FISHER TOWERS…ALL ABOUT THE HIKE

Thursday, September 12 – We headed about 20 miles East of Moab on SR-128 along the Colorado River this morning to hike the Fisher Towers Trail. (Reminder…you can click on any photo in any post to see it up close and personal.)

We hit the road by 7 a.m.

We traveled a dirt road about 2 miles off SR-128 to reach the trailhead.

There it is.

Courtesy of Summitpost.org

We had to wait out a short rain before we could begin our hike. We also got sprinkled on twice during the hike.

A moderate 2.2-mile (one way) hiking trail took us along the base of the towers and spires to a scenic overlook. The trail is well marked in most places by piles of rocks called cairns. We soon began to rely on these markers to find our way among the washes, across slick rock, around the curves and up and down over the rocks. This trail has just about anything we have ever met on a hike.

Ledge walking

Steep up and down grades.

Easiest part.

Through the wash.

At one point we descended a metal ladder for about 10 feet. Here we couldn't see a cairn and walked down the wash through some muddy clay before we realized we must have taken a wrong turn. After back tracking we found our error. At the base of the ladder, we should have moved UP the wash.

Marsha wasn't too thrilled about this part.

After hiking about an hour (including “Kodak Moments” for photos), we reached the base of Titan. The tallest of the towers at 900 feet. We were hoping to see some rock climbers on the towers but none were found.

Next to Titan is Ancient Art rock, a skinny tower. This tower was recently featured in a Citibank commercial. A young lady is pictured standing atop this monolith modeling her new shoes (climbing shoes not high heels), and new nylons (ropes not hose). Cute!

At trails end you reach the base of Fisher Towers. This area is called the saddle, a peninsula, 5430 feet above sea level. What a wonderful hike. One of our favorites. This trail is rated moderate on most of the sites on the Internet. We totally agree.

If you plan to hike this trail, wear good hiking boots. And DO NOT do as these people did.

 

We wished we had time to see how long it took them until they turned around. This photo was taken about 100 yards from the start of the trail.  Some people are just down-right dumb!

Just so much beauty on all sides.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day.

CANYONLANDS

Wednesday, September 11 (continued from yesterday) - From Dead Horse Point State Park, we drove down the the road to Canyonlands National Park. The American the Beautiful pass was accepted here, so the $10 entrance fee was waved. What an amazing government program. Can't believe it hasn't been eliminated yet!

When we were here a few days ago, it was raining. Today, we drove the Island in the Sky road around the Park. We continued our hiking marathon by doing  the short hikes to many beautiful sites.  First stop the Grand Point Overlook. There is a one mile walk to the rim.

Buck Canyon Overlook.

Candlestick Tower Overlook

Green River Overlook…Elevation 6000 ft..

The next awesome site was about a mile round trip. Don't miss it!

That was enough hiking for one day!

We have several more hikes and a zillion more pictures to take, so check back and see what good weather and awesome scenery we will report on!

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!

“... AND THE SUN SHINES BRIGHT!”

Wednesday, September 11 -  With skies clearing and the sun peaking out, we headed to Dead Horse Point State Park early this morning. This is a State Park so our America the Beautiful senior pass didn't cover the $10 admission price, but it was well worth it!

We hiked over 10 miles today! The first nine miles were on the Colorado River Trail. We began with the East Rim Trail.

The trail is very well marked with cairns the entire way. The cairns come in all shapes and sizes.

What spectacular views of the Colorado River and surrounding canyons.

 Basin Overlook

We then connected to the West Rim Trail.

The Neck

Meander Overlook

No, Paul, that is not what they mean by overlook!

Shafer Canyon Overlook

Rim Overlook

Big Horn Overlook

The hike was a little tiring for our old, out-of-condition knees, but we survived. We did stop for a little lunch of sandwiches and trail mix along the way and carried plenty of water. Thank goodness it was cooler today. If we were still hovering in the high 90's (in the 70's today), we would of found ourselves short on water. We each carried a big water bottle....next time maybe 2 each!

If you plan to hike this trail, it is rather easy. Be sure to have your hiking boots on. Even though you will walk through thick sand, this is no place for sandals.

Thanks for stopping by. Hope to see y'all back real soon. Have a great day!