# Hiking in Utah 2013



## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

Ok! This is my new thread for hikes in 2013. I'll post pictures of every hike. Anyone else that would like to add pictures of their own hikes in Utah and would like to post in this thread is welcome.

Remember that I've started a yahoo email list for the purpose of arranging group hikes in Utah and any other Utah specific goat discussions:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/utahpackgoats/

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The big news for me this year is that I sold my pack yak. She got really hormonal in the fall and went from sweet and lovable to wanting to stick a horn in me. I waited several months to see if she would sweeten up again, but she didn't. I sold her and six weeks later the shipping company came and picked her up. But that last week before they came, she turned back into her old adorable self. That made it extra hard to say goodbye. She was being so nice that she even walked up into the trailer (first time ever) with hardly a hesitation. She's going to a guy in Nebraska who is starting a new herd on 115 acres. He's got a bull so she's going to get a chance to be a real yak. She's already looking like she might even be boss cow, so I think she's going to have a good life. If she has a baby boy, I may buy him and try again with a steer this time. When on the trail, Tibetty followed along with the goats and did great as a pack animal. Yaks are great! Here's a picture of her at her new place:










I lucked out and came across a new baby pack goat that was local this year. I picked him up the day that Tibetty the yak left. He's a sharp looking alpine. His only problem is that he's got horns (and knows it) and I'm doing a no-horn herd so I'll have to deal with that. I've been letting him sleep next to me for a few hours at night to help with the bonding. It seems to be working. He follows me everywhere. Currently he gets along well with the other goats, except for sweet Amelia Goat-hart. She hates him and attacks relentlessly. That wont last long though.

His name is Bacchus, Roman god of wine, drunkenness, and indecent parties-- Often depicted as a satyr. The Greek equivalent was Dionysus.










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Alpine Canyon

This was a great canyon for a good work-out and a short day hike. Its only a couple hours each way. However it was Memorial Day, so the crowds were about 10 times as thick as normal. This caused a little trouble, as the goats tended to find groups of little girls resting in the shade and would set up camp. We had to use leashes on the way up, though on the way down the pull of goat-gravity kept them moving back to the truck.









At the top of Alpine Canyon. Treats!









Photogenic Victoria strikes a pose.









Near the top of the trail is a waterfall.









The trail is about this steep nearly the entire way.
Often it has large rounded granite boulders.









Goats cross like this.









Dogs cross like this.









The truth is we were nowhere near the real top.









This is where we turned around.

With the crowds, I had to give the usual speech about pack goats about every two minutes. One time the goats got a little ahead of us and went around the corner out of sight. I heard a scream-- one of those actual terrified screams. I figured Sasha had eaten a shnookie pookims or something. No. It was a woman in a group who saw the goats and had some kind of panic attack. I think she was embarrassed but I for one enjoyed the show.

This time Sasha did not limp the next day, though I feel my own calf muscles complaining like usual when the trail is very steep. But my knees held out great, which is good news for me. Too bad Bacchus was too young for this hike. He'll be joining us soon, though.


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

So fun! Love your new little goat. Giving the "goat speech" every few minutes sure can drag a hike out, but I guess it gives your legs a chance to rest a lot. That's funny about the screaming lady!


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## farkus (Jan 21, 2013)

Looks like you had a good time. So how much you selling Bacchus for?  I have been wanting to pick up another alpine to put with the one I have already. Kinda funny Bacchus looks a lot like my alpine except no horns. But looks like you are getting in some good miles with those guys keep the pictures coming!


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## Saltlick (Jun 12, 2011)

Nice!!!


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

*Uintas, 10-11 June 2013*

I decided to go hiking in the Uintas with the goats. This was to be a low stress, little planning, easy going, do whatever trip. I brought Bacchus, the 3 month old baby alpine for his first big trip, and first over-nighter. He'd been sleeping on my bed for a few hours at night and had pretty well bonded with me so I figured he'd be fine.

Shelby, on the other hand, had his leg stepped on by a horse a week earlier and had some stripped fur and swelling on that leg. It had gone down and he had been walking fine on the test hike so I figured I'd risk bringing him along. It was, after all, going to be a rather flat hike.

My brother tagged along with his two dogs. This was Bacchus' first introcuction to the spazzy dog Mini so it was quite the 'character building' experience for him.









I figured people might be interested in the state of the Uintas this year at this date. I figure its about as early as you'd want to go up t here. The place had lots of melting snow that often ran down the middle of the trail. Wet feet for all. It wasnt MUDDY though, since the soil is rather rocky. The snow would be a different shape when you came back past it again later in the day. I figure by Rendy there wont be much snow except on the north side of the taller mountains. In this picture you can see the water flowing evenly across the land (and yes, that is a slope).









This is the thin little part of Long Lake. Beautiful camp sites and setting. Once this greens up it'll be paradise. I'd like to camp here someday.









The water is all tea colored right now. I was expecting crystal clear water... No wonder they make beer from rocky mountain water. Its nearly beer to start with!









Bacchus has his first encounter with 3D Terrain!









My brother did the cooking since I packed it all.









