

Start of the Climb

An early and easy section of the trail.

Hiking Towards the Spires

View towards Blue Lakes Pass from the trail.

Blue Lakes Pass

Now a view down on Blue Lakes Pass from the top of the first chute I had to climb.

The Upper Chute

Looking up at the second chute I needed to climb up from the saddle.

Climb Through the Snow

Looking back down through the section of snow I had to climb up. It was easier than it looked to get up, but I certainly didn’t want to go back down this way. Luckily, I didn’t have to since I followed a group back down a different way.

People on the Summit

Looking up the final climb to the summit….plenty of people up there.

The Blue Lakes

View from the summit down on the Blue Lakes.

At the Summit

Me at the summit.

Yankee Boy Basin

A view down into Yankee Boy Basin on my way back down.