It has been around a year since the initial seed was planted in my head to try and make it out to Alaska for work. Aside from work, completing that drive from the mainland States has been on my bucket list for quite some time. After all the preparation and planning, it is wild to think that I’ve already traveled all that way. 6,400 miles later, I am one happy camper to have made that drive during the middle of winter.
The first weekend in NM was spent with Zeph in some of the ski towns while he was judging events for USASA. First stop was Red River, and second was Angel Fire. Back in October, I had traveled the Enchanted Circle and family friend Mike and I found an awesome brewery maybe 5 miles off the main road around Eagle Nest via gravel road- but it was closed. This time, it was open! The owner was back and hung out with us for a few hours out on the patio while we took in the amazing views. What a place to call home and business- when I go back to NM, I will be returning to Comanche Creek Brewery once again.
The worst driving conditions that I experienced the WHOLE trip was leaving NM and entering into CO when there was a nighttime snowstorm. I was glad to not be on an interstate, so we only passed 1 car in probably 3 hours. From there on out, it was pretty smooth sailing believe it or not. We car camped for the night (as I did for the majority of this trip) on a beautiful forest road outside Durango, and then we rolled over into Utah the next morning where we were greeted with blue, blue skies.
UTAH!!!! This place has been my favorite state for quite some time, and it sure did not disappoint this time through. It had recently snowed throughout a lot of the state, so every park we went to had a fresh white blanket- it was nuts, and we realized this was a rare sight. Since this was during the government shut down, we did not get to make it into Arches/Canyonlands, but that’s ok because I got to have my first trip to Dead Horse Point State Park! This place is way less travelled but has some stunning views of the Colorado River and overlooking views of both national parks. We hiked around for a bit there, drove the stunning scenic byway 128 north, and ended up at Green River for the night. Whenever I’m in this town, I make a mandatory trip to La Pasadita taco truck- it is not to EVER be skipped! We couldn’t resist getting breakfast burritos the next morning either. This small town always brings me such joy; there may not be much there, but at this point it’s nostalgic for me.
I try to avoid interstates 70 and 15 while in UT so I can travel as many of the byways as possible. The next day we drove south on 24 to Capitol Reef Nat’l Park, which has become one of my favorite parks. Of the five big parks in southern Utah, it is the least visited. But it has heaps of history, an incredible mixed landscape of desert rock with green valley, and the Fremont river running through the park. We did a short but scenic hike then spent the rest of the day driving south. This was my first pass at route 12S, and I think my face was in jaw-drop mode the entire way; it is definitely one of the most beautiful highways I have ever driven. Every time we went around a bend, I would expect similar scenery, but it would be completely different and stunning. That night we arrived at Zion National Park from the east entrance- right in time to catch the sunset against the big canyon walls- what a dream.
In order to get a break from the driving, we stayed the whole day in Zion’s vicinity. At a balmy 30-35deg, we started our hike up Observation Point with little more than light layers and non-grip friendly shoes. At least I had hiking boots, but Zeph just had some sambas; with probably 2/3 to 3/4 of the hike being an ice layer, we were sliding around heaps. Everyone we passed had on Yak Traks and serious cold weather gear, while we looked the exact opposite. It was a riot of a good time, and we even met a man named WIZARD at the top. I truly could have sat up there all day with those views of snow and the canyon. We attempted a bit of the narrows in our shoes, but with frigid water we really didn’t make it too far, especially realizing we had to traverse back. We ended the night over at Coral Pink Sand Dunes state park for the sunset, which was unbelievable. You could see the dunes, mountains, and flat landscape with a 360 view. After the sun was set, the sky was clear as can be with the stars out because we were out of light pollution. What a scenic day that was.
Leaving Zion we headed north to Richfield, passed through Salt Lake, and continued north to the eastern corner of Idaho before ending in Jackson Hole, WY for the night. Walking around, we passed an Elks Lodge (of which Zeph is a member), and ended up on a wild ride of meeting some wonderful people, listening to great music, and having a good dance- we even got to go to a Jackson hockey game- go moooooose! Grand Tetons does not maintain the park roads except for a few miles. But in those few miles, you can park and play in all the fresh powder you could imagine. I have missed living in places with snow the past few winters, and even MI has not had much snow lately. To say I was happy to finally be in thigh deep snow was an understatement. And one afternoon, Zeph attempted to teach me how to put snow chains on should I need them driving north. The all-terrain tires I just bought have a thick tread, and I had the WORST time trying to put these bad boys on (mostly because I just kept doing it wrong). I hoped with all my soul that I would not need them, and luckily I did not.
From Jackson we drove north to Helena, MT where Zeph flew back home. I am so grateful I got to have a co-pilot for the first leg of the trip! From the border crossing into Canada at Sweetgrass, I became a bit nervous of being alone for the rest of the way. It gets lonely out there!! Luckily, Canada had an insane amount of Wifi spots to keep in touch. In my next post, I write on everything I covered throughout Alberta, British Columbia, the Yukon, and Alaska, all of which was a northern dream.
Sam