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Udink
10-29-2015, 03:10 PM
After a quick two-day turnaround between camping trips, on Tuesday I was on my way south for the semi-annual San Rafael geocaching event near Temple Mountain. It was my first chance to utilize the hitch carrier for my motorcycle on the back of the camp trailer, and it was unnerving driving without being able to see the bike. I stopped a couple of times to check on the dirt bike, including a stop at the Iron Wash bridge on UT-24 to watch a nice flash flood that was likely the result of the storm I'd run between Woodside and Green River. My planned campsite was flooded with runoff so I set up a few hundred feet away at sundown.




Ready to roll out with the DR-Z250 on the camp trailer
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-BCxITNAfBQ0/Vi7Z11oPhBI/AAAAAAAAvmc/Wg5N2c4qSDs/s640-Ic42/20151020_161131.jpg


Iron Wash flash flood
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-3W0MaDJiHf8/Vi7Z7wSJi4I/AAAAAAAAvms/YoGYNCojqbs/s640-Ic42/20151020_174127.jpg



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNct33cFyYo


Flooded campsite
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-saKqcy_0FEQ/Vi7Z9iDP4MI/AAAAAAAAvm0/vd8Cwhae-_c/s640-Ic42/DSCF0644.JPG


Home for the next five nights
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-luvi2jNwK94/Vi7Z_H2oymI/AAAAAAAAvm8/VTwba4C__xM/s640-Ic42/20151020_183656.jpg




On Wednesday morning I hiked with the dogs around the base of the San Rafael Reef south of South Temple Wash. I didn't find anything terribly interesting, though I did stop to check in on a metate that I'd discovered a year earlier and was pleased to find it still hidden where I'd left it. A short motorcycle ride that afternoon took me to an interesting prospect listed on the USGS topo map just a couple of miles from camp.




Torrey and Boulder during an easy hike on Wednesday
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uzcMhJOo9qw/Vi7aHwQExvI/AAAAAAAAvnc/GhgROz3Y00g/s640-Ic42/DSCF0670.JPG


Metate where I left it a year after I discovered it
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1c6j2hhPnlQ/Vi7aNdJiwwI/AAAAAAAAvns/5CGj4Hb7wDI/s640-Ic42/DSCF0679.JPG


Ravens near camp
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bddvde8ewvE/Vi7aO33fKlI/AAAAAAAAvn4/uInYKjd1lQk/s640-Ic42/DSCF0681.JPG


Lunch
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kQJyEqPPBQ4/Vi7aRPtgQxI/AAAAAAAAvn8/WTjN4U_NjZ4/s640-Ic42/DSCF0684.JPG


Prospect listed on the USGS topo map
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-h5QJr7va_O0/Vi7aVR-skZI/AAAAAAAAvoE/B8Fzwt1RxgM/s640-Ic42/DSCF0685.JPG


Boulder and Torrey in the camp trailer
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-uxMcY0pUIOI/Vi7aXLN9b3I/AAAAAAAAvoM/0LZsssx0BzE/s640-Ic42/DSCF0692.JPG


Dinner
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GBjFm698jV0/Vi7aZznQqZI/AAAAAAAAvoc/KfykgmLqmxc/s640-Ic42/DSCF0700.JPG


Wednesday's sunset
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GVu1IiKZ6OM/Vi7abC5YcMI/AAAAAAAAvok/az9gbpq2kr0/s640-Ic42/DSCF0705.JPG


M-O-O-N, that spells moon
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-kNhOmZCV4iY/Vi7acKUaf0I/AAAAAAAAvos/Ip4DdDU5o5c/s640-Ic42/DSCF0710.JPG




I awoke to a thick layer of fog on Thursday. I postponed a planned hike until it cleared up a bit. I hiked to the top of the San Rafael Reef on the north side of South Temple Wash. On the way I found an arrowhead in a wash in almost the exact same spot I'd found one 3.5 years earlier (https://picasaweb.google.com/115479031052354900696/SanRafaelSpring2012#5735563628764743138). Just as I reached the high point I noticed two airplanes approaching from the east that buzzed me a few hundred feet overhead. In the afternoon I rode my motorcycle on the pavement to the Little Wild Horse Canyon trailhead. The dirt road beyond the trailhead was badly washed out and too muddy for a bike, so I did a slippy-slidey u-turn and headed back to camp. Ken and Jan arrived that afternoon and Terry and Karen showed up after dark. Some intense-looking clouds passed overhead in the evening without dropping much moisture, though Terry and fam drove through a bad storm in about the same place I had two days earlier.




