Getting to Moab

After riding Grand Targhee we made tracks for Park City, UT. We spent a night at a lovely site outside of Swan Valley, ID, and then pressed on.

We did stop briefly in Lava Hot Springs, Idaho, for a shower and soak at their public hot springs. $6 per person. I almost fell over at that price. I mean, Steamboat Springs is really starting to look like a tourist trap: they charged us $18 each for the use of their showers and pools. Although the showers/locker rooms at Lava Hot Springs were sparse, their floors were heated. The pools were spotless and there was even shade.

Too bad it was a beautiful, sunny, and warm day. But then, that would have made it even harder to leave, like we learned way back in Idaho City.

We made it to Park City long before dark – early enough for us to stop at their dog park, which Bailey and Elvis thoroughly enjoyed. Bailey even found a tennis ball. We stopped in yet another local bike shop (are you seeing a pattern here?) and the nice guys there helped us come up with a plan. See, all the free places to camp near Park City were actually above the resort. At around 9,000 feet.

Now, we’ve been sleeping fabulously in our sleeping bags ever since Driggs, but that doesn’t mean I want to push it. So, the bike shop guys suggested we go to an area of Park City Resort called the Canyons. Right under the lift is a paved parking lot, and right next to that is the dirt lot. The suggestion was that we go and park in the dirt lot and make dinner, like we were just hanging out. Then, right at dusk – pop up the tent. Most likely nobody would see us. And even if they did – Park City was officially closed, so it was unlikely anyone would care. Besides, we planned to be gone in the morning.

It worked fabulously. We even took the dogs for a walk after dark, so they could go potty, and from fifty feet away you couldn’t even see the tent. Or the truck. The next morning we were up at 7 and on the road to town straightaway. I had two goals for the day: work on the blog from a coffee shop called Atticus Coffee & Books, and ride Park City.

Atticus is a cool little coffee shop. It helps that their Americano was delicious, and that there were power outlets everywhere so I could charge ALL my electronics. Even the Kindle. (I’ve been reading Game of Thrones, and am not looking forward to the day when I can’t travel to Westeros anymore.)

Once the blog work was done and we were both fully caffeinated, it was off to the Armstrong Trail. It was a solid climb – so beautiful! – with the trees just past peak colors, and fallen leaves all over the trail. The only thing I didn’t like I that a local bike shop put up a challenge: if you can ride the Armstrong Trail in under and hour (and prove it with an app like Strava), you get prizes. The faster your time the better your prize. I am not a very fast uphill rider. Actually I’m not fast on the downhills either, but nobody asked about that. So – I’m used to getting passed. But the Strava people – I tell you, they don’t even say on your left or can I get past you or even something simple, like hello. I’m grinding away and all of the sudden I hear something behind me, turn to look and see this girl absolutely on my wheel. Scared me so badly I almost bit it, and she almost bit it in her haste to get around me since I couldn’t get off the trail fast enough for her.

Lest you think she was just some random anomaly, two other guys (wearing full road kits) passed me in much the same manner. We were just in a section of switchbacks so I saw them sooner.

Whatever. It was still a fabulous ride. (I didn’t finish the Armstrong Trail in less than an hour, in case you were actually wondering). We enjoyed the gloriously earned downhill and packed up, heading for Salt Lake City.

It’s so crazy that this major metropolitan area is only 30 minutes away. And SLC itself was lovely. Such views! Even the view from the REI parking lot was amazing.

We knew the weather would be turning, so we pushed on south, aiming for Price, UT as a place to stop for the night. From SLC, Moab is about 4 hours away, and arriving there after dark wouldn’t be a big deal. We know where most of the dispersed camping areas are. But we left SLC at 4pm, and that was after the early start and a killer ride. It had already been a big day. So we settled on Price, a 2-hour drive south.

Along the way we were (obsessively) checking the weather apps. Price is surrounded by BLM land and since we planned on getting there before dark, it shouldn’t have been hard to find a spot. But the skies turned ominous the further south we traveled. Also, we didn’t plan the food situation very well, so when we got to Price were were both starving and it was already raining out.

We settled on a Mexican joint for dinner. The food was marginal but hot, and filling. It was during dinner that we saw the flood warning for the San Rafael Swell and surrounding areas. This Mexican joint happened to be two doors down… from the Wal-Mart.

For weeks now we’ve been saying “we can always camp at the Wal-Mart” as a jest. But it was dark and raining with flood warnings and we were right there. We camped at the Wal-Mart.

And it’s not something I feel the need to do again. Ever. I mean, nobody bothered us or anything. But the flourescent lights were on all night. It wasn’t quiet. And it rained all night. I didn’t sleep well. But we made it through the night. After packing up the tent in the rain, I went inside one last time to brush my teeth in the Wal-Mart bathroom. Got some great looks from two different ladies, which I found oddly hilarious.

It turned out to be a very good thing that we camped in that parking lot: Price was flooded. For a minute there I was afraid we wouldn’t even be able to make it out of the city. But the water on the road wasn’t fast-moving and there were cops directing traffic. The little Pontiac ahead of us didn’t have any problems, and neither did Taco Negro.

Finally! On our way. The clouds lifted before we even reached Green River. We made it to Moab in under two hours and our first stop was the Moab Diner for a real breakfast. On our way in, we passed a few RV parks that claimed they were full, so we were pleasantly surprised to find the dispersed camping area at the end of Willow Springs Road practically empty.

Of course it rained that afternoon, although by the time it began in earnest we already had the tent and the annex set up. (I wonder how much of a PITA it would be to set up that annex in the rain.) We hung out in the annex for a while, then went up to the tent. I never stay awake for long up there, snuggled up in my sleeping bag and all.

It was kind of a long night – I don’t think it rained all that hard, but the wind. Gusty, loud, tent-flappy wind. It kept waking me up, although Michael slept right through it. How do I know? At some point in the night, I hear the wind howling, the tent flapping. And underneath it, so faint I could barely hear it… was the sound of Michael snoring.

At least the sun came out the next day.

Yep, that’s me in my new Uggs. Love them! Sunshine and coffee is a fabulous combination (of course, a snuggly dog doesn’t hurt!) Can’t wait to take advantage of everything Moab has to offer…