Here is a link for the Maps of Canyonlands, I tend to reference it a lot:
http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/maps.htm
Wednesday Jan, 29
http://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/maps.htm
Wednesday Jan, 29
I
really didn’t do anything this day either; just get everything in order again.
Thursday Jan, 30
I was
up early and drove straight out to Arapahoe Basin. We finally got a serious
snow day and this was a blast. Powder up to your knees everywhere and deeper in
many places. On one of the chair lifts I meet a guy from California. He works
on his dads fishing boat and has a bunch of time off in winter. He planned a
trip all over Colorado and Wyoming before heading back. I snowboarded most of
the day then grabbed a bloody merry at the bottom. As I was leaving I pretty
much got stuck in the parking lot, but a few people saw and gave me a push.
From there I sat in town watching Dexter. It was still snowing out and I wasn’t
really paying attention. A few hours went by and there was a shit load of snow!
For awhile it was snowing at 2 inches an hour. I didn’t think I could sleep in
the parking lot I was at so I decided to drive to the Wal-Mart in Frisco. On
the freeway I was going about 10 miles an hour. I finally made it, but got
stuck trying to get in the parking lot. Going forward and back a dozen times
took care of that problem. Then I drove to Breckenridge to see if I could have
any better luck there. This was all a mess too but I found an oasis. The
underground parking structure for the post office!! Even this took me 2 try’s
to get in to, but I made it.
Friday Jan, 31
I made
the hike through the snow to get to the mountain. Turns out we got hit with 28
inches of snow in the late 24 hours! This was crazy to experience. The boarding
was incredible but with all the snow it brought the people, Lines were stupid long.
I hate to say it but I have really lost ways to talk about snowboarding. So let’s
just say it was great and I loved every minute of the runs. That night I was
talking to Matt P about the weekend. Turns out his friend Jim is driving to
Avon and staying at a hotel. Jim used to live in Milwaukee. He came out here on
the huge trip 4 years ago, and then moved here. So I called him up and headed
over. I was excited to hang out with him and have a place to stay. When I got
there Jim and his friend Dave were going to grab dinner. I already ate but came
along for some beers. Dave was a cool guy and he’s done a lot of traveling. He
lives in Grand Junction and invited me to stay with him and do some hiking out
there. I could tell right away that we would get along.
Saturday Feb, 1
Today
we were all up early and drove to Vail. Jim Dave and I all did a few runs
together but I soon got separated. And I actually ran into Matt P and Morgan
right away. We spent the day in blue sky basin, with tons of snow. It was nice
to not have to fear falling on ice, so we were all pushing the skills a bit. It
was a great day and we all stayed until last chair. I ended the day with 25,000
vertical feet. I grabbed a beer with Matt P and Morgan then caught a ride back
to the hotel with Jim. Jim and Dave wanted to head to dinner right away but I
hit the hot tub. Then I meet everyone at the restaurant. I had a beer and hung
out for a bit, but I talked to one of my little brother’s friend earlier in the
week. They live in boulder and were going out that night. I made the drive out
there but couldn’t get a hold of him. Turns out he got food poisoning, but a
few of his roommates were going out and I meet up with them. I meet Eric F and
some of his friends at a music venue and we all had a few beers. Everyone was
cool and I had a good time, actually ran into quite a few people from back
home. We ended up getting separated at some point and I headed back to the car.
Sunday Feb, 2
I was
pretty hung over today. Past the time by watching movies in the car. I talked
to Eric about watching the Super bowl at his friend place. So I called him up
and headed over to pick him up. My car was a disaster but I still fit 2 other
people in and we drove to Kelly’s house. They were putting out a whole spread for
the game. There were a lot of the same people as the night before and we were
all joking around. The game was embarrassing to watch but still fun to be at
someone’s house for it. After the game we played some cards against humanity
and called it a night. I stayed at Eric’s place. This is also where Taylor
lives, the one with food poisoning. He was up most of the night puking.
Monday Feb, 3
This
morning I left Eric’s place in boulder and drove back to Denver. I talked to Matt
and stopped at his work for his keys. I went to the grocery store and did the
usual thing at matt’s apartment, shower, laundry, make some food. I finished up
when Matt was getting home. I’ve been talking to my friend Lucy in Breckenridge
and we made plans for dinner tonight. So I made the drive back to the
mountains. It was still snowing up here but driving was ok. We went to a
Mexican place called Mi Casa. Good food and some really good margaritas. It was
nice to catch up and see her again. I told her what I’ve been up to and my plans
for the rest of the trip. After dinner I wanted to get through most of the
mountain drive so I wouldn’t get caught in morning traffic. I ended up pulling
off at a way side near Glenwood springs.
