Summer Wrap Up, 2017

SUP'ing Pineview, May 30. 2017.

SUP'ing Pineview, May 30. 2017.

Snowbasin form Pineview Reservoir, May 30, 2017

From Pineview we drove home over Monte Cristo then through Evanston Wyoming. 

Mountain Biking Mueller Park to Rudy's Flat, down North Canyon, June 9, 2017.

Came around a blind corner too fast and rode right over the middle of this Garter(?) snake and I was sure my tires had cut it in half, but it crawled away like nothing happened.

Heading down North Canyon.

North Canyon Bald (the peak), and flowers.

Fourth of July

My grandson is a better drone pilot than his Grandpy.

SUP'ing Causey Reservoir, July 15, 2017:

Causey has four fjord-like arms that are fun to explore. We paddled for 4 hours and covered about 6 miles. Tons of young people cliff jumping on the more accessible cliffs but further in we were almost alone.

On the downside, three bodies have never been recovered from Causey (per the Deputy). All the more incentive not to fall in.

Total Eclipse of the Sun from Rexburg Idaho, August 21, 2017:

Not prepared to photograph the eclipse, these are the best I could do. 

It took us three and a half hours to drove up the day before from Bountiful Utah, and nine hours to drive home the evening after the eclipse, but worth every second of the long drive home. It was simply stunning when it went from 99% to 100%, bringing a rush of emotion that was totally unexpected. 

SUP'ing Mirror Lake, August 26, 2017:

Raining almost from the start. We sat out the first 20 minutes in the truck then headed to the lake knowing the breaking sun wouldn't last.

So nice to be on a real lake and not on one of Utah's grungy reservoirs with their missing, drowned swimmers and algae blooms.

Bald Mountain (l) and Ried's Peak (r).

Hayden Peak.

Mountain Biking, Mueller's-Rudy's-North Canyon,
September 4, 2017:

On the North Canyon/Mueller's Divide, just above the "rocky switchback".

Session Mountain from Rudy's Flat (elev 7,120 feet).

Snow stake rock at about 6,800 feet. It's roughly four feet high, so a good snow year when it's covered

Elderberries in North Canyon.

Drone Shots of the Family, September 10, 2017:

Mountain Biking, Mueller's-Rudy's-Mueller's, October 4, 2017:

Evening ride up to Rudy's Flat (7,120 feet), arriving at Rudy's at sundown. Under-dressed per usual (shorts and a short-sleeved jersey) and I froze on the descent. I could move my toes or fingers upon arrival at truck, which meant I could barely get the keys from my pocket and into the keyhole.

New bridges just below Rudy's Flat. There are now no more technicalities riding up the Mueller Trail. One can literally fly through here at 20-mph, whereas is use to be a bunny-hop after bunny-hop through rocks and bogs and big-stepped-mounts onto the bridges.

Now easy as pie.

Sunset over Antelope Island, from about a mile above Elephant Rock.

Cold and Icy Day on the Pfeifferhorn, October 13, 2017

Red Pine Lake with a skin of ice, which was melted when I descended an hour and a half later.

Topping out on the Red Pine/Maybird Divide, near summit of No Name Baldy (right skyline), and the Pfeifferhorn (elev 11,326 ft.) comes into view.   The snow was not an issue on the ascent, other than careful footing in the shadowy parts of the trail where the foot-traffic had turned the snow to an ice-rink, but I fell hard on my ass twice during the descent.
Nose-over-toes sonny!

The crux ridge just before ascending the final head wall.

Timpanogos and Box Elder Peak from the boulder ridge.

Boulder hop holiday.

Dorkville!! It was much colder than expected at the trail-head and I was in running gear. The only extra clothing I had in my truck was my cycling leg warmers and a light wind-breaker, which I use about once every five years - hence the wrinkles. Yeah, I'm now dressing like my Dad when he embarrassed me as a kid and I'd tell my friends,  "I have no idea who that homeless guy is."

View NW off the Pfeiff summit, looking down the classic ski run (sunlit ramp lower right) into Hogum Fork. The ski run is much steeper than it looks here, about 50 degrees at the steepest with a rap over a 40-foot cliff about half way down (just left/below the horn of rock). 

Summit view east.

Summit view west, with Lone Peak the far peak in the middle ("w" shaped), Thunder Mountain North (r) and South (l) is the middle distant ridge, and Peak 11137 is the near peak, half snowy and shadowed (r) and half sunlit (l).

Upper Maybird Gulch looking east from the base of the summit head wall.

White Baldy from upper Red Pine Fork.