7/24 Yesterday day I spent some time exploring Moab in general and even drove up the Kane Canyon road as far as I could and then a 4 mile hike up Hunter Canyon. There was a big boulder there in the middle of the river bed with a place you can walk under. On my return in this same spot I go my first look at a Canyon Wren and as I squatted in the shade it hopped within 4 feet of me. Having seen this side of the Colorado River I decided on the Kings Bottom campground as a base camp being close to town and central to my other planned activities.
So after checking out of the hotel I went to Kings Bottom to choose a site. Then I went to Arches, just a couple miles north of Moab, and made my first hike up to Delicate Arch to compare my paper pulp model to the real thing. I can see its going to need a lot of work but I take some photos of troubled areas I want to work on. The model I brought is solely based on photos and being able to walk around it makes a huge difference.
I have been wanting to make a Delicate Arch paper pulp ornament like the fish and the saguaro cactus we have been doing. I believe it is the perfect medium to create such a product and I do not see how the Canyon Lands Natural History Association would refuse it and maybe they will carry our earrings as well. As a first step I am trying to perfect a larger model with more detail and accuracy before scaling it down.
I spent a couple hours in the heat trying to view it from as many angles I can, minus the back side where there is a very steep drop off. The landscape around the arch is of another world but it is great fun to scramble around the slick formations. This is my 4th visit to the Arch and I am always in awe not just of the formation itself but the landscape it is a part of.
It is still Early enough for another hike when I leave the park. I decided to go to Corona Arch, another of the more picturesque arches in the area even though it is not actually in the park. Getting there takes me down route 279, the entrance being right near the entrance to Arches but on the south side of 191 and a mile or two closer to town. The road takes me along the Colorado on the opposite side of my campground. There are more campgrounds on this side, maybe nicer with more cottonwooods to shade. But mine is ion the water and I will not be back till close to dusk anyhow.
The drive goes past a popular rock climbing location up a sheer rock face. You really have to slow down because climbers gear is half in the street. Only in Moab do you see this kind of thing. On a portion of this same cliff face, and not to be disrupted by rock climbing, are several amazing panels of ancient rock art visible from the road.
Ten miles down the river from 191 intersection is the Corona Arch trail on BLM land. It’s a real cool hike as I never get tired of this kind of scenery. In spite of the similarity, is always unique in some way. You can see the arch long before you get there but you can walk clear under it and not feel like you are going top step off a cliff. I wonder if I like it more than Delicate. It is definitely more elegant and larger. Not to be confused with the 2020 virus epidemic, the shape totally reminds of the glowing bands that erupt from the Suns corona.
Back at my camp I cooked pasta and added a pesto sauce. With that I added some tomato’s that were still green when I picked them from the garden a week ago and had finally begun to turn red sitting on the dashboard. But they were really tasty too! The sky above the canyon wall looks awesome. I worked a bit on my arch model using up all the paper pulp I had brought with me. One thing I figured out was my model was going to need a lot of added bulk in places. I am going to need to make more pulp.
7/28. This morning after a scrub jay woke me up, I did some birding in Moonflower Canyon right across from my camp, with no luck other than some obscure chips. Then I drove to the Matheson Wetland Preserve which is on the same road closer to town. I visited first yesterday and noticed great phone reception in the parking lot and so became a regular stop as I came and went. Now it is morning and there is some bird activity. I saw a Spotted Towhee,much like ours but clearly with a lot of white flecks on the back. And I heard, I am sure, a Plumbous Vireo, which is the likely summer resident according to their bird list. I can tell if a bird is a vireo by song because they are so unique but its hard to distinguish the species, except for the white-eyed which are unique i their own way..
For my main Hike I wanted to explore the Hidden Valley, a secluded place on top of the red cliff backdrop to the east side of town. The trailhead a couple miles south of Moab. I noticed at the trail head there is sign saying there is an on going study to determine if the location should receive special preservation status. It is a steep climb up to a plateau rimmed with more rocky outcrops. The first open area continues to rise gradually and seems dominated by sage brush. Beyond there is a distinct divide and a slight drop into a beautiful grassy space bordered towering rocks in the distance. It looks a lot like some of the higher places in the Canyonlands National Park. At the opposite side of this glade you can seen the “Behind the Rocks” area where a lot oft the Off Road excursions go. It’s a deeper valley with the white petrified dune formations that are striking. If you don’t have an ORV air don’t take a tour you can still get a glimpse from this hike. From here you could 6 more miles on ORV trails to a trail head just across the street from my camp. I was able to identify Black-throated sparrows for the first time on this hike. And a Black-chinned hummer visited some flowers near me on one of my breaks.
The rest of the afternoon is blocked off to work on my model. I visited some stores hoping to by a blender to make more paper pulp but had to settle for a small food processor. In my mind I have been comparing Moab to the Florida Keys with all the extreme outdoors activity these locations share gives the locations a similar vibe. But if you cannot score a blender than Moab is not so much like the Keys.
Our earrings are not carried by anyone in this area so I stopped by the Moab Adventures tours knowing they had gift items in there store. Kathy and I went on one of there white water rafting trips a few years ago. The buyer was not there but the people who received the samples seemed to think she might like them. Another favorite stop is the Moab Rock shop at the north end of town. It’s like a museum so I showed them our dinosaur earrings. They also seemed to think they would be a good fit. So maybe these locations will come through if Canyonlands never does.
Anyhow I was able to make do shredding a Triscuit box and adding more volume to the model. Hopefully it will dry before my next visit tomorrow. Then late afternoon, just before I was going to swim in the river behind my campsite, it started to pour. It was a fantastic scene as waterfalls sprung from different places in the canyon walls. I got in the car and started to drive back toward town to the wetlands parking lot stoping at places along the way to watch.
While I was away a boulder had dislodged and bounced off the road into the river. At the location a policewoman directed me between a smaller boulder remaining on the road a a crater where the bigger one hit. I am glad my time was not bad. It is as if a killer asteroid came uncomfortable close to my planet.
7/29. Again scrub Jay is working its way through campsites along the river. Today my agenda is to do the 8 mile hike at Devils Garden and back to Delicate to compare my modifications. I have not done the Devils Garden hike before so it was new for me to see Landscape Arch and the other famous arches along it. And along the way I heard and then saw a Gray Vireo, similar to the Plumbous. I would not be able to distinguish them by song alone except the typical characteristic phrases that most vireos voice. But did I spot this little gray bird sounding like a vireo as it ambled among junipers of this dry place; as described in my Kaufman field guide.
The loop out past Landscape is fun but rugged with a couple spots that might be considered precarious. It took you up and along the length of one of the long narrow outcrops called fins providing a great view all around. The top is broad enough for hikers to pass both ways not getting too strict about the 6 feet of social distancing. But the sides sloped quickly to s sheer drop. You would not want to do this on a dark nigh without a light.
I saw all the arches but Navaho figuring It provides a good reason to come back. I headed over to the Delcate Arch trail for a repeat of my visit the other day. This time in addition to holding up my model to compare I took a series of photos systematically with the telephoto so later I can print them and lay out a row of views of each section as you move around it. I thought I might finish it here on site but it is clear its going to take a lot of work to get the details right. But the over all proportions look pretty good.
To camp tonight I remember a place along the route to Horseshoe Canyon. It is a really desolate place but there are some formations to camp near for scenery. I drove about 30 miles south on San Rafael road from Green River to a turn out with a small fire pit and pitched my tent. It was incredibly quiet with absolutely no wind. That did make it really hot for sleeping until after midnight but it was quite an experience.