Utah Trip, June 14 to July 2, 2009

Just the Facts
Miles traveled – 5220.
Most miles in a day – 484 ( last full day). Next, 470 – first day.
Gone 18 nights. Stayed with my friend Lynn Bathe in St George, UT one night. Camped all other nights. Average camping fee (my share, split 2 or 3 ways with Lynn and Tom) $5.70. Highest - $18 (Colorado State Park). Lowest – free (3 nights).
Wore out one set of new trailer tires. Replaced in Wal-Mart parking lot in Garden City, Kansas on way home.
Bought all gas with credit card. I didn't keep track of cost or mpg. I think I averaged about 36 mpg, pulling the trailer most of the time. Purchased trailer tires with debit card. All other expenses paid with cash. Spent $440.
Visited Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Arches National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Cedar Breaks National Monument, Navaho National Monument, Natural Bridges National Monument, drove by Canyon Lands National Park, but no time to visit.
Between the 3 of us, I think we took about 500 pictures. I have culled them down to 148, which you can see at
http://picasaweb.google.com/sdoolen45/BestOfUtah# .
Thanks to Tom and Lynn for sharing their pictures with me.

The Trip

Sunday, 6/14/09
Tom and I camped at Quabache Trails Park, outside of Vincennes, last night, so Tom could do a “shakedown” of his equipment. I was up at 6, and Tom was already up. I called Carla, and she came out just before 7 with Hardees breakfast sandwiches for us. We got away about 8:15. It was overcast and cool all day. We took IL route 33 to 128 to 29 to 104, then I-72 to MO. It seemed like it took forever to get to Hannibal, around 3. We had lunch before that at Buck & Jo's, in Jackson IL. After we got on US 36, we made good time. I highly recommend US 36 as a route west. Mostly 4 lane with a 65 mph speed limit, not nearly as boring as I-70. We finally stopped at Wallace State Park, near Cameron, MO, about 70 miles before I wanted to, but we still had a good day, 470 miles. We got a great primitive site for $11, private and large, and got set up. I made beans and soy dogs, and we had some fruit Tom bought at the grocery in town. Weather forecast for tomorrow is for thunderstorms. We both went up and took showers, and sat around the citronella candles and talked until quite late.
Monday, 6/15/09
Thunder started sometime in the early morning, and rain. When I got up around 7, it had mostly quit, but soon started again. Luckily, our picnic table was under a small wooden roof. We decided to cook breakfast, and hope it stopped. I made eggs and soy sausage and toast. It finally let up, and we packed everything wet, and left about 10. It rained steadily for an hour or so, then finally quit. We got into Kansas, and made good time and the sky kept improving. We rode hard, and I thought we might make Colorado, but we saw a campsite sign in a small town called Atwood, so we checked it out, and they had free camping, and a shower and bathroom. We got set up, then went to the local bowling alley, the only place in town to eat, and ordered a pizza. We had heard there was a severe weather threat. While we were eating, golf ball sized hail started hitting the roof, and we heard we were under a tornado warning. We ran to the window, and watched our bikes being hit by hail. That let up in a bout 10 minutes, and it rained hard with some wind for awhile It was pretty scary. Someone said a tornado had been spotted outside of town. Everyone had left except the owner, and when we asked if there was tornado shelter, he said “Not really”. When it finally calmed down, we rode back to our tents, and before long, it looked like more rain was coming, so we turned in early.
Tuesday, 6/16/09
I was up around 7, before Tom. I slept really well. I started coffee, and Tom was up soon. I made egg beaters and soy sausage and toast, and we let things dry out. We got away about 9:45, looks like a sunny and nice day. We altered our plans and stayed on 36 almost all the way to Denver. I used the GPS to get to Chatfield SP, which took us through town, a mistake. The traffic wasn't as bad as it could have been. We got there about 1 local time, and set up on site 59. I called Jenny, and headed into town right away. I found her place, right downtown. I parked in the only open spot I saw, which turned out to be right in front of her entrance. We visited for about an hour. Her new dog Lolly, a toy Dachshound, is really cute. When I went back, traffic was pretty busy, and it looked like it could rain. I made it back about 5 local time, and Tom was still out riding and shopping. He got back shortly, and we had soy hot dogs and beer, and played around with the GPS for awhile. The weather cleared, and looks nice for tomorrow.
