In July, things were seriously hot in the valleys, so we had to get high–IN ELEVATION. We chose to go to a road called Hell’s Backbone on Boulder Mountain near Escalante & Boulder, Utah. We had been to this area before with Mike’s parents during a previous summer when we had our fifth wheel. It had been an awesome place to camp and to off-road. Although it had been several years since we had been here, we went to the same campsite as we did then. Very little had changed, except that there had been a lightening caused fire on one side of the camp at least one season previous to our visit. It was pretty cool to see the tree that got struck.
Taking a Class A motorhome 6 miles in on a gravel road was a little bit more challenging than our truck and fifth wheel. Especially the Beast because the shocks are toast–basically non-existent. But we did it. We just drove slowly. The entrance into the area we were camping from the road had a rise at the edge of the road due to the road being graded and the angle was weird. But we made it in just barely. Our jacks almost scraped but we were ok–no damage. The campsite was worth the risk. It was gorgeous still. And it was above 9000 feet in elevation. The temperatures were in the high 80s to low 90s during the day and down into the 40s and 50s at night. It was fabulous.
Mike’s parents and their friends came up a little later that day to join us. Mike’s dad’s truck and fifth wheel made it in with no problem at all. He has a long-bed truck. However, the same was not true of their friend’s truck and fifth wheel. They had a short-bed truck and the angle meant that the truck and trailer were coming into contact as the truck dropped over the edge on the road rim and the trailer had not risen yet. They had to back up and we had to dig out the edge of the road to level it off so that they could make it in to the camp spot. They finally did after a bit of digging and leveling. It probably took us about an hour.
This campsite was fabulous. Beginning at the Kaibab I had started a new health routine every morning. I would go for a one hour walk (usually about 3 miles) and then I would come back and do some core strengthening and yoga. I loved the walk in the morning to think and get going and enjoy the beauty of the mountains. I often saw wildlife such as deer and squirrels. This campsite was great for that because I could just walk on the road and no one was around. I was feeling much better with this routine and my clothes were fitting much better. I loved it every morning. It was time to think and enjoy.
We went on several quad/jeep rides while in this area. One of them was to a beautiful lake we had visited before in the Fall, McGath Lake. It is pretty steep to get up to it, but the Jeep made it just fine. It did not disappoint in the summer either.
Another trip we drove the Hell’s Backbone road. There is a really cool place where the CCC, during the depression, built the road and made a bridge across a really rocky, craggy canyon. My father-in-law and his friends went out onto the top of a pinnacle that was on the edge of the canyon. Normally I would do things like that, but I had been experiencing vertigo from time to time and didn’t feel it would be wise to go out there. So I took the pictures.
After driving the entire road, we stopped for lunch in Escalante at Georgie’s Outdoor Mexican Cafe. It was good food.
Another day we drove up past Posey Lake and to a Reservoir that was drying up. There was some water left. We stopped by the dam and my in-laws friends let their dog loose. She is a Retriever and they love water. Before they realized it, she was running to the water. The problem was that the water she ran to was covered in green slim. She had a great romp in the water and came out green and really smelly, so we had to give her a bath. Luckily Mike had felt that he should fill up one of our water jugs at the Posey Lake Picnic area on our way up. Their dog didn’t know why they were making such a big deal of things. But, boy did she stink.
We saw another pristinely beautiful lake that I got some pretty good pictures of and the wildflowers were in bloom everywhere so I have some of those to share with you too.
After exploring much of the mountains, we decided to go do a few things around Escalante. We visited the Escalante Petrified Forest State Park. It was really cool. I would love to come back and explore further on more of the trails. The petrified trees are amazing. We did one of the hikes that went straight up the hill. Because I had been walking every morning, I made it up the hill with very little difficulty. I also ended up running down the trail to the jeep to get hiking sticks and water for my mother-in-law. It was a harder, hotter and more steep hike than anticipated. It was cool that I could basically also run back up the trail. I’m going to have to stay in good shape.
Here are some of the petrified trees we saw.
One another day, we decided to hike to Lower Calf Creek Falls. Mike and I and my in-laws had been there before, but their friends had not. So we hiked it–in July–are we stupid or what. It was blazing hot and the trail was longer than the internet had stated, but we all made it safe and sound. Even the dog. We sat and enjoyed our lunches in the shade and played in the water. Then we headed back. Boy was it hot in mid-afternoon in July in Southern Utah. So hot the dog was burning her feet on the sand, so they had to run from water to shade. Luckily we received some respite from the heat. As we were heading back, clouds started to move in and block the sun, which was a welcome relief. Then, just as we were approaching the parking area, those clouds let loose in a torrential downpour. It felt really good although the drops were so large they stung your skin a little. When we got to the parking lot it was really coming down in sheets and the parking lot was like a stream. It was a really amazing experience of what happens when you get rain in a desert. On the way back to camp we saw flashflood waters running down everywhere and making waterfalls. In some areas it was amazing the volume of water that was coming through. So cool.
That was the end of our adventure to Hell’s Backbone. Mike’s Mom and Dad and their friends went south and we headed north. It was a very nice relaxing eight days with no cell signal. I loved it!!!!