Utah

I crossed into Utah in Richmond on September 12th. By now my toe was healing quickly and wasn’t going to be as bad of a problem as I was expecting. My eyes were set on Salt Lake City and I was trying to get there the next day. I rode 71 miles that day which at the time was my longest of the tour yet. I was really starting to get into the motion of things and feeling my legs grow stronger and I was started to crave those long days riding.

I climbed out of town on a busy highway to get into Uinta-Wasatche National Forest for some dispersed camping. Utah is home to a ton of National Forests and BLM land so I knew that free camping would be a breeze during my time here. I found a trail off the highway that led me to this beautiful view as the sun was setting behind the mountains. I setup camp nearby.

The next morning I finished the climb and rode down into Brigham City which was a bit north of Salt Lake City. A storm was coming in with awful headwinds and rain. I decided to hop on a bus to Ogden where I could then take the train into the city. Some people may call this “cheating”, but it’s perfectly acceptable to me. This trip for me is to travel and see new places and sometimes it’s not worth the bike ride when there are better options. A huge plus of traveling with my bike is I’m able to take public transit like this. As I stared out of the train window at the rain and heavy wind I was pretty happy with my decision and read my book on the ride in.

I was going to stay with one of my best buddies, Gerrit Hoover. We had met in college my sophomore year and became very good friends quickly. Gerrit actually got me into mountain biking and I don’t think I’d be out here on this trip if it weren’t for him.

Gerrit had recently gotten married to Sarah. They had a beautiful wedding at Solitude a few months ago where I was a groomsman. Sarah was sadly out of town for the week, although it was probably for the best because my gear was all over their apartment and my smell must have filled the air.

Gerrit was playing some disc golf with some buddies the night I arrived so I tagged along. They were playing a glow round at night so they put lights on all the holes and put some glow in the dark tape on the discs.

I was playing around with some exposures to try and get the path of the disc. The sky was really bright due to the storm so it was hard to get the exposure right but this one came out kinda cool. You can see the path of the disc decently well.

I spent a few days staying with Gerrit where I did some work on the bike and relaxed. I took Gerrits road bike around town one day and felt so much faster than riding my setup. Sadly I didn’t take any pictures during my time here, but I greatly enjoyed the days off. I planned out the rest of my route during my time here and I want to thank Skylar Haws for helping me out so much with the route. I met him on a Facebook group and he was great with helping me plan an amazing route.

Gerrit wanted to ride and camp with me for the first day leaving the city. The day before we had dropped his car off down at the campsite on Utah Lake. We had the car loaded with his camp gear and of course, a cooler full of beer.

Gerrits friend, Steven, joined us for most the ride out of the city also. We road a river trail for about 40 miles and it was a nice ride. Riding through cities isn’t usually my favorite but the companionship definitely helped.

I had my first mechanical of the trip during that ride. My chain broke after a few hours riding. I was pretty lucky because Steven’s girlfriend, Elizabeth, was on her way to pick him up to go to a concert that night. I was able to hitch a ride to the nearest bike shop to get it fixed while Gerrit continued to the nearest bar to wait. I was very lucky my chain broke here instead of a few days down the road when I would have been much further from help. I had lost my chain tools earlier in the trip but bought a new set at the bike shop so I wouldn’t be stranded next time.

First things first after a days ride. A nice cold beer. Setting up camp can wait.

We had service so we were able to watch the Razorbacks win that evening.

Gerrit wasn’t interested in trying my couscous and lentil burrito so instead we “made” some freeze dried chicken and dumplings. It was absolutely delicious and much better than my burritos.

We had a great night getting drunk around the fire. The morning was beautiful but sadly it was time for us to part ways. He loaded me up with snacks and food and headed back to the city while I continued riding south.

Not long after riding away a lovely couple stopped me and talked to me for a short bit. They had a box of homemade cookies with them and gave me more than I could carry. They blessed me and wished me luck and drove away. I promptly ate all the cookies and was on a sugar high for a bit.

My first taste of riding through some Utah Canyons. I still had a ways until I was in Southern Utah which I was looking forward to very much. Shortly after this canyon I would learn to make friends with something that would be traveling with me the next week.

