Day 2
Superbowl Campground BLM Indian Creek Recreation Area Monticello, Utah
Yesterday, we were able to obtain a permit for the Elephant Hill 4WD Trail. Permits are limited to 25 vehicles each day. This helps to protect the fragile environment and keep the trails safe. The ranger asked us a bunch of questions so that he was sure that we were able to handle this level of driving. He asked Tim if we had a self-rescue plan? Tim was thinking… “I’m riding with a nurse…” What the ranger wanted to know was whether or not we had a winch so that if we got hung up or stuck, we could pull ourselves out…YES, we have a winch! Only modified Jeeps are suitable on this particular trail. It is listed as one of the most challenging 4×4 trails in Utah. The ranger also asked for an emergency contact. As I gave him Kyle’s number, I wondered what we were getting ourselves into and I really hoped they would never have to call Kyle.
The beginning of this trail was a serious test. If you can’t get up and over the hill…you don’t belong here. It is steep, there are stair steps, and there are lots of immovable, very large boulders in the path of the Jeep. There is lots of rock crawling. There are caves, cliffs, tight switchbacks, and narrow passageways. There is lots of precariously balanced rock. It was equal parts terrifying and thrilling. In the beginning, tensions were a little high. Though it was hard, it was not impassable and with a careful, slow, and steady approach, we made it just fine.
Here, we had to back down the steep switchback on a narrow ledge…I was down below spotting…a little nerve-wracking!
The payoff for all this tedious and difficult driving is amazing. We had the rare privilege to be in this rugged and remote place. We are not separated from it by distance on an overlook, observing from high above. We are really immersed in the terrain and a part of it. There are no tour buses, no tour guides…it’s just us seeing this in its most pure form…in the raw. From the tops of the mesas and back down again into the canyons below, and then to climb back out again…it is exhilarating and beautiful.
Our breakfast spot.
Through the grabens or vertical blocks of rock separated by a rift, usually on a fault line.
And on the other side…
Another Jeep behind us…a four door. Because our wheel base is so much shorter, we were able to drive down the steep slope. This Jeep had to back down.
Here is was easy to imagine how ancient people would have seen and experienced this harsh place. The reality is that there has been little change in the vegetation and rock formations in this canyon for thousands of years.
A short time later, we found evidence that people really lived here. There was an archeological site with pictographs nearly 800 years old. They had been defaced and vandalized. I cannot imagine what inspires someone to write on something so precious…
Another narrow cleft to slip through.
We saw this snake sunning himself in the road…not sure what he is.
The Silver Stairs were a fun little diversion in the trail.
There was a portion of the trail that we had to travel again. The advantage is that we kind of knew what to expect and where the trail turned. The disadvantage is that the same rocks look completely different coming from the other direction!
This is biological soil. It looks dark and lumpy. This crust is composed of fungi, lichen, algae, and bacteria. It serves important ecological purposes. The soil absorbs water, provides nitrogen to the soil, and protects the area from erosion. It is essential to preserve this fragile surface. If you step on the soil, it crushes it and it can take 50 to 100 years to regrow. For this reason, it is imperative that you stay on the designated trails in Canyonlands.
We drove as far as we could toward the Confluence Overlook. The Green River and the Colrado River merge here. We had to hike the last ½ mile. It was well worth the effort it took to get there. We were 1,000 feet above the confluence.
Tim really does not like for me to be too close to the edge.
We saw lots of these tiny little lizards. This one actually stayed in one place long enough for me to get his picture.
Our lunch spot.
The hardest part of the trail was here, going back over Elephant Hill. Tim said “See that tree? That was plan B our self-extraction plan!” We made it up just fine.
A raven posing for pictures.
We stopped for a short hike at Pothole Point. Communities of shrimp and other minuscule creatures live in these potholes. These diverse plants and animals lie dormant and when it rains and the small ponds fill and they are teeming with life. When it is hot and dry, the organisms wait again for rain.
The trails here are all marked with cairns. Only rangers are allowed to erect cairns in this park.
