Arches Backcountry

Backpacking Arches National Park (Trip Report)

After spending numerous days in Arches National Park over the past few years, I have always wondered what existed in the parts of the park not visible from the well established trails. With only the time for a quick weekend trip, I decided it was time to find out. Planning for the trip was limited to a quick searches online, and I was suprised to discover that I could not find any info for backcountry access in the park outside of what is offered on the website for the park. It would appear that very few people travel here and thus far, there have been very few reports from those who have. This lack of information peaked my interest even further, not knowing what to expect. A quick call to the park rangers didn't do much to help plan either. The rangers gave the impression that there was very limited area in the backcountry as defined by the limits of where tents are allowed (see park site for rules). However, they did mention that there is no limit to the number of permits distributed and no need for reservations. With the little bit of info I gathered, I bought the availabel USGS maps and set my mind to discovering what exists off the beaten path in this incredible park.

Day 1 - Departure

Thursday April 1, 2010

With a full day of work under our belts, we managed to get the car loaded up and ready for departure by 5:30. Only one major obstacle remaining, I-70 at Vail Pass closed around noon for accident clean up. Although the main route to UT was closed, we still climbed in with hopes the road woul open before we finished a quick dinner in Frisco. Unfortuneatley, luck was not on our side, and the detour sent us over Freemont Pass, towards Leadville in a blizzard. Upon arrival in Leadville, Hwy 24 back to I-70 had just been closed for simmilar problems as the initial I-70 closure. With the snow continuing to pound the high mountians the highway patrol closed the road which would return us to I-70, forcing us to spend some not so quality time in Leadville. After debating a possible assault of Monarch pass to the South (also with chain restrictions) we determined the best approach would be to sleep in the back of the car for a while and check the roads again. Within an hour of falling asleep, the police were knocking on the window to inform us of the road re-opening back to I-70 and the re-opening of Vail Pass. With hope restored that the weekend was not lost, we took off for the desert. With the loss of time to closed roads, we pulled into the No Name rest area in Glennwood Canyon a little after 1 am and decided to call it a night.

Day 2 - Arrival, permits, and entrance
Friday April 2, 2010

Waking early, we headed for the Park with only one more stop, Burger King for some good old breakfast and coffee. A quick stop at the ranger's station for brief rundown of the rules and regulations before we could get our permit, and for the first time in the area, none of the available rangers had ever been out to the area we intended to visit. Although the one helping us did make sure that we knew to "dig a hole and drop a rock." We grabbed our permit and headed straight for the Devils Garden parking lot at the end of the road, where we would leave the car for the next few days. Our intended path was along the main trail past Landscape arch (left). From here the trail begins its first and only real climb, as it head up towards the fallen Wall Arch. At the top of the hill, the the trail splits with a quick off shoot trail leading to two more arches which we decided to visit. The first being Navajo Arch which doesn't give much of a view, and the second being Partition Arch (right), which is perched on the cliff above Landscape Arch and provides a great lookout from high above the deser floor. After a quick stop to take in the view and snap a number of pictures, we headed back for the main trail in order to continue towards our final destination. The hike from here takes an interesting path over the top of one of the large fins, and decendes down towards the overlook for Black Arch, and then continues on toward one of the most scenic arches in the park, Double O Arch (left). After a quick stop, it was time to be moving again. From here we switched from the well traveled Double O trail, to the Primative Trail, and in doing so we left the majority of the other visitors behind. This trail is significantly less defined, and much less maintained. With the fins appearing to spread out just a little, we decided it was time to leave the trail behind all together. This would be the last time we saw another person in the park until we were almost back to the car. With all of the rules for backcountry travel, we managed to snake our way back through two of the fins (right) through a couple of dry stream beds to where we would eventually decide to put the tent. With "special dirt" everywhere we were forced to find a relatively flat rock which would become our bed for the next two nights.

Day 3 - Exploration

Saturday April 3, 2010

Awaking to nothing but the sound of the birds and the first light of the sun streaming into the small canyon (right), we decided it was time to leave the sleeping bags behind, eat some breakfast and take in the sights of the area. We quickly grab some food and found some sun to enjoy it. With no real plans for the day, we packed a bag and headed out for some exploration. The entire area is filled with small canyons and tons of rock just waiting to be explored, although some climbing gear would have made the exploraiton a little more interesting, there was plenty to see and do without it. Being early in the year still, some of the potholes were still filled with runoff from the snow melt (left), still taking place, and caused us to detour around and through side canyons we may have otherwise skiped. With all of the canyons looking so similar, it's a wonder that more people have not gotten lost back here. With a quick return to home base for lunch, the weather quickly changed, and changed our plans with it. Although the clouds stayed away, the wind quickly picked up and even turned our tent with all of our gear inside upside down.



