Day 2: August 23rd, 2011.
Day 2 started off beautiful. Who could ask for better weather! I got up early and cleaned up my campsite. As it turns out I was the only camper in the campground that night, so getting ready to go was quick and easy.
After packing up my hammock and loading up the bike, I set out for Price, UT, my previous day’s intended destination. The ride was nice, but I did run into a small bit of road construction. Once the pilot car arrived to shuttle us across the construction zone, things went pretty quickly and I was in Price before I knew it.
I pushed on past Price towards Moab and Canyonlands. One stop on my destination was a gas station at the intersection of I-70 and US 191 (the road to Moab). I figured I should stop and get gas as I was getting low, so I pulled in. It was the only business in the area which should have tipped me off that something wasn’t right about the place. First off there was painted replica of the Scooby Doo Mystery Machine, except it was blue instead of green. The place looked like an old rundown junkyard with gas pumps out front. I could swear I had seen this gas station in at least 1 horror flick in my time.
I finished gassing up the bike and went inside to use the restroom. There were two people in line in front of me. The attendant looked at me and in a creepy southern accent asked if I needed to take a leak. I said yeah, and he asked if I wanted to just go out back. I asked if there was another restroom or something outside and he told me yeah, and asked me to follow him. It turns out that the other restroom was the back yard, which he proudly proclaimed had an 8 foot fence all around. He went back inside, and I did my business. Fortunately, I didn’t end up with a meat hook in the back of my skull or anything.
I got back on the road again and headed for Canyonlands National Park. The trip to the entrance was straight and quick. At this point in the trip, I am in the desert. There was really nothing around except the beautifully amazing red rocks. These red rocks are trademark for the area. I turned into the entrance and was blown away at the spectacular scenery that I saw. I cannot describe the beauty of this place except to say that it is completely and totally awesome. The way the canyons were carved out of this sheer beautiful red rock is truly something you have to see for yourself. The Island in the Sky is something that you really have to see to appreciate.
I rode through the entire Island in the Sky section of the park. Every single stop or turnout or overlook was fair game for me and my camera. I think I got over 150 pictures so that I could look back and remember this amazing place. And when I circled back around and exited the park, I couldn’t imagine seeing anything more incredible than what I had just experienced. If you have never been to this area, you absolutely have to add this to your list of places to go.
After leaving the park, I headed down to Moab to find a bit to eat and a place to stay for the evening. I located an RV park that had covered tent sites and decided this would do for the night. There were no trees available, so I had to fall back on my trusty old tent, but that’s why I brought it along.
I contemplated riding up into Arches National Park after setting up camp as there was still quite a bit of daylight to burn, but I decided to hold off until first thing in the morning. I wanted to take my time and take in the sights, and with only a couple hours left I wasn’t sure I would be able to see all that I wanted to see, so I took the opportunity to relax and nap after a couple of good days of riding. I had also not been drinking as much water as I should have, so I decided it was best to rest and recover before spending any more time riding around in the heat. This brings us to a very important topic I would like to cover before I go.
Spending time in the hot, dry desert makes it very easy to become dehydrated. Riding a motorcycle in any kind of weather also makes it very easy to become dehydrated. While on a bike, more wind passes across your body, and that air absorbs moisture at a much faster rate than if you were just standing still. If you combine the two, the need for water increases drastically. During the first two days of riding, I grabbed a one liter bottle of water at nearly every fuel stop. Unfortunately that was not enough, and I started showing signs of dehydration after the first night. I drank plenty of water after I stopped riding for the night, but by the next day the cycle was repeating itself. When riding through the desert, it is extremely important to carry plenty of water. I made a habit of keeping all of the bottles that I bought so that I could refill them later at each stop. It is also important to keep your skin covered, not only to protect you from the damaging rays of the sun, but to help prevent dehydration. It seems counter-intuitive to wear a jacket while riding in 100 degree weather, but it helps. If your skin is covered, it makes it tougher for the wind to sap the moisture out of you and you don’t dehydrate as fast. But keep in mind that you will still sweat a lot, so first and foremost is to keep drinking water.
Day 2 started off beautiful. Who could ask for better weather! I got up early and cleaned up my campsite. As it turns out I was the only camper in the campground that night, so getting ready to go was quick and easy.
