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Tag: island in the sky

The White Rim: Airport Tower to Monument BasinThe White Rim: Airport Tower to Monument Basin

The White Rim: Airport Tower to Monument Basin

Friday – Sunday, February 5-7, 2021

While I had an amazing time supporting Diane and Jared as they biked the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands National Park last October, I didn’t quite have enough time on that trip to get in all the hiking that I had wanted to do because they were riding faster than I had anticipated! Since I had a backpacking trip to The Needles last spring that was cancelled because of COVID and I needed to reschedule that permit or lose in the next few months, I thought it would be nice to head back on my own to the east side of the White Rim so I could make up the hikes I had skipped out on. Last year the weather for our hike from the White Crack to The Confluence in early February was very nice, so I thought I would head back the same weekend this year, too.

CONTINUE READINGThe White Rim: Airport Tower to Monument Basin
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Below Hatch Point: Indian Creek to Lockhart CanyonBelow Hatch Point: Indian Creek to Lockhart Canyon

Below Hatch Point: Indian Creek to Lockhart Canyon

Friday – Sunday, November 20-22, 2020

After spending a great weekend in the Canyon Rims Recreation Area earlier this month, I thought it was time I returned below the rim of Hatch Point to spend some more time along the Lockhart Basin Road between Indian Creek and Lockhart Canyon. I left after work on Friday and decided to drive through Moab this time instead of going through Gateway. As I expected, traffic was backed up outside of town and it took me about forty minutes to get through town and on my way again. I finished the drive in the dark and found a campsite along the road leading to Lockhart Basin. This is usually one of my go-to places to camp when I’m visiting The Needles, and I have never seen so many people camped in this area before! It was crazy busy!

CONTINUE READINGBelow Hatch Point: Indian Creek to Lockhart Canyon
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Hatch Point: The Other Island in the SkyHatch Point: The Other Island in the Sky

Hatch Point: The Other Island in the Sky

Halloween Weekend Exploring the Canyon Rims Recreation Area Under a Blue Hunter’s Moon
Friday – Sunday, October 31 – November 1, 2020

Talk about a stacked weekend! Not only was it Halloween on Saturday, but there was also going to be a Blue Moon along with the Daylight Savings Time change overnight, and I knew that I definitely wanted to spend this weekend exploring the Canyonlands region some more. Aside from a brief but amazing evening at the Needles Overlook in January, it’s been a while since I spent any real time in the Canyon Rims Recreation Area and I thought that it would be fun to spend a full weekend exploring Hatch Point again. Aside from a couple of semi-popular overlooks, I feel like this area which is located just to the east of Canyonlands National Park gets overlooked and I would like to see more of it!

CONTINUE READINGHatch Point: The Other Island in the Sky
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Roads That Don’t End and Views That Never CeaseRoads That Don’t End and Views That Never Cease

Roads That Don’t End and Views That Never Cease

Diane’s Birthday Ride on the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands National Park
Saturday – Monday, October 17-19, 2020

Earlier this year Diane told me that she wanted to mountain bike the White Rim Trail in Canyonlands National Park for her birthday in October. I told her I would try to make it happen, but that it would depend if I could get permits or not since they can be hard to get for that time of the year. Although I really have no desire to bike the White Rim Trail myself, I knew that I would be perfectly happy to carry all of the gear in my Jeep for the trip as it’s been a while since I drove around the entire White Rim. Earlier this year and late last year I had driven in part of the way from both ends of the White Rim Road, but the last time I drove the entire route was to celebrate Canyonlands 50th Birthday in 2014, so I was looking forward to getting back out and doing it again. This trip would also be a good opportunity for me to take it slow and make this a nice easy and relaxing trip where I could stop and go on a few obscure hikes along the way.

CONTINUE READINGRoads That Don’t End and Views That Never Cease
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Meander Canyon: The Colorado River in CanyonlandsMeander Canyon: The Colorado River in Canyonlands

Meander Canyon: The Colorado River in Canyonlands

Floating from the Potash Boat Ramp to The Loop | Average CFS: 2,660
Thursday – Sunday, September 17-20, 2020

On Thursday morning Diane and I woke up extra early at 3:30am and headed down to Moab where we drove through The Portal on our way to the Potash Boat Ramp and met up with our friends Jackson, Amy and Chris just after sunrise. We were going to be spending the next couple of days on a relaxing float through Meander Canyon on the calm waters of the Colorado River into the heart of Canyonlands National Park. I had such a great time in Labyrinth Canyon two years ago at this same time of the year, so I was really looking forward to another trip similar to that. Although Diane swore that she would never go on another river trip with me after our swift float through Slick Rock Canyon, I managed to talk her into giving it one more try after promising her that this would be all flat water with no rapids! Thankfully, she really enjoyed this trip and I think she will definitely be coming with me on future flat water adventures!

CONTINUE READINGMeander Canyon: The Colorado River in Canyonlands
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