Day 4 - Exit, and return

Sunday April 4, 2010 (Easter)

Another early morning with just one major goal, return to Denver in time to get enough sleep to head back to work on Monday :( With the sun starting to light the canyon, we quickly packed the gear and grabbed some food on the go. The begining of our exit would follow the route we came in assuming we could find it again. Once we arrived back at the Primitive Trail, hung a left and headed in the opposite direction from where we had arrived from. From here, we only came accorss one other group, a mom and her son out for a morning run, until we arrived back at the trail merge. From here it was just a quick jaunt out to the car where we quickly dropped the gear and found some nice clean clothes for the long drive back. All in all, a great trip, and I plan to return to do some more exploring.

Winter Park Fun

Another Great Skiing Weekend

Another year, and another great spring ski weekend at Winter Park. With spring break begining, the folks rented another ski in and ski out condo between Mary Jane and Winter Park for the weekend. Joined by a group of famil and friends, we all managed to get a number of runs in and a ton of sun. New this year, we managed to get not just the local crowd out, but we managed to drag guests from near and far. Coming the furthest, Mike's big boss from Australia came out to enjoy the both the weather and the snow, and we even managed to get a Texan down the moguls of Mary Jane. Along with the beautiful sun, a number of us hit the tubing hill at Frasier (pictures to come) and a handful of us managed to put away the handle of Whiskey before sleeping wherever space allowed. The weekend not only saw sun and fun on the slopes, but the first attempt of a box my Michelle, hopefully the next one goes down without the injuries (knee). Maybe Ryan can get out the bee costume and show her how it's done. It seemed that the sun not only brought out the locals for the weekend, but also tourists from around the country. We got the opportunity to share the hot tub with the southerners who came more for the Miller lite and cigarettes than the skiing. Who would have thought that a middle aged lady could put away more than a 6-pack in less than an hour? All in all, another great weekend, and just maybe all of the fun will help the folks realize just how much they need to buy a place so we can do it just that much more often :)

Park City 2010

Park City 2010

Thanks to the Filas family for letting us crash at the time share once again this year. After a year without skiing in the Utah desert, it was good to get back there. This year, we managed to miss not only the Sundace Film Festival by a couple of days, but we also managed to miss the majority of the snow. Ariving on a balmy Saturday night, the sky was clear and the lack of snow was apparent. I believe it may have been the first time any of us had seen the pavement on the streets in Park City, but before we left that would change. As always, skiing Park City reminds you of what the town once was and what it very well may be agian someday. Along the way the remains of the mining that took place here (top right) are a spectacle to be seen. However, its not just the mining equipment left behind that sparks the imagination. Skiing two days at the Park City Resort provided plenty of opportunity to take in the rest of the beautiful sights includign Jupiter Peak (top left), with its strictly hike to terrain, and the back areas serviced by the old two man Jupiter lift (right). Skiing the difficult terrain however proved to be even more of a challenge than in years past my the lack of good snow. With the base total in the range of 40"-50", and no new snow in previous memory, the ice and the rocks made even some of the more tame terrain challenging, but after two days of beautiful weather, the sun set and the wind picked up. By the time we ate dinner downtown, the storm had moved in and begun to deliver the good stuff that Utah is know for. Light and fluffy and it continued all night. Leaving the Irish bar, we truged back to the condo. Our third day on the slopes and it was set to be the last for a number of us. We woke early to a snow report of 13" new at Snowbasin Resort (left), which luckily was our destination. Although Park City is know round the world, along with Alta and Snowbird, the Snowbasin rivals them all for terrain and luxury. As a Sunvalley resort and a host to the winter games in 2002, the resort boasts a number of highspeed lifts and gondolas accessing some of the most fun big mountain terrain. Part way through the morning the clouds began to lift, which provided an awe inspiring view of the valley floor from atop one of the many ridgelines loaded with new snow(right). The five of us made lap after lap on the big slopes trying to get our fix of the fresh snow. As the hour approached to head back to Colorado for three os us, we decided on one last run,
and unluckily, this last run would prove to be too much for me and my exhausted legs, resulting in a full on face plant into the tip of my own ski causign the carnage pictured to the left. Atleast I got to return to work the next day with a good story.