Wednesday, 6/17/09
I got up around 5, and started coffee before Tom was up. We started packing fairly soon. I did call Carla while drinking coffee and looking at the mountains. It looks like a beautiful day. Tom led us out, since we were going a different way than I had been. He passed our route and went halfway into Denver before we finally found a place to eat, a neat place with old 50s stuff. After breakfast, we headed out, and immediately hit curvy, hilly roads. We rode steady, and saw some great scenery, but never really stopped to sight see. We both were getting tired around 3, and stopped to have a cold drink and look at the map. We decided to try and make it to to near Telluride, which looked like it had some campgrounds. When we finally got there, there was a bluegrass festival going on, and traffic was heavy. I really didn't feel like going on, and was afraid we would never find anywhere to camp now. In addition, the sky was dark, and I thought it might rain. We looked at a map again, and saw 2 campground icons on the map just down the road, so we headed there. Thankfully, we found one, Sunshine campground, a national park primitive campground, and immediately found a site and set up. Shortly, a few drops were falling. I made rice for supper, and while we were eating, it started raining harder, finally with thunder and lightening. We turned in early. Looks like it could be a cold night.
Thursday, 6/18/09
It was cold in the night, but I stayed fairly warm by wearing long underwear and socks. I was up first, and Tom said it was 38 when he got up. We had coffee, and packed, and hit the road. I wore my heated jacket and gloves, and was fine. It was sunny and warmed steadily. We rode through beautiful mountain terrain, then changed to rocky and more desolate looking. We had breakfast in a new cafe in Delores, and talked to another guy on an ST1100. We finally made it into Arizona, and the Navaho National Monument campground, about 3:30 local time. The campground was really nice, and free. They had everything except electricity and showers, and it was in a beautiful setting. I called Carla, and Brent, and Lynn. Tom and I walked down the trail to see the ancient houses in the side of the mountain, which was really awesome.
Friday, 6/19/09
I got up about 7:45, to a beautiful morning. I made eggs, toast, and coffee. We got packed up, and were on our way for a short day. The weather was nice all day as we rode routes 160 and 89A . We rode through some beautiful but desolate country. We got to Jacob Lake about 1 local time. We went to the visitors center, and got the information on the campgrounds, and decided we had a good chance to get in Demotte, 20 miles closer to the Grand Canyon than the one at Jacob Lake, where I had expected to camp.. We had lunch at the cafe, then headed for the campground, and did get a space. It wasn't as nice as I expected, but OK. We set up, the rode to the north rim of the Grand Canyon. It was spectacular, and I was really glad I came. I took lots of pictures. We then rode about 20 miles up a curvy rode to Point Royal, for an even better view. All in all, great day. We rode back just before sundown, and I made beans and rice and soy dogs. It was quite cool. The host said it got down to 31 last night, and expected about the same tonight.
Saturday, 6/20/09
Sometime before dawn, I heard a few light drops of rain. It continued off and on raining very lightly, but just enough to get our tents wet. It was after 8 when I finally got up. We started to go straight to breakfast, then went ahead and packed up. We rode across the road to the lodge, and the breakfast was not great. We got going, and wore our rain suits, but the rain was over. It was an easy ride of a little over 100 miles to St. George. It stayed cool until we got close, and the road descended into Hurricane. We got to St George around noon, and it was 98 degrees, and we went right through town. We stopped to have lunch at Burger King, and to cool off. The GPS found Lynn's house easy, but I rode by it the first time. We got the bikes in the garage, and went inside and visited the rest of the day. We did get our laundry done, and I dried out my tent, and we took showers. We helped Lynn load his bike. He's never been on a motorcycle camping trip before, in fact, he's hardly ever camped at all. It's going to be quite a new experience for him. We went to bed about 10.
Sunday, 6/21/09
I was first up about 6. I got the trailer finished loaded up and closed, and caught up the journal. We had breakfast of coffee and biscuits and gravy, and were on the road fairly early. Lynn led us through town, then I took over and we rode highway to 9 to Zion National Park. We rode through the park, took pictures, and it was beautiful, then we headed north. on highway 89, then a side trip on roads 14 and 143, a scenic ride by Panguitch Lake We had lunch at Panguitch, then headed towards Bryce Canyon NP. On highway 12.. We found a good national forest campground, Red Canyon CG, and got a spot and set everything up, then headed for Bryce. It was totally awesome, especially Bryce Point. It was almost dark by the time we headed back. We were going to take Subways back, but the prices were so outrageous that we rode on to a little cafe and had supper. It was dark when we got back. We sat around the citronella candles for a little while, then turned in.