Foggy Thursday morning
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Tk8lFjoRbi0/Vi7adG9Sd9I/AAAAAAAAvo0/ub7s0T7X3b0/s640-Ic42/DSCF0736.JPG


Ooh, a pretty rock!
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-C193uYh0x1s/Vi7aeYV8UxI/AAAAAAAAvo8/PABO2M1iebo/s640-Ic42/DSCF0742.JPG


Snow on the Henry Mountains
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-e7dcWRccEw4/Vi7ahUg6HzI/AAAAAAAAvpM/IB2ktttbqMs/s640-Ic42/DSCF0746.JPG


Capitol Reef spotlighting with Boulder Mountain in the distance
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-43F_JqVOlXc/Vi7anRrwiOI/AAAAAAAAvpk/TiL9xS7M9ag/s640-Ic42/DSCF0753.JPG


Temple Mountain peeking out over the Reef
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-TQG6VXqerxU/Vi7apNYIbQI/AAAAAAAAvps/6sWS7Lqs4mU/s640-Ic42/DSCF0756.JPG


Torrey
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-MrAzxyBxjnc/Vi7aqZ0ShyI/AAAAAAAAvp0/eFYEExd8NeI/s640-Ic42/DSCF0760.JPG


One of two planes that buzzed me
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-QOlZPT-N2vA/Vi7awK4bifI/AAAAAAAAvqM/iYGLKFVfxx0/s640-Ic42/DSCF0770.JPG


Flat Top above South Temple Wash
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zpQyrwGCyY0/Vi7ayWLHbRI/AAAAAAAAvqU/cfZlEIzrpgE/s640-Ic42/DSCF0771.JPG


Wild Horse Butte
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-eRNwHc9bDto/Vi7a0gmuESI/AAAAAAAAvqc/6INA8CPCVAc/s640-Ic42/DSCF0788.JPG


Roll cloud looming above the San Rafael Reef
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-W5CVF6RYUbU/Vi7a1y6cHVI/AAAAAAAAvqk/GjunYbCzcGg/s640-Ic42/DSCF0800.JPG


Snow on Mt. Ellen
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-bmvMfebzLnQ/Vi7a4VwtEmI/AAAAAAAAvq0/OUf1QqdB8aU/s640-Ic42/DSCF0808.JPG


Rainbow north of camp
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-ozxwxO8xluM/Vi7a69vz9XI/AAAAAAAAvq8/rOY27F3BIr4/s640-Ic42/DSCF0813.JPG




Some hippies walked into our camp on Friday morning and asked for help getting their car unstuck in North Temple Wash. Terry took his 4-wheeler there to pull them out while I rode my motorcycle and looked for some inscriptions in the narrow part of the canyon. After lunch I rode with Terry on the Orange and Green trails. It was my first experience riding desert singletrack. The trails were moderately challenging for me--the only difficult parts were (1) trying to keep up with Terry and (2) one ledgy dropoff on the Orange Trail that sketched me out and took me a couple of minutes to build up the nerve to make the drop. We rode around Temple Mountain and picked up a couple of geocaches on our way back to camp. Traci arrived with the kids that afternoon and I got quite a shock when I saw the Jeep pull up with Traci in the passenger seat. I couldn't see who was driving until the Jeep stopped and Michael stepped out of the driver's door! He's only 14 years old and already has the itch to learn to drive, so Traci let him drive on the short dirt road into camp. A few more people showed up that evening and the following morning, bringing our grand total to 13 people in attendance.




Friday at camp
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-zaa2onc8nUM/Vi7a-hXXYoI/AAAAAAAAvrU/F2PUf4Qkw3U/s640-Ic42/DSCF0841.JPG


North Temple Wash
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7FD5eHraqr0/Vi7bBmtaamI/AAAAAAAAvrc/hEj0kfnFG4A/s640-Ic42/DSCF0843.JPG


Inscription in North Temple Wash: USGS
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-vXigNK5_e5U/Vi7bEX6zjCI/AAAAAAAAvrk/H1YOfNrXucs/s640-Ic42/DSCF0848.JPG


Inscription in North Temple Wash: Warren Allred, Jan. 6, 1914
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-DVXZt3bON8s/Vi7bJclUsuI/AAAAAAAAvr0/ne2BttCMloE/s640-Ic42/DSCF0854.JPG


