Sun, May 29, 2011

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Sometimes the day begins great and ends great but the middle is a real bummer. – Donna Downey

We woke up this morning anxious to hit the trail and the motel was busy so we decided to get a cup of coffee and a muffin and head out.  It was a beautiful morning, temps in the sixties and plenty of sunshine.  The harsh wind of yesterday seemed to have calmed down considerably.

We had planned our route to take us to Ridgeway, Colorado and had called our usual motel and made a reservation.  However, the route we had planned took a little detour when we got to the Burr Trail turn and we couldn’t stand to pass it by.  The route we had planned was all paved roads… nuff said.  So we turned onto the Burr Trail grinning from ear to ear as the dust began to roll behind the Jeep.

The Burr Trail runs north but then turns west and heads to Boulder, UT.  At the turn west we took the Notom Road which continues to run due north about 35 miles until it intersects Hwy 24 in the Capital Reef National Park.  That gave us another 35 miles of dirt!  It has been many years since we have taken this section of road.  At that time we were traveling with Truman.  He was a small stray pup when he showed up on our doorstep.  He was a wonderful companion and spent his 14 years traveling the US with us.  As we drove up the Notom road I felt a tinge of sadness thinking about him but had to smile at all the memories we made together. We were blessed he chose us.

The Notom road was more beautiful than both of us remembered. It parallels the giant upheaval that gives the park its name and also several smaller ridges.  With the pleasant early morning weather and the views we had a good morning with lots of stops to enjoy both.

Once on the paved road we headed east or at least in that general direction as no road out here goes directly anywhere.  The wind was beginning to pick up so we knew we were probably in store for a pretty breezy afternoon.  Still we found a great place to stop on Hwy 95 above Hite’s Crossing (bridge over the Colorado River on the upper end of Lake Powell).  It had towering red rock canyon walls and a nice creek flowing over sandstone.  There was little wind next to the creek and it was a perfect place for puppy play and a swim… another heavenly spot.

We made a short stop just above the bridge at Hite’s Crossing to enjoy the views and yes a photo or two. 

As we traversed the landscape of canyons, bluffs, and mesas the wind began to build and the sky began to fill with sand.  Soon we were in a full blown dust storm.  Visibility was fine for driving but we could no longer see the sky, the canyons, bluffs or mesas.  I don’t know how strong the wind was but it was rocking our Jeep Wrangler pretty good.  Each vehicle we met  would be cocked over in response to the wind and as the afternoon wore on there were fewer and fewer vehicles on the road.  These are not heavily traveled roads anyway.  At one spot we saw two motorcycles parked on the side of the road with no riders in sight.  We presumed they had found a respite from the winds in the rocks nearby.  You could feel the wind rock the Jeep and hear the sand pelting the body. 

We stopped in Blanding, UT for a late lunch/early supper and discussed staying in Blanding but decided we would just ease on up the road toward our reservation in Ridgeway and hopefully would, at some point, get out of the storm. 

Just outside of Norwood, Colorado the outline of our scenery began to emerge thru the dust and the sun began to appear.  Hoorah! We were glad to be leaving that travel companion behind.  The rest of the drive was still rather breezy but the dust was not nearly as thick and the sun and blue skies returned to some degree.

With the improvement in the weather we turned on the Last Dollar Ranch dirt road just outside of Ridgeway and enjoyed a short drive onto the mountainside.  This is an area where many of the early Marlboro cigarette commercials were filmed and is truly breathtaking.  The original True Grit with John Wayne was also filmed here and in the town of Ridgeway.  We spotted an elk and stopped to watch her for a minute. She seemed a little anxious but not willing to move on when we noticed she had a very small calf nearby.  It appeared to be at most a couple of days old so we did not tarry to take a photo for fear of disturbing them. 

We arrived at our room in Ridgeway just before dark with much improved weather from the afternoon.  The only storm we encountered there was a small black poodle named Oreo that was intent on trying to kill Paris and Dodger as we attempted to get by her in the hall.  Her human finally just picked her up and we eased by quickly.  All is well that ends well!

Speaking of well… we are well tonight and hope that y’all are too.

Peace, Hope & Love,

Donna, Charles, Paris & Dodger