March 2, 2009

Wild Burro Trails - Day 1



Last Tuesday, we packed up dog and horses and headed out for five days in southern Utah. The photo above shows the Henry Mountains, 50 miles in the distance, over desert red rock.
Our first destination was the Hans Flat Road, which leads to thousands of acres of BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land adjacent to and just west of the Maze district of Canyonlands. The drive was under five hours, so we had time for a ride that first day.

The above photo shows the LaSal Mountains in the background, 80 miles away.
Steve had been researching the area for weeks and reading the journal of a cowboy who ranched there in the 30’s. The journal described Cowboy Cave, a dwelling in which a subsequent archeological dig found baskets, sandals and figurines dating back 7000 years.
We had a great ride on sandy terrain that allowed for some nice gallops and great conditioning for all. Along the way, we saw this unusual corral, made of pinon-juniperl logs piled up.
The last part of the trail into the rugged canyon where Steve believed, from the old cowboy's description, we would find the cave, consisted of a wild burro trail. We saw lots of small barefoot hoofprints and manure, but didn’t actually see the burros.

We explored as well as we could in the time we had, but saw no sign of a cave. Since the day was nearly done, we cantered back to the trailer and returned to a spring where we planned to camp.
Here’s our rustic motel:

Comfy-looking, huh? It contained a couple of packrat-chewed mattresses, and broken lawn chairs out front. And there was even a rotting burro’s leg with hoof attached to add to the aesthetic effect.
(Actually, we slept in the gooseneck of our trailer on our own clean and comfortable mattress.
But the details about "motel 6" are all strange but true.)
The horses had a nearby cattle tank to drink out of, and plenty of hay. We'd ridden 10 miles that day, over rough terrain only wild burros had traversed before, (at least recently). Man and beast welcomed a night's rest.
Tune in tomorrow for the second day's tales and more photos.
For adventures from other worlds, click here.

32 comments:

  1. What a wonderful trip. The country site is "out of this world"! The motel could do with a face lift!! Is it cold up there? Fresh air, the view is grandiose, give me this
    anytime.

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  2. That is some trip. I love that motel 6 picture.

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  3. Another impressive adventure. The Motel 6 startled me! Now that would have been really roughing it. I'm happy to see that who had more civilized accomodations.

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  4. Oh Jane, I love hearing about your day/trip... You are there truly in the 'wild-blue-yonder'... Oh--how envious I am!!!! Just getting away from the hustle and bustle of life has got to be refreshing. (It's like we feel when we hike in the mountains.)

    Hope you did get to see the burros.. Love the Motel 6.. (Glad you had a nice warm bed in your trailer!!!!)

    I'll be waiting patiently to see and hear about more of your wonderful trip. Hope you find the cave!!!

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  5. What beautiful rock formations. The motel looks funny. :) but makes a great photo.

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  6. Ooooh, you are a tease! Can't wait. We camped in Moab in November and visited Arches and Canyonland. We would have seen more but hubby got sick. Even at that we had some good hikes and good sights.

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  7. This really is the great outdoors.This lanscape is another world to me

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  8. I was wondering where you and Steve had gone off to....gotta admit that Motel 6 picture was very entertaining. I'd like the horse trailer better for sure.

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  9. Great shots once again Janie, I just had to add you to my followers list so I can return more often.

    Have a great week!
    Guy
    Regina In Pictures

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  10. Your trailer looks like pure comfort! The corrugated iron shed maybe just needed some color and a window or two....

    What a beautiful landscape.

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  11. Motel 6 looks like it's straight out of a horror movie! I'm looking forward to reading about the rest of your trip.

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  12. What a peaceful-sounding journey and stay. Hope that was a good break, and alos wish you happy cave-hunting!

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  13. I would have picked the gooseneck, too! I think I would have picked the open air before the Motel 6. How beautiful and scenic is this place!!

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  14. What a beautiful place to ride. Five days, huh. Hope you made your reservations at that Motel 6, looks like it could fill up. Too bad you didn't find Cowboy Cave. I look forward to more of this journey.

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  15. Looks like gret country for travelling through...

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  16. Great country and a fun ride.

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  17. I was relieved to see the interior of your van,,,motel 6 lol.

    WWhat an amazing adventure. I'm looking forward to the rest of the story.

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  18. I love your trails! Utah is like Niger with mountains!
    Staying tuned for part II,
    Esther

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  19. Thanks for taking is on a ride.You have such an adventurous life! Fancy taking your horse and going where ever you want to!! I don't see that here. We live here in terraced houses or block of flats. Only a few people who can afford it have a bigger house and a piece of land large enough to keep horses. Thanks for your visit and comment!

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  20. Wow! You guys aren't afraid of anything. Your horses & dog must love that you take them out on these grand adventures. Does your dog follow you on the trail or does she wait at the campsite?

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  21. I like your bed better than the looks of that motel! Do the horses like a road trip as much as the dogs do? What a great adventure.

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  22. Wow, talk about roughing it. Sounds like fun! Motel 6 is enough to provide memories for a lifetime. Enjoy the rest of your adventure and good luck tracking those burros!

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  23. LOL Loved the motel 6, specially since we have a motel. I take it they didn't leave the lights on for ya.
    Oh i would love to be on that trail with you. Looks like so much fun. I had wondered if you had a camper or used your trailer to sleep in. Nice bed.

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  24. That is cool that you had less than a 5 hour drive, that isn't bad at all. Love the Motel 6, pretty classy sounding. Your bed in the trailer looks very cozy.

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  25. Wow, thanks for sharing your adventure with us. The pictures of the snow covered mountains in the distance from the desert is great.

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  26. SO GLAD you did not avail yourselves of Motel 6 services!! But the trip looks wonderful and fascinating history too.

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  27. Nice country. We used to head to the Moab area each year about this time as respite from winter, but got tired of being overrun by off-road vehicles. Looks like you found a place-less-ridden.

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  28. 'You're back in the saddle again.'

    Someone had a great sense of humor about Motel 6. Sure makes you do a double take.

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  29. i am so jealous, not of motel 6, but of the world you live in, so open and wild and wonderfully beautiful.

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  30. Oh what fun!! I think you have a very comfortable way too camp. :)

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