Beemer Driver: Day 12

The morning began chilly and late – breakfast was at 7 – so we didn’t get on the road until nearly 8:30. My thermometer read 41 degrees. Chilly would drop to cold around 9 on route 12. But prior to the cold we encountered even more vistas that were designed to take our breath away. On the way to Torrey we stopped every few minutes to take pictures. Some of those are below

Moving toward Torrey we encountered light snow as we climbed to the 9200 foot summit Dixie National Forest. The temperature dropped to a low of 29 during the climb. It became obvious the locals had encountered heavier snow yesterday, requiring the roads to be plowed. It began to snow lightly on us early on and increased somewhat as we climbed higher. It was beautiful driving through the snow covered country side. The roads were wet but not freezing for the most part. We did encounter some places where snow and ice had accumulated on the road. So it was slow going until we crested the summit and began the run down into Torrey. We simply didn’t know where it would be slippery so we had to take it easy.

Hunting season has begun here too and the locals were out in force. Pickup trucks dotted the landscape all along route 12. Some even found spots for their campers. They’re in for the long haul.

After we came down to warmer climes David found a local haunt with a little deli where we bought hot drinks to wash down some delicious turnovers. They have Wi-Fi so I connected for a blog update.

The scenery didn’t end with the run down the mountain. I’m convinced Utah was made for shutterbugs. We encountered reasons to stop all along the way and did just that. I tried some video with a different camera. You be the judge – tell me if it works for you. We’d like some feedback. Otherwise we’ll think we’re doing this for ourselves.

From route 12 we jumped onto route 24 thru the Goblin Valley State Reservation. We jumped onto I-70 to route 191 to Moab and then to route 128 which runs along the Colorado river. It was back to 70 for the run into Grand Junction, Co., arriving around 4:30 local time. Today’s run was about 320 miles, our shortest to date. Tomorrow will be somewhat longer and will be the last of our “short days” before we make the run for home.