Ravenbyrne
Registered user
Great photo's Jochen, looks like your having a fantastic time
America's South West in 4 weeks
- Thread starter Jockser
- Start date
want to go where the elk burger is please
(RIP) Bin Ridin
Registered user
Well Holey God!
Great report, what an amazing place!
We have a few Arizona-like spots here but nothing on that scale.
Stay safe!
Great report, what an amazing place!
We have a few Arizona-like spots here but nothing on that scale.
Stay safe!
TwiceI hope you enjoyed the steak in the Sequoia Cider Mill restaurant.
Thanks for all the comments guys
I'm cross eyed after spending the evening sorting pics so you'll have to wait a bit longer for the next update.
But it'll be worth it - Day 13 was a biggie with some great pics
Great stuff Jochen
I hope you enjoyed the steak in the Sequoia Cider Mill restaurant.
I remember you did Aidan
superb steak, refried beans and mashed taters....
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(RIP) petcul
Registered user
I remember you did Aidan
Ah, sure that's just a breakfast steak
Tengiz99
Registered user
Anyway. 
Anyway.
Yes Pete. Sorry Pete
By the time we got in last night (completely ignoring Sgt Bilko's advice of finding somewhere early !) we were knackered & I wasn't feeling great - probably a result of 2 nights of red meat after three & a half weeks of stodge
We'd decided to start looking for a bed about 20 miles before our target (Wrightwood) but there was absolutely nothing. So by the time we got there a bit of panic set in & we took rooms in the first place we got to. Oh sweet jaysus, what a kip. I don't mind a bit shabby or 'down at heel' but I expect clean - I wouldn't think anyone has hoovered under the beds in years
(I don't go around checking under beds - I only know cos I was looking for a socket) And the shower was filthy too 
It's the second dirtiest place I've ever stayed in. As you ask, the dirtiest was a 'hotel' in Demnate, Morocco but that was $8 rather than last nights $80.So, if you ever find yourselves in Wrightwood DO NOT stay at the Pines Motel !!
To add insult to injury the wifi only worked if you sat on the steps outside the office. I really couldn't be ar$ed, even for you guys
The others are gone now so I'm just chillin'. I don't have to be anywhere, nobody's waiting for me to lead them somewhere & I've 24 hours before my flight so I'm gonna dedicate myself to catching up here
Back shortly
Day 13 - Silverton, CO to Green River, UT
Today was a big day.
Both in terms of scenery, which was planned. And also in terms of distance, which wasn't.
But hey, who are we to argue with the gods of the road
The Prospector Motel :
We didn't get the earliest start which probably didn't help but who knew what the day had in store for us......
After breakfast Andy insisted on bringing us to see the shrine / statue that the Italian miners had had made in Italy & shipped out before bringing us down a valley to fire off a few shots with his late fathers Luger
The miners' statue :
The view over Silverton :
Once we got outta town we headed north to Ouray on US550. What a road, what views
A bit different in the olden days :
Overlooking Ouray :
We didn't stop but it looked like a nice town :
(there's that damn pinkie again !)
We stopped in Ridgeway for lunch where I had seafood marinated in lemon juice, yum.
Outside Ridgeway there's a place called "God's Rods". These were parked out back, obviously waiting for a new lease of life :
Another 60 miles up Highways 62 & 145 we came to the turnoff to the Gateway Resort. Earache of this parish had posted about it previously & Andy in Silverton also recommended the run up the valley. I had my doubts whether it would be worth a 100 mile round trip but sure, what else would we be doing on a sunny May afternoon.
We did the 50 miles in without a stop & I have to say it was probably the most scenic ride I've ever had. Around every turn was a different view and the road itself was a joy to ride. Any bumpy or damaged road was a PITA on the Wing cos it's suspension isn't great but this was beautifully surfaced with many fast sweeping bends & the odd tighter one thrown in just to keep you on your toes. When we got to the village we discovered that the gas station no longer operates but the nice people in the resort agreed to sell us a couple of gallons each, probably just so we wouldn't hang around
It was now late afternoon & the ride back down showed many of the rock faces in better, softer light which gave them an Australian Outback redness.
I took over 130 pictures on this section alone ! Here's a small sample :
(as usual my 'point & shoot' doesn't do it justice so you'll just have to go & see for yourselves....)
Back west on Hwy 90, which turned into Hwy 46 once we crossed the state line into Utah, we were heading for our overnight accommodation. Originally we'd wanted to stay in Moab but someone advised us it could be busy so we checked online. They weren't joking - all searches threw up places for a couple hundred bucks per room. And we were planning to stay 2 nights. We looked at the map & decided La Sal was our best bet at 30 miles short of Moab. A trawl eventually turned up a place that we could almost afford & that had 3 rooms. It was promptly booked & La Sal waypointed.
