Day 29 Flaming Gorge, Vernal UT to Price

A tingling in my left foot's third toe woke me up, as if a nylon string had tightened around it. There was nothing there, as I reached down to feel my foot, but it did feel swollen. Oh no, was this an emergency? But whatever caused that sensation quickly dissipated and soon forgotten. Maybe a strange sleeping position pinched a nerve in my foot.

The sun rise was nondescript. I was cold, and I realized I was cold because the sleeping bag was completely unzipped! A strong aroma of sage filled the air as I stepped outside to start the day. What a nice way to start a short morning walk to stretch out those legs and paws. Sadie looked refreshed, but Minnie still looked exhausted. I slowed down to her pace. She didn't look like she wanted to walk. Campers around me were already getting their day ready. One Black Lab approached Minnie but Sadie cut that encounter short. One camper parked next to me fired up his truck and boat trailer and headed out to the lake before the sun had risen completely over the horizon. The dogs napped in the back while I sat in the front reading more from last night's book "Patient H.M" by Luke Dittrich, an interesting book about mental illness.

Our campsite for the night was perhaps the nicest group site I've been on during this road trip. Although I prefer being more remote to give the dogs some room to roam, the views were nice. People kept to themselves but several large RVs looked to be part of a group, as people from the three rigs mingled by a fire last night. Sun rise wasn't as spectacular as I had expected as the sun rose above the high plateau in the east, but the views only got better as I continued the drive south, first on UT44, the Sheeps Canyon scenic byway, and then US191. The geological formations along the sides of the road, from flipped sandstone to fossil beds, is worth another more detailed visit to this area. Signs describing the various formations are posted along the road. Red, coppers, whites and browns of all hues shined strongly as the sun got higher. I could easily spend a few days here.

I stopped at the dam that was built in 1964, a dam built as part of the larger Colorado River connection. The Green River is dammed here, the river continues south into the Colorado River near the Arizona border. A small island off the parking lot affords osprey watching. People had paid to tour the dam but I was more interested in some short hikes, but the clerk only recommended some books to buy. I ended up hiking the Bear Canyon trail for another 2.8 miles. It advertised itself as a rim trail with scenic views, but I never saw the canyon from the trail. The trail instead went behind a campsite, a murky pond, and down into a verdant meadow with a large house on the end. I turned off before the house and trekked back along the shaded rim to make my own loop using my phone's GPS. Spotted a chirping marmot, magpies and a few other high desert dwellers. The ponderosa pines and red rock remind me of the Flagstaff area.

Vernal, UT was 35 miles away, across beautiful high desert, then high mountain passes (8720') and down into the mining regions north of Vernal. US191 snaked down into town. To my relief it's a big enough town to satisfy a hungry traveler, with a variety of fast food restaurants along Main street. I needed to find a grocery store for some raw meats as Sadie hasn't been eating her kibble (Minnie is!) and I was hungry, too. I found a Smith grocery store, fed the dogs chicken (Sadie got most), then stopped and chilled for two more hours at a Taco Bell as I was hungry, too. I hadn't had a decent meal since leaving Salmon, ID. Then on to Roosevelt, a small town of around 6400 people right along the Uintah and Ouray Reservation that provides the jobs for people in the area. The landscape remained crumbly red rock, with the high Uintah mountains to the far west and dark monsoonal clouds forming in the south. I had to stop at the Taco Bell again for another pee break. Two indigenous-looking women looked at me and asked me if I was from around here. I had to smile and reply "Do I look like I'm from here!," referring to this town being a native town. "We're from the Four Corners Area" said one of the women, another beautiful indigenous area where Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico meet.

The drive the rest of the day was a very scenic drive along US 191. This is the Utah I like, void of the stark Mormon temples or white-shirted men and the mind-numbing traffic. This is mining, rail road and Uinta tribes flanked by brittle sandstone hills. I had been in part of this region back in 2009, driving from Provo to Park City (a ritzy town with attitude) and the Nine Mile Canyon drive before continuing on into Colorado. But this was new territory going from north to south.

South of Duchesne the highway entered a very scenic section, gaining altitude as it entered the Ashley National Forest again. The hills were pointed, the canyons narrow. A narrow band of green meadow hugged the highway, with a few homes and abandoned cabins that stood out against the green background. Even a herd of cows off the shoulder slowed me down. At night these cows could have been fatal, another reason why I don't road trip at night. Many of the trees looked diseased or dead, as swaths of healthy trees were enveloped by waves of dead trees.

I opted for the Price Canyon Recreation Area as my goal for the night, but just as I summitted a 9114' pass and stopped for a pee break, it began storming. The thunder scared Minnie and she ran back to the van without peeing. I didn't want to rest here and slowly drove downhill, but that was hard on my breaks. My steering wheel vibrated and I was relieved to be back on more level ground when I got to the small town of Castle Gate, where a power plant stands at a sharp corner where US6 and US191 meet. It seems so odd to have a power plant right at a traffic intersection.

It was now getting into the early evening and clouds were still looking stormy. I opted to get a room in town, at the National9 Inn, for $66 which included the pet fee. Oddly enough, neither dog wanted to come inside the hotel room. Minnie didn't even want to get out of the van! I hope she isn't injured or sick, as she's been rather lethargic today, although she did do OK on the Bear Canyon hike. I'm thinking she is starting to develop arthritis like Sara did at the same age (five), and I need to slow down her mileage. She ate well enough, although she didn't touch her raw chicken this morning. I will keep my eyes on her tomorrow. If she's looking sick, I'll just drive straight back to Hereford. She's not vomitting or having soft stool, though. She just looks tired. I'm getting a bit tired being on the road, too. The monsoon has started in southern Arizona and things are greening up.


I'll fill this day's report in next week when I'm back home.