We pulled the plug on winter a few weeks earlier than we had originally planned. Even Tali was ready to leave the snow behind.

Doug checked forecasts so we could travel between storms. We left Cranbrook on Monday March 20 for Missoula, our usual “stock-up” location. To make it really feel that the vacation had begun, we stopped for lunch at Tamarack Brewing, our favourite brew-pub just outside of Kalispell.

Tuesday was our long haul. We left Missoula wearing down jackets and were in shirt-sleeves by Idaho Falls, ID. Doug was super stoked to have his beer sitting in the sunshine at Willard Bay State Park, which is just north of Salt Lake City, UT.

Wednesday was dedicated to birding. Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge is just a few miles north of Willard Bay. We toured their excellent information centre and took photos of the board that shared recent sightings, then we drove west, past fields and into the “Auto Route” area, a twelve mile one-way stretch of roads built on levees. We got out our new spotting scope and were amazed at what we could see.

There were hundreds of American Avocets way out in the shallows at first spot that we stopped. We could also identify Northern Shovelers, American Wigeons and Cinnamon Teals with the scope, but neglected to bring the adaptor for the iPhone so we could take a photo through the scope. Later in the trip, a couple of Avocets were close enough for Doug to catch with his 300 mm lens.

Here are a pair of Cinnamon Teals and a group of Tundra Swans. (We followed the identification from the Information Centre, because swans are not easy to identify from a distance.) (The photos will probably be too small for you to see in your email, but will render bigger using your browser. Go to: travelswithafox.blog)

We found out the difference between Western Grebes and Clark’s Grebes. (Look at the colouring around the eyes: Western is dark, Clark’s is white)

We also saw plenty of California Gulls and lots of  Great Blue Herons. We were very satisfied with our day. Wendy saw eight “Life” birds. The day had been cloudy with sunny breaks and just a few drops of rain. (See the feature photo on the blog.) We were almost back at the highway when we glanced into a field, expecting that the big birds were herons, and were pleasantly surprised to see Sandhill Cranes! 

The rain started falling as we were pulling into our campsite on Wednesday and didn’t stop for 24 hours. It seriously rained all of Thursday. We stayed at the campsite and only ventured our for occasional soggy walks. Wendy did some sewing and made muffins and Doug worked with his photos on the computer. After studying the weather forecasts, we decided to go even farther south. So on Friday, we packed up and headed to St. George. We learned that the Thursday storm dropped the most rain at the Salt Lake Airport for that day (and for any day in March)  for 32 years.

We’re now in St. George and plan to be in this area for the next week or so. We’ll be posting again soon.

We really didn’t know what to expect at the Sisters Folk Festival. Their slogan is “All the town’s a stage” and that was so true. There were nine or ten venues to choose from at any one time, and about forty different acts, including only four that we had even heard of before. Doug had booked the festival and the travel arrangements back in the spring, so it was up to Wendy to do the fine tuning and decide on our schedule. She made some quick decisions based on a two minute viewing of random YouTube videos, asking herself, “Will we like this band for an hour long concert?” Other decisions were made because of who was playing before or after a band we knew. There was no way to see everyone, but we were very happy with the ten acts that we did see over the three days.

On Friday night, we really wanted to see Whitehorse, a Canadian duo that we have been following since they put out their first album ten years ago. We started lining up 45 minutes before the six o’clock show and were pleased with our centre seats in the fourth row. Whitehorse is comprised of Luke Doucet and Melissa McLelland. They sound like a full band with only the two of them on stage with the use of live loops of drum tracks or background vocals. It was amazing to watch how they used the technology to get a great sound.

The huge tent sat about a thousand people and was totally full by the second act: Shawn Mullins. We knew his “Rock-and-Roll Lullaby” hit from a number of years back, so we stayed for the show. He had a great sense of humour and great rapport with the audience. After his show, we wormed our way through the crowd into the cool evening. Wendy wanted to catch an outdoor performance in a little place about four blocks across town. Luckily, because of her experience with the Outdoor Quilt Show in July, she could maneuver her way through the courtyards, even finding the public bathroom, all in the almost dark. (We hadn’t realized that the only street lights were on the main street.) Unfortunately, we had misjudged how cold it was and chose to listen to only four songs from the modern bluegrass band, Mipso. We should have packed our down jackets for this one!