Now some of you might know La Sal or have been through there but all we had was a town marked on the map. When I tell you that it consists of some sort of bus / truck repair garage, a general store (both closed at this hour of the evening) & a big cattle feed lot with no sign of other light around the place I'm telling you no word of a lie. It was worse than the 'back of beyond'. Frantic checking of hotel details & Google maps (yes, with hindsight maybe we should have done that when we booked but you know what they say about hindsight, don't you ?) revealed that it was actually in Green River, about 85 miles away A few tetchy moments ensued before common sense prevailed & we all realised we'd no choice but to do the extra miles. I was just glad that navigation was my gig, not accommodation. It was just one of those things...
It was black dark by now & we'd seen numerous deer at the side of the road so we had to take it easy until we got to Hwy 191, the main north / south road. But it still gave Liam a shock when a bear ambled across the road in front of him
A quick fill of gas for the bikes & a McD's for us (we weren't taking a chance on finding something at our destination !) and we were heading north again. A couple of sets of roadworks delayed us further & it was heading towards midnight by the time we got to our hotel. I don't think any of us had trouble sleeping that night.
Good night & thanks for checking in
Today was a big day.
Both in terms of scenery, which was planned. And also in terms of distance, which wasn't.
But hey, who are we to argue with the gods of the road
The Prospector Motel :
We didn't get the earliest start which probably didn't help but who knew what the day had in store for us......
After breakfast Andy insisted on bringing us to see the shrine / statue that the Italian miners had had made in Italy & shipped out before bringing us down a valley to fire off a few shots with his late fathers Luger
The miners' statue :
The view over Silverton :
Once we got outta town we headed north to Ouray on US550. What a road, what views
A bit different in the olden days :
Overlooking Ouray :
We didn't stop but it looked like a nice town :
(there's that damn pinkie again !)
We stopped in Ridgeway for lunch where I had seafood marinated in lemon juice, yum.
Outside Ridgeway there's a place called "God's Rods". These were parked out back, obviously waiting for a new lease of life :
Another 60 miles up Highways 62 & 145 we came to the turnoff to the Gateway Resort. Earache of this parish had posted about it previously & Andy in Silverton also recommended the run up the valley. I had my doubts whether it would be worth a 100 mile round trip but sure, what else would we be doing on a sunny May afternoon.
We did the 50 miles in without a stop & I have to say it was probably the most scenic ride I've ever had. Around every turn was a different view and the road itself was a joy to ride. Any bumpy or damaged road was a PITA on the Wing cos it's suspension isn't great but this was beautifully surfaced with many fast sweeping bends & the odd tighter one thrown in just to keep you on your toes. When we got to the village we discovered that the gas station no longer operates but the nice people in the resort agreed to sell us a couple of gallons each, probably just so we wouldn't hang around
It was now late afternoon & the ride back down showed many of the rock faces in better, softer light which gave them an Australian Outback redness.
I took over 130 pictures on this section alone ! Here's a small
sample :(as usual my 'point & shoot' doesn't do it justice so you'll just have to go & see for yourselves....)
Back west on Hwy 90, which turned into Hwy 46 once we crossed the state line into Utah, we were heading for our overnight accommodation. Originally we'd wanted to stay in Moab but someone advised us it could be busy so we checked online. They weren't joking - all searches threw up places for a couple hundred bucks per room. And we were planning to stay 2 nights. We looked at the map & decided La Sal was our best bet at 30 miles short of Moab. A trawl eventually turned up a place that we could almost afford & that had 3 rooms. It was promptly booked & La Sal waypointed.
Now some of you might know La Sal or have been through there but all we had was a town marked on the map. When I tell you that it consists of some sort of bus / truck repair garage, a general store (both closed at this hour of the evening) & a big cattle feed lot with no sign of other light around the place I'm telling you no word of a lie. It was worse than the 'back of beyond'. Frantic checking of hotel details & Google maps (yes, with hindsight maybe we should have done that when we booked but you know what they say about hindsight, don't you ?) revealed that it was actually in Green River, about 85 miles away
A few tetchy moments ensued before common sense prevailed & we all realised we'd no choice but to do the extra miles. I was just glad that navigation was my gig, not accommodation. It was just one of those things...It was black dark by now & we'd seen numerous deer at the side of the road so we had to take it easy until we got to Hwy 191, the main north / south road. But it still gave Liam a shock when a bear ambled across the road in front of him
A quick fill of gas for the bikes & a McD's for us (we weren't taking a chance on finding something at our destination !) and we were heading north again. A couple of sets of roadworks delayed us further & it was heading towards midnight by the time we got to our hotel. I don't think any of us had trouble sleeping that night.
Good night & thanks for checking in
Day 14 - Green River to Green River, UT
Today it was my turn to fcuk up
My excuse is it was late when I did the route to Arches NP but I blame Mapsource too in that they show our route as 'road' rather than' unpaved road'. Either way we ended up doing over 20 miles of dirt. The first bit was fairly handy, just bits of gravel on hard pack. But then we found the sand Luckily it was only short sections but I've no idea how Liam & Nigel coped with passengers. Once into the park it changed to corrugations / washboard & we thought that was the worst, until we got to the bit of washboard with sand in the corners
What fun that was.....
The way into the park :
Quite scenic though :
Liam & Naomi :
Nigel & Helen with Dave behind :
They're not wrong :
I think Nigel was quite happy to get to the end of the dirt :
See the face ?
