April 2021
We left the Wyoming end of Flaming Gorge in snow, of course, and cruised around the reservoir into Utah. A beautiful frosted drive. By the time we got out of the mountains, we were in red rock and dinosaur country. My inner nerd was so happy.
Dinosaur Trax was our first stop and it was a beautiful yet challenging hike.
We met a friendly and knowledgeable local resident who was super helpful in planning our stay near the town of Vernal and directed us to McCoy Flats, BLM land that is popular with cyclists. We found a bluff with an absolutely spectacular view and parked our rigs in such a way as to provide a wind break. Perfect.
McCoy Flats, according to our new rancher friend, Ernie, has been the grazing land for their family’s cattle for generations. I loved watching the cowboys (and girls) on horseback move a couple hundred cattle into the valley while we were there, and we got to know Ernie well during our two weeks. Oh the history and stories he had to tell!
The area is great for hiking and cycling, which we did every day. It’s also close to some great Petroglyph sites and Dinosaur National Monument. Spring is a good time to explore these areas as the temperatures are comfortable, not blistering hot as they can be in summer. Still, I managed to get my first serious sunburn of the year on a cool, but sunny afternoon. Oops.
The weather during our April stay was mostly sunny, chilly overnight and in the mornings, sometimes calm, but mostly windy. And being parked on a bluff, we got some serious wind! Holy moly, we’ve been in some windstorms, but dang! Our solution – inside Marvel movie binge!
We worked a lot while in McCoy Flats, taking hiking and biking breaks multiple times a day. We did mix a couple of tourist days in there, however.
We explored McClonkin Ranch, which is NW of Vernal, and has some of the most impressive Petroglyphs anywhere. It’s on private land, but the trail is well-marked and the glyphs are in amazing condition. Later we drove to Dinosaur National Monument, which was on the other side of Vernal. Our favorite part of Dinosaur National Monument was the Josie Harris homestead. She was an interesting, independent pioneer woman who lived life on her own terms. – my spirit sister for sure. From her log cabin, a short trail led to the box canyon she used as her cattle corral. The canyon and meadow were so beautiful we just kept walking to the end. Definitely worth the effort, and the cool damp of the upper canyon was refreshing on the warm day.
Pro Tip: Check out Visitor Centers! The staffs are generally well-versed in the activities and features of the area, there are maps and brochures, and, especially if you have limited time, they can help you narrow down your efforts to those things that really interest you.
In the case of Vernal, the Visitor Center is at the Utah Field House Museum, which is home to a wonderful collection and display of fossils of all kinds.
We stretched our stay at McCoy Flats to the 16 day limit as we were waiting on a part for our Jeep. Getting that, and getting Libby running again, we left on May 1st, stopping for water at an RV park in Heber, UT, restocking groceries in Salt Lake City, then toodling up to South Fork Campground near Huntsville. More on that in our next post.s