Saturday was the “big day,” and involved a strategy and precise schedule. Barbecue chicken at 10:30 am. Hot lunch at 10:45. Leave RV park at 11:10. Arrive at venue at 11:30 for 12:00 show. Back to RV park from two shows by 2:45. Walk dog, relax, pack dinner. Leave RV park at 4:00, Park and walk to venue to line-up by 4:30 for 6:00 show. Eat dinner in line, while chatting with “line-mates.” It reminded us of the preparations and changes we would make when we were at swim meets so many years ago.

In the afternoon, we saw “The Good Time Travelers” at the Five Pines Conference Centre, which is a bit out of town and closer to our RV park. (The featured image on the website version of this blog was taken at Five Pines.) We were so impressed with their harmonies and their guitar and mandolin playing that we bought their CD and had it signed.

The Nathaniel Talbot Band was up next. Nathaniel is a farmer and guitar player from Whitby Island, who writes pleasant songs, including one called, “Wilson’s Warbler.”

There was a huge line-up for the Saturday night concerts at the big tent. We figured that if we were going to see a band, we’d make the effort to get decent seats. We were about fortieth in line and ended up with third row seats. The line went around the corner and down the street.

First up was Chuck Prophet and the Mission Express, followed by Richard Thompson. Both performances were great, but we’d had enough of the crowd by 8:45, that we called it a night. The party was just starting for some of the festival goers. Fourteen acts played after 9:00.

Sunday was the icing on the cake for us. Whitehorse was playing a smaller tent at noon. When we got there at 11:20, there were a half dozen people waiting. They let us in at 11:30 and we scored front row seats. It was a much more intimate setting. Whitehorse’s stripped-down version of just their voices and guitars was impressive.

Because we had such good seats, we stayed to listen to “The Ballroom Thieves.” The seats around us filled up with a younger crowd than our other shows. They are a band out of Boston and we thoroughly enjoyed them. Their lead vocalist had a sound that reminded us of Mumford and Sons. Doug was captivated by the cellist.

The “grey-hairs” filed in for the next show: “Session Americana,” who were six guys from Boston. They were a little more country than the other bands, with songs such as: Great Western Rail, Cowboy Coffee and Mississippi Mud. We loved them too.

We thoroughly enjoyed the Sisters Folk Festival and we’ll probably go back. A week later, both of us still have songs floating around in our heads that we heard on that memorable weekend.

Sisters Folk Festival: another reason to visit one of our favourite places in Oregon. The festival takes place on the weekend after Labour Day each year. We decided to come down a bit early and do some hiking and fishing, along with craft beer tastings.

To begin our trip, we stayed at our favourite spot on the Metolius River in Camp Sherman. This time, Doug actually caught a fish. Unfortunately, his camera and phone were back in the trailer (along with Wendy and Tali), so we have to take his word on it. We went back the next morning and took a photo of “the spot.”

That morning was also our most productive birding. We saw two white-headed woodpeckers along with a kingfisher, yellow and yellow-rumped warblers, a very vocal juvenile American Dipper, ospreys and a large flock of cedar waxwings.

On a cloudy day, we ventured into Bend for visits to a quilt shop and two breweries. We had an amazing lunch at Craft Kitchen and Brewery; a new one for us. They specialized in smoked brisket. Doug had the Craft burger with shaved brisket and Wendy had a “Burnt-Ends Bowl” – yum. Craft Kitchen is right on the edge of the Old Mill District, looking over an inviting path along the river. After lunch, we strolled along the path, past a fly-fishing “golf” course and lots of birds, over to REI. A visit to Crux brewery for a tasting and a growler fill rounded out our afternoon.

When we got some better weather, we hiked up Black Butte, a prominent bump that we could see from our campground in Camp Sherman. Black Butte is featured on the label of one of Wendy’s favourite beers. The road gets you to 5500 feet with a 1500 foot climb to the summit. It’s a well-travelled trail that winds through huge pines before breaking out into the open with panoramic views of the Three Sisters wilderness.

Up at the top, we passed the manned lookout to the viewpoint. We had the whole place to ourselves and enjoyed the 360-degree view.

Soon a group arrived sporting huge backpacks. It didn’t look like a great place to camp to us. Turns out, they were paragliders planning to launch. We saw them floating as we were heading down the trail. They had hiked an hour and a half for a 15-minute flight.

