Paiute Trail Reunion

I drove up to Marysvale, UT to spend the weekend with Sunny & Stormy Weathers, my full-time RVing friends from NC. After a quick "getting caught up" moment, we took a short ride on the Paiute Trail System. The first thing we notice is the "prescribed burn" by the National Forest Service (they used to call them "controlled burns" until they found they could not control them)...

Next, we discover an area where the beaver were working overtime...

And of course, no trip with Sunny would be complete without her photographing an outhouse...

Last Ride

I did not intend to ride today but the weather and the scenery were just too darn nice to resist so I took one more trip up the mountain. It was a great way to end my stay here on the Paiute Trail. Click on photos to enlarge...

Paiute Trail 77

After several days of inclement weather, the sun and blue skies returned which gave me the opportunity to check out the snow and fall foliage at the higher elevations...

Note deer in lower right portion of photo
(click on photos to enlarge)

Early Snow

Here's what I woke up to this morning...

Click on photos to enlarge 

Weather permitting, I will try to take the RZR up the mountain later to get a better view of the snow and fall foliage. My timing for heading south next week is looking pretty good.

Barney Lake

Dan, Holly, their rowdy friends and I rode up to Barney Lake...

Click on photos to enlarge

Paiute Trail 01

Dan, Holly and I rode the side-by-sides up over the mountain to Big John Flat where a "prescribed burn" by the National Forest Service caused us to turn around and come back down the mountain. We had a perfect weather day and the cloudless, dark blue sky made for great photos...

Click on photos to enlarge 

Fall Foilage

Larry and I rode up the mountain west of the park this afternoon where I was able to capture the beginning of the Fall colors...

Hopefully, over the next couple of weeks, the change will become even more impressive.

Today's Photos

Snow angel in June

Investment property

Gail's gold mine

50 Inch Trails

We rode our RZRs southeast of Marysvale to Paiute Trails 54, 53, 33. Although these trails are black (most difficult) on the map, they are really more like intermediate trails for experienced riders. I like them for their variety; if you don't like what you see now, just wait 15 minutes.

Happy campers

Magnificent aspen forests

Surprise of the day

Moving On Up

Last year Terry and Gail moved to a cozy, one bedroom, no bath fixer-upper southwest of Marysvale. Well, they have been saving their money and this year they are moving to a more spacious, fancier abode...

Although still a one bedroom, it does come with an outdoor bath

Other photos of the day...

It's not easy being on the cutting edge of fashion

This rattlesnake made Terry's day

Critters

Our group decided to take a late afternoon ride up to Barney Lake to try our luck at fishing and to see some deer and elk on our way back. As we are heading up the mountain, Beth spots this sheep/goat on a narrow rock ledge...

At the lake I catch this trophy trout (someone call Guinness World Records)...

And on the way back the group in the lead vehicle saw six elk but they ran into the woods before the rest of us could catch a glimpse of them. However, we did see a whole bunch of deer including this group of eight...

Barney Lake

The mountains of southern Utah offer a pleasant change of scenery after Arizona and Moab. Snow capped peaks, white water streams and beautiful aspen and pine forests are a feast for the eyes. Today, we rode over to Monroe for lunch via Barney Lake...

Paiute Trail #77

We were able to punch our way through the snow drifts at ~11,000 feet which allowed us to make the 77 loop...

And just in case an electromagnetic pulse wiped out our gps, we had our expert guide dog, Chevy, to make sure we did not get lost...

South-Forty RV Park

I am back at the South-Forty RV Park in Marysvale, UT. In my opinion, this is the best location for exploring the Paiute Trail System as it is centrally located to all of the trails which you can ride to directly from the park.  And at $300/month plus electric, it is a great value. Click here to view posts of past adventures in the area.

50 Inch Trails

In my opinion, the 50 inch trails are the most scenic and the most fun of the Paiute Trail System. Today, we rode some of my favorites: 54, 53, 33, 89. One moment you are in an Aspen filled forest, the next moment it's an alpine meadow, then a burn area and so on. The variety is truly remarkable. If you do not like the scenery now, just wait five minutes.

Good, not-so-clean fun

Unique boardwalk across a marsh

Terry & Gail Are Moving

To a cozy, one bedroom, no bath fixer-upper in the mountains southwest of Marysvale...

The amenities include a view to die for in the front of the house...

A waterfalls out back...

And given a bear was spotted about a half mile from here, I suspect they will be having fresh game and fish for dinner every night. Please call ahead for reservations.

Life On The RZR's Edge

Terry and Gail drove down today to spend a couple of days with me on the Paiute Trail System. One of the nice things about riding with this "damn-the-torpedos-full-speed-ahead" couple is that I get to do things I would not normally do...

Incredibly difficult obstacles

Treacherous water crossings

Dangerous slot canyons

Sevier Canyon Trail

Yesterday, we took trail #74 from Hoovers to #13 north to I-70. If you can get through the 50 inch gates, you would probably take #01 & #02 back to Marysvale. In as much as 3 of our 4 vehicles were wider than 50 inches, we took the Sevier Canyon Trail back to #13. It was a great ride with some long, long climbs to the top of mountains where you could see for miles and miles.

There is an actual RZR under all that dirt

New growth in burn area

Paiute Trail #77

I met Mack and Joleen (who I rode with in Moab) and we joined Chris, Beth, and Caleb to see if we could get over the mountain and complete a loop of trail 77...

When we got to ~10,800 feet, we ran into impassible snow drifts and had to turn around...

However, with views like these, no one was complaining...

After spending the winter in Arizona and the spring in Moab, it is a nice change of pace to be in the mountains where there are lots of trees and green is the primary color. Also, riding along white water streams swollen with the runoff from the mountain snow is not bad way to spend the day either.