Registered for the Moab Half Marathon

Aw hey!  Jordan and I officially signed up for the Moab Half Marathon.  I'm pretty excited.  I've run two halfies in the past, and they've always been really rewarding.  Don't get me wrong -- I don't especially enjoy running and it's not something that comes naturally for me.  I don't shoot for any particular time or pace, I just try to run and finish the entire race.  Still, I enjoy the training and and I'm more diligent about working out when I have a solid goal.  This spring I've been biking for cardio, which I love, but there's something about running that makes you dig deeper.  I've been on a couple jogs so far, and my muscles feel like they're waking up.  This is going to be good.  :)


The course is just outside Moab along Highway 128 and the Colorado River.  Beautiful.  The race isn't until October 21, so we have lots of time to build a solid base and train carefully.  The only wildcard is my slightly gimpy knee from an old Appalachian Trail injury, but I think if I pay attention to my body and slowly build my miles it'll behave.  Sweet!

Photo credit:  http://www.moabhalfmarathon.org/otherhalf/index.cfm

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

My quads are a sore, twitchy mess right now.  That can only mean one thing -- a baller weekend!  Jordan and I explored the deep, dark depths of Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.  I've been to the park once before and done the "windshield tour," but now it was time to do it justice and hike all the way in!

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

We started off the weekend with Sunday's solar eclipse.  The park Visitor Center handed out eclipse glasses, and about 100 people stood at the main overlook to watch the moon pass across the sun.  Loads of astronomy nerds were lined up with their telescopes -- some showed so much detail that you could see solar flares shining off the edge of the sun.  Epic geek-out! 

monster telescopes

Eclipse!

That night, we camped on the canyon rim in one of the pretty drive-up sites.  The whole campground was surrounded by fluffy white serviceberry flowers.

Camping on the rim.

The next morning, we made our battle plan.  First, we grabbed a backcountry wilderness permit at the Visitor Center.  The permits are free and available on a first-come, first-served basis.  They're required for anyone heading into the canyon for day hikes, backpacking, kayaking, or rock climbing.  Basically, the Park Service wants to know who's in the canyon and that they made it out safely.

We spent a good hunk of the afternoon driving to all the overlooks and sizing up the canyon.  Yup ... it's huge.  The Black Canyon is composed of dark Precambrian rock which existed before multi-celluar life evolved!  Molten rock squeezed into cracks in the black rock, leaving behind giant stripes of pinkish granite.  This rock is also extremely hard and doesn't erode away easily, which explains its steepness.

Warner Point

Rocks older than multicellular life!

Finally, it was time to head down in!  There aren't any real trails down to the Gunnison River, but there are six unmaintained, unmarked routes.  These routes are seriously steep, loose, and rocky.  We took the Gunnison Route, which drops 1,800 ft in one mile!  That's steeper than any Colorado fourteen-er.  You start at the Oak Flat Trail near the Visitor Center and hike down the first few switchbacks. You'll come to a sign that says "River Access, Permit Required." From there, the route gets much steeper, including an 80-foot chain about one-third of the way down.  With fully loaded backpacks, it took us about three hours to make it to the bottom -- lots of shaky quads and crumpled toenails.

But the river was worth it.  When we reached level ground, we were surrounded by the sound of the Gunnison River echoing off steep canyon walls.  We had the entire place to ourselves, so we set up camp and wandered around the lush green grass and black sand.  There isn't much hiking to do at the bottom because the cliff walls sock you in and the river runs too fast and cold to cross safely.  But it's a fantastic place to read, take a nap, or fish for trout.  There were a few nice campsites, pulleys for bear bags, and a pit toilet.

Made it to the bottom!

Of course, there was the climb back up the next morning.  But you know ... it wasn't that bad.  It only took us two hours to climb out.  I'd much rather go up something steep than down it.  I think it's better to fight gravity than negotiate a shaky compromise.  By the time we hauled our sweaty asses back to the canyon rim, I felt accomplished and satisfied.  I understand the Black Canyon much better now.  It's not just a pretty postcard -- its depth and steepness are impressive in a physical way.  My legs are definitely sore and I'll be hobbling around for a couple days, but it was definitely worth it.  Great trip.

