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Tag: grand valley

Independence MonumentIndependence Monument

Independence Monument

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Since I haven’t been able to get out hiking in couple of weeks (plus the temperature was only in the low 90’s, which is slightly cooler than it’s been the last few days), I decided to head out after work for an evening hike in the Colorado National Monument. It’s been a little while since the last time I was in Monument Canyon, so I hiked up that trail to Independence Monument and then explored the upper reaches of Wedding Canyon for a different view of Independence Monument before returning the way I had come. The parking lot at the trailhead was completely empty when I arrived and I would only pass one trail runner shortly before sunset. I had the entire canyon to myself for a few hours which was nice. Enjoy a few photos from the evening!

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Dolores Triangle Rock ArtDolores Triangle Rock Art

Dolores Triangle Rock Art

Sunday, May 15, 2016

While I originally had no plans for this weekend (besides working on my Jeep and maybe going on a local hike), Marty and I made last minute plans to spend a couple of hours on Sunday morning visiting a few rock art sites on the Dolores Triangle that he recently came across, and I was looking forward to checking them out. We met up at the Tabeguache Trailhead a little before 7:00am and then drove up through the Colorado National Monument and Glade Park until we reached the Colorado-Utah state line.

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Return to the Colorado National MonumentReturn to the Monument

Return to the Colorado National Monument

Monday, May 9, 2016

It’s been a while since the last time I took a drive through the Colorado National Monument and it’s also been a while since I’ve gone out specifically to take photos around sunrise or sunset. After all the rain we’ve been having in the Grand Valley lately, it looked like the storms were finally clearing out this evening so I decided to take a drive on Rim Rock Drive in the west section of the park this evening and stopped at a few of the viewpoints along the way to take a couple of photos.

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Devil’s CanyonDevil's Canyon

Devil’s Canyon

Sunday, April 10, 2016

A hike into Devil’s Canyon is always a good way to spend a few hours on a Sunday afternoon. Since it rained for much of the weekend and I was able to get some work done on my Jeep on Saturday, Diane and I decided to go hiking in the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area late on Sunday morning since it looked like the rain was done for a while. We hiked to the old cabin in Devil’s Canyon on the D3 Trail and then completed the loop back to the trailhead. As we started the hike, the creek in Devil’s Canyon was flowing from all the recent rain and it was also pretty humid out.

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Colorado National Monument Western LoopColorado National Monument Western Loop

Colorado National Monument Western Loop

Colorado National Monument Traverse III
Sunday, March 20, 2016

After our overnight hike along the Black Ridge Loop in the Colorado National Monument last year Diane had mentioned to me that she enjoyed the hike up the Fruita Dugway and wanted to hike it again, so this year I planned a different loop that included the Fruita Dugway, Black Ridge Trail, CCC Trail and then returned down Monument Canyon. It would make a nice 13.5 mile loop on the western side of the Monument. We dropped my Jeep off at the Lower Monument Canyon Trailhead shortly before sunrise and then drove over to the Fruita Dugway Trailhead and started climbing the trail as the sun was coming up for the day. The Fruita Dugway is probably one of my favorite and often overlooked trails in the Colorado National Monument.

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