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Canyons of the Black Ridge: The Pollock Windows

Between the Forks of Pollock Canyon
Thursday, April 23, 2020

If the current COVID-19 pandemic had not completely changed everyone’s lives these past few weeks, then Diane and I would have left right after work today for another three day backpacking trip into The Needles District of Canyonlands National Park. But since that is obviously not happening anymore, I decided instead to head out after work on another local adventure so that I could finally visit The Windows of Pollock Canyon in the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness. This is another one of those hikes that has been on my to-do list for a long time, and while I have seen the Pollock Windows from below in the East Fork of Pollock Canyon before, I’ve always wanted to hike to them for a closer look. Even though the sky was pretty much overcast for much of the day in the Grand Valley, the weather forecast was calling for it to clear up a little bit in the evening, so I was hoping for a nice sunset while I was out!

Canyons of the Black Ridge: Perseverance Arch

Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness: West Fork of Jones Canyon
Saturday, April 18, 2020

Hiking to Perseverance Arch in the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness area has been on my to-do list for a long time. I’ve always thought that I would do it as an overnight backpacking trip since it’s a pretty long hike, which is part of the reason why I kept putting it off. Now that I’ve been having to stay closer to home during the quarantine, I’ve been going through my list of local hikes that I never made time for in the past, and I decided that it was finally time for me to visit Perseverance Arch and cross it off my list! I figured that this long and remote hike would offer me plenty of solitude near home on a Saturday when it seems like more people than ever are getting outdoors in the area. I left home well before sunrise on Saturday morning and drove up to the trailhead in Glade Park so I could get an early start.

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Kodels Point

McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area
Friday, April 17, 2020

This evening after work I drove up to the Visitor Center in the Colorado National Monument so I could try to hike to the top of a distinctive high point located above Kodels Canyon. I’ve looked upon this prominent sandstone outcrop many times as I have driven west on I-70 through Fruita and always wondered if it would be possible for me to climb to the top of it. This point sits on a narrow strip of land within the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area that is sandwiched between the Colorado National Monument and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness. Since this prominent butte is located right above Kodels Canyon, I have come to refer to it as Kodels Point, as it does not have an official name on any map that I have seen. Today was the day I was finally going to see if I could find a break in the cliffs and scramble to the top of the point, but to be honest, I knew that chances were going to be slim and that I would be perfectly happy just walking around the base of it and taking in the views while I was up there!

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Between Red & Ute Canyons

Sunday, May 7, 2017

Since our plans of camping the previous night in the Yellow Cat area had fallen through, we decided to spend a few hours at the Colorado National Monument on Sunday evening instead. There had been stormy weather on and off all day, but it looked like it was finally starting to clear out enough by late afternoon. We started out by hiking and exploring part of the mesa between Red Canyon and Ute Canyon. I had hoped to hike further out to the point, but thunderstorms had moved into the area again so we didn’t stray too far from the Jeep. I guess that means we will have to return another time. Afterwards, we went on another short hike into the upper portion of Red Canyon that I’ve driven past numerous times and always thought might be interesting to check out. Then before heading back home we stopped at a couple overlooks along Rim Rick Drive on our way out of the Monument. It was another nice evening in the Monument, but it was very humid out!

Knowles Canyon

Saturday & Sunday, October 29-30, 2016

After taking last weekend off to stay home and relax a little, this weekend Diane and I headed deep into the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness on an overnight backpacking trip into Knowles Canyon. We were in search of a few rock art sites thought to be hidden in the canyon, but unfortunately we would come up empty handed locating any of those on this trip. Instead, we would find a beautiful canyon with plenty of solitude only 20 miles from home. It’s nice to know that this kind of solitude can easily be found such a short distance from our home. Here are a few photos from the weekend.