Day 3 – Torrey to Torrey, 127 miles
Casual day today. Caught up on some much needed sleep this morning (ie, I over slept), so since everyone had left by the time I woke up, I decided to fiddle with the computer in order to get online with the hotel’s WiFi. Having had luck there, I was finally able to get Fridays pictures and blog entry posted.
One thing I noticed today while going back and adding captions to the pictures posted so far … as long winded as I think my blog entries are getting, when I go back through the pictures there are so many more details from the trip that come back to me … like Thursday as I rode through New Mexico and not only could I not get a picture of the “Welcome to New Mexico” sign because of construction, they had the first three rest stops closed for construction, with signs suggesting you visit the next one some 40-60 miles up the road … which of course would turn out to be closed as well. There’s so much going on that while I had anticipated these blog posts would help me write down memories to make for better trip reports, I’m starting to think my trip reports won’t reflect ANY of the blog posts. Maybe that’s a good thing, maybe that will get more of my memories written down to relive later.
Anyway, after fiddling around with the computer it was finally 10:30am by the time I was ready to get out of the room. The original plan was to find some food, but because of the awkward time I decided to just head down the road and I’d find something along the way. With only the very loose plan to ride down UT12, I headed south.
When I rode this area in 2004, the last stint of UT12 from Boulder to Torrey was done in darkness. That was when I learned the true meaning of “open range”, but it also marked a significant shift in the way I ride and the bikes I ride. As a result of that after dark experience, lighting has become a bigger factor when considering new bike purchases. Along with lighting,
and in some ways tied to it, is having the alternator output to be able to power extra lights, but also for powering heated gear. While I wouldn’t need extra lighting today, the heat would be nice.
Since my last trip up the final 40 miles of UT12 was done in the dark, while dealing with the wildlife problem, it was like riding a new road for the first time. The scenery was again amazing, and totally different from what I’ve seen out here to date. The northern portion of UT12 runs more through the Dixie National Forest, reaching a peak altidude of something like 9600 feet. It is much more densely forested than anywhere else I think I’ve ridden … the trees packed in so tight in some places, it looked more like a wooden wall as you rode by.
I stopped just south of Torrey to get some pictures of the mountain ridge that surrounds the city. I was hoping some of the pictures would show off the snow caps still showing up on some of the peaks, but looking back through the pictures I don’t think they did. It was quickly obvious that I would be racing against the weather at times, as the dark clouds were building up over the mountains.
One of the first scenic turnouts that I made was just a breath taking view. Looking out through the forest, you can see the rock formations that make up the Capitol Reef I believe, along with a reservoir in the valley below. It was spitting a little rain here, but not enough to dampen spirits at all.
After making the ride to Boulder, the landscape began to look more familiar. One of the highlights from my 2004 trip was the Grand Staircase headed out from Escalante. I’d get to ride it twice today; once in each direction.
Continuing a trend I picked up on yesterday, there were some sections of the road that were made a little unnerving by UDOT’s liberal use of tar snakes to fix problems with the road surface from the winter freeze. There’s nothing like riding along the top of a mountain ridge, no guard rails on either side and nothing but a steep drop off at the edge of the road, and having tar snakes cause the bike to move around under you. Usually, the tar snakes would cut across the road, and so weren’t so bad, but occasionally they would snake along the line of travel, and usually in the typical wheel paths on the road. Setting a line to avoid these tar snakes would make things interesting.
As I made my way through the Grand Staircase and into Escalante, it was becoming clear I was heading towards a big thunderstorm. After about a dozen or so dramatic lightning strikes across the canyon, I decided to make Escalante my turnaround point. I rode into town and up to the gas station I used in 2004, but didn’t see any intriguing restaurants calling my name. I snapped a couple more pictures from the gas station parking lot, then set out to ride through the Grand Staircase again, this time trying to outrun the rain.
The ride back would be quicker than the ride down to Escalante, not because of the rain influence, but because I had already stopped at all the good overlooks for pictures on the way down, so there were fewer pictures needed for the return leg. I caught up to a few more cars than before, but most were pretty good about finding a turnoff to take to allow me safely by. After getting back through the Staircase and into the Dixie National Forest, the rain returned. The temperature also dropped, and while not quite cold enough to stop for electrics, I did decide to turn on the grip heaters to warm my hands. About 6 miles south of Torrey, near Grover UT, I started seeing deer crossing the road again. First it was a single buck, followed later by a couple groups of doe. Nothing like that evening in Sept 2004 where the deer were everywhere, but it was enough for me to bring my speed down and be even more alert. Add to that, it had either snowed, or the rain from earlier was freezing on the side of the road. The streets were getting slick, and there was some minor accumulation starting to build on the road in some spots, although usually more towards the center line and not on the tire tracks themselves.
As I exited the forest, the streets started to dry out, and there were no more signs of wildlife lurking to bolt across my path. I made it back to the hotel just over 3 hours after I started the ride, and finally grabbed some food. Subway never tasted so good. 🙂
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