Tuesday Feb, 4
I drove
the rest of the way to Grand Junction and got in touch with Dave. We meet up at
his place when he got off work. He lives in a house with 3 other roommates just
outside the city. Dave and I went out to eat at a Brewery and then grabbed a
drink at a distillery next door. When we got back to his house I talked with
the roommates about the hiking in the area and planned on checking out some of
the places.
Wednesday Feb, 5
I’ve
made the decision the hike the Maze in Canyonlands; this was going to be by far
the hardest hike I’ve ever attempted. So I needed to practice. I hiked a trail
called Mica Mines with my full pack on. It was a beautiful hike down into a
canyon. Lots of snow but other people have used the trail so I was able to
follow the foot prints all the way to the Mica Mines. Here there’s a tons of
mica imbedded in the rock, and the whole place shimmers. When I got back to the
car I drove to another trail they told me about. This one was called the ribbon
trail. I hiked around here for awhile but no one used it in awhile so I couldn’t
really see where to go. Then I drove into the National Monument just to get a
feel of how it’s laid out. When I got back to Dave’s house I took a nap. Then
everyone was cooking up a big dinner. Pasta with white sauce and asparagus. It
was great to have a home cooked meal and good people to enjoy it with. We all
had a few beers and hung out for the night.
Thursday Feb, 6
I took
some more time to look into the Canyonlands hike I’ve planned. At this point I
had it planned for a 4 days hike. But looking into it further I decided to make
it an 8 day hike, really the only thing the changes is the amount of food I had
to bring. I would be able to see and do so much more. I did another full pack
hike at a place called Rough Canyon. This one didn’t really have a trail to
follow so I hiked by following a river bed that carved down into a canyon. Another
beautiful place with a lot of places to explore. When I finished I drove to REI
to buy more fuel and a few other things, but forgot my money so it was
pointless. For dinner that night one of the roommates, Zach, grilled up some
steaks and seasoned brussels sprouts.
Friday Feb, 7
I sat
around the house looking more things up. Then drove into the national monument
to do a bigger hike. I hiked the trail called Liberty Cap. It’s an 11 mile hike
along a canyon rim then down part way. It’s used as a cross country ski trail
with a snow shoe trail right next to it. I was hiking so I walked on the snow
shoe trail but they must have quit half was so I walked on the ski trail. I saw
a big deer on the trail and took a few pictures. When I made it the Liberty
Cap, a half dome rock formation, I took a short break. But I got started pretty
late and had to hurry to get back before dark. The trail is basically all downhill
on the way to the cap, which means all uphill back to the car. When I made it
back I was exhausted, and just sat there for a little bit. Then I realized
someone put a note on my car:
Cheesheads,
I can’t
believe you’re from Wisconsin and don’t know not to walk in ski tracks.
Now, I could have: A) uninflated your tires. B) Cut your valve stems C) Left
you for the coyotes (Had my hand gun) D) All of the above. But, since I’m
headed there to ski the Birkie in 2 weeks I need all the karma I can get.
Guiding isn’t just for snowboards!
I couldn’t believe I got hiker hate mail!! I had to laugh
about it, who would really take the time to write this up, much less the death
threat about a ski trail. I brought it back to the house and everyone had a
good laugh. I was really exhausted from the hike so I took a shower and a nap
for a few hours. For dinner I grilled up some brats and sat around with the
roommates. Dave headed to a bar to see some friends.
Saturday Feb, 8
The
mountains were still getting dumped with snow and Dave was going boarding
again. I figured why not, so we were up early and made the drive to
Breckenridge. We planned on meeting up with Matt P and Jim. Dave and I did one
run and realized conditions were brutal. They already had to top lifts closed
and were about the close the next level down due to wind. We stopped at the bar
and waited for Matt and Jim. We all decided to drive over to Keystone. Things
were much nicer over here. I was really glad we made it over here; this has
always been my favorite place for tree runs. They are just perfect; wide open
enough to get some speed with a few open areas with jumps. We didn’t have a ton
of time but still had some great runs. When the hill closed we all grabbed some
beers and a bite to eat. I’ve been talking with my brother Adam, he has a
girlfriend in Denver and I was hoping to try to meet up with him. So I hopped
in the car with Matt and Jim and we drove back together. Dave was the smart one
and rented a hotel. The drive to Denver took us 4 hours with horrible traffic.
But we made it and I called a cab which arrived perfectly when we got back. I
jumped in and drove over to meet up with Adam. They were still drinking at a friend’s
house so I was able to meet everyone there. The girlfriend is Caitlin and they
were hanging out with her sister and a few friends. We had a few quick beers and
headed to the bar. I don’t remember the name but they had a patio upstairs
where we were all sitting at. It was nice to meet his girlfriend and everyone
was pretty cool. I was glad it worked out that I had a chance to see Adam too;
we have always ended up meeting a few times on each trip. After many good beers
they dropped me off at Morgan’s house where I slept on the couch.
