Family camping trip around the Southwest

[perrobravo]

Spent last week camping in the Southwest. From San Diego through Phoenix, to Monument Valley, 4 corners, Mesa Verde NP, Colorado's Alpine Loop, Canyonlands NP, Capitol Reef NP, and a ton of BLM land.

Here are a few shots from along the way.

Poser shot in Monument Valley

Since we were in the neighborhood, decided to stop in at 4 Corners. This pic reminds me I need to calibrate the (pretty much unused) nav unit in my 100.

I'm pretty sure my wife took this pic (somewhere near Animas Forks along the Alpine Loop in Colorado), but I'm certain she didn't intend to get the truck in the background.

After camping near Animas, we went up and over Cinnamon Pass (pictured below), then headed toward Lake City.

After another night camping along the way, we went up and over Engineer Pass.

After coming down into Ouray, we headed west to Canyonlands NP and took a quick trip out on the Colorado River Overlook trail in the Needles district. You can just make out the "needles" in the distance.

Since we had our dog along on the trip, we couldn't stay in the park, so headed into BLM land and found a great butte-top camping spot along the way in Beef Basin.

Continued by dirt to Natural Bridges National Monument, then on to Capitol Reef for a quick drive through. Followed a 4x4 trail that starts at the end of the "Scenic Drive" in the park. Headed south, then west along Pleasant Creek. Fun trail.

Camped near Lower Bowns reservoir, a pretty pleasant place and a nice surprise just off the main trail.

From there, hurried across the heat (and crowds) of Bryce NP and Zion, sped to Vegas (gotta love Utah speed limits), then toward San Diego...and back home.

 

[LCTom]

Great pictures. I was at Canyonlands - Needles, June 27-29 with the family. I should have taken more pictures.

 

[sdnative]

Looks like a great time! When I get my truck outfitted, I am planning on visiting many areas in that region. Maybe we can organize a SoCal group.

 

[perrobravo]

Thanks guys. We had a great time. Every time I visit Utah I'm amazed at how many areas there are to explore. Same for Colorado. Amazing.

A few casualties from the trip:

1. The brackets for my light bar...one broke, the other is on the edge. Had to tie wrap and strap the thing down to avoid it hanging off the bumper by the wiring. That could have been an expensive problem since I just got the thing from @2000UZJ .
2. Passenger rear brake pad/rotor seems to have gotten some muck/rock/whoknowswhat lodged somewhere above Ouray. Has been squealing and complaining since. Am going to open it up tomorrow to assess the damage. Perhaps something I should have addressed before heading off into the wilds of Utah.
3. My back. Too much lifting and shuffling of gear/stuff in and out of the truck every day took a toll on my back. Not even a daily dose of Alpine Nelson (as much as I could fit in the fridge) was enough to kill the pain. @TrekboxX is going to hear from me. Hopefully a bit of organization will help reduce the effort of setting up/tearing down camp every day.

sdnative, I think there's a group planning to meet up somewhere in San Diego later in July. I'll dig up the thread and will send you a PM.

 

[Fallon 40]

Any pics of Mesa Verde NP? How did you like it?
We are planning on stopping there after 100"s in the Hills event.
Ken

 

[perrobravo]

I like Mesa Verde. We didn't spend a ton of time there on this trip and didn't get to venture off road at all. Here are a couple shots, both from roadside view points. There is of course much more to see there, especially if it isn't 95F and you're not in a hurry to get to Colorado.

There are a couple places in the park where you can go climb around in these cliff dwellings. Pretty interesting.

 

[Fallon 40]

Cliff dwellings are what I want to check out.
Those look awesome.
Thanks for sharing.

 

[SIZZLE]

Sounds like an awesome trip. Thanks for posting!