Red Butte Up and Over

We did our standard go-to training hike for the first time this season.  The was plenty of snow and wind at the top, but we made it up and over.  My calves were sore for days after this hike.  I guess the gym work never really simulates actual hiking.  Especially the steep descents.  It was good to get out for a long hike though.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,896 feet

Highest Elevation:  6,225 feet

Total Elevation Gain:  1,720 feet

Total Distance:   4.38 miles

Total Time:  2:21 hours

Long Canyon

Before heading back after a long fun weekend, we took the dogs out for another hike up Long Canyon.  The snow pack is slowly melting.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,295 feet

Highest Elevation:  4,827 feet

Total Elevation Gain:  574

Total Distance:   5 miles

Total Time:  1:45 hours

Devli's Garden

Devil's Garden is a beautiful area of Arches National Park and contains many spectacular arches.  We ventured out onto this trail with some friends and encountered less than optimal conditions.  Much of the trail was snow packed and icy due to late season snowfall.  We managed to make it out to most of the arches and had an amazing day with some rock scrambling and even a rope rappel.

Trailhead Elevation:  5,064 feet
Highest Elevation:  5,503 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  1,181 feet
Total Distance:  9 miles
Total Time:  5 hours

Parriott Mesa

Parriott Mesa is our go-to hike in Castle Valley.  We easily made it up to the base of the cliffs in about an hour.  It was a beautiful late winter afternoon with snow pack on the north facing slopes.  This is a nice hike for some quick elevation gain and spectacular views of the valley. 

Trailhead Elevation:  4,746 feet
Highest Elevation:  5,634 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  1,056 feet
Total Distance:  3.5 miles
Total Time:  2 hours

Book Cliffs

On our way down to Moab, we stopped to take a quick hike in the Books Cliffs.  We took the exit for Highway 123 from 191 and drove past the towns of East Carbon and Sunnydale.  We stopped at the first available 2x4 road and hiked up as far as the snow pack allowed.  On the map it appears to be Pole Canyon Road.  Next time we should try the Horse Canyon exit.

Trailhead Elevation:  6,982 feet
Highest Elevation:  7,213 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  171 feet
Total Distance:  1.2 miles
Total Time:  32 minutes

Antennas

The inversion has been really bad this year in Salt Lake.  This is a nice photo of the muck that we are breathing everyday.  It was nice to get above it and into the sunshine for a bit.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,831 feet
Highest Elevation:  5,594 feet
Total Elevation:  704 feet
Total Miles:  3.33 miles
Total Time:  1:21 hours

Red Butte Loop

We did our favorite go-to hike with our friend Amy on a cold snowy morning.  It was a bit more of a workout in all of that new powder.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,877 feet
Maximum Elevation:  5,381 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  381 feet
Total Distance: 2.36 miles
Total Time:  53 minutes

Poison Spider Mesa

For our second hike of the weekend, we decided to explore an old favorite mountain bike ride known as Poison Spider Mesa.  We haven't biked this ride for ages and probably won't be riding it anytime soon.  It is a pretty technical bike ride, but it was a great hike.  I love the off-season in Moab.  We had the usually crowded trail to ourselves.

Trailhead Elevation:  3,974 feet
Maximum Elevation:  4,456 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  643 feet
Total Miles:  5.35 miles
Total Time:  2:25 hours

Long Canyon

We explored a new canyon in Moab this chilly weekend up Long Canyon.  Long Canyon has been used many times by Hollywood-types to get into the back of redrock country for movie shoots.  The cliff walls and scenic overlooks did not fail to impress.  It was a long hike with plenty of elevation gain.  We only made it to the second set of S-turns. 

Trailhead Elevation:  3,861 feet
Maximum Elevation:  5,129 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  1,175 feet
Total Distance: 7.0 miles
Total Time:  3:05 hours

Irvine Foothills Loop

Whenever I go home to visit my folks I like to hike in the foothills above UCI.  This weekend I was home to help mom out since she just fell and broke her wrist. 

Minimum Elevation:  37 feet
Maximum Elevation:  310 feet
Elevation Gain:  338 feet
Total Distance:  3.02 miles
Total Time:  55 minutes

Antennas

We are still limited to the local foothill hikes for winter.  We have been frequenting the Red Butte hikes and the Antenna hike.  Today was a pretty dismal day, but we got out anyway.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,831 feet
Highest Elevation:  5,594 feet
Total Elevation:  704 feet
Total Miles:  3.36 miles
Total Time:  1:25 hours

Round Mountain Loop

We had a great holiday vacation at the cabin with plenty of trails to ourselves.  It was chilly, but nice to get out for some exercise each day.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,955 feet

Highest Elevation:  5,150 feet

Total Elevation Gain:  190 feet

Total Distance:  2.30 miles

Total Time:  56 minutes

Negro Bill Canyon

We spent the Christmas weekend down in Moab.  Despite lots of snow and freezing cold temperatures, we managed to get in about 10 miles of hiking.  Most of the mileage was gained with our hike in Negro Bill Canyon to Morning Glory Arch.  The wind was ripping in the open areas, but we managed to make it all the way to the arch. 

Trailhead Elevation:  3,940 feet
Highest Elevation:  4,280 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  810 feet
Total Distance:  5.61 miles
Total Time:  2:16 hours

Red Butte - Up and Across

We did another hike today in the foothills with a little more elevation gain.  It was windy and cold along the ridge and slippery heading down in the snow and ice.  But still a great day out.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,928 feet
Highest Elevation:  6,126 feet
Total Elevation Gain: 1,375 feet
Total Distance:  3.55 miles
Total Time:  2:11 hours

Antennas

For our second training hike we slogged up to the first set of radio towers in the foothills overlooking Salt Lake City.  With two feet of snow in the last week, the trail was soft snow pack.  It felt like hiking in sand.  But good for a training hike.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,831 feet
Highest Elevation:  5,594 feet
Total Elevation:  704 feet
Total Miles:  3.34 miles
Total Time:  1:32 hours

Red Butte Loop

We started our training today with a short hike up Red Butte.  It is a quick 2 mile loop on the lower trail and return on the upper trail.  This is a good route to start with as it has a bit of elevation gain.  It was fun to be out on the trail looking forward to another adventure.

Trailhead Elevation:  4,990 feet
Upper Loop Elevation:  5,490 feet
Total Elevation Gain:  500 feet
Total Distance:  2 miles
Total Time:  48 min

Annapurna Sanctuary Map

Here is a map of the overall trek from the REI website. It is not a great map, but it does show the approximate route starting from Phedi.

Annapurna Sanctuary Trek - REI

After spending a lot of time researching trekking companies in 2011 for our Kilimanjaro trip, we decided to make it really easy on ourselves and just go with REI on the Annapurna Sanctuary Trek.  A few of our friends have gone on trips with REI to Patagonia and Nepal and said REI does a great job with logistics and comfort.  Sounds good to me.  In order to make sure everyone in our group could get in on the same trip, we book our spots a year out.  It seems like a long time out, but the time will go by quickly and we were able to pick the exact dates we wanted for the trip.