T-Dub'ing to Lava Butte
26 April 2024 | 10:46 pm

While Martha went to do some shopping in Henderson, I rode out this morning on Yagi, my TW200 to check out Lava Butte.  It lies outside, the borders of the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

The beginning of the trail, shortly after it becomes a dirt road from the trailhead off of Lake Mead Boulevard was pretty rough, you definitely need 4x4 and good ground clearance just to get on the trail!  (Big boulders and ruts with a decent slope)

Here was today's objective:

The way to the butte was not bad at all after the entrance, I experienced not too many technical bits along the way except the last steep hill before google maps said I was at the butte.  It was quite steep but Yagi did it with no issues, in spite of my reservations.

Lava Butte

I continued on the "designated route" on this BLM land, detouring slightly at times for pics:

Yep, this is the "designated route"

This rock formation caused me to detour slightly,
and no, I didn't ride closer...


Back on the designated route, I caught up and passed a white pickup truck only to see a spot for pics, so he ended up passing me anyways.  It's always nice when slower vehicles yield the road to faster moving vehicles when off-roading.

You can see southeastern Las Vegas Metro

I left Yagi after taking the above pic and wandered over to the nearby cliff edge seeking views of the valley next to me:

While at the edge, I saw this colorful rock formation...then I spotted the car.  See it?

Yep, either idiots dumping an old car after using it as target practice or remains of some of Las Vegas' mobster history...probably the first theory.  :)


A view of the valley, colorful right?  This is in spite of the light due to overcast skies.


Looking back the way I walked, can you see Yagi?


Once back on Yagi, one last pic of the cool rocks forming the cliff edge:


Soon after the above pic, I was at the Wet Lands Conservation Park and motoring along a sedate dirt road towards the outskirts of northeastern Las Vegas.

As you can see, storm clouds had been steadily gathering and I was anxious to get back to the camper before the rains came at Noon.  I would make it through the city tangle and back onto Lake Mead Boulevard without any issues and only got a little bit wet from scattered showers.

Not a bad little route, this Lava Butte trail, I'd rate it as moderate for a rider with my lack of off-road riding skills.

Boondocking in the Lake Mead National Recreation Area's Government Wash
25 April 2024 | 2:45 am

A somewhat short driving day today as we drove to be close to the Las Vegas, NV area.  Since we gained an hour once we were in Nevada, we were setting up camp by Noon.

There's several rigs here but the sites are pretty dispersed so far.  Not enough rig to make for crowded conditions yet.  We got ourselves a pretty good spot with views of the water on Lake Mead:


Close to sunset, which wasn't much of an event, I rode out on Yagi to check out the rest of the area.  

Not much to tell, more rigs to be found, but still good dispersal patterns.  The roads are rocky and rough so slow going for camping rigs and cars, easy stuff for Yagi.




About a 1/2 mile as the crow flies from our campsite, I was accosted by this dog which was running amuck.  He kept circling the motorcycle as I worked to get away from it, barking the whole time.  I finally left it behind and watched as it then decided to hound a couple who were walking their own dog.

The dog, any dog, is supposed to be on a leash but its owner obviously don't believe in "rules".  The owner finally ran up and grabbed the dog's harness and dragged it away to their "camping rig":


It took this incident for me to discover I'd left my Mace dispense in my other pants.  Just as well I guess, it would have been the dog which paid for its stupid owners' lack of control.

I stopped briefly to chat with the couple with the other dog and they too expressed their surprise and disapproval at the dog and his owner's lack of control.

Anyways, I left that area behind me, it wasn't at all scenic anyways.  Returning to my campsite, I got these shots in the golden hour's light:


We'll be here a couple of days or so before moving on.  It was very windy today and hot, with a high of 92 I think.  It's supposed to be a bit cooler tomorrow but we'll see.


Boondocking near the Kolob Canyons, Zion National Park
24 April 2024 | 4:16 am

 Monday, April 22

We left the Torrey, UT area at 8:32 AM and by 1:00 PM or so we were south of Cedar City, UT setting up camp at a BLM dispersed camping area.

Nice spot, and no neighbors which was the best part.  Even the wind, which wasn't that strong, was warm under the bright sunshine once the clouds moved away.



We rested and relaxed the afternoon away, enjoying the warm conditions.  I did take Yagi, the T-Dub for a short ride in the trail loop nearby, but nothing pic-worthy was found.

Tuesday, April 23

Martha and I took Harriet, the CR-V, south on the highway for about ten miles to the exit for the Zion National Park's Kolob Canyons Visitor Center.

pic by Martha

After Martha got her Park Passport stamped, we drove onto the scenic road which takes you to an overlook trail.  It was a mile to the end and not too hard, perhaps 100 feet in elevation change.  

The trail takes you up to some rather nice views of the nearby Kolob Canyons.  You can, pretty much see the canyons from the trailhead parking lot but we needed the exercise, so....




Martha walking back towards the trailhead...


We weren't there at the best time of the day in
terms of sunlight but we made do...



Shuntavi Butte

We returned to camp where Martha dropped me off and she went shopping at nearby Cedar City, for groceries.

Not much got done otherwise in the afternoon, I did a minor repair to the left rear mudflap on the VRRV which had once again been found hanging by one screw!



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