Today we woke to the expected forecast of cold and rainy weather, with meteorological mayhem affecting much of the surrounding areas. Up to 12 inches of snow in the mountains, heavy rain and flooding expected elsewhere. Thus we opted to load our gear into the Grand Caravan (great suggestion guys!) and we headed for Moab. Amazing views as we drove toward town; I wanted to get pictures but heard of Purkis' photo spree from a few years earlier. Guess I'll recycle some of those in the video. We found our condo and were able to put our gear in the garage pre-checkin, while we rode. We headed to Slick Rock and began our ride. The weather was probably 60 degrees or so, so we wore more gear. So, it is all rock, with a few cactus' (cacti ??) and sand sections in between. You go down a steep rock, then climb up a steeper rock. You hear about what great traction there is; true. Problem is, it don't mean a thing unless you can deliver the power to get up the hills. So it becomes very muscle intensive, and fatiguing. A painted marking shows you where the trail goes and dots take you to look-outs. The views are indescribable (so I'll try to post some pics) but they are truly amazing. I got spooked at one point when I again realized how high (and close to the edge) we were. Another freak incident in the strong wind could send you hurling to your death. We crossed "bowls" in the rock and crazy rock features. I recently read of 2 people who were trapped in one of these bowls and died of exposure. We returned to the van, went and got groceries, then headed back to the condo.
The condo is great!! New, clean, well appointed and comfortable. Sly cooked up a roast beef and we ate like kings, had a few drinks and called it a day.
I've become known as a arse-advisor in that he guys are all now taking care of their posteriors with chamois cream, post ride baby wipes, then zinc oxide. I also advised Eric on wearing 2 layers of shorts and all are appreciative of the suggestions.
Communicate, update and plan on Windows Live Messenger. Get started today.
No comments:
Post a Comment