Puerto Rico Trip

A fun family trip to Puerto Rico. 10 days of sun, sand and a few Medallas. The photos are a selection of pictures from the trip, but there were just too many to upload.

Backwoods of Southern Puerto Rico

Old Lighthouse - North Shore

Headstone in the Cemetary - Central Puerto Rico

Park on the Beach - San Juan

Rainforest Palm

Lizard - Rainforest

Sunset - SW Puerto Rico

City Square - Ponce

Lions Head Fountain - Ponce

Rincon Beach

Old San Juan from one of the forts

Palm Tree - Old San Juan

Square in Old San Juan

Looking back at the fort protecting the harbor - Old San Juan




Fort protecting the harbor - Old San Juan




Waterfront - Old San Juan




Wall surrounding Old San Juan

Houses on the hill

Capitol building from the fort - Old San Juan

Thanksgiving in Needles (TR)

Finally a long weekend away from work, and ski season still only just begining, what better place to hang out the the Utah desert. Permits in hand for the Chesler Park #2 site in the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park, the three of us gathered mid day Wednesday (the day before Thanksgiving), for a last minute run down of gear we would need. The intent was to drive to Moab on Wed, get an early start Thurs into the park and spend the next couple of days backpacking and hiking around. With only one previous trip into the Needles, the main focus was to see as much as possible, and given the short duration of our trip and the short days this time of year we opted to set up camp in one location and explore from there.

Day 1 - Thanksgiving Day

Waking to the sun just a couple miles up Potash Road from UT 191, we managed to get the tent and bags put away fairly quickly and hit the road. A quick stop for breakfast and then just over an hour into the Needles from downtown Moab. Checking in at the visitor center as quick and painless, with the exception of finding a working faucet to fill water (lucky we had 5 gal in the car). After ditching the car at the Elephant hill parking lot, we finally hit the trail. Just over 4 miles to the Chesler Park camp site and the weather couldn't have been better for the hike in. Nothing but clear skies and nice 50 degree weather. Just over halfway there and the views back to the North gave us our first shots of the prominent rock formations. We made camp in just a few hours even with the three of us stopping to shoot photos every few min (Well over 1000 photos in all), and got everything set up and put away with plenty of daylight to burn. Knowing we had limited daylight left, we took off along the Joint Trail to the Southwest to explore the area a little before dark and before the cold set in. Finding our way back in the last of the light, we quickly made dinner as the temperature started to fall. We called it an early night and retired to the tent for a little reading around 7:30 and were asleep around 8:00.

Day 2 - Black Friday

We woke on Friday to bitter temperatures as the sun began to light the sky. The overnight lows were in the low 20's and ice had formed on the inside of the tent. Quickly getting breakfast ready (nothing like instant oatmeal), so we could get on the trail, we decided to venture to the Southeast and vist Druid Arch. Only a 6 mile round trip hike, but 6 miles of up, and down, slots and sandy washes. The trail took us back to the upper portion of Elephant Canyon where we found the reminants of the snow two weeks before in a standing pool. From up here on the slick rock, we droped into the canyon and headed up the wash. While packing at the car, we made the decision to carry enough water for the entire trip (6 liters each) and not go looking for water along the wash to Druid Arch. In the bottom of the dry stream bed is supposed to be the most reliable source of water in the Needles, the only problem is it was frozen over. The final push up to the arch includes a short steel ladder and a steep incline over a talus field, but the strenuous final climb is well worth the view. Druid Arch and a shot looking back down the canyon from below the arch.

The head wall was showered in light as the sun began to move to the West and cast a shadows on the viewing area of the arch.

Day 3 - Heading Home

With the idea of seeing more of the park, we decided on Sat morning to take a different route out from the way we came in. This route would take us back along the first mile we took to Druid Arch and then down the canyon instead ofo up, eventually meeting up with the trail we came in on. As the sun came high into the sky we could see the weather that was moving in, an indication that we had timed our trip for perfect weather. And as the we headed out we were treated with great views looking back into the park.

Some Old Favorites

Island In The Sky, Canyonlands National Park, UT - 2007

Cannon Beach, OR - 2007

Grizzly Falls, Kings Canyon National Park, CA - 2008

First attempt at this blogging thing

Testing, Testing.... Looks like I might be able to figure this out.

Photos and all.

Canyonlands National Park, UT - 2007