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Colorado Passes and Utah Trails 2009
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:18 am ]
Post subject:  Colorado Passes and Utah Trails 2009
After many years of research and planning, I recently completed my "Big Adventure", two weeks of camping and wheeling in Colorado and Utah. We left from Memphis Friday the 21st of August after work and proceeded to drive all night and most of the next day to Green Mountain Falls, CO. We had arranged to stay with friends that night to recover from the drive before hitting the trails. As we neared Colorado, we noticed some funny noises coming from one of the rear brakes and also noticed that it was dragging. We found that the caliper pins for the rear disks were bent and causing the calipers to bind. We were able to fix the issue at the friends house. Sunday morning, we proceeded to the Buena Vista area and ran the Mt. Princeton Trail and then starting up Tincup Pass and camping just below the actual pass at about 11,500 ft ASL. It rained some that night and was pretty cold. We got up at abut 4AM to make a nature call and the clouds had cleared and the stars were out in full force and just amazing.

Top of Mt. Princeton trail
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Campsite on Tincup Pass
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:19 am ]
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The next morning we completed Tincup Pass then headed over Old Cumberland Pass to reach the Alpine Tunnel and then Hancock Pass back to the St. Elmo area. IT rained most of the day and was very chilly. Old Cumberland was pretty rough, but at the top was just awesome. The clouds were covering the top of the mountain and the trail just seemed to go up into them and disappear.After a quick trip to the Alpine Tunnel West Portal, we headed over Hancock Pass (again in the clouds) and then a quick trip up to the Mary Murphy ruins on Pomeroy Lakes trail, and finally down to St. Elmo.

Top of Old Cumberland Pass
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Remains of the Mary Murphy Mine building
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The mountain range on the way to Salida
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:20 am ]
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The next day we drove to Lake City to hit up Engineer Pass and spend some time around Ouray. I must say that as far as scenery goes, this area far out does the Buena Vista area. We had lunch at Poker Alice's and then headed over Engineer Pass, went to Animas Forks, then California Gulch/Pass, Hurricane Pass, and Corkscrew Pass. What an awesome day. As we neared the top of California Pass, the clouds socked us in even though the sun was out. It was a very surreal experience. It was so late in the day, that we did most of Corkscrew in the dark. That really added to the excitement (aka pucker factor) of the trip. We made it into Ouray by about 9:30 that night and set up camp at the Amphitheater campground for the next three nights.

Compromised dam on way to Engineer Pass
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Whitmore falls on way to Engineer Pass
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Thoreau home on Engineer Pass
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Near the top of Engineer Pass
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Me at Oh Point! on Engineer Pass
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Weather moving in heading down Engineer Pass
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Duncan House in Animas Forks
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Trail down from California Pass socked in clouds
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View from somewhere around Hurricane Pass
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:22 am ]
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The next day we tackled Black Bear Pass, Imogene Pass, and Yankee Boy Basin. There was some great scenery as well as some scary situations. Everyone says that the switchbacks on Black Bear are the worst. I thought that the satirs before the switchbacks were worse. I slid down them with minimal control. We had a nice lunch in Telluride after Black Bear, and then headed back over Imogene Pass. We ran Yankee Boy as a side trip as there was still daylight left to burn.

Heading down Black Bear towards the stairs and Telluride
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Just below the stairs and heading towards the tight switchback
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Telluride in the distance
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Airtime on a switchback
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Bridal Veil falls and the old power station
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View from top of Imogene Pass
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Scenic view in Yankee Boy Basin
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Stay tuned for more. I'm still sorting through pictures and posting them.
Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:23 am ]
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The following day we wanted to see in daylight some of what we passed on the way in to Ouray. We went back up Corkscrew, Hurricane, and California passes then ran up Placer and Picayne gulches ending up back in Animas Forks for a look around sans rain. After Animas, we headed back up to Oh! Point on Engineer Pass then back down and over to Eureka gulch. The Sound Democrat mine in Placer gulch was amazing. I thoroughly enjoyed looking around the ruins. The weather was about as perfect as could be. After Eureka, we headed to Silverton. Just as we pulled into town, I noticed a funny noise and a pull to the left. Flat left rear tire. Must of cut it on something. We were able to plug it and head back to Ouray for the night. We had a great dinner at the Outlaw restaurant in Ouray, the peppercorn steak was awesome. This was one of the best days on the trails I have had in a long time. Pics below

Corkscrew Pass in Daylight
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Trail up Hurricane Pass in the distance
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Lake Como from Hurricane Pass
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Me at the top of California Pass
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Sound Democrat Mill in distance
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Old mill or mine ruins in Animas Forks
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Another view from Oh! Point on Engineer Pass
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Me and the KJ in Eureka Gulch
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:23 am ]
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Day six of our trip was spent getting from Ouray to Moab via Gateway and the John Brown Canyon road. What a change in climate. It was hot, real hot, in Moab. There was also a lot of haze from the fires in Utah and California. The haze was worse the next few days.

State line on John Brown road
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First glimpse of the red rocks of Utah
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Nice place to relax (albeit really hot)
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In the Narrows area of Onion Creek road
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:24 am ]
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Day 7 of our trip started with a trip up Long Canyon and then over to the Island in the Sky visitor center for our back country permit for the White Rim and camping at White Crack. We then went down the Shafer trail and headed around the White Rim. We took the side trip down Lathrop Canyon to the Colorado River and had lunch under a nice rock overhang. Lots of great scenery along the way and a lot of rough road under the tires.