The park itself was stunning :
Amazing patterns :
Some flowers :
One of the locals :
Some more of the park :
What the 'ell ??
And, by way of counter balance, I'll finish with an attempt at an arty shot :
Today it was my turn to fcuk up
My excuse is it was late when I did the route to Arches NP but I blame Mapsource too in that they show our route as 'road' rather than' unpaved road'. Either way we ended up doing over 20 miles of dirt. The first bit was fairly handy, just bits of gravel on hard pack. But then we found the sand
Luckily it was only short sections but I've no idea how Liam & Nigel coped with passengers. Once into the park it changed to corrugations / washboard & we thought that was the worst, until we got to the bit of washboard with sand in the corners What fun that was.....
The way into the park :
Quite scenic though :
Liam & Naomi :
Nigel & Helen with Dave behind :
They're not wrong :
I think Nigel was quite happy to get to the end of the dirt :
See the face ?
The park itself was stunning :
Amazing patterns :
Some flowers :
One of the locals :
Some more of the park :
What the 'ell ??
And, by way of counter balance, I'll finish with an attempt at an arty shot :
(RIP) petcul
Registered user
Offroad and art in the one report. My cup runneth over
Still nowhere near the standard you set for pictures
But I'm trying - very tring some would say
Yeah, sorry about that. I'm finding it very difficult to cut down the number of pictures I'm posting & they must seem very repetitive to those reading the posts but I just find some / much of the scenery stunning and, to use a very over used word, "awesome". Actually, 'awe inspiring' would be a better fit.All our cups runneth over
I'll try & exert a bit more self control
I'll try & exert a bit more self control
Don't do that mate, I love seeing pictures of my spiritual home
I fly out next Monday for the first Alaska trip so it's just wetting my appetite.
Fair enough. Just thought I was over doing it a bit.Don't do that mate, I love seeing pictures of my spiritual home
Lucky you ! Enjoy it ChrisSgt Bilco said:I fly out next Monday for the first Alaska trip so it's just wetting my appetite.
I'll be awaiting the RR
Day 15 - Green River, UT to Blanding, UT
This morning, after our free brekkie of either cereal, one slice of french toast or 2 of ordinary toast, we set off south to do Canyonlands NP & Dear Horse Point State Park. Back along Interstate 70 & down through the roadworks on Hwy 191 we eventually got to the turn-off. As there was food available in Dead Horse we decided to pass that turn & do Canyonlands first & return to Dead Horse for lunch.
The gang, ready for the off from Green River :
The main vehicle accessable part of Canyonlands lies between the Colorado & Green rivers with the confluence of these just south of the 'Island in the Sky' part of the park.
Stunning views all around :
Upheaval Dome :
Grand View Point Lookout ::
Buck Canyon Overlook :
This :
Leads onto this :
Which is part of this :
It's the Schafer Trail which leads under Dead Horse Point & along the Colorado River. And you can ride it, just not on a Wing
Looks a really cool trail
This guy was down from Alaska. Obviously hadn't heard it's summer in Utah
Then it was on to Dead Horse, so called because some cowboys rounded up a huge herd of wild horses & drove them through a narrow neck & corralled them on the point. They selected the best horses & left the rest, fenced in, to die on the waterless point
But it's a beautiful spot none the less, overlooking the Colorado River :
The bright blue bits are a salt (IIRC, could be potash either ?) extraction plant. They use blue dye to speed up the evaporation process. Looks a bit 'flash' doesn't it ?
That's it for now. Gotta sh1t, shower & shave before heading to the airport.
Stay tooned......
This morning, after our free brekkie of either cereal, one slice of french toast or 2 of ordinary toast, we set off south to do Canyonlands NP & Dear Horse Point State Park. Back along Interstate 70 & down through the roadworks on Hwy 191 we eventually got to the turn-off. As there was food available in Dead Horse we decided to pass that turn & do Canyonlands first & return to Dead Horse for lunch.
The gang, ready for the off from Green River :
The main vehicle accessable part of Canyonlands lies between the Colorado & Green rivers with the confluence of these just south of the 'Island in the Sky' part of the park.
Stunning views all around :
Upheaval Dome :
Grand View Point Lookout ::
Buck Canyon Overlook :
This :
Leads onto this :
Which is part of this :
It's the Schafer Trail which leads under Dead Horse Point & along the Colorado River. And you can ride it, just not on a Wing
Looks a really cool trail
This guy was down from Alaska. Obviously hadn't heard it's summer in Utah
Then it was on to Dead Horse, so called because some cowboys rounded up a huge herd of wild horses & drove them through a narrow neck & corralled them on the point. They selected the best horses & left the rest, fenced in, to die on the waterless point
But it's a beautiful spot none the less, overlooking the Colorado River :
The bright blue bits are a salt (IIRC, could be potash either ?) extraction plant. They use blue dye to speed up the evaporation process. Looks a bit 'flash' doesn't it ?
That's it for now. Gotta sh1t, shower & shave before heading to the airport.
Stay tooned......
OMG
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