MOAB UTAH TO GRAND JUNCTION COLORADO & THE RIG RAN PERFECT

THIS IS A NORMAL EYE’S VIEW OF THE CANYON FLOOR BELOW THE VIEWPOINT…NOTICE THE CAMPERS AT PHOTO’S CENTER

THIS IS A 300mm TELEPHOTO SHOT OF THE SAME SCENE SECONDS LATER

Our time spent in the Moab area was way shorter than we had planned but due to the problem with our rig we had to move on to a repair facility in Grand Junction Colorado some 140 miles to the east.  Up at 7 & on the road by 7:30.  Kelly followed in the Jeep with Pheebs & I out front with the Motorhome.  And the motorhome could not have run better.  No problems on the grades heading for Moab other than the normal slowing down a bit.  The rig was acting like a wild Mustang horse just wanting to run as fast as the wind.  Moab was no problem & traffic was light.  After effortlessly topping the long medium grade north of Moab I pulled over & we hooked the Jeep back up.

SAID GOOD-BYE TO OUR BOONDOCKING SPOT & BOVINE FRIENDS THIS MORNING

We had a fine sunny morning going on as we headed north on 191 then east on I-70.  The rig handled all the grades without so much as a hint of trouble.  Engine running fine & the big Allison transmission downshifting at the correct times going up I-70’s grades.  It is indeed a perplexing problem as to what has caused our 3 ‘low power’ times each one on a steep grade.  Our ‘check engine’ light is still on & hopefully the people at Bear Auto can shed some light on what could possibly be wrong.  I thank everyone for their input.

NORTHBOUND ON HIGHWAY 191 FOR MOAB UTAH

HEADING EAST ON I-70

ROLLING ALONG BESIDE THE COLORADO RIVER WEST OF GRAND JUNCTION COLORADO

Stopped at McD’s in Fruita for breakfast & coffee.  Picked up a little fuel but not too much.  Do not want to drag a full load of fuel over the mountains sometime in the next few days.  We rolled into Grand Junction at 11:25 & found Bear Auto in the south end of town about 15 minutes later.  Pulled into the recommended dirt parking lot but realized right away it was not somewhere we wanted to spend the night.  Sandwiched between double lane Pitkin Ave. & a major set of railway tracks the noise level alone was deterring.  Out with the computers & looked for a nearby RV Park.  We know KOA’s are expensive but we found one on highway 50 about 4 miles south of Bear Auto’s location in Grand Rapids & decided to blow the budget for one night.  Need to dump tanks & take on a bit of water anyway.

WE CERTAINLY DIDN’T LIKE THE LOOKS NOR THE NOISE OF THE GRAVEL PARKING LOT

 

FOLLOWING KELLY AS WE HEAD FOR THE KOA CAMPGROUND WITH PHEEBS KEEPING A CLOSE EYE ON THE JEEP MAKING SURE IT DOESN’T GET LOST ALONG THE WAY

Fortunately the Park was not slide to slide full & we did end up in a pull-thru spot with nobody beside us.  And yes it is nice to have water, electric, & sewer at one’s site plus cable TV if we opted to use it which we didn’t.   

OUR SPOT FOR THE NIGHT AT A KOA CAMPGROUND

A couple days, a couple weeks, not even a couple months is enough time to explore all there is to see & do here on the eastern side of Utah.  It would take a lifetime of wandering & exploring to take in this whole western America experience.  The more one see’s the more one knows what they will never see.  It is a vast land & still a wild untamed country for the most part out here in the mountains & deserts.  Following in the footsteps of our ancestors can still be done as one explores up hidden canyons, walks upon tall Mesas, & wanders through green deserts leading to rocky mountain trails.