Monday, 6/22/09
It got pretty cold in the night, and I should have worn long underwear. Tom said it was 38 when we got up. I made coffee, toast and eggs for breakfast. It took us awhile to get going and get away. I led us up highway 12, a great scenic highway, and we stopped many times for pictures. We got to Capitol Reef NP mid-afternoon, and immediately checked out the campground. We got a good site just before it got full. We were tired, and took some time to rest and have drinks, then I made supper of beans and hot dogs for them, and rice mixture for me. We took the scenic road through Capitol Reef, and took more pictures. We spent a long time discussing what route to take tomorrow, and finally decided to go to Arches NP instead of Helper. We stayed up talking quite awhile. Great weather.
Tuesday, 6/23/09
I slept great, perfect temperature for it. I was the first one up, and started coffee. We packed early, then waited for the small coffee shop to open at 9 our time. We had coffee, but the scones that had been highly recommended were disappointing. We took out right after that, and made good time. It got hotter as the day went on, and was in the upper 90s by the time we got to Arches NP. When we got to the gate, the sign said the campground was full. We turned around, parked, and debated what to do. It was 98 degrees. We shot for the neared campground on the GPS POI, and found Big Bend CG about 9 miles away. The ride along the river was great, with high, rocky cliffs on both sides. The campground was strictly primitive, with no water, just pit toilets. We didn't know where else to go, so we took a spot. As soon as we set up, we headed for Moab, and stopped at Dennys and lingered in the AC. Then we went to Arches, and it was majestic, but the heat made it hard to appreciate. Lynn and I were low on gas, so after taking about half the tour, and seeing Delicate Arch, we left. We gassed up in Moab, then went to a cafe and had ice cream. We rode back and talked awhile in the shade of my trailer, and drank lots of water. We went to bed a little after 10, local time.
Wednesday, 6/24/09
I was up first as usual. Looks like another nice day, if we can beat the heat out of here. We got packed fairly quickly, and were off. We had breakfast at Dennys, and hit the road. It was only 125 miles to Helper, and it was a pretty boring ride up 191, but we got to Helper about 11, and found the city park. . We stopped at the check in table, and talked to Joyce Taylor and Gene Allen. I saw lots of familiar faces as we slowly rode through the park. The was an open spot near Dennis and Linda Happel, who greeted us, and we set up our tents We were camped next to Larry and Candy McGuire, Cora Petree and Russell Cole, John Mahaffey and Mary Lee, and Norm Hays. We sat around and rested and enjoyed the shade and moderate temperatures. I found John an Brenda Dixon, who were talking to Max Foltz, and talked to them for awhile. Also found Jim Whitworth, Gary Hawkins and his grand daughter Steph, Crazy Lennie Wangerin, Joe Sparrow, Charley Mosteller, Walt Plath, Steve Porter, Popeye Keith, Jim Chism, Jerald McPheeters, Gary Miller, Howard Ping, JimPiquette, Steve Close, JC Sanders, and many others. I called Dennis Ivers and talked awhile. We found a good restaurant in town called the Balanced Rock, where we had both lunch and supper.
Thursday, 6/25/09
I was up first as usual. I plugged the laptop and the coffee pot in to an outlet at the swimming pool, and got the laptop all charged up, and had coffee. We went to the Balanced Rock Cafe again for breakfast, and Tom and I put our dirty clothes in the laundromat nearby. When back to camp, we decided on a 125 mile ride, and Crazy Lenny and Gary Hawkins and his granddaughter Steph, 17, went with us. It was a gorgeous ride up highways 33, 264, and 96, up to 10000 feet, with beautiful scenery. When we got back, it was hot in Helper, and we loafed awhile, then had the group get together, with awards and so on, but no dinner. There were 139 attendees from the US and Canada. It started raining early, and we sat under Toms awning, then went to bed about 10.
Friday, 6/26/09
It rained steadily all night, but stopped when we got up. We had breakfast again at the Balanced Rock, then went back and packed up, and said goodbyes to everyone. We stopped at Walmart in Price to get food, and I went to Radio Shack and got a card reader so I could copy Tom and Lynn's pictures to my laptop. We rode highway 10 south to 72, then back onto route 12, in cool weather, and finally it got dark and we put on rain suits. It rained some, but not too bad. We finally found a campground, Pleasant Creek, a national park campground north of Boulder, UT, really picturesque, with water and pit toilets. I was unable to call Carla, as there was no cell service or pay phone. I made hot dogs and beans for them, and beans and rice for me. We had a good fire, and went to bed about 10.
