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Highlights
 | Crystal Geyser to Mineral Bottom in Utah (63 miles) |
| Warm temps: Highs mid-90's°F |
| High water |
| No rain |
| Windy |
| One canoe took on water, but did not tip over! |
Twenty-two people took part in the 2006 Fort Collins Audubon
Canoe Trip. This year's trip was longer than our previous
trips, and by far the most remote and most scenic. Centennial
Canoe's Randy and Becca again served as our guides, and again we
were lucky in having good weather and few pesky insects. High
water made paddling easy, but reduced our choices for
campsites. |
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On the first day, shuttle vans drove us with all our
gear to Crystal Geyser, a few miles south of the town of Green
River, Utah. We explored the bright orange mineral deposits
left by the eruptions of this old oil well, but were not lucky
enough to actually see it spout. After loading our gear and
receiving instruction from our guides, we paddled to our first camp
at Anvil Bottom, below a prominent landmark known as Anvil Butte or
the Inkwell. Explorer John Wesley Powell named it Dellenbaugh
Butte after the youngest member of his 1871 expedition. A swim
in the river past camp cooled us down for late afternoon
explorations and happy hour. |
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| The second day arrived with
clouds which provided a welcome relief from the burning rays of the
sun. After the usual early morning birding and breakfast, we
paddled past low rock walls and the irrigated farmlands at Ruby
Ranch. Gradually, the canyon walls grew higher, and we knew we
were approaching Labyrinth Canyon. We arrived for lunch and
set up camp at Trin-Alcove, where three canyons meet at one point
near the rivers edge. A group of us hiked the longest canyon,
known as Three Canyon. Streaked canyon walls loomed over us as
we explored rock overhangs and plunge pools. In the
late afternoon a sudden windstorm blew away tents, uprooted a tree,
and covered all of our gear with sand. |
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The third day took us through the meandering bends of Labyrinth
Canyon. We stopped for lunch at the mouth Tenmile Canyon. The
high water level allowed one canoe to paddle upstream into Tenmile
for quite a distance. We considered camping at Keg Spring
Canyon, but high water and mud made it unattractive, so the third
night's camp would be Hey Joe Canyon. The cool river quickly
refreshed those who swam in the current past our campsite.
Some hiked the canyon to see the old vehicles and artifacts left
from the 1950's uranium mines. In the night we were serenaded
by Woodhouse toads (or "screaming woman toads," as Becca calls them) and a western screech-owl. |
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| The fourth day began with early morning
birding and Tai Chi exercises led by Mani. The highlight was a trip around Bowknot
Bend, where the river makes a great loop. We hiked to the
saddle at the base of the bend and could view a point on the river
we would reach seven miles later. As we did frequently on this
trip, we floated leisurely for long distances with all canoes held
alongside to form a raft. As we floated below the high
sandstone walls, we enjoyed lunch and a quick dip in the river.
Our destination for the night was a campsite at the end of Oak
Bottom, just above Twomile Canyon. |
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Our camp on the fourth night
was high on the rocks above a landing at the end of Oak Bottom.
The landing made an ideal kitchen area, and campers were obliged to
carry their gear along a path to the ridge above the landing. One feature of nearby Twomile Canyon is Five Window Arch, which proved to be high at the
top of the canyon rim, and required more time and exposure than any
of us were willing to risk, even if we found the trail. The
hike into Twomile Canyon is beautiful nonetheless. The
afternoon was hot, however, and many opted instead for a refreshing swim in
the cool water. |
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| Early risers on the fifth day
were treated to a magnificent sunrise above the saddle of Bowknot
Bend. Our campsite on the rocks high above the river offered a
view of the dawn sky mirrored in the river. Early
morning birding and Tai Chi exercises were followed by breakfast.
The group was becoming quite expert at loading the canoes by now.
Leaving shore, we observed the Centennial Canoe tradition of quiet
paddling time on the last day. We paddled silently and
awestruck between high canyon walls, past buttes, pinnacles, spires,
and windows. At Horseshoe Canyon, we paddled through a cut
made by the river through the saddle of a long-ago version of
Bowknot Bend. At Hell Roaring Canyon, we stopped for lunch and
to locate an inscription left by French trapper Denis Julien in
1836. A short time paddling and the landing at Mineral Bottom
was in view. We were soon loading canoes and driving the steep
switchbacks out of the canyon and back to Moab. |
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Bird Species Observed
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Great Blue Heron
Egret spp. (Snowy?) (at put-in)
Black-crowned night-heron (imm)
White-faced Ibis
Canada Goose
Mallard
Cinnamon Teal
Turkey Vulture
Northern Harrier
Red-tailed Hawk
American Kestrel
Peregrine Falcon |
American Coot
Spotted Sandpiper
Rock Pigeon (seen from shuttle)
Mourning Dove
Western Screech-Owl
Common Poorwill
White-throated Swift
Black-chinned Hummingbird
Northern Flicker
Western Wood-Pewee
Willow Flycatcher
Say’s Phoebe |
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Ash-throated Flycatcher
Western Kingbird (from shuttle)
Violet-green Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-billed Magpie
Common Raven
Rock Wren
Canyon Wren
House Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
American Robin
Northern Mockingbird
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-rumped Warbler |
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow-breasted Chat
Western Tanager
Black-headed Grosbeak
Blue Grosbeak
Lazuli Bunting
Spotted Towhee
Chipping Sparrow
Black-throated Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White-crowned Sparrow
Western Meadowlark (from shuttle)
Brown-headed Cowbird
House Finch
Pine Siskin |
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Other Wildlife Seen or Heard:
Pronghorn (from shuttle)
Desert Bighorn
Desert Spiny Lizard
Western Whiptail Lizard
Side-blotched Lizard
Woodhouse Toad
Great Basin Gopher Snake
Putnam’s Cicada
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Participants (listed by canoe) |
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Chris Andre and
Randy Hertzmann |
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Diann and Tom Johnston |
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Sandy Tinsman and
Ben Herman |
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Joni and Phil Friedman |
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Sheryl Gracewski and Tom Nash |
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Brenda Myers and
Debra Patrick |
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Denise and Kevin Bretting |
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Kate Dwire and
Becca Arndt |
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Melanie Stafford and Anne Saunders |
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Mani Lee and
Gene Culbertson |
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Jackie Boss and Tom Dewitz |
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Joel Hurmence and Beth Dillon |
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Our Favorite Centennial Canoe Guides:
Becca Arndt and
Randy Hertzman |
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Our thanks to the participants for
sharing their photos! |