We reached White Crack about 5 PM and set up camp. It became mostly cloudy, so we didn't get the great colors on the rocks at sunset. We could see rain in the distance and were keeping an eye on it. I was able to get some wireless connectivity with the Air Card, but it was flakey. The weather radio predicted cloudy skies, but no rain. Sometime around 10, we started to get a few drops of rain and then, out of no where, a very strong wind blew through camp. I am guessing it was in the 40 mph range. We were not prepared for this and our table and chairs went sailing, the tent poles collapsed and the tent filled with red dirt/sand. It was fun. I was able to chase down the tables and chairs and get them secured and, when the wind let up, we were able to get the tent back up. We shook out everything as best we could and hit the sack. It was breezy most of the night with a few strong gusts. When the gusts would start to collapse the poles, I would reach up from inside and hold them up. It made for a long night.

View of Long Canyon
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Poser shot in Long Canyon
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Shafer trail
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It's going to be a long road
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Colorado River at end of Lathrop Canyon
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Interesting rock formations as we neared White Crack
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Our campsite at White Crack
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Rain in the distance
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Me checking the weather
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:24 am ]
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The next morning was pleasant and partly cloudy. We packed up and headed out to complete the White Rim and then head back to Moab via the Potash trail/road. This was a long day of rough road. Murphy's Hogback and Hardscrabble Hill were pretty steep but rewarded with great views. I think I will probably try to camp at Murphy A next time. It had a great view, had rocks and trees for shelter and was just a cool place to camp. As we left out on Mineral Bottom road, we noticed a bunch of old cars buried in the rocks. Anyone know why they are there?

Morning at White Crack
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Descending Murphy Hogback
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Slot Canyon along White Rim
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Ascending Hardscrabble Hill
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Running beside the Green River on the White Rim Trail
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Old cars buried in the rocks
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Leaving Canyonlands on Potash Road
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:25 am ]
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The following day, day 10 of the trip, we spent the entire day in Arches National Park. This is truly an amazingly scenic park. I would love to go back when there isn't so much haze in the air and get some photos at sunset. Below are a few highlight photos.

Morning at the KOA
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Various Arches in the park
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Delicate Arch
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Landscape Arch
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Double Arch
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Park Avenue formation
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Author:  jg45 [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 10:26 am ]
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Our final day in Moab was supposed to be a run up and back on the Top of the World trail and then heading to Monument Valley. We started early and broke camp, loaded u and headed to the Dewey bridge remains. It is a real shame that the bridge was burned. After stopping for some photos at the bridge, we started our way up Top of the World. The trail was rougher than I had expected, but not undoable for my little KJ. I was having a blast and was surprised how easily the KJ walked up the trail.

We were about 200 feet from the end when, all of a sudden, steering became very difficult. The KJ just didn't go where I tried to point it. I was also hearing a tire squealing as we rolled forward. I thought we might have gotten a flat. We got out to inspect and found something a bit more involved. The passenger front upper control arm broke a weld where the tubing connected to the ball joint bung. Fortunately, I had thrown an old OEM arm in the back before we left Memphis as part of my preparations for the trip. We went to work and within about an hour had it replaced and finished the trail. I think the trip down was much worse than the trip up. There is a loop at the top and we took the east side down. There were some huge ledges to drop off and slide down. I bent one of the rock sliders on this section as well as got a rear fender kissed by a tree. In any case, we made it down and spent a night in the Super 8 in Moab after the long and frustrating day.

The next morning we took the KJ to Chips tire for a much needed alignment and a thorough inspection before tackling the long trip home. Everything checked out OK and the trip back was almost without excitement. We headed south for a brief visit to the Needles District and then east from Monticello to get to I-40 by passing through Cortez, CO. Had a great dinner at the Main Street Brewery in Cortez.

The excitement came at about 3 AM somewhere a bit east of Albuquerque NM. As we topped a hill on I-40 we saw a long line of brake lights on the next hill. Traffic had come to a stop due to a pickup rolling over in the median and apparently forcing a FedEx big rig to flop on the right shoulder. We got out to chit chat with those around us and were monitoring the CB listening to the truckers for any updates. While we were waiting, a trucker about 1/4 mile behind us apparently missed the brake lights and slammed into a stopped truck while doing about 55 Mph. This second accident closed all traffic on I-40. Rumor on the radio said they closed west bound so that the air wing could land on the highway. We were fortunate to be in front of this accident and able to get moving after only about 1.5 hours. The rest of the trip home went without incident.

This trip had been a long time in the making. We had a few mechanical issues, but that is what makes the stories interesting. I had a ton of fun and really enjoyed getting to go some places I had read about on this forum so many times. Thanks to all on this forum for their information, pictures, and ideas. This is truly a great resource. Selected pictures below. More pictures can be seen [url="http://thegilmers.com/photogallery/thumbnails.php?album=23"]here[/url].

Remains of the old Dewey bridge
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Some of the fun on Top of the World trail
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Trail breakage
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Trailside repairs in progress
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Hanging out at the Top of the World
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Big ledges coming down
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Newspaper Rock on way to Needles District
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Author:  jeepfrog [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 7:31 pm ]
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Nice report and great pictures! The shots in Utah brought back fond memories of our trip to Moab back in July (talk about HOT!)

Thanks for sharing. :D
Author:  kskj [ Mon Sep 28, 2009 8:44 pm ]
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Great trail report thanks for posting. 8)
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