IntrepidXJ's Adventure Blog

Arizona Strip & Southern Utah Wanderings | Day 1
Saturday, October 6, 2012

On Saturday morning I left home to begin my annual fall trip to Southern Utah and the Arizona Strip. I met up with Jared in Moab so he could load his gear for the week into my Jeep and then we continued the drive south. Our destination this evening would be another visit to The White Pocket in the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument. As we were driving, we realized that it was exactly one year to the date that we first visited The White Pocket. We didn’t plan it out this way, it just happened by coincidence.

After a quick stop in Page for some dinner we arrived at The White Pocket just a few short hours before sunset. We grabbed our cameras and started exploring this wonderful area. The light was just starting to get nice when we arrived and it only got better throughout the evening. Except for a short time close to sunset when one other person showed up for a little while, we had the place to ourselves.

If you love strange sandstone formations, this is the place for you!

Swirl by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Here’s a long ‘wave’ bathed in warm afternoon light.

Long Wave by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Great views all around…

White Pocket View by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Fall Colors 2012
Saturday & Sunday, September 29-30, 2012

This weekend Amanda and I went back down to the edge of the San Juan Mountains for one last weekend of photographing fall colors this year. We ended up spending most of our time along Owl Creek Pass Road and north of the Sneffels Range near the Dallas Divide. The fall colors near the Dallas Divide were probably a bit past peak, but still pretty nice, but the area around Owl Creek Pass still had quite a bit of green.

On Saturday morning we left Grand Junction bright and early so that we could make it to the Dallas Divide in time for sunrise. I took this photo shortly before the sun came up in the soft dawn light.

Hayden Peak Dawn by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Here’s a similar photo after the the sun came up that shows the difference light can make to a scene.

Hayden Peak Sunrise by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

After leaving the Dallas Divide we visited a few of the county roads in the area starting with West Dallas Creek. Here’s my Jeep under a tall golden aspen in Box Factory Park.

Box Factory Park by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Fall Colors 2012
Wednesday, September 26, 2012

After work I decided to drive up on top of the Grand Mesa for a few hours to try and photograph some of the fall colors before it was too late. I was hoping to come back with a couple of photos, but instead I came back with a whole trip report! The colors were outstanding and the active weather provided a lot of interesting views throughout the evening. I even got caught in a snowstorm while on the very top, reminding me of the approaching winter.

There were some nice clouds over Mount Garfield as I drove past on my way to the Grand Mesa, so I had to stop for a quick photo.

Mount Garfield by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

As I was driving up the switchbacks that climb the side of the Mesa, I saw a storm in the distance lit up by some light getting through the clouds.

September Rain by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

Stopped along the highway to check out the fall colors.

Grand Mesa Scenic Byway by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

Saturday & Sunday, September 15-16, 2012

On Saturday morning Amanda and I got in the Jeep and drove south to the San Juan Mountains again. This weekend I was hoping to find some early fall color and had heard a few reports that there were already some nice colors around Red Mountain Pass and Silverton. Those reports would turn out to be pretty accurate!

On our way to Silverton we took a quick drive up to the Portland Mine above Ouray. While we were up there Amanda spotted a few aspen trees that had some bear claw marks. Some of the scratches went up pretty high on the trees like a bear had climbed a few of them.

Scratches by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

It looks like the bear couldn’t hang on to this tree and slid down it a way. These scratches were pretty high up off the ground, so I doubt these are just from scratching or stretching.

Can’t Hold On by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr

As we searched around Silverton for fall colors, I came across this waterfall in a small canyon and had to stop for a few photos.

Deadwood Falls by IntrepidXJ, on Flickr
 

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