RETIREMENT TRIP #6

      ON TOP OF THE WORLD     

                 September 2015                

“It’s not that bad,” said Andy, as we packed up in Richfield this morning.  The sun shined brightly, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. 

I shivered.  “If you plan to hike in the near future, I want my jacket.”
“It’s balmy.  You don’t need a jacket,” he said, getting into the car.

“I’m just warning you, if you want to hike.”

The bridge over the creek at Big Rock
Candy Mountain resort offers an
ideal spot for photographs. 

“But it’s still summer, and it’s lovely,” Andy argued.
I looked at the car thermometer.  It was 46 degrees.
The parking lot was busy; everyone was dressed in warmer gear than we had on.  But then again everyone else was on motorcycles.  The Quality Inn had no vacancy, and all rooms were apparently taken by older adults, because of a huge motor cross event today in Richfield.
“It’s known worldwide.  It’s a very popular event,” the desk clerk had told one visitor.

Jagged rock spires provide
interesting scenery along Route 89.

I guess it all depends on one’s frame of reference.  We didn’t know anything about it.
The road climbed into some rugged terrain at the edge of Paiute County.  There, nestled between jagged rock cliffs and spires, was Big Rock Candy Mountain, a resort with colorful old railroad cars.
A nearby reservoir had opened the floodgates, so the creek adjoining Route #89 flowed right to the top of its banks.  A couple donkeys grazed in one field, and a covey of quail dashed across the road.  A mile or so up the hill the campground was filled with trailers.  Most of them had jeeps and off-road vehicles or motorcycles.

Aspen form the backdrop for a wedding
in the Dixie National Forest.

High on the top of a mountain to the west we saw huge patches of yellow.

“That’s the aspen that have changed color way up there,” said Andy. “That’s probably over 11,000 feet.”

Dixie National Forest bursts with
color as leaves shimmer in the breeze.

There wasn’t any snow on top yet.  From the map I identified the peak as Mount Belknap at 12,119 feet.

Miles down the road the reservoir was mostly mud flats. True, it’s heading into fall so water level would be down, but to an Easterner, it seems lack of water is a terribly serious issue for this part of the country.
We stopped several times along Route #89 as we headed south.  Each time the mountains to the west looked increasingly more jagged. 
“Rattlesnakes live there,” said Andy, pointing to one grouping of spires.
“Guess I won’t be hiking it then,” I countered.
“It’s not cold outside,” said Andy.  “It’s so nice in the sun.”
It was 54 degrees.
As I took pictures, he introduced himself to a herd of Black Angus across the street.
The loud moos echoed repeatedly across the canyon, bouncing from side to side around us.  It definitely upset the herd.  One disgruntled adult mooed back loudly and repeatedly, adding to the commotion of echoes.  Then the herd retreated.
Lots of people fished on Panguitch Lake, but it was Saturday during senior citizen vacation season.
We stopped in Dixie National Forest to photograph one of the lava flows.  

“This road closes in the winter,” said Andy, “and Cedar Breaks up ahead of us closes the first week in October.”

I put on my jacket and watched him climb to the top of the lava flow.

The white ledge at Sunset View glistens brilliantly at noon.

“You’d probably make it up here,” he called, “but it would take you hours to come back down.”

I wasn’t about to try.

“It’s definitely fall above the 9,000 foot elevation,” said Andy.  All the aspen trees had turned brilliant yellow and reddish orange in Dixie National Forest.  A turnoff had a sign for a wedding.  Gorgeous day and gorgeous location!

The higher we climbed, the more color.  At the entrance to Cedar Breaks National Monument, the aspen disappeared and were replaced by cedars.  But whole slopes of the cedars were dead.

Most monument visitors never see the views along
the Ramparts Trail at Cedar Breaks.

That’s the beetle,” said Andy.  “The climate has warmed up just enough for the beetle to thrive, and there is no remedy.  Fire slows it down, but the beetle just sucks the life out of a tree in about three years.”

We didn’t stay long at Chessman Ridge Overlook.  A group of about 30 seniors with dogs had met for a convention of picture-taking.  A couple deep breaths of pungent cedar and Andy said, “Let’s go.  We’ll find another spot.”

We had Sunset View at 10,354 feet all to ourselves.

Healthy Bristlecone Pine trees line the
cliff edge near Spectra Point.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) boys in 1934, built this overlook and lived across the road in tents.  They received $30 a month with food and lodging in the tents, but they were required to send $25 of it home to their families.

Two miles from the Visitor Center at
Point Supreme Andy reaches the end
of Ramparts Trail.

The next stop, Point Supreme Overlook, swarmed with people.  It wasn’t a problem, because this massive lookout was also the park entrance and fee station.  Most people walked out to Point Supreme at 10,354 feet and left.

“This is our hike for the day,” said Andy.  And so it was we set out on the Ramparts Trail for Spectra Point at 10,285 feet.  The narrow trail followed the rim and skirted the edge of the canyon for a mile to a grove of Bristlecone Pine trees.  The sign explained that these trees are the oldest living organism on earth and that they can survive best up to 10,000 feet.  Controlling factor is moisture more than altitude though.  Some trees in the grove were estimated to be more than 2,000 years old.

With a dead Bristlecone
as the backdrop, Sue reaches
the end of the trail.
 

Only a few other people had hiked the one-way mile to Spectra Point.  I spoke with one couple who made their home in France.  They had never heard of Bristlecone Pines.

“Okay, are you ready to go back?” asked Andy.

“No, I can handle it,” I said. I knew he was politely testing my endurance, but he really wanted to continue.

Ramparts Trail offers one spectacular view after another.

Climbing back up the rim along
Ramparts Trail we see amazing
vistas at every turn.

                                  
                 The second leg of Ramparts Trail to Ramparts Overlook at 9,952 feet included nine major downhill switchbacks, descending another mile to Ramparts Overlook.  And we had it totally to ourselves.

We make it back to
the top of the world!

We stopped for pictures before starting the long 500-foot, two-mile ascent.  We made it back in about 70 minutes—not too bad, considering the elevation.

After a 3:00 p.m. cookie break, we headed for Brian’s Head, the highest peak in the surrounding area at 11,307 feet.  Others at the summit marveled at the 360-degree view of the world with vistas to the horizon in every direction.

Alpine plants totally surrounded a stone shelter at the summit.  It had been constructed by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) in 1935 and renovated by the Sierra Club in 1995.

Fall color dominates the landscape below as aspen
trees change near the rim of the red sandstone canyon.

Since records have been kept, the coldest it has ever been at Cedar Breaks is -18 degrees, and the hottest it’s ever been is 88 degrees.  My guess is that the cold record is from the top of Brian’s Head.

The average snowfall in the monument is 15 feet.  The record in one season is 46 feet.

No snow this visit to Cedar Breaks, but even so, the scenery couldn’t be more magnificent.

The summit house perched at the top of Brian's Head looks
out of a 360-degree view of the world below.

As we headed north on Interstate #15, Andy reminded me, “We drove through here two years ago, but then it was about three weeks later in the year, and the hills and peaks on both sides of the road were covered with snow.”

There certainly wasn’t any snow today.  Sheep grazed peacefully, a feed lot swarmed with cattle, ranchers were out cutting and bailing in the fields, and now our car thermometer read 82 degrees.  It was a beautiful Saturday.