July 22 - Moab Slickrock Trail & Dead Horse Point

Early Sunday morning, I rode my bike around the 10 mile outer loop of Moab's famous Slickrock Trail . Unfortunately, I wasn't quite early enough.... with various mishaps including falling and smashing a connector on my Platypus water container (I resorted to tying a 2 liter soda bottle to my bike rack), I didn't get going until past 8 am. As the temperatures soared past 100°F; by 10 am, I found myself consuming the last of the total of 3 liters of water I was carrying, and getting dehydrated with a couple miles left to go. The trail, while packed with people earlier in the morning, was completely deserted when I finally got back to my car.

While it was an exhilarating workout (for my body & my bike's suspension), I found the Slickrock Trail very tough — going straight up and down the steep rock hill faces. (The trail was originally designed for motorcycles.) Periodic white painted dashes on the rock surface marked the various routes.

In the afternoon, I drove Long Canyon Road (also known as "Pucker Pass" for its sharp switchbacks and steep drop-offs) up out of the Colorado River valley, and south to Dead Horse Point       38.4703, -109.7394 , where I could see a panoramic view of the Gooseneck of the Colorado River, as well as roads which I would drive the next day: Potash Road, South Fork Road, and White Rim Trail.

Back in Moab, I saw this guy who seemed to be touring long-distance by bicycle, pulling his large dog strapped to a trailer!