The next day, we moved camp to the Bend/Sisters Garden RV Resort to be closer to Sisters. Here’s a photo of a sunset, with the reflection in their fishing pond, complete with fountain.

On Friday, we had another great weather forecast, so we got up early to hike the Tam McArthur Rim. It was cold at the 6000-foot trailhead at Three Creeks Lake at 8:30, but within half an hour of climbing we were down to t-shirts. This is another hike with panoramic views. We followed the rim through the scrub pine and meadows enjoying the myriad of birds (Clarks Nutcrackers, Mountain Bluebirds, Cassin’s Vireos.) We enjoyed our lunch at a spectacular viewpoint. (See feature photo on the webpage version of this blog.) The views were just as good on the way down.

We were back to the truck by 1:30, giving us plenty of time to ready ourselves for the next part of our adventure: The Sisters Folk Festival, the topic of our next blog.

We came to Fruita for the mountain biking, and it is fantastic, but the area also has great hiking and birding potential, along with great scenery. Which is good, since Doug has to wait until we come back next year to try the biking.

Fruita is just over the Utah/Colorado border, only an hour and a half from Moab, so we had an easy drive to our last RV site. This time, we were in a state park, which means bigger sites with lots of space between neighbours, and all the same amenities as a commercial RV park, except wifi.

Each morning, in the campground, we were greeted by a meadowlark’s song.

The afternoon we arrived, we joined our friends, Kath and Jeff Ward for an afternoon birding hike along the Colorado River. We saw a Bullock’s Oriole, a Black-headed Grosbeak, and a few Yellow-Rumped Warblers and House Finches along with the omnipresent American Robin, all in one tree.

The next day, Wendy had a morning of mountain biking with Kath and Jeff at the Kokopelli trails, while Doug hiked some of the same trails. The warm-up loop overlooks the Colorado River and is sprinkled with signs giving information about various aspects of mountain biking, like climbing hills, or going around curves. It was not without its challenges, however, and we took the opportunity to “do over” some of the trickier bits. We continued up Mary’s Trail and rode to another overlook. In just a morning, we got the feel for the rest of the trails, and are looking forward to returning.

Fruita is just at the base of the Colorado National Monument, a high cliff-faced plateau. Rim Rock Drive cuts into the cliffs and zig-zags its way up the 1500 foot cliff and is a tribute to the determination and ingenuity of American road-building. The winding road is full of pull outs to take in the views,

and it means that it is easy to hike along the top of the escarpment.

Another day, we hiked lower down in the Monument, up a canyon and along a creek, to a waterfall.

Again we saw lots of birds, (including our first loggerhead shrike), frogs mating in the pool, and the most amazing lizard (with a rather dull name): the Collared Lizard. This lizard is rather small, about 20 cm long, but they can grow to twice this size.

We’re home in Cranbrook now, and planning our next trips.

More hiking, some biking for Wendy and jeeping for Doug! The quintessential Moab experience. We were in Moab for another week and now that it is time to leave, we feel there is still much to do around here.

One day we hiked in Dead Horse Point State Park, which is across a canyon from Canyonlands: Island in the Sky. The state park has a paved road to the end of the point, with picnic sites and a viewing platform, but to see all the views from the rim, one needs to hike the rim trails. We met a few people hiking, but mostly had the trail to ourselves. The west rim trail looks down on the White Rim Road in Canyonlands National Park, a four-wheel drive road (or biking route for some) that we drove later in the week.

Hiking the rim trail at Dead Horse Point State Park.

Looking over to Canyonlands National Park and the White Rim Road

The Fisher Towers trail was another recommended hike and one we didn’t get to the last time we were here. It’s out Highway 128, and like many of the spots around Moab, has a scenic the drive through a canyon to reach the trailhead. We started early enough to walk up in the shade. The trail was narrow in spots. The walls were so high beside us that we couldn’t look up too long because we were straining our necks. There was one steep bit with a metal ladder. The views were spectacular all the way to the top.

The trail to Fisher Towers

The view from the top of the Fisher Towers trail

Back in 2014, when Wendy was recovering from her hip replacement, we came to Moab. Her first slickrock experience was difficult for her; she lagged behind Doug and needed to walk long portions. Now that she knew she was in better shape, she wanted to go back and ride it again. This time, she was by herself and needed to follow cairns and faded white dashes painted on the rock. (So no action shots from the photographer). She found the route much easier; she rode past her old rest stops, stayed on her bike through more of the rough spots and completed it in half the time of the previous trip.