After packing up my hammock and loading up the bike, I set out for Price, UT, my previous day’s intended destination. The ride was nice, but I did run into a small bit of road construction. Once the pilot car arrived to shuttle us across the construction zone, things went pretty quickly and I was in Price before I knew it.
I pushed on past Price towards Moab and Canyonlands. One stop on my destination was a gas station at the intersection of I-70 and US 191 (the road to Moab). I figured I should stop and get gas as I was getting low, so I pulled in. It was the only business in the area which should have tipped me off that something wasn’t right about the place. First off there was painted replica of the Scooby Doo Mystery Machine, except it was blue instead of green. The place looked like an old rundown junkyard with gas pumps out front. I could swear I had seen this gas station in at least 1 horror flick in my time.
I finished gassing up the bike and went inside to use the restroom. There were two people in line in front of me. The attendant looked at me and in a creepy southern accent asked if I needed to take a leak. I said yeah, and he asked if I wanted to just go out back. I asked if there was another restroom or something outside and he told me yeah, and asked me to follow him. It turns out that the other restroom was the back yard, which he proudly proclaimed had an 8 foot fence all around. He went back inside, and I did my business. Fortunately, I didn’t end up with a meat hook in the back of my skull or anything.
I got back on the road again and headed for Canyonlands National Park. The trip to the entrance was straight and quick. At this point in the trip, I am in the desert. There was really nothing around except the beautifully amazing red rocks. These red rocks are trademark for the area. I turned into the entrance and was blown away at the spectacular scenery that I saw. I cannot describe the beauty of this place except to say that it is completely and totally awesome. The way the canyons were carved out of this sheer beautiful red rock is truly something you have to see for yourself. The Island in the Sky is something that you really have to see to appreciate.
I rode through the entire Island in the Sky section of the park. Every single stop or turnout or overlook was fair game for me and my camera. I think I got over 150 pictures so that I could look back and remember this amazing place. And when I circled back around and exited the park, I couldn’t imagine seeing anything more incredible than what I had just experienced. If you have never been to this area, you absolutely have to add this to your list of places to go.
After leaving the park, I headed down to Moab to find a bit to eat and a place to stay for the evening. I located an RV park that had covered tent sites and decided this would do for the night. There were no trees available, so I had to fall back on my trusty old tent, but that’s why I brought it along.
I contemplated riding up into Arches National Park after setting up camp as there was still quite a bit of daylight to burn, but I decided to hold off until first thing in the morning. I wanted to take my time and take in the sights, and with only a couple hours left I wasn’t sure I would be able to see all that I wanted to see, so I took the opportunity to relax and nap after a couple of good days of riding. I had also not been drinking as much water as I should have, so I decided it was best to rest and recover before spending any more time riding around in the heat. This brings us to a very important topic I would like to cover before I go.
Spending time in the hot, dry desert makes it very easy to become dehydrated. Riding a motorcycle in any kind of weather also makes it very easy to become dehydrated. While on a bike, more wind passes across your body, and that air absorbs moisture at a much faster rate than if you were just standing still. If you combine the two, the need for water increases drastically. During the first two days of riding, I grabbed a one liter bottle of water at nearly every fuel stop. Unfortunately that was not enough, and I started showing signs of dehydration after the first night. I drank plenty of water after I stopped riding for the night, but by the next day the cycle was repeating itself. When riding through the desert, it is extremely important to carry plenty of water. I made a habit of keeping all of the bottles that I bought so that I could refill them later at each stop. It is also important to keep your skin covered, not only to protect you from the damaging rays of the sun, but to help prevent dehydration. It seems counter-intuitive to wear a jacket while riding in 100 degree weather, but it helps. If your skin is covered, it makes it tougher for the wind to sap the moisture out of you and you don’t dehydrate as fast. But keep in mind that you will still sweat a lot, so first and foremost is to keep drinking water. Staying hydrated is a sure way to keep a good ride going great!
Comments
Steve — you are so right that this is incredible country. Next chance you get, do the White Rim Trail. Takes about 3-4 days but it’s worth it!
I will have to check into that. I suspect I will be back down that way some time soon!