Steamboat Springs!

Getting to know you, getting to know all about you.



















One thing I really missed living in Sacramento was weather and clouds--it just seemed like the weather was either a wintery dull gray or hazy and hot. Not so out here at nearly 7000' above sea level. In the week I've been here I've seen more interesting weather than I did in three years in Sacramento. Seriously.



Sandhill Cranes in the Elk River Valley. I love the Elk River Valley.



Close up.

The Flat Tops!

Of all the mountain ranges I know, the Flat Tops are one of the best. Like my other favorites the San Juans in SW Colorado and the Uintas in Utah, the Flat Tops are wide open with lots of rolling terrain and extensive vistas. Wildlife love ranges like this, and so do walkers. I haven't been in the Flat Tops since The Everett Ruess Trail hike in 2001. Now that we'll be calling Steamboat Springs home, we'll be spending a lot more time in these great mountains.



The eastern side of the Flat Tops from the Colorado River Road.



You can never escape the paranoiacs.



The Middle Fork Derby Creek road is rough but just awesome.












The Parking Lot.



In the morning I tried to get on top of this...Derby Peak...



...but was thwarted by laziness and steep snow.





Still managed to see foxes, elk, grouse, and deer. And good views to the bigger Colorado mountains to the south.







Springtime in the Rockies.

An Aspen Pig Roast

A 30th birthday done right.

They don't call it Aspen for nothing.





The Birthday Cake.



The entertainment.



The venue.







Ahhh.

Canyonlands!

A good morning above Canyonlands.





Lavender Canyon...oh the experiences I've had down there.



Zoomed in.



Big Pocket.





Looking back at where I went yesterday-Cathedral Butte.



You can see the false summit block and the summit. Looks pretty cool from out here.



And off to Steamboat Springs. But first, always stop at Newspaper Rock for a quick view. (click for big)

Canyonlands and Cathedral Butte

On my way out to our new home in Colorado. But first, a quick stop in nearby Southern Utah. I can't say that enough..."nearby Southern Utah". Ahhh. Feels so nice.

The destination:



A sight for sore eyes.



And at this exact moment in Sacramento...



Road rage.



The route up Cathedral Butte.



Looking back down at the truck (it is there). Lavender Canyon in Canyonlands National Park beyond the rim.



Hi.



So sweet.



Views from the summit.

Shay Butte, The Abajos, and Stevens Canyon.



Looking west and south over Salt Creek Mesa towards Seven Sisters Butte, Boundary Butte, and Horse Mountain.



That was fun.



Trees, cliffs, the La Sals.



Cathedral Butte. Lavender Canyon. Salt Creek. And much of Canyonlands National Park. I feel better now.

(click for enlarged view...)


Canyonlands!



My camp for the night was at the end of that mesa below.



Even the truck looks happy.



Sunset over Lavender Canyon from camp.