My friend Bill and I were on a quick trip from Omaha to Salt Lake City, and back. He was in the Air Force at the time and had a week's break. So we headed west across Nebraska and eastern Colorado and spent a night or two in Rocky Mountain National Park. From there we headed south and west toward Grand Junction, Colorado and spent one night camping in Colorado National Monument. These brief and sporadic notes are from that short stay.

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From Rocky Mountain National Park we drove west through the Rockies, passing through Vail, which is a fantastic ski resort. Along the way we spotted all sorts of glacial features in the surrounding topography.

We passed into a semi-arid region near Grand Junction and spent the night camped in Colorado National Monument. We set up camp in the wind, and cooked our evening meal. Then we walked over to the Visitor's Center where I phoned home.

Along the way we talked to several other campers. One man from Wyoming, who was with his wife, were just out sight seeing. We also talked to a man, his wife, who were in their late forties, and their son, who were from Massachusetts. They were out in the west for the first time.

By the time we got back to our camp site it began to rain. It was a terrific storm, and a bit frightening, being up high on top of that plateau. There was lightening, tremendous thunder, and seeming sheets of rain. The water mixed with the local red soil and made a sticky mud that was only a fraction of an inch thick. Underneath the ground remained dry. After that surface layer became wet most of the water seemed to run off into the shallow washes. We sat in our tents at the edge of the plateau and watch the rainstorm pound the other side across a deep canyon.

Later on, after the worst of the storm passed, two young women set up camp across the road from our site. They didn’t have a tent, so spread out their sleeping bags between two plastic tarps. The tarps were too small to cover their bags adequately. So, of course, Bill and I (being studly young men of the world) felt sorry for them. We braved the rain and ran across the road to loan them an extra tarp that we had.

In the morning they told us that they had braved the storm until about 1:00 a.m., when they gave up and slept in their Volkswagen. That couldn't have been too comfortable. To be even more gentlemanly, we shared our bacon and eggs with them. We found out that they were from California. One was a graduate of UCLA, while the other still had a year to go. They were both psychology majors. After breakfast they insisted on doing the dishes. Then we said our goodbyes, as we headed west to Salt Lake City and they drove east to Florida.

On our way out we spotted a critter that looked somewhat like a weasel but seemed larger and colored like a prairie dog, but it was too thin and I don't believe prairie dogs live in that area. The geology that we observed in the Monument reminded me a bit of Capitol Reef National Park in Utah. I guess it was the various limestone and sandstone deposits and their interesting erosion patterns.

Serpent's Trail

On this day we hiked the 2.75 miles (one way) Serpents Trail, near the east entrance. We hiked from the bottom up, which is a steady, moderate climb. This unpaved route was once the main road into the Monument. It is wide in most places, and has a good surface. The lower trailhead is across from the picnic area just inside the east entrance. The upper trailhead is along the current paved road through the Monument.

Devil's Kitchen Trail

We also hiked the easy to moderate .75 miles (one way) Devil's Kitchen trial. It leaves the trailhead (same as for the Serpent's Trail), drops down into a shallow valley, then follows a low route until a short climb near the end, up into the "garden." Watch for cairns and carved steps to find your way across the slickrock. There are some spectacular sandstone sculptures and views of the southern end of the Monument.

The weather along this hike was warm to hot, with slight breezes gusting to a strong wind. We also encountered some gnats. We rubbed on some sun screen with an insect repellant and that seemed to work fine in keeping them away. We were told to watch for rattlers in this area, but we didn't see any.

 Saddlehorn Campground

After our hikes we drove from the east entrance through the Monument to the west entrance, stopping at a couple of turnouts to view the deep canyons and surrounding scenery. We took a quick side trip through the campground just to check out the facilities there.

The campground is in an exposed pinyon-juniper forest and on rough, uneven terrain. There are sites suitable for both tents and trailers. The Ranger told us that there are always open spots. When we visited Loop "C" was closed. There are restrooms and drinking water.