We again experienced a touch of that unending vastness Monday afternoon when we turned off highway 191 south of Moab & headed 22 miles west along road 133.  I had often seen the Needles Overlook marked on maps & my Utah Atlas over the years & Monday I was finally able to stand on a range of tall cliff tops overlooking Canyonlands National Park from the Needles Overlook itself.  The view for as far as one’s eye can see brings home the true incomprehendable vastness of a land that stretches beyond the borders of forever.

   

The drive along paved road 133 is scenic in itself but what road here in the great southwest isn’t.  Had a high thin cloud cover over us so colors were muted a bit but no matter.  Even a rainy day is pleasing to the eye in this land. 

THIS SCENE IS BUT A VERY SMALL PORTION OF CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK

 

NICE TO SEE A SAFETY FENCE & A WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE SIDEWALK TO A VIEWPOINT

 

As one walks from the parking lot at Needless Overlook an immense panoramic scene begins to unfold ahead.

 

 

WE WERE IN THIS AREA OF CANYONLANDS MONDAY 

 

TELEPHOTO VIEWS OF THE COLORADO RIVER MILES AWAY

PROBABLY 20 MILES ACROSS THE HAZY CANYON ARE THE NEEDLES

CANYONLANDS NATIONAL PARK is so large my photos only cover a fraction of how big this park really is.  Next time in the area we will tour the north end of the Park which is reachable from Moab via highway 313.

CAN YOU SEE THE OLD ROCK MAN’S FACE AT LEFT TALKING WITH A LARGE MORAY EEL AT RIGHT??

 

ONLY ABOUT A HALF DOZEN PEOPLE HERE & WHEN WE LEFT THERE WAS NO ONE

CAN YOU SEE THE STONE TORTOISE ON THE LEFT & THE BIG STONE FROG ON THE RIGHT

AND THIS LITTLE LIZARD FELLOW JUST HAPPENS TO BE REAL

Our thoughts & attention are now turning eastward & we’ve been checking weather conditions & temperatures between Denver & home.  Haven’t decided which way we’ll head east yet either or for that matter which route we’ll take through the mountains once we leave Grand Junction.  Best weather is behind us now so we’ll have to play the rest of our journey by ear.  In other words we don’t know where we’re going next & that’s almost always sometimes Okay.

 

A COOL SHADY PLACE ON A HOT SUMMER UTAH DAY

  

 A GOOD PLACE TO SIT ON A RAINY DAY

HEADING BACK TO THE RIG WE SAW……………………….

CAN YOU SEE THE CANYON’S LARGE EYE LOOKING BACK AT YOU ?? >>>

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A pediatrician in town always plays a game with some of his young patients to put them at ease and test their knowledge of body parts.  One day, while pointing to a little boy's ear, the doctor asked him, "Is this your nose?"  Immediately the little boy turned to his mother and said, "Mom, I think we'd better find a new doctor!"

---

One night at the dinner table, the wife commented, "When we were first married, you took the small piece of steak and gave me the larger. Now you take the large one and leave me the smaller. You don't love me any more..."
"Nonsense, darling," replied the husband, "you just cook better now."

 

 

 

IN SEARCH OF A PLACE CALLED GEMINI BRIDGES

We had a lot of ground to cover today so we were into the Jeep early & headed to Moab with the heater on full on.  Time was 7:25 a.m. & the Jeep’s outside thermometer said it was 33F.  We went from freezing our Tooshes’ off to Hawaiian temperatures in a matter of minutes.  Noticed we are going to have a couple hefty long grades to get over Wednesday morning on our way to Moab.  Too help out Kelly will drive the Jeep separately to north of Moab where we’ll hook it back up to the rig before heading off to our early Thursday morning garage appointment in Grand Junction Colorado. 

ALWAYS HAVE TO AWARE OF THE LOCALS OUT HERE IN THE WEST

Even at the time of morning we drove through Moab it was busy so we just motored right on through & out the other side.  Somebody, & I can’t remember who, told us recently of a great Jeep road making a big loop around the northwestern side of Moab.  I remembered the west end of the dirt road section was out around Dead Horst Point State Park so that is where we headed.

