Skip to main content

Day 48 - Dead Horse Point

Cowboys used to corral horses beyond the narrow neck of this high point overlooking the Colorado River.  They would then fence them in and when they returned take the strongest horses and leave the weaker ones to die without water at this to-be-named Dead Horse Point State Park. Terrible name and story, great views. 

500 feet higher in elevation than the just-across-the-canyon Canyonlands Island in the Sky, Dead Horse Point does have a must-see view of the mighty Colorado and vast canyons behind. I arrived mid-afternoon and hiked the east rim trail a mile and a half to the far point, meandered along the west rim a bit and then hiked back along the road. 

Knowing sunset time was special in this canyon country, I decided to wait a bit for the sun to fall. I drove this time to the far point, then walked around in search of the best vantage point. 

Before the sun actually set, I drove on, first to a full closeby campground and then on an hour to Moab, to the campground from the prior days. Surprised that this 128 unit campground was full and disappointed as it was definitely dark, I pulled up a free campsite location on GPS down the highway outside of town and drove. I arrived at this dirt open space just off the highway, just before a gate leading to an off-road track. I didn't love the spot as it was exposed and near the highway, but it would have to do for the night.






Labels:

Comments

  1. @estheribrownMay 12, 2015 at 5:28 AM

    Not sure if my last comment posted --- just wanted to say I love these photos and am inspired by your adventures!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LeeMay 20, 2015 at 4:09 PM

      Hey Esther- yes, comment received! I'm glad you enjoy the blog. I remember you said you had a things for small spaces living- a passenger van fits that bill!

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day 170 - JMT Forrester Pass

The mountains had a surreal glow this morning as we climbed up towards the 13,200 foot high Forrester Pass.  One of the wonderful things about the mountains is that they change appearance as the sun changes height, creating a movie-like experience as you walk. I felt so free and happy this morning--just in love with this light.  After sixty minutes of walking, we stopped in the first sunny spot we could find to thaw out and rest. Another hiker came bustling up the trail behind us and stopped at the sunspot to shed a layer of clothing. Sly was a Canadian hiker, just turned 40, who seemed happy to see us. We struck up a conversation about travels and when we pushed off Sly asked if he could join us. We said yes of course. We hiked quickly up the trail, reaching a high plateau with epic alpine views. Selfie time! We skirted around a high alpine lake and then went up a ridge line ever further higher. We were at 12,000+ feet now and the world began to look small y...
1 comment
Read more

Day 62 - Colorado National Monument

Established as a national monument early in 1911, Colorado NM is known for its high canyon "rim road" and sandstone spires of Monument Canyon.  The canyons of west Colorado are pretty--as they have more green trees and shrubs than the more famous Utah canyons. This gives them a more alive feeling, although the sandstone spires were formed many thousands of years ago by erosion.  Rim Rock road curves up the the top of the canyon cliff, goes through several round tunnels and is lined with scenic viewpoints. The best views were in he Monument Canyon section, and included in sequence, the Coke Ovens, The Kissing Couple (behind my head), and the most famous of all: Independence Monument, the tall spire in pic 3 and viewed from the side in pic 4.  The original promoter and caretaker of the park, John Otto, was the first person to climb Independence Monument and now it's a climbing right of passage. Every July 4 climbers ascend and mount an American flag at the summit. Fun! ...
2 comments
Read more

Day 82 - Yellowstone to Montana

My alarm sounded at 5:30am, a time early enough for me to arise before someone found me secretly camping. The geyser prediction said Grand at 6:15am so I set out toward it.  I ran into geyser gazer Jim there and he said it likely erupted at 4:30-- missed it. Early morning eruptions are hard to predict as someone needed to have seen the previous overnight eruption in order to make a prediction. I walked on toward Artemesia, an unpredictable geyser at the far corner of the basin. I had seen her erupt from a mile away and wanted a closer inspection. The early morning setting was momentous, yet I didn't see a geyser erupt up close until Grand at 10:30.  Then Sawmill erupted with its twirling thirty foot action (pic).   The only remaining geyser left to experience on my mental list was Beehive up close. With a predicted window of 810 to 1210, I arrived at 1030 and waited until 1pm, before giving up. The sun was hot, I had read the geyser book cover to cover, and while seeing e...
Post a Comment
Read more