Day 71 - Central Wyoming to Grand Teton

My first stop this morning was to the site of a massive bug attack in the 90s hit movie Starship Troopers. This brutal terrain, nick-named Hells Half Acre, is interesting geologically but is not accessible, hidden behind a tall fence. Since I couldnt hike down I took some pics and drove on to my second destination.

Twenty dirt road miles off the highway, Castle Gardens, is another pretty but inaccessible geological feature, known for its pictographs. Accessibility is important to natural sites and we are darn lucky in the US to have so many incredible sites made accessible by paved roads. Castle Gardens was a bit disappointing visually but the pictographs were fun.

My third Central Wyoming stop was Boysen Reservoir, a lake created when the Wind River was damned in our great dam everything period fifty years ago. The lake was peaceful and scenic with the Wind River Mountains in the background, but the Wind River flowing north of the dam was even nicer.

As I continued west the mountains started to rise and the road began to bend: I was entering the Bridger-Teton and Shoshone National Forests outside of Grand Teton. As I crossed the mountain and began down the other side the impressive Tetons came into view. The tectonic plate below the Tetons pushed the mountains up and the valley down, creating a tall mountain range without any foothills, and creating the awesome view. I drove into Grand Teton, taking photos along the way, and enjoying the views from the Jackson Lake Lodge. I then retreated back east out of the park to the National Forest boundary to a campsite high on a ridge.

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Day 41 - Escalante Coyote Gulch

This one or two night Coyote Gulch hike was an easy test of my newly learned navigation skills. Anxious to get started I awoke at 545 just as the sun was rising. I followed an obvious landmark, a tall thin spire called Chimney Rock, northwest to Hurricane Wash (a drainage running into Coyote Gulch). After a couple of hours of walking up over and around slick rock, I entered the famous Coyote Gulch. The walls around me raised up, darkened and th water flow increased--like nature hinting at the scenic beauty ahead. The normally crowded Coyote Gulch was fairly empty on this early Thursday morning, giving the canyon a very peaceful and quiet feeling-- fragile almost. Down steam, I ran into the famous Jacob Hamilton Arch and then thirty minutes further-- the Coyote Natural Birdge. Both were beautiful due to their see through the wall character, but both would be overshadowed in my memory by the Stevens Arch tomorrow. Pics. By 1pm, I had hiked for six hours...

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! ...

Day 57 - Rocky Mountain National Park

Ever since I decided to go west for my big trip, I had dreamed of high mountain lakes with snowy peaks arching in every direction, with chilly air making every moment crisp, and with clear skies bringing all into perfect focus-- pure bliss. Today was the first of many great mountain lake days to come. Hiking here was far easier here than in the San Juans because the snow was packed down on the trail, but I brought my mini crampons for the downhill. I made it safely past a narrow ridge with narly black peaks across the gorge (pic 1), then up to Mills Lake (pic 2) then Jewel Lake then the Loch (pic 3) then down before the afternoon rain started falling. I hiked around some lower, more accessible lakes but the sky was now overcast and pictures no good. I drove up the open portion of the Ridge road amid a very light dusting of snow before heading back to camp for dinner and bedtime. I did manage to capture some fine Elk grazing in a meadows on the return trip and a g...

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