Dead Horse Point State Park

This was a pretty low-key weekend.  Jordan's buddy, Nathan, was on leave from Afghanistan so he came out to visit.  We took him up to Dead Horse Point State Park to show him where Jordan works and hike the Rim Trail.

 

The Rim Trail takes you along the perimeter of the park mesa, 2,000 feet above the Colorado River.  The entire hike is one killer view after another -- you're overlooking Canyonlands, the LaSal Mountains, and a gooseneck of the Colorado River.  The hike is 5 miles long and fairly flat and easy.  Great bang for your buck!

Map credit:  http://stateparks.utah.gov/parks/dead-horse

There are loads of other great things to do at Dead Horse Point.  I still haven't ridden their new mountain bike trail, but it's definitely on the short list.  It's one of the few mountain bike trails near Moab that's geared towards families and beginners.  The park also has lots of interpretive programs, an art gallery, and the Pony Expresso Coffee Shop.  Nice!

Intestine Man Rock Art on the drive up to DHP

Pronghorn fawn!

We've had some great critter adventures in the park this year!   This afternoon, a guy on his motorcycle drove up to the Visitor Center and told us there was a baby pronghorn on the side of the road.  Our campground host, Diana, and I followed him to the spot and saw this little guy on the shoulder.

We didn't want him to become roadkill, so we decided to move him off the road and onto the desert behind a bunch of joint fir.  Momma pronghorn was watching us from a distance, so she saw where we placed him.  I hope he survives!  He seemed a little parched and didn't put up much of a fight when I picked him up, but I could feel a strong heartbeat and he let out a couple healthy bleats.

Fingers crossed!

Camel Toe Rappel

Hehe.  We just got back from a short hike/rappel route called Camel Toe.  It was an easy, pretty hike with a 50-foot rappel into a leafy canyon.  It had lots of cliff rose, a waist-deep pool, red-spotted toads, and the namesake Camel Toe rock.  We went out with a group of 6 people, and Jake was our fearless leader.  Jordan and I have both done a fair amount of rappelling, but it's always nice to have a paramedic who works for Grand County Search and Rescue tying the knots.  :)  Jake is a really thorough guy who shows us some great rappelling routes, and Camel Toe was no exception.  I'll leave the route description and gear requirements to the experts... check out Climb-Utah.com.

Heading towards the infamous Camel Toe!

Laura and Chaka

cliff rose

Jake

red-spotted toad

Moab Daily

Heyo!  We're on a roll with the ducky!  This weekend we took it down the 13-mile stretch of the Colorado River known as the Moab Daily.  We went out with a group of friends, so our armada consisted of 6 people and 3 duckies.

Arran and Duke

This stretch of river is really popular with locals and commercial groups, especially as the weather starts to warm up.  Depending on the time of year and the water level, rapids can range from Class I to Class III.  (Click here for current river conditions.)  It's been a dry year, so our run was low, slow, and rocky.  Waaaay easier than the high water last year!  Watch out:  there's a rumor about a sharp hunk of metal in one of the rapids.  They think it floated down during last year's high water, then was exposed by this year's drought.  Luckily, we missed it!

To run the Daily, you put in at Hittle Bottom and pull out at Takeout Beach.  There are 6 sets of splashy rapids, and the river is lined with BLM campgrounds.  (Check out the BLM map.)  We hit some afternoon winds and it was a little chilly, but other than that we had a great time.

Lunch break!

Jordan and Joe

San Juan River -- Sand Island to Mexican Hat

We're home from three days on the San Juan River!  It was a pretty incredible trip -- everything came together perfectly.  I snatched a permit at the last minute, the weather was fantastic, and we had a great time.  Now I'm sunburned, relaxed, and already chomping at the bit to hit the water again!

