Abajo Mountain Outings – Autumn 2017

Sunday October 29, 2017 – 40/70 Clear blue sky today.

We decide to go for a drive up Abajo Mountain, the backdrop of the little town of Monticello, Utah. The Suburban is leaking fluid, so we only make it as far as the Dalton Springs Campground where we stayed when we came in September to check this town out. I only take a couple of photos before we turn around and head back to town. This is rather a disappointment.

Aspen on Abajo Mountain

Back at our place, the job of moving in continues with cleaning the shed, storing tools, and fixing the gate to the backyard, among other things.

Wednesday November 1, 2017 – 35/60 and mostly clear.

My most favorite time of day is sunrise. Living in town means I don’t have a natural setting for the sunrise, but I do like seeing it send rays through the fence of the back yard. The big trees just outside the fence seem to glow as the early morning sun hits the naked branches. The sunrise and the trees are a joy to me.

Sunrise through the fence
The tree at the corner bathed in morning sunlight

Thursday November 2, 2017 – 59 is the high, sunny and windy.

Since it is sunny, I want to go for a drive up the mountain, but we have projects to take care of. However, in the later afternoon, Clifford decides that we can go for a drive, after all. We park at a kiosk that describes the trails in the area and off we go for a hike on a rather sketchy trail. The sun is already behind the mountain, so the landscape is in shadow, but it was still a fun hike. In taking a closer look at the kiosk map, we realize that this is not the trail head at all and we were just following game and cow trails. Haha.

Gnarly old oak tree
Clifford on the “trail”
The valley below

Sunday November 5, 2017 – high is 55, partly cloudy.

Even though we have lots left to do, I suggest that we go for a picnic on the mountain while there is still some sunshine. I didn’t think Clifford would want to go, but he agrees, so I make thermoses of tea and sandwiches, and off we go. 

Heading to a picnic spot on Abajo Mountain
Aspens on the mountain
A very interesting beehive

It is kind of chilly up here and I am glad for the warm poncho that I keep in the car. It is a cat-and-mouse game to catch brief moments of sunlight on the aspen and oak trees.

Catching the sunlight is a cat and mouse game as clouds move across the sky

After our picnic, I gather oak leaves to take back to decorate a rather ugly shelf in the kitchen.

Walking through the oaks to gather leaves
Sunlight on the fallen leaves

In spite of the coolness of the mountain, we had a fun outing, and it was good to have a break from the work of getting the lab and a home space functional.

Driving back to the valley