Another Moab Trip

I never get tired of going to Moab, but the drive gets worse each time. I want to live a car-free existence. That will be another post.

This time we picked up my dear friend and former colleague, Mizz Amy Schwarts, better known to the masses as Schwartzy, from the Salt Lake airport. It had been a while since we hung out. In fact our last trip together was four years ago during spring break when I picked her up in Salt Lake and we headed down to mountain bike in St. George and Zion. The weather turned on us after only a few days and we finally retreated to a youth hostel (don't laugh) in Salt Lake after having woken up to our tent straining under the weight of freshly fallen snow. At that time we were positive that we should have gone to Moab, since it would surely be warmer.

It was not warmer...............

Well, for the first few days it was seasonably mild and we got to ride some new trails we had never tried out before. The best ride was called the Klondike Cliffs Trail which was about 15 miles north of Moab. It was an out and back that was technical enough to be challenging for Owen and Amy. The out portion is a gradual grind that climbs about 800 feet in less than five miles. The trail starts out as a rough double track with some technical-ish rocky sections and followed by a 2 1/2 mile section of slick rock (Kayeta Sandstone) with dinosaur footprints fossilized along the way.

Before turning around and bombing back down hill there is a short section of single track that takes you to the edge of Arches National Park. The view at the end of the single track is the photo at the beginning of this post.

As soon as the really cold weather arrived so did our friends from Victor, Grace, Antonina and Sasha. Grace did not take my warning of possible cold weather to heart and arrived with two light weight sleeping bags for three people. She has absolutely no fat on her and thus very nearly froze to death. Upon my departure I gifted her two extra sleeping bags since I would not be needing them in Telluride and she would be staying in Moab for two more nights. What are friends for?

San Juan Hut to Hut Trip

Durango to Moab, 215 miles, 26,000 vertical feet of climbing..yeeha!
june 21-27, 2007

http://www.sanjuanhuts.com/
This was the third time I've cycled the San Juan Huts system. The first time, in 1998, was the Ladies Trip and we rode the Telluride to Moab route. The second time, the same route in 2003, was with a friend from NH and we shared the huts with 3 twentysomething boys from California. They were a hoot.

This time was the best and the most difficult. I did the Durango to Moab route with my husband, dad, sister and brother-in-law. The trip was a 10 yr anniversary celebration for my husband and me. Not so romantic but way fun. My dad was amazing. After 4-5 strenuous hours on the bike he insisted on making the dinner each evening. Who were we to argue? Did I mention he is almost 70 yrs old? Did I mention he carried enough gear for a 3 week trip in mid-winter, ON HIS BACK.


Many people have written of their SJH adventures so I will not give a day by day report. For lots of info go the the SJH website or google the subject to read individual accounts of the trials and tribulations. The best reads come from those poor souls who booked trips in September and got caught in nasty weather, unprepared. There is always nasty weather in September. Be prepared. Physically, of course but more importantly, mentally. Seven days of slogging through sleet and muck and pushing a mud-laden bike up 26,000 feet of mountains must certainly be a mind fuck. No thanks. I choose to go in the height of summer. I am wise.