Trips in the Henry Mountains

One of the more spectacular local sites to see out here is the Henry Mountains.  Located between Bullfrog and Hanksville Utah, they are a small range of mountains that contrast the surrounding canyon country quite well.  I've done a bunch of day trips up to this area, its only 20 miles from my house!

I took a few trips up this fall, the roads are in good shape (as long as you have a 4x4).  Being a forestry student I  checked out a lot of the trees.  There was a fire that traveled through the area about 7 years ago.  I am hoping that some of the Ponderosa Pine will start to regrow.  There are also a lot of Juniper, Pinyon Pine, and Aspen Groves. I have found the Henry's to be a  great break from the brutal Lake Powell heat in the summer.  Temps up in the mountains only reach into the 80s, which is much appreciated on the 115 degree days at lower elevations.  I've found more wildlife per square mile than almost any tract of land back in Iowa.

A few "facts" I've learned from talking to the locals out here:

• They are home to one of two surviving natural herds of bison, the other being the Yellowstone herd.
• There are two 11,000+ foot peaks Mt. Ellen and Pennel 
• They were formed by lava pushing up on the rock
• They were the last "discovered" and explored mountain range in the US
• "Its BLM land, so anything goes, like international waters" - don't trust everything people say 

So needless to say, there is a lot of cool stuff up there and I will just let the photos do the talking.  It would be safe to guess that this will not be the last posting about the area.

I found an old mining cabin, maybe future home?

The "Bullfrog" on the back of Mt. Holmes, as seen at mile marker 19 of HWY 276

Some Fall Color

A beautiful little grove

Pedestal Alley Hike

There are just a few actual established nature hikes in the Bullfrog District of Glen Canyon NRA, Pedestal Alley is by far my favorite.  Its an easy 3 hour hike.  I recommend doing it in the fall or spring, since the sumer here is quite hot.  The hike starts off of the Burr Tail, north of the Bullfrog Developed Area. It takes you across open desert land along a wash.  After about a half mile. You take a turn onto some slick rock and follow some well established cairns (little piles of rocks to denote the trail) for another half mile around a mesa and boom you're there.

The attached photos show the Pedestals, they are similar to the "hoodoos" that you might find at Brice Canyon National Park.  I thought it was interesting how the spires were of such different sizes.  I took these photos to share, but as with almost anything out west, its better in person.

This one was more than 60 feet tall