JAWS -- the Great White

lunch + swim break

The River:  The San Juan River is one of the major tributaries of the Colorado River.  As it flows from the San Juan Mountains of Colorado through New Mexico and into the southern portion of Utah, it carves incredible meandering red-rock canyons.  It was also home to ancient tribes who left behind intricate artwork and rock dwellings.  River runners today encounter braided flatwater sections, deep meandering canyons, and moderate rapids.

Nuts and Bolts:  A 3-day, 27-mile river trip from Sand Island to Mexican Hat took a little planning, but was logistically easier to pull off than I thought it would be!  First, I called the Monticello BLM office to secure a permit (check out their website for more detailed information.)  We spent the next couple days frantically packing, scrounging up the mandatory BLM gear, and hoping we'd be able to fit everything in our small inflatable kayak!  Because it was such short notice, I was told to pick up the permit at the Sand Island ranger station the morning of our trip.  We camped at Sand Island, then met the ranger the following morning.  She looked over our boat, made sure we had the required equipment, and issued our permit.  Supernice and friendly!

Once we got the green light from the BLM ranger, Jordan drove my car 22 miles down to Mexican Hat.  We had called Valle's Trading Post (435-683-2226 ()) a couple days before to arrange a shuttle for $65 + $3/day.  My car stayed at Valle's, while Jordan was shuttled back to Sand Island.  (Don't leave a vehicle at the Mexican Hat ramp -- lots of theft!)

All the planning and shuttling were finally over -- time to hit the river!

Desert bighorn

The Southwest had a really dry winter this year, and water levels are low everywhere.  April is also a little early to do a San Juan trip -- most groups wait until May or June when the water level peaks.  This means the ducky might bottom out and we'd encounter more rocks than usual.  The river was only running at 600 cfs the day we left, but low levels probably worked in our favor because a lot of the bigger rigs were backing out.  And ... it was totally fine.  The ducky is small and light, and we were able to scoot over or wind around all the rocks.  We occasionally scraped bottom, but never had to get out and walk.

We definitely did the lazy, relaxed version of this 27-mile trip and got out to explore quite a bit.  One of the coolest stops was the Butler Wash Petroglyphs at River Mile 4.5.  This was a huge, intricate rock art panel full of Ancestral Puebloan glyphs.  Very cool.

Pit stop at Bulter Wash Petroglyph Panel

Butler Wash Petroglyph Panel

We also stopped at the River House at River Mile 6.  This is one of the largest Ancestral Puebloan dwellings along the San Juan River.  It was built on a south facing wall to take advantage of low-angled sun rays in the winter.  In the summer, when the sun is directly overhead, most of the rooms remain in the shade and stay relatively cool.  The structure also includes rock art images of sheep, snakes, waves, and hands.

River House

Prickly pear

We camped at the Comb Wash campsite, which was big, beachy, and full of lush cottonwoods.  Beautiful.  You aren't assigned campsites on a San Juan trip, but there are a couple quirks to choosing a spot.  The left side of the river is part of the Navajo Reservation, so you can't camp there unless you have a permit.  Also, it's good form for small groups to leave the big sites for big groups.

Camping along the river

On Day 2, the canyon grew narrower and the walls became steeper.  At this point, we started to run the first decent rapids.  Almost everything was a Class I-II, read-and-run rapid.  We've been running rivers for less than a year, but it all seemed pretty straightforward.  I think the Moab Daily at high water was tougher!  Four-Foot Rapid (RM 11.5) and Ledge Rapid (RM 19) were both short and splashy.  We did get out to scout Eight-Foot Rapid (RM 17,) which was a little tight and rocky, but no problem for the ducky.

Eight Foot Rapid (Class II)

The rest of the trip went waaaay too fast.  On the second night, we camped at Lime Creek, which had some incredible views of the Raplee Anticline.  We gawked at the Raplee Anticline and Mexican Hat Rock all the way to the boat ramp, then reluctantly headed back to civilization.  I'm definitely hooked on the San Juan.  I would love to do the entire 83-mile run down to Clay Hills Crossing.  Wonder if there's any way to fit 7 days worth of gear in the ducky?!

Raplee Anticline from Lime Creek campsite

Lime Creek campsite