Joe and Jena

Portal RV Resort
Moab, UT
June 17, 2017

June 16th dawned with all of us waiting anxiously for the arrival of our youngest son Joe and daughter-in-law Jena. Their flight from Greenville, SC to Grand Junction, CO was fraught with storm delays that resulted in adding almost four hours to the trip. It made for a long travel day indeed! 

Our pups waiting patiently for Joe and Jena.

Finally, the long awaited reunion began with huge emotion filled hugs and a decision to go out for a late diner at Zax.  Then it was to bed for some much needed sleep.  We began our first day with a late lunch at Moab Brewery and a sunset Jeep ride.  Dee suggested 7 Mile Rim... a 4X4 trail rated at the top of the difficult list in the Charles Wells' Guide...for a sunset. The four of us piled in Pearl and along with Dee in Thumper,  Ronnie, Carol & Cooper in Jade we headed north.

Before I go any further, I have to say there are 4 Joes in the family...Joe's dad, Joe's sister Jo, husband Joe who is a Jr., and son Joe who is the third. Growing up, son Joe was always little Joe to me but I won't embarrass him so will refer to him as Joe III. 

The oohs and aahs started before we even got to the trail and continued as we twisted and jostled our way along washes, switchbacks and scenic vistas along the rim.  What a thrill it was for us to see the jaws drop and wide eyed excitement on Joe III and Jens's faces as we began to share our favorite stomping ground with them...Jeep style!  

A side trip on this trail is Uranium Arch. We stopped and did a little exploring.

Our first adventure ended with a brilliant sky and was the perfect beginning of their week long visit with us sharing some of our favorite places and things to do.

Riding along the rim at dusk...

Silhouette of the Monitor and the Merrimac...

Let the good times roll...

HAPPY TRAILS!

Up next...it's 105 degrees for crying out loud!

Meet the Greens...

Portal RV Resort
Moab, UT
June 11-15, 2015

One of the best things about RVing is being able to connect with friends. Ronnie and Carol arrived in Moab the first week of June and shortly thereafter, so did their son Brad, DIL Kim, granddaughters Kaylee and Brooke and grandpuppy Derby. 

Ronnie and Carol relaxing on their site...#29, Portal RV.

This was Brad and Kim's first visit to Moab and they were excited to hit the trails. A quick trip to Barlow Jeep Rentals landed them in a 4-door Rubicon...perfect for some Moab adventures. Eager to get started, the next morning we headed out to Gemini Bridges. The skies were gray, clouds were thick, but the forecast was less than 50% chance of morning thunderstorms so we headed out to Gemini Bridges for a morning run.

Yikes! 

After encountering several more water flows like this, we made the decision to turn around. 

Bike Bridge over the Colorado at intersection of Hwys 191 and 128.

Good decision...as we headed back to town, we were amazed at what we saw. By mid-day, Scenic Hwy 128 was closed due to mudslides!




What a difference a day makes! Loaded with water and snacks, we faced north in search of Dellenbaugh Tunnel the next morning..  Spring Bottom Road is a beautiful ride through some beautiful country. Because of the flashfloods the day before, the route thru the wash was iffy, and we missed the left turn out of it so we never found the tunnel.

We had fun traversing some slickrock...

Brad, Kim, Kaylee, Brooke and Derby

Our loop took us out via Mineral Bottom Road where we connected to Hwy 313. 



We decided to try Gemini Bridges again and did it backwards starting at the entrance on Hwy 313. 

L to R...Kaylee, Kim, Brooke, Brad and Derby on one of the bridges.

Ronnie and Carol treated us to ribs, salad and pasta for dinner. Yum-yum!







The next morning we decided on picturesque Schafer switchbacks from bottom (Potash Rd.) to top (Hwy 313) with a side trip to Musselman Arch. 

Kim, Brad and Derby enjoying the view.

 Our loop continued on Long Canyon from top (Hwy 313) to bottom (Potash Rd.). 






The ride down into the canyon is spectacular. The flash floods from earlier had done quite a lot of damage on this trail.  



Dee joined us for our next adventure...3-D 4X4 trail. On the way, we made a stop to check out some dinosaur tracks.

Dee and Brad, Kim and girls

Tracks made 112 million years ago.

Just like the day before, the trail had lots of damage. This fencing washed from the bank in the background...

Dee and Brad scouting out the way to go.

  


...and yikes! Where is the trail?









It is quite the view looking down into Hidden Valley.

Brooke and Kaylee...what nice manners they have! We enjoyed your company!

One last adventure was the first half of Fins and Things. This was a late afternoon excursion and I forgot my camera...sorry guys!

We enjoyed our time with the Greens. A great little family who we hope to meet up with again. 

Derby...what a sweetheart!

HAPPY TRAILS!

The day before Brad, Kim and the girls left, our son Joe and DIL Jena arrived for a week. They left this morning and we miss them already! Needless to say, our week was filled with hugs, laughs, yummy food and yep, some adventures (more on that later) which didn't leave much computer time. It will be fun to catch up with everyone and check out your travels in the next few days.