Headwinds. Strong, strong headwinds. I already knew it was coming thanks to the Windy app, but it’s always a surprise when it hits. I would be riding straight into these winds every day as I headed south. It’s best to accept it and the slower progress that comes with it. Some days have tailwinds, some have headwinds. Some days have climbs, and some have descents. You can’t have one without the other. These winds would slow me down a lot but they wouldn’t stop me.

I quick stop at the market for a refreshing and healthy lunch. Tomatoes with some mozzarella are hard to beat.

I stayed a nice town campground in Salina where I met an awesome dude named Kyle. He was from California and was on a motorcycle trip. He gave me a few beers and we hung out and talked late into the night. We had a visitor, this praying mantis, appear out of nowhere. Me being me, I took a lot of photos of it.

He was quite curious and seemed to enjoy listening to us talk.

Kyle heading out on his motorcycle. I’ll retire my bike trips for motorcycle trips one day… maybe.

Heading south I would be riding some sections of the Western Wildlands route. Another off-road and rugged biking trail. I was heading through Lost Creek Canyon and was about to experience how quickly landscape can change in Utah for the first time.

What started as a very desolate desert full of sage, quickly started to fill with more and more greenery. There was a creek passing through this canyon that brought life to a lot of plants.

A partially decomposed cow I thought looked eerie but neat.

Then the canyon had some beautiful cliffs and rock features. I stopped and walked around a bit to take it all in.

If you notice, I have a new rear pannier set up. I had made a frame and mount for these dry bags to give me some more space in the back while at Gerrits. I would change back to my other bags after a few days as I preferred them more.

This canyon was so green and beautiful. It also helped shield me from the headwinds. It was a treat to ride through.

Once I was out of the canyon I was back in familiar terrain. Sage for miles.

I would only make it a little bit further as I hopped back on a main ride and right back into strong headwinds, nearly 20mph winds. I came across this RV park that was completely empty and had no one working. The bathrooms were very clean and they had hot showers so I decided to stop here and sleep under the patio.

The next day some spooky clouds started to roll in. I would be fighting headwinds all day and also have some light rain showers off an on. I was making my way towards Torrey, a town just outside of Capitol Reef.

Saw this neat old mill and thought this scene looked straight out of a western movie.

I was just started to seem some of the gorgeous red cliffs. The cloud coverage made it look cool as well.

I had made it to Torrey! The forecast had rain all night and I saw a sign for $60 cabins so I decided to treat myself after a few days of climbing and headwinds. I had been biking for about 40 days and only paid for a bed one night before this so I felt it was earned. I budget $25 a day right now in the states but sometimes it’s nice to let loose a little bit.

I got myself a pizza as well. I spent the evening laying in bed and watched Coco. A fantastic animated movie that got me very excited for Mexico. I hope to get to celebrate Día de Muertos somewhere cool in Baja.

The next day the weather had passed and the forecast showed days of cloudless wonderful weather. I had an amazing descent into Capitol Reef.

These cliffs were amazing to look at and I pretty much had the road to myself.

This is near the central part of the park and it felt like I was riding through The Land Before Time or something.

The contrast of the red cliffs and green foliage will always amaze me.

I was originally planning an off-road route through the park and up to Boulder, but after talking to the park rangers about the road conditions I opted not to. The road I wanted to take was clay and with all the rain the night before it would have been peanut butter mud and not fun to ride though at all. This meant that that beautiful descent I had just ridden down would have to be ridden back up.

While at the visitor center getting ready to ride back out of the park, another loaded down cyclist pulled up. Her name was Jo and we talked for a bit. She was planning a similar route to my original one but I informed her of the road conditions and my current plan. She decided to go the same way and we picked a campground where we could meet up that evening.

Only about 15 miles and a lot of climbing from Capitol Reef was this wonderful aspen and pine forest. It’s still crazy to me how quick the landscape changes here.

There was a nice sunset at the campground. I like this one a lot because of the three colors in the sky and the clouds look really cool.

I tried to get a sunset / sunrise photo in the same spot and it was pretty close.

I had an amazing time camping with Jo and she was an extremely nice and interesting person. She has been to Antarctica 14 times and some of those were on Nat Geo animal research expeditions. She’s a talented doctor and is the medical expert on these trips. I’ve been reading about Tom Crean and his early Antarctic expeditions so we had a lot to talk about.

The next day we agreed to meet for lunch in Boulder. She was stopping her ride there and I would be continuing on to Escalante. The views on this climb where amazing and I could see forever.