ONE OF THE JEEP ROADS WE FOLLOWED THIS MORNING SUDDENLY DISAPPEARED STEEPLY DOWN INTO THIS DEEP NARROW CANYON

<<< PHEEBS & I WALKED A SHORT DISTANCE DOWN THE ROAD TO SEE IF IT WAS DOABLE

Took us a bit of looking & a couple trips down 2 dead end dusty back roads with one leading into a blind canyon & the other to an oil drilling operation but that’s Okay because that is what makes for adventurous drives.  Especially the blind canyon road which we opted not to follow any further.

 

AFTER MAKING A U-TURN AT THAT YELLOW SIGN IN UPPER LEFT WE MADE OUR WAY BACK OUT OF THE CANYON & I STOPPED UP TOP & WALKED OVER TO THE EDGE TO SEE IF I COULD SEE WHERE THE ROAD WENT

NOPE, THE ROAD DISAPPEARED & I COULD SEE NO SIGN OF IT FURTHER DOWN THE CANYON

On highway 313 I remembered passing a road called Gemini Bridges & figured that must have been the one these folks took so we backtracked a bit & got ourselves onto the right road which has the number 118.  Only thing not on our side today was the weather.  Had a high thin cloud cover so the landscape colors were not popping however for photography purposes it was actually better lighting than bright contrasty sunlight in many ways.

ANOTHER DEAD END ROAD LED US TO THIS OIL DRILLING OPERATION

A lot of tent camping spots in the area we traveled through with one road having the name, ‘Metal Masher.’  Dirt Bikes & ATV’s suggesting maybe a younger crowd.  We finally made it to a sign pointing up a short road to Gemini Bridges so in we went & shut er down for a leg stretch.  We had no idea what Gemini Bridges was until we read a reader board & I decided to take a short walk to what appeared to be the rim of a large canyon.  Kelly stayed with Pheebs & put her on a leash.

A VERY LARGE & DANGEROUS HOLE IN THE ROCK

 

THESE ARE THE 2 GEMINI BRIDGES ACROSS THE CHASMS BELOW

Heard a gaggle of people coming along the trail ahead of me & had to dodge behind a big rock until they passed.  It’s nature I want to see, not people.  Didn’t take me long to come across a most amazing spot.  Two large openings in the rock with drops of a couple hundred feet to the bottom of each one.  Two miniature canyons which reminded me of a much smaller version of Canyon De Chelly.  It was immediately apparent this was a very dangerous area as the hard rock surface gently sloped down to the canyon rim.  On a rainy day someone with ordinary walking shoes could easily slip on this rock then roll the short few feet & topple over the canyon’s rim.  The fall would be fatal.  It even gave me Goose bumps as I carefully edged up to the rim for a few photos.

LOOKING OVER THE EDGE INTO THE CANYON BELOW

 

 

ONE SURE HAS TO PAY ATTENTION TO WHERE ONE IS WALKING HERE

Two narrow rock formations ran between these 2 small but deep canyons & I could see right away where the name Gemini came from.  Anyone familiar with the night sky knows of the constellation Gemini.  The constellation consists of 2 stars, Castor & Pollux.  In the natural rock bridge over the canyon below there was a narrow opening in the center which in effect made it 2 bridges across.  A really cool beans place for sure & I took me a bunch of photos of course. 

  

It was while taking my photos I noticed a bronze plaque imbedded right into the side of a large boulder.  It was dedicated to someone who had died at this spot.  Not surprising when you can see how anyone or any animal could so easily fall over the sloping rims of these two small deep canyons.   I also did see 2 locations where metal pins were anchored into the rock & I am assuming they are anchors for people repelling down into the canyons for whatever reason.