 Palisade, Grand Mesa, and Lands End

In the afternoon we drove to the town of Palisade and visited a wine seller, did some wine tasting, bought a few bottles of their mead, and then drove up and over the top of Grand Mesa. We stopped at the wonderful Visitor Center up there, spoke with the volunteers, picked up a couple of maps and other information, then drove out across the top of the mesa via the Lands End Trail. Near the edge we stopped at the overlook and Visitor Center there. Since it was late in the day, the small Visitor Center there was closed. But it was well worth the drive out, to see the spectacular views. There were lots of ground squirrels begging for food, Anne saw a marmot, and we spotted a small herd of elk moving through the trees down below. Up on top there are lots of lakes and that wonderful smell of pine.

From there we drove down the switchbacks below the Lands End Overlook. It's a wild drive with great views. The dirt road had a well graded surface, but you still must watch out for vehicles coming up, especially on the tight curves and few narrow stretches.

Black Ridge Trail

We hiked the 5.6 mile (one way) Black Ridge Trail, giving us an 11.2 miles round trip. We began the hike at 7:30 a.m. from the Visitor Center parking lot. The trail ends at the main road through the park near the Liberty Cap Trailhead, near the turnoff for Glen Park. The trail is not well maintained. In some places it follows old wagon roads or jeep trails. Most of the trail passes through a pinyon-juniper environment, with some very nice views of the canyons below the mesa, and off the west side. But, over all, the views along the trail aren't especially great.

There is an interesting area that crosses a sandstone bridge at the head of two canyons, one to the east, one to the west. The trail also passes through some clay areas (possibly the Morrison formation). Along the way we spotted a couple of collard lizards, the usual small lizards, a cotton tail rabbit, a mountain blue bird, vultures, hawks, and a few other critters.

It was warm and breezy most of the way. Including water breaks and a 20 minutes rest at the halfway point, it took us just under five hours.

Monument Trail

On this day we hiked the 6.3 mile (one way) Monument Trail, giving us a 12.6 mile round trip. We began at the lower trailhead along Highway 340, and hiked up to the upper trailhead within the monument, located along the monument road. We completed this hike in just under 6 hours.

The trail starts in a nice parking area and crosses a sage desert. It then runs along just inside the monument fence line near a cluster of nice homes. Along in here there are views of the lower sandstone outcrops and tilted structures. Eventually the trail turns west into the park along a wash and begins to climb a bit. From here to the top is a pretty steady upward climb. The elevation change is something like 1500 feet. The trail is generally in good shape, but there are areas that are washed out and difficult to follow. The Park Service has placed very few cairns, so be careful and don't hesitate to backtrack if you get off of the trail. Don't always trust the footprints of others.

The trail crosses solid rock in many places, moves over loose sand along other stretches, and is covered with a dry, crumbly clay in still other places. There are some down-slopes that are difficult due to the loose material on top of harder underlying material. The trail is moderate to strenuous, with the strenuous portion in the last mile as you approach the upper trailhead. This area passes through some slick sandstone and crushed rubble and climbs steeply through a series of tight switchbacks and constructed stairs. Of course, if you are only going one way, and that is down, the trail would probably be rated easy to moderate.

It was a warm day, but we got lucky on the return part of the hike. A thick layer of clouds moved in and we were in the shade for most of that part of the hike.

There were very few people on the trail, and most only went part way up before turning around. Besides hikers, we spotted a collard lizard near the return end of the hike. They are very colorful in their contrasting bright green and yellow.

I also saw a whip snake or some other thin constrictor that made a dash to hide under a rock. There were some large birds circling ahead of us as we neared the upper trailhead, possibly vultures, but we couldn't be sure. They were not ravens.

This area is a prime example of why we must protect these special areas for all to enjoy. There are houses built right up to the fence line of the Monument. There are even some up high, on hills, overlooking the area, that we could see from the Black Ridge Trail. If it weren't for the government protecting these areas, individuals would selfishly build right among the Monument's views, and prevent the rest of us from having access or unobstructed views of what  rightfully belongs to all of us. Can you imagine the housing developments that would be built all along the rims of the Grand Canyon, or at the base of the cliffs within Zion National Park?

"Honey, run down to the Weeping Rock Convenience Store and pick up a quart of milk and a loaf of bread. Then stop by the Emerald Pools Laundry and see if my dress is ready."