The top of the pass! Took nearly two hours to climb these 10 miles. This would also be the high point of the US section of my trip. Now it was 10 miles of descent into Boulder which would only take me 35 minutes.

Riding somewhere alllllll the way down there.

Jo treated me to a fantastic burrito in Boulder where we had lunch and talked for a bit longer. Before leaving a big group of Czech motorcyclists asked me to take a photo for them and we chatted a bit.

Riding from Boulder to Escalante would be through the Grand Staircase National Monument.

The road got wild really quick and this section was really cool. The road was on top of a ridge line with a massive fall on both sides. I think this section was called Hell’s Backbone.

The views from up here were breathtaking. I was stopping every 100 feet to take more photos. You can see the main part of the canyon here.

Further up the road Jo was parked and waiting for me with a nice cold beverage. She was in her van and on her way to teach a weeklong wilderness medicine retreat. Here we talked for a bit before saying our goodbyes. It was great to meet her and hear about her travels and stories.

Another wonderful descent into the canyon. This road was one of my favorites ever and I’ll remember it my whole life.

In the bottom of the canyon. This ride went on for miles and I savored every minute of it.

Now it was time to start the climb out of the canyon. I was on a high and felt unstoppable so I carried on no problem. I stopped at a small coffee shop and saw the Czech motorcyclists again. I walked up and joked with them about a cyclist catching up and we all had a good laugh and chat. On their way out one of them paid my bill and it was such a kind gesture. I get so much support from everyone for doing this trip on a bicycle. It helps so much and those small interactions leave lasting impressions. It’s amazing what a little kindness can do and I will be paying it forward for the rest of my life.

The final climb to Escalante. It’s always more intimidating when you can see the switchbacks. Still on the high of the days ride I crushed it in what felt like no time.

I was meeting a friend I wasn’t expecting to see again so soon I’m Escalante. Fred!!!! I had just missed him in SLC, but he was here in Escalante helping his friend work on her house she was renovating. Fred and Rebecca had met nearly 30 years ago during a bike trip across America.

I was planning to take off riding to Bryce that morning but decided to stay and spend time with Fred and Rebecca helping them do some manual labor in return for a ride to Bryce that evening. It was a nice trade off for a day off the saddle but still a day of physical exercise. After working on the house we enjoyed a nice afternoon at the Canyon Art Festival in town.

Rebecca drove me just outside of Bryce that evening where I was able to camp for free just outside the park. In the morning I rode the bike trail in. Fun fact! The bike trail goes around the gate to pay so I didn’t even have to pay to get in.

The park was beautiful of course. So many of these hoodoo stacks. I rode around and saw a few scenic viewpoints before continuing the ride.

I rode some lovely gravel out of the park through some National Forest terrain. I saw this cute little fat lizard and stopped to check him out. He was a baby horned lizard and was very friendly.

I also was lucky enough to find a live snake on the road. I picked him up and moved him off. These snakes sleep on the road to heat up their bodies but this sadly ends with them getting run over by cars. I saw countless run over snakes on the road out.

Near the top of the pass I was treated to some beautiful aspens that had started to change colors.

From the top of the pass it was nearly 5k feet of downhill to Kanab. I was treated to some freshly paved road in this unique canyon.

I arrived to Kanab late in the afternoon after a long and hot day riding. I turned into this cool RV park hoping to find a good spot to camp. I was greeted by the co-owner, Rick. He and his wife started the Dark Sky RV Campground a few years ago and it was one of the best campgrounds I’ve stayed in. Rick cut me a deal because he loved my trip and what I was doing.

After a refreshing shower in their amazing bath house, I went to the common area to make dinner. While here I met Jim and Mary Ellen. They were both from Arkansas and graduates of University of Arkansas also! Obviously we all hit it off right away. We spent the rest of the night talking and enjoying each other’s company. They were so kind and supportive of my trip and it was so nice to meet them. A guy from NYC named John joined us for the evening also. It can be hard to meet people in some RV campgrounds but it was easy here.

This was my last night in Utah. I would ride into Arizona early the next day. I had an amazing time in Utah and was very glad I divided to ride through it.

Thank you again for all those who are following along. It makes me very happy knowing people enjoy my photos and stories. I think of you all while I ride and it keeps me going.