I was soon back to the parking lot where Pheebs & Kelly were waiting & we resumed our trek east on the Jeep road.  A sign warned of a rough road ahead & suggested 4 wheel drive vehicles with high clearance.  Up to the Gemini Bridges point the road had been relatively tame but that soon changed as we began getting into the good stuff.  Bone jarring ruts, tight corners, short sharp grades up & down with lots of dust to boot.  However, the main troublesome thing on the road was nothing Mother Nature offered but what the human factor had to offer.  Young kids on dirt bikes coming the other way driving waaaaay too fast.  Met a lot of ATV’s.  Some with responsible driver’s & others once again driving carelessly & going way too fast.

 

 

Lots of great scenery along the way & as we approached the eastern side of the ride the road kinda tamed down again & I thought that was about it & we’d be at highway 191 shortly.  Well we got to highway 191 alright but road 118 had saved the best for last & that became very evident as we began ascending a steep dusty dirt road climbing up the side of a cliff face.  This Jeep ride got very exciting very quickly & from the gasps & sighs coming from the passenger seat I knew it was going to be a nail biter.

WE BEGIN CLIMBING A POWDERY DIRT ROAD WITH STEEP DROP-OFFS ALL THE WAY ON THE PASSENGER SIDE

 

HEAVY TRAFFIC COMING THE OTHER WAY

Like I have said before, narrow mountain roads are much easier for the driver of a vehicle than it is for the passenger.  The driver is in control & knows what he is doing but a passenger is totally at the mercy of not knowing what the driver is doing or thinking.   Today climbing that narrow road up the mountain Kelly was on the cliff side & that just makes things even more scary.  This steep road with it’s tight blind corners in many places is not wide enough for two vehicles to pass so it’s up to the discretion of the two opposing drivers who can back up easily & safely enough.  Luckily I got my back-up license many many years ago & am totally comfortable doing it so I never hesitate to back up & give the other guy the right away.

KELLY HAS A TIGHT GRIP ON THE JEEP

 

THAT JEEP’S CLINGING TO THE INSIDE

 

A BIG ‘THANKS FOR PULLING OVER’ WAVE FROM A FELLOW JEEPER

‘OH NO’ WHERE DID MY PASSENGER GO????

We could finally see traffic far below moving along highway 191 & after a number of pull-overs to let other folks get by we finally found our way bumping down the other side of the long mountain grade.  If one does not have a fear of heights I would recommend this great Jeep drive for anyone & for anyone wanting to get their adrenalin pumping in a hurry I would suggest you do this road from east to west meaning exit off highway 191 north of Moab onto road 118 & begin your journey from there.  Neat-O:))

 

LARGE PARKING AREA FOR OFF-LOADING ATV’S, DIRT BIKES ETC AT THE JUNCTION OF HIGHWAY 191 & ROAD 118

AND WE EVEN MANAGED TO STOP & PHOTO SOME FLOWERS ALONG THE WAY

With a quick stop in Moab at Burger King for a couple Whoppers & 2 coffee’s to go from McD’s next door we were soon southbound for our rig about 30 miles south of Moab.  We had planned to drive out to Needles Overlook as well but we were both so tired we just said the heck with it………….and then we darn well went anyway & I’m sure glad we did.  I hope to post my NEEDLES OVERLOOK photos in tomorrow night’s blog. 

I think it was after 3 sometime when we finally made it back to the rig.  It was a long day but it was a good day & day trips like that into new areas seeing new things is always one of my favorite things to do.  With another 145 photos to edit & a blog to write there was no resting up & I got right at it.  Sure beats sitting around doing nothing:))

MANTI LA SAL MOUNTAINS JUST NORTH OF US TOWARDS MOAB

GROANER’S CORNER:))   A boy, who was a witness in court, was asked by a lawyer: "Did anyone tell you what to say in court?"  "Yes, sir."  "I thought so! Who was it?"  "My father, sir."  "And what did he tell you?"  "He said the lawyers would try to get me all tangled up, but if I stuck to the truth, I would be all right."