[Dean]

I had a chance to spend 8 days in Utah the first week of this month and it was an incredible experience. I had a chance to climb about 11 peaks ranging from one north of Logan to peaks in the La Sals and a finish in the Uintas. Did the sightseeing thing in Natural Bridges Nat'l Monument, Capitol Reef and Arches Nat'l Parks. A real highlight was the drive down the Burr Trail from Boulder to the Waterpocket fold of Capitol Reef. There is no way I can detail everything we did but from the Aquarius Plateau to Hell's Backbone, it never got boring. The colors, the dirt roads that required high clearance and the two guys I went with made this an unforgettable trip.

Looking Northeast from the end of the Burr Trail toward the Henry Mtns

Walking along the roof of the Henry's. Mt. Ellen is at the end of the snow

Mt. Peale, king of the La Sals was a nice climb. We went up the snow couloir to the left and then up

After climbing Mt. Peale and Mt. Waas, we spent some time in Arches.

This is the famous double arch that was in the third Indiana Jones movie

[Tazz]

11 peaks nice!! great pics. Makes me want to go right now. We usually go in Feb or March when it isn't so hot. thanks for the TR

[Eric]

Nice pics. First time we drove that road it was at night and we spent all our time worrying that we were gonna run out of gas in the middle of nowhere and then finally we made it to safety in Tropic. The second time I was out there in the daylight I was amazed at how we had driven this road and hadn't had a clue about what the sheer dropoffs and surrounding scenery were because it was all pitch black. Southern Utah is great, it's like Mars but with a slightly shorter drive. Winter is a great time to go down there. No heat, limited crowds, the snow is more of a dusting then deep slogginess in many places due to the light precipitation and low humidity and such. I can think of worse places to be than Bryce Canyon in Wintertime

[Dean]

thanks for your comments. I posted a page on Mt. Ellen at summitpost along with more pics so if you are members of SP, please check this neat area out. Im in the process of replacing all my attached pics with ones like this:

Large arch from Natural Bridges National Monument

Landscape arch in Arches National Park. Even 105 degree temps didn't stop the tourons from making their way to see this one amazing arch.

[Tazz]

thanks CH I have been to utah many times but have not hiked in the Lasals just drove through. Now I will have to climb there after seeing the pics and the page. nice mountain page! did you get to Fisher Towers?

[Dean]

Never saw the Fisher Towers but my son in law pointed to where they were at. Here are some neat towers that were visible both from Mt. Waas and from the Castle Valley Road. BTW, all the pics on this thread will be deleted and linked to a Fototime album as soon as I find the time to do so. Right now I'm heading to Leavenworth, time to do the Enchantment traverse. I'll be in the 8 mile campground this evening (white Caravan), anyone who'd like to join in is welcome.

From Mt. Waas's summit, looking down on the Castle Valley and Arches area.

[ActionBetty]

Sweet Dean! 11 peaks in 8 days I have yet to go to Utah..so many states to visit out here.. which one do I pick next

[kiliki]

Pick Utah next! Cascade Hiker-did they pave the Burr Trail? Last time I was there I heard the county was was going to to increase tourism.

[Dean]

Kiliki: Over half of the Burr trail is paved, the first 26 miles. The remainder is dirt. (where it enters Capitol Reef Nat'l Park)

[Stones]

Awesome! Utah is beautiful place with countless places to explore. Which peaks did you climb in the Uintas? I climbed Mt. Emmons, at 13,440' the second highest in Utah, during a 10 day backpacking trip there in 1976. We never quite made it to Kings Peak, a disappointment. I love the Uintas and that Precambrian red sandstone and biscuit-board topography. The terrain is very user-friendly with most peaks being walk-ups - not to mention spectacular scenery and many trout-filled lakes.

[polarbear]

Nice pictures Stones. I did this hike through the Natural Bridges several years ago. I hiked the trail that connects the 3 or 4 main bridges. I remember startling some deer there in the brush. I took this reflection picture in a puddle.

[Dean]

Polarbear, that is an amazing picture.

[Dean]

Eric:

[Eric]

Yeah, running out of gas is not much fun I would imagine. Even I-80 West of SLC and much of I-70 between Grand Junction CO and I-15 have very limited services although more so than a decade ago. I can't take credit for that pic, that's just something I quickly googled. Unfortunately I haven't been able to make it back to Southern Utah yet during my digital years so I only have old 4x6s offline for that area. But someday I'll be back there in the winter, and during spring or fall too I hope.