Indian summer high peaks adventure 09/18/23

dirt dame · September 19, 2023

The weather was supposed to be fair on Monday, with no real threat of rain being a reality....but Mother Nature had other plans. By the time I realized this, Kim and I were well down the highway with our bikes in tow, heading for the Uinta mountains. We both had rain jackets packed into our gear, so there would be no worries if we were caught in a shower or two. We also had brought a little extra layering besides our jerseys....since it is Indian summer and we would be riding well above 8000 feet.
Clouds and rain squalls were evident, even in the first 30 miles of our journey to the staging area on top of the mountains. But there was plenty of sunshine in between the storms, so we were hopeful. The sun was still shining for the most part as we embarked on our adventure to find new routes and new fishing spots. By the time we had worked our way west on route 58, the sunshine was an all but gone commodity. First stop was Beaver Dam lake. It looked nice on Google Earth, but in reality....it had been completely drained. So, that would be crossed off the fishing list. We crossed a couple of small streams on our way to Hoop lake. Luckily, this lake had remained intact, and appeared to be brimming with happy trout that were kissing the water's surface and occasionally jumping for joy. I wished at that moment in time that I had brought some tackle with me.
The weather got dicey at this point, the wind whipping up so much that the resulting dust storm temporarily made it impossible for me to see where I was going. I had to stop and wait for a few moments before heading onward. Following the wind, the rain began, it was gentle and intermittent at first, obliging us to don our rain jackets. We continued on, exploring a bit of side trail, before deciding to head in a different direction. By now, we could see some snow showers on nearby peaks.
The ride now traced the route we took out, with a stop to see some fall colors in a stand of trees. Then we had planned to hit the main road and head up to Spirit lake lodge, maybe stop and eat a snack and then proceed after we re-accessed the weather. But by now, a light rain was coming down pretty steadily and the air temperature had dropped by an estimated ten or 15 degrees. We were not really prepared for this turn of events and when we got to the turn off to Spirit lake I glanced up at the peak just above it and saw a snowy curtain veiling the mountain. At this point, we had to make a decision, and preferably a rational one....so we called it a day and turned around to had back to the staging area. We were not too chilly or uncomfortable at this point and we wanted to keep it that way. The rain increased and the temp fell a bit further. Sleet stung our faces as we rode back. We hung out in the trailer until there was a break in the precip, then we loaded the bikes and headed down the mountain. We had gotten some miles in, saw a lot of beautiful countryside, and we didn't freeze to death, so all in all it was a great day.