Inscription in North Temple Wash: J.D. Gillies 10-16-1914
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-gq0IrcWKqBo/Vi7bLcFMIiI/AAAAAAAAvr8/5yoeYxUtnqo/s640-Ic42/DSCF0863.JPG


Washed road into upper Farnsworth Canyon
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oCBIAqIy2Ug/Vi7bVb82KPI/AAAAAAAAvsU/TFpWoclR954/s640-Ic42/DSCF0869.JPG


DR-Z250 on the Orange Trail
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-a8AxBOU6Jok/Vi7bXOgRpFI/AAAAAAAAvsc/_h7wNmiPetk/s640-Ic42/DSCF0870.JPG


Junction of Orange and Green trails
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mzQQP48oBTc/Vi7bajydNdI/AAAAAAAAvsk/dyQcbvRA1e4/s640-Ic42/DSCF0873.JPG


Twin Knolls
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-oxjwOfeI5SE/Vi7bgH_KA4I/AAAAAAAAvs0/67HqBYheRuM/s640-Ic42/DSCF0878.JPG


Trail 842
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-OJxH-iHHxpY/Vi7biFIgh3I/AAAAAAAAvs8/vlGRGcBTxhc/s640-Ic42/DSCF0880.JPG


Cows near Taylor Flat
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-wZf8mgJ9w7A/Vi7bmBss6SI/AAAAAAAAvtE/A9I405Veuk8/s640-Ic42/DSCF0881.JPG


Awesome geocache container
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-tbQr_I_FY9w/Vi7bs6opItI/AAAAAAAAvtU/Cki1rK2o6eM/s640-Ic42/DSCF0883.JPG


Temple Mountain
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--TT1U9J7Z9k/Vi7bzobpKiI/AAAAAAAAvtk/Q0gcRAmW6iA/s640-Ic42/DSCF0888.JPG


Mine shaft at Temple Mountain
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-KqizZc50qmQ/Vi7b3OjGsaI/AAAAAAAAvt0/FJWHlaPh7vo/s640-Ic42/DSCF0893.JPG


Temple Mountain mining relics
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Uf1VgnYX9a0/Vi7b93c8DVI/AAAAAAAAvuE/pZPiaNu6k94/s640-Ic42/DSCF0899.JPG




It was a laid-back day on Saturday. I drove solo to Molly's Castle to find a few geocaches while everyone else did their own thang. In the evening we had a wonderful potluck dinner, for which I grilled a couple racks of pork ribs that I'd slow-cooked in the oven at home before the trip. We did the usual blowing up of large cans of vegetables in the camp fire, and Chris and I pulled some shenanigans on a neighboring camp by walking in the dark through their loud bunch of young adults while trying not to be noticed.




Molly's Castle
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-unEHxn3RBSo/Vi7cAKmc-RI/AAAAAAAAvuM/vXU2PIwYSCw/s640-Ic42/DSCF0903.JPG


Molly's Castle
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8hBoAX_uD0o/Vi7cFv8RqhI/AAAAAAAAvuk/g33ntAxV50g/s640-Ic42/DSCF0911.JPG


Leaving Molly's Castle
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-GDEHdM1xBN4/Vi7cLciuDVI/AAAAAAAAvu0/qiEyUMUhYEg/s640-Ic42/DSCF0916.JPG


A high-stakes game of Skip-Bo
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-FPRRGr-tdpQ/Vi7cR0TJyUI/AAAAAAAAvvE/eBPoninz0BQ/s640-Ic42/DSCF0918.JPG


Sweet peas in the fire
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-sQ1lMNnj-SE/Vi7cT5BuiZI/AAAAAAAAvvQ/vYt12cCcZl0/s640-Ic42/20151024_224347.jpg




Everyone boogied out on Sunday. We took the kids to a geocache in South Temple Wash before packing up camp and heading home. I'd been disappointed on Saturday when I realized I'd be going home the following day, but on Sunday I was actually ready for a shower and to sleep in my own bed.




Sunday's sunrise
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/--wcY40pMMfY/Vi7cX1k5lUI/AAAAAAAAvvk/M2ZP_1z11D0/s640-Ic42/DSCF0926.JPG


South Temple Wash
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-UtkeOZjnSIg/Vi7caW_gxYI/AAAAAAAAvvs/D_FEGI7A4N4/s640-Ic42/DSCF0928.JPG




Photo Gallery: San Rafael Fall 2015 (https://picasaweb.google.com/Dennis.Udink/SanRafaelFall2015?noredirect=1)