Sunday Feb, 9
After a
few hours of sleep, Matt, Morgan, and I drove back out to keystone for more fun
in the snow. I slept pretty much the whole drive. My board was in Dave's car so
I had to wait a little bit for him to show up. Turns out I left my helmet,
gloves, and Matt’s goggles in Jim’s car. Jim got a late start and it was taking
him hours and hours to get here with the traffic. It was so bad that he gave up
and drove back. But he was able to leave my stuff at a hotel so I could pick it
up later. Dave and I found some really crazy untouched spots with super deep
snow. In a few spots it was up to my chest. We meet up with Matt and Morgan for
a few more runs on the back side. Dave ate shit pretty bad on a rock and I was
still beat up for the night before. So we all headed out a little before close.
Even leaving early it took us an hour and a half just to get to I70. Usually a
15 minute drive. We grabbed my gear from the hotel Jim left it at, and then got
some Chinese food. Then we started the drive back. I was very happy to driving west;
the traffic going to Denver was the worst Dave has seen. The cars were in stop and
go traffic from Frisco to the tunnel. We made it back to his house right at
7pm. This was our goal to be able to watch the new episode of Walking Dead. It
was a pretty crazy weekend. I drove across the state Saturday and Sunday just
to hang out with my brother for a few hours. I was really glad it was all able
to work out, not to mention the amazing snowboarding.
Monday Feb, 10
I went
and bought a GPS for the hiking trip. The place is called the Maze for a reason
and I figured it would be a good investment. I spent a lot of time messing
around with that and making sure I could rely on it. Then I went through all my
gear and clothing for the trip. Pretty much half the weight of my pack was
clothing. Hiking desert areas in winter requires so pretty serious gear. It’s
warm and sunny all day then freezing and windy at night. So I knew I had to
bring a lot of stuff. And I think every serious hiker has to have a good plan
for a day\survival pack, you can get into some really dangerous places with no
way out other then what you have with you. It took me most of the day getting
everything to fit and knowing exactly what I needed. For dinner Dave and I
decided to make some really good spaghetti for everyone. So we went to the
store and picked up everything. I messed around with GPS some more and watched
some TV.
Tuesday Feb, 11
This
morning I packed everything up and said my good byes. It was great to stay with
Dave and meet his roommates, and I will always have a few good friends in Grand
Junction. I took I70 to the 128 to get to Moab. It’s a little further drive but
I highly recommend it to anyone going that way. The drive is beautiful with
lots of rock features and a river snaking its way through canyons. As a joke I
decided I was going to do a hike along this drive. And it was a nice chance to
use my new GPS. So I hiked Negro Bills Canyon. It was a 5 mile hike that takes
you out to Morning Glory Arch. After the hike I drove into Moab and picked up
some food. Then spent most of the night sitting in the lobby of a Best Western
typing.
Wednesday Feb, 12
I woke
up pretty late but made it just in time to snag a breakfast at the best
western. Then I stopped at McDonalds to post a blog. When I was finishing up
with that my uncle Tim called. Turns out he’s doing a mini road trip down to
Florida for about a month. We talked for a bit and had some laughs about it. Then
I drove to the Needles overlook of Canyon Lands. Canyonlands is separated into
3 major parts. Island in the Sky, which is the northern section with some amazing
overlooks. The Needles District, southern area with beautiful hiking through
many canyons. And The Maze, western side with very limited access and hard to
get to. I was at the Needles overlook for about an hour. I meet a couple from
Australia that just came from Aspen. It was amazing to overlook the area that I
will be hiking around in. one of the most beautiful overlooks I can think of. I
drove around into the park. I didn’t have enough time to do the larger hike I
wanted to do but so I decided on a different one. I choose Squaw Canyon, and
hiked around for several hours. This turned out to be one of my favorite hikes.
I made it back to the car just before dark and drove back to Moab. I probably
should have just stayed the night here but I didn’t have a lot to do out in the
middle of nowhere.
Thursday Feb, 13
I slept
late again and drove straight to Needles. I hiked Elephant Canyon all the way
out to Druid Arch. I took the wrong way on the hike out there but had time and
that just meant I got to see more. I was glad not to bring my pack and made me
remember why hiking can be so much fun. The arch itself was huge and very
strangely shaped. I made it back just as it was getting dark. I saw another guy
hiking and I gave him a ride to his camp. He worked over at Arches National
Park and was motorcycle camping. The sunset what incredible and I had to pull
over to take some pictures before leaving the park. My next stop was a hot tub,
after a few days of hiking I was already looking pretty rough. And I knew I won’t
be having a real shower any time soon. After that I made some food and typed up
my plan for hiking the Maze. I emailed it to the family and then drove to Mesa
Arch. I’ve been here before but on clear morning the whole underside of the
arch glows bright orange.
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