Saturday, 6/27/09
I got up about 8, and had to wait over an hour before Lynn and Tom got up. I made coffee, oatmeal, and we toasted hot dogs buns for breakfast. We packed up, it looked like a perfect day, and Tom and I said good bye to Lynn, as he headed south and towards home, we north. I called Carla at the first town, and had 4 voice mails from her. We made good time and had perfect weather. We stopped at the same place we had eaten breakfast at on the way out, Blondies, at the intersection of routes 12 & 24, for breakfast. We finally got into Colorado about 5, and rode to McPhee Reservoir and got a campsite. We got electric to power our devices. Showers were $4 per person, and only available after 7 am and before 6 pm (what's the deal with that?), so we skipped again. There was dark, threatening weather to the east headed for us, so I put up the awning, but it never hit us.
Sunday, 6/28/09
I got up about 8, and had coffee and a granola bar, and read until Tom got up. We packed up, and rode to Delores, and had a large breakfast at a Mexican cafe. Tom led all day, and we rode up above 11,000 feet at times in beautiful country, route 160 and then 149. We rode about 300 miles, the same as yesterday. We finally stopped at a KOA in Gunnison. We had electricity, showers, and internet service. I made Boca burgers in the skillet, and rice, and uploaded some pictures to Facebook. A guy who came in on a 75 BMW R75, with his wife riding in a sidecar, came over and talked to us quite awhile. He was from Oregon, and working construction in Texas.
Monday, 6/29/09
I made eggs and toast for breakfast. We packed up and got away, and rode in high elevation much of the morning. We were above 11000 feet for awhile, and stopped at the peak, which was the continental divide (on route 50). When we did come down, it was hot. We stopped at a Pizza Hut and had lunch, and I called Carla. When we left there, I told Tom and I had half a tank of gas, and wanted to stop at , the next town, El Trinidad. We passed a Shell there, but route 160 left town, and there were no more gas stations. The next town on the signs was Kim, 65 miles away, but I figured there must be gas somewhere. There wasn't. I was sweating bullets, and the GPS showed no gas, or anything, at Kim. I hit reserve just as we came into town. We found a small grocery store, with one pump! I gassed up, paid, and we had a cold drink. As we were finishing, they started closing up. 15 minutes later arrival, and I would have been stranded. We asked about camping, and decided to ride on north to La Junta , about 50 miles. When we finally got to US 50, I could see there were 4 campgrounds to the west, but Tom turned east, and I couldn't get his attention. We finally got to John Martin Reservoir State Park. It was just as expensive as Chatfield had been, and there were flying insects all over the campground, and in the shower house. We set up quickly, showered, and went to bed.
Tuesday, 6/30/09
We had high winds in the night, and I thought it would rain, but didn't. Just before dawn, we got thunder and lightening in the distance. Tom got up very early, and started packing, so I did the same. We put on our rain suits, thinking rain was imminent, but stayed just ahead of it. We had breakfast in a little Mexican restaurant, and rode into Kansas, then in Garden City I stopped at the Walmart and bought new trailer tires and put them on in the parking lot. The others were shot, and worrying me. We rode hard all day, and had supper at a small place with a buffet. We rode on out to Cross Timbers State Park, which was very confusing, with no signs or instructions on how to find or do anything. Finally another camper filled us in. The modern area was full, but we took a campsite right on the lake, and were the only ones there. It was really scenic and cool. We did get to shower at the shower house up the hill, with no roof. We sat for quite awhile and talked and looked at the stars, and turned in late.
Wednesday, 7/1/09
I got up first, and Tom followed soon after. We packed quickly, and headed out. We rode hard all day, shooting for Horseshoe Lake State Park, in Illinois. . I made a mistake and took route 72 instead of 32, which cost us some time, but we finally got to the campground about 8. The hosts talked our legs off, ( they were craved for social interaction, since we were the only campers) but we finally got set up, and I made rice for me, and a canned stew for Tom. We showered, and turned in early.
Thursday, 7/2/09
I got up a little after 6:30, started coffee, and caught up on this journal. Tom got up a little later, and we had oatmeal and buttered bread for breakfast. We packed up, and were away at 8:30. Cool, nice day. We made good time, stopping in Harrisburg for a real breakfast. It got cloudy, and when we stopped for gas in Carmi, we put our warmer jackets on. I got back home around 2, glad to be back home.