Nov 12 - Cedar Breaks National Monument

The unusually long warm Fall continues which is bad for the ski resorts but good for travelling to places that would usually not be accessible. So today I'm driving over 3 hrs to visit Cedar Breaks National Monument near Cedar City in southwestern UT. I've never been there so I'm seizing the opportunity. (And based on the forecast weather for middle/end next week, this should be the last week-end to do this.)

From the pictures I've seen, Cedar Breaks looks a lot like Bryce Canyon - colorful Amphitheater filled with red/white/etc rock formations (fins, hoodoos, etc).

The scenic drive is all above 10,000 ft. The road closes after the first major snowfall - according to the Park's paper, the area receives an average of 15 feet of snow. The paper also indicates that the name Cedar Breaks was given by the Mormon pioneers who mistook the area's juniper trees for Cedars (oops). And "Breaks", well it describes an uninhabitable area with gullies and ravine.

Forecast for today is for partly sunny skies in the mid-60s. Cedar Breaks in up over 10,000 feet so it'll be in the 40s or low 50s - I have plenty of layers.

Time to go -- Off to something excitingly new!!

The drive heads south down I-15. Nothing too exciting on the drive - plenty of cows, a few horses and one herd of sheep.

I get off at Parowan and head east. The road heads right into/thru the park. (The road also heads to Brian Head Ski Resort.) It's a curvy road that climbs for 21 miles thru a forest. At one of those uphill curves I see a deer on the side of the road.

As I slowly pass, I see deer #2. Oh, and deer #3.

After more curves and one of the sharpest hair-pin curve I've ever seen, I pop out of the trees to large high mountain meadows - dry and brown at this point. Its not all bare as there are scattered grouping of trees.

I pass thru the Ski Resort and reach the Pass at 10,700 ft. (It's all downhill now.)

Soon I enter Cedar Breaks.

There's no fee as the park is technically closed for the winter (i.e., no rangers, the Visitor's Center is closed, as are the bathrooms). But the road is still open as is access to the 2 trails and scenic overlooks.

I reach the first overlook (North View @ 10,435 ft). It's cloudy, 43 degrees and so windy (brrr!). But the views are incredible!!

Have to wonder how this a geological formation got here. I just climbed a mountains filled with trees and meadows and then the wonderful colorful canyon. How, why ....? The awesomeness of Mother Nature.

Next stop is the Alpine Pond Trail. The trail is ~2 miles and is a double loop (each is a one-mile loop) - lets say a figure 8. On paper this is an easy hike (elevation gain/loss around 160ft) but that doesn't take into account the thinner air due to the elevation.

 I head out on the lower part of the North Loop. It starts out as a meadow but quickly heads thru the trees. There's one really rocky section to the left but mostly trees. The only flowers I'm seeing are of the dried/dead variety. Many pine cones laying on the ground as well as many dead trees.

I'm not hearing any birds either.

Soon I reach the pond. It's a frozen algae filled pond surrounded by trees.  (Green is good.) I bet it looks so pretty in the summer.

I head uphill to the upper loop but instead of taking it back to my car, I head along the upper part of the other loop (Chessmen Loop). Pretty much the same landscape on this portion of the trail. But I am starting to get peaks at the colorful Breaks off to the right.

I complete the upper section and loop back on the lower section. I quickly stop a bunch of large hoof prints in the dried mud. These are large so it's not Mule Deer (and confirm that after seeing fresh scat); has to be Elk. (This is not Moose territory.)

Well this part of the trail is interesting because there are decent views of the formations below.

Soon I find the only part of this entire Figure 8 that has frost still!

And I see my first squirrel of the day -- such a black tail.

I reach the pond again.

And re-climb the same hill that I did about a 1/2 hour ago - but this time I head back to my car through the trees. There are glimpses of the Break from this portion of the trail especially when I reach the rocky section of the trail that I past before.

Seeing several squirrels running around now.

And I find an actual flower! The very hardy Dandelion (just one)!

I complete the trail (the lower portion of the south (Chessman) trail is the best) and continue down the road.

Next stop is the Chessmen Ridge Overlook (10467ft).

And then Sunset View (10354ft)

I finally make it to the the Ramparts Trail. The trail runs along the rim reaching Spectra Point (10285ft) in one mile and Ramparts Overlook (9952ft) in another mile. So 4 miles roundtrip - about 400 in elevation change. I head off - still in the low 40s and very windy.

The trail runs along the rim (giving me the heebee geebees at times) but the trail has some good width to it - thankfully.

The views are awesome!!

I soon I head up hill to a couple of tanks (perhaps water tanks); this is the highest part of the trail.

I think this a Spectra Point but no,

it's still ahead. I can see the trail on the white rock.

I continue along the trail (which is now downhill and thru the woods -- still with great views). I pop out of the forest to this wonderful almost barren area. There are Bristlecone Pines (one of the oldest living trees).

And I hear (and see) Chickadees flying around.

I follow the path along the rocky area to a viewpoint -- this is Spectra!!

Off to the Ramparts Overlook!

The trail continues downhill. I'm back in the forest now heading down several switchbacks. Soon I start getting some views again for a short period of time.

Before heading back into the woods.

And then the end comes into view. And so did the views from the end!!

More Bristlecones!

Time to gain that elevation back.

I reach the tanks again and start my way back along the rim. The sun is lower now and the Breaks are even more livelier.

Great hike! But time to head for Cedar City.

I continue along the road. It's all downhill and very curvy. Through the forest at first. But then I start heading west on HWY 14 and enter big rock/canyon country. First there were the white rocks (with grey), then formations that looked like colorful petrified sundunes (mostly yellow-ish), then white cliffs and then the red rocks. Such a wonderful drive!!

Fabulous day!