The slickrock on Wendy’s route around Courthouse Rock (Monitor and Merrimac Trail)

We also checked out the slick rock bike trails in the Sand Flats area just above Moab. We’re looking forward to riding here the next time we’re back (and Doug can ride).

Some awesome female riders show us how its done at the Slickrock trail above Moab.

As it worked out, we had a free afternoon so we decided to hike to Delicate Arch. Delicate Arch may be considered the quintessential hike in Arches National Park; it’s on most of the Utah license plates and people seem to make a pilgrimage to it. It’s not an easy hike; there is a wide expanse of upward sloping slick rock, cairn marked ledges and in the afternoon there’s virtually no shade. It has an international draw as well; we heard at least five languages spoken on the trail. And then there’s the photo line-up to have your chance under the arch. We didn’t have the patience for that, but many did. Perhaps the hike was an epic for some or inspired others to continuing hiking. For us, it was an enjoyable half-day hike to a beautiful arch that we shared with a couple of hundred others.

Delicate Arch

On our last full day in Moab, we rented a jeep and took it up Long Canyon to the plateau at the level of Canyonlands National Park. We made it easily under the fallen boulder (the F-350 might have had trouble). The tricky bit at “Pucker Pass” (yes, that name is on the map) required us to move a few large rocks to make a route. Notice how the wheels of the jeep are articulating at different angles.

The fun bits of the drive up Long Canyon

We continued over to Canyonlands National Park, down the Shafer Switchbacks and to the White Rim Road. We followed the White Rim Road past Musselman Arch, Airport Towers Campsite and a fun rocky bit before turning around. We drove back via the Potash Road, passing “Thelma and Louise” point (from the closing scenes of the movie of the same name). We took the roof off the jeep as soon as it was warm enough so we had great views of the cliffs above us throughout the day.

A view of a gooseneck of the Colorado River from the White Rim. Deadhorse Point State Park in upper left.

We’re on our way to Fruita, Colorado next for some mountain biking and hiking and another visit with Kath and Jeff. We don’t have wifi in our campground, so we may not post for awhile.

Red rock, blue sky, and warm weather greeted us when we arrived in Moab, so we took advantage and hiked two days in Arches National Park. On the first day, we set off for Devil’s Garden. We looked over-prepared with our hiking boots and hydration packs on the wide, smooth section of the trail to Landscape Arch, but we were thankful for the good traction when we scrambled up ledges and walked along the slick rock fins on the “Primitive” trail to Double-O Arch. We were also glad that we could refer to our photos of the guidebook. It explained how to get to a better vantage point by scrambling through the lower O. Most people turned around at Landscape Arch, but many continued to Double-O.

A rock rib on the way to Double-O arch.

Doug is managing better on the rock.

Double-O Arch from the front

Double-O from the back

We had a bit more solitude on the “Primitive” trail that looped back to the parking lot. It kept us entertained as we descended slick-rock ramps and ledges to the sandy canyon floor. After a short, hot climb out of the canyon we were back on the crowded main trail.

The next day, we headed for the “Fiery Furnace.” We obtained our trail passes after watching an informational video and promising we would be good, which means not stepping on the cryptobiotic soil and not leaving any trace of our presence, except footprints. As it turned out, footprints were all we had to follow, since there are no trails in the “Furnace,” no cairns or markers of any kind. It’s a sort of labrinyth of rock ribs. This is a photo of us with the “Fiery Furnace” behind us. (Taken a few days after the hike.)

When we got to the trailhead, we were happy to see that there was only one vehicle in the parking lot. From its logo we could tell that a guided group was ahead of us. One of the fresh boot prints in the sand was a distinctive print of a “Keen” hiking boot. We kept a keen eye out for that print especially when we were making a decision about which way to go, if there was sand.

In the “Fiery Furnace”

In the “Fiery Furnace”

As you know, there are no bootprints on slickrock, only “worn looking” spots. The route finding was tricky, and we did lots of backtracking.

It was cause for celebration when we found the route through the final tricky bit. It was this narrow slot, with a hidden start.