8/3 Presumably the newlyweds are on their way to Yellowstone National Park on their honeymoon camping trip. It is time for me to head back east. I had spent some time studying the map for a route and a place called the Flat Top Wilderness called out to me. It was more or less due east so would not take a lot of extra diving to get there. I could also visit the quarry at Dinosaur National Monument again. As I past through Vernal I stopped in at the Utah Field House of Natural History and it happened to be open so I left several several of our dinosaur earrings. The National Park Monument is also a good candidate. They spent some time at our booth at the PLA conference which happened just prior to the pandemic and so far there has been no follow up. However, I am not going to try and meet with anyone, I’ll just collect information for some additional designs they could be interested in.
Luckily, when I arrived mid afternoon the Green River campground still had a few sites and there is still time to get into the Quarry, which is great face of rock in the side of a hill where the bones of numerous dinosaurs are exposed. Layers of fossils have been removed but at some point, paleontologists, decided that the rest should be left intact because it is so impressive as is. I noticed from the info panels that a significant number of the Dino’s removed went to the Carnegie museum in Pittsburgh, near where I live, so I will have to pay a visit sometime soon.
After I made sure I had a campsite and got into the Quarry before it I went to explore the petroglyphs sites, many of which I did not see the last time I was here, including the lizards. Believing I was in the right spot I looked long and hard on all the rocky panels but I could not find them! It really bums me because it is high on my must see list. Next time I will be sure to ask for specifics in the VC. In the morning I will be moving on the East entrance to the park.
8/4 The next morning I drove 20 miles to the town of Dinosaur, just inside Colorado, and another 38 miles north into the East side of the Monument all the way to the very isolated campground, Echo Park, deeply set in the bottom of a canyon along the Green River very close to where Yampa merges with it. It has the beauty of Zion with out the Disneyland crowds and the fact that not any car and RV can get here helps keep it that way. Also the river is relatively lazy with swimmable pockets that lack a strong current and expansive stretches of walkable sand bars. Though I am here at a good time, there are season when the water is much higher and not conducive the swimming or beach wandering. But, as I write this for all my non-readers I hope very much nobody else discovers this place.
8/5 Driving out of the canyon in the morning I stopped at points of interest along the way including petroglyphs at Pool Creek, a cave, and an abandoned ranch with numerous artifacts to explore including what appears to be a chuck wagon. Back up on the main park road and on high ground I can see a haze has overtaken the landscape and there are no more clear views of distant mountains. Later I found out there is a wildfire burning somewhere which can affect air quality for hundreds of miles. As I drove eastward the haze persisted all the way to the town of Yampa on the east side of the Flat Tops. Motorized vehicles are not allowed in the more than 350 square miles of wilderness. But from Yampa you can drive to the Stillwater Reservoir, a hub for the network of interior trails, and past a number of National Forest campgrounds on route.
The Flat Tops are scenic in there own way. As I drove up from Yampa the first of the level topped ridges towers above a much greener valley than I have experienced so far on this trip. The slope looses its vegetation quickly due to steepness becoming almost vertical but still manages to hold on to some snow and ice in pockets near the crests. By tomorrow I am able to see from the top of one of these that there are many more in the distance like the crests of waves. Luckily the haze seems to be lessening too.
It is a popular area and it is nice that it lacks the ORV’s too. The only alternative to hiking here is horseback. Yet is still crowded due to the very popular Devil’s Causway only about 3 miles in from the lake. But there is an endless network of backcountry routes and judging from the number of cars in the lot even at the end of the day there are a bunch of backpackers out there. This evening I am just checking out the trail hearts and I hike a smaller
The Devils Causeway is the big attraction for day hikers here being only about 3 miles in from the trailhead. The parking seems to fill into overflow regularly but noticing the numerous cars after hours there must be a lot of backpacker further out on the network of trails. In the morning I set out on a loop turning left where most hikers are going right directly to the causway. I found myself at the top of one of the broad ridges about 2 miles south of the causeway at a trail junction.
On the way up the trail snaked through spruces and often reveled views of the adjacent valley. I spotted a Golden eagle perched down on a log by the stream and watch until it took flight. This route seemed to find its way around a steeper climb yet eventually I was up where trees gave way to more stunted alpine vegetation. There are numerous pockets of persisting snow and piles of rocks where marmots voice concerns about me. The trail weaves between a couple large patches of ice and you can seen them in the distance as well.
At the top it is more than a ridge of rock. There is a vast alpine prairie full of unique plants I am sure. I am surprised how open and level it is. On this section of the trail it would not be easy to fall off the mountain. I just need to find the next junction so I do not wander doo deep into the wilderness. I am looking for the China Wall trail that will take me to the west side of of the causeway. People come all the way across the causeway but most turn around and hike back the way they came. Thus they miss out on this alpine wonderland with its wildflowers and perturbed marmots. I did run into a couple groups doing the full loop fro the opposite direction.
The Devil’s Causway was just as expected, a narrow wall of rock connecting two rocky islands. Most of it was about 20 feet wide and accomodated a number of lingering hikers. There was one bottleneck less than 4 feet wide that hikers had to carefully clamber over one at a time. The view is pretty fantastic looking deep into valleys on both sides.
descending the otherside I am constantly stepping aside for hikers coming up. It is also surprising how steep the trail is on this side. The causeway is 1,500 feet and most of it is accomplished in the last part of the 3 mile accent. My route probably took me to higher elevations but the changes were more gradual over 7 miles. The trail could definitely use some maitenance like permament steps installed in places given the steepness and high traffic. I am glad I was already mindful enough put something in the donation box at the trailhead.
After the hike I am going to put some miles behind me. I am planning to visit a couple places in Ft. Collens so it seems the route through Rocky Mountain National Park is my best option. However, when got there I discovered they are only allowing vehicles in by reservation in as the ranger explained to me at her station outside the VC. She went through all the explaination of how to get on Reserve America to make it and also mentioned that the next available time is Monday. Gosh! They must have to deal with some really dissapointed people being turned turn away. At the end of her explanation she mentioned that at 5pm you don’t need a reservation. That was all the loophole I needed as my main intention was to get over the Rockies and it is only a 45 minute wait. I used the time to find a hotel to stay in outside Ft. Collens knowing I was not going to be able to camp in the park or anywhere else interesting tonight.