I had a horrible night sleep. I did not sleep. Victoria started spazzing at sunset and was no longer interested in being pet. Her eyes bugged and she started shaking and staring into the woods looking for monsters. Every 15 minutes she'd get up and come over and bahabah in my ear, then go lay down again. Shelby and Amelia stayed put but did not sleep. If they moved, Victoria would attack them. Bacchus slept on the edge of my sleeping bag but he also wouldnt actually sleep. He repositioned every 20 minutes. On top of that I got paranoid about him peeing on my sleeping bag so I kept making him move off and stand up for a minute. When he did pee, it was on the jacket I had forgotten I'd put in that spot in the dark. I was tired, felt the pissed on jacket and did not want to get dirt on the pee to make mud. So like a genius at 4:00am I threw it on a place it would not get dirty-- the top of my tent. DOH! Anyhow I got up with the sun and (without jacket) took the goats on a walk to graze a bit. It never really got cold, in case you're curious since the Rendy is in that area. There were mosquitoes but not too bad.









Bacchus really started bonding with the herd on this trip. The girls still beat up on him though.









Some of the melting drifts that crossed the trail.









Its a lake. Next to a cliff. I really dont understand these alpine lakes.









At the top of one of the trails we had to climb the remains of a cornice area on the ridge. The view was worth it though.

Overall it was a great trip except for the goats keeping me awake at night. Bacchus kept up like a champ and had a great first hiking experience. Shelby's bad leg didnt cause him any trouble at all (until I bumped it on the tailgate shoving him in the back of the suburban). And I learned a little about Victoria's little paranoia problem at night (this was her second overnighter).


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## Saltlick (Jun 12, 2011)

I want to go!!!!


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## rifleman (May 28, 2013)

Love the pics and stories. Keep em coming.


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## farkus (Jan 21, 2013)

Nice pics! Whitney is cleared off and about half full right now.


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

*Timp July 2013*

It was hot. 103F and let me tell you, there is far less snowpack up on Timpanogos than there was last year at the same time. In fact, the wild flowers seem stunted. Since this hike we've had quite a bit of thunderstorm rain up there, so hopefully it'll help the wildlife.

Like usual we hiked up the Timpanooke trail to Emerald Lake. Next time we may hike to the building at the very top! Honestly it was a good thing that we didn't this time because the mountain was lousy with mountain goats up higher. Look at these guys near the top being swarmed...










An army of goats ran past these guys and dove down onto a ledge. Glad I wasnt up there trying to get past them with my goats!










Even so we did encounter a small family of them in the usual place-- a bottleneck near a cliff. Look at this pretty girl and her baby. She was really curious about us. Of course with the dogs, they wont get too close-- A good thing!










She is so cute.










Scree near the bottleneck that is infested with mountain goats. They hang out on the cliff in the distance, right on the 'trail'.










Resting next to emerald lake. That water is cold. Not nice and cold. Painfully cold.










They're crazy and it was a dare. And they're faking like its refreshing. They were in howling pain the entire time except for the 5 seconds it took to do this shot. The iceberg was melting before our eyes.










This paraglider and a few others were buzzing the hut at the top of the mountain.










This silent and graceful sail plane cruised the updrafts along the peaks. Beautiful sight.










Starting back down.

Everyone had a great time. I like this trail. Like I say, next time we may shoot for the peak. Hopefully nobody falls off any cliffs!


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

I wish we lived closer. We'd love to join one of your hikes! Very pretty!


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## Catahoula (Feb 12, 2013)

Saltlick said:


> I want to go!!!!


Me too!!


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

My brother wanted to do an "easy going" Uinta camping trip so that he could bring his wife (who is rather petite and somewhat frail due to a neck/spine surgery years back) and her brother who is somewhat disabled. He also brought his 100 year old dog Rufus for his last expedition. Sarah and I went along and brought the goats and a canoe.

We ended up doing a ton of easy hikes to and around lakes, and Sarah and I climbed Bald Mountain early in the morning when the rest were still sleeping. Here are some pictures of the adventure. I've selected a lot of goat-oriented shots since this is the goat forum.










I learned that a slight breeze really complicates maneuvering a canoe. I cant honestly tell you whether Sasha enjoyed it or not.










My brother ended up paddling his wife's brother and his ancient dog around in the canoe, following the rest of us as we walked the shore. Honestly the trail and beach sucked on that lake because the level was so low.










Woodstock, the goat brought back from the Rendy, has really bonded with Sarah. She is his herd more than the rest of the goats. He's a great little guy and is universally liked by everyone.










We tried to climb Bald Mountain but got chased down by a storm. Turns out the lightning stopped the minute we called off the hike and the rain never reached us.










Here we are wimping out.









Here is a slope of rock one has to climb near the summit on our second attempt.










The grand staircase right before the summit.










If they fall off they werent going to be good pack goats anyhow...










Victoria on the summit of Bald Mountain. In the distance is mount Alopecia and mount Male Pattern. Off to the right of this photo is mount Rogaine.










Horses dont care about the view. But when the goats came to their first big cliff, they all stood amazed.










Bacchus playing on the cliffs.










Compare this current picture of Amelia Goat-Hart with a picture of her last year in the same place. Actually this spring she was nearly black!



















A guy came up and chatted with us while we lazed next to a lake. He had spotted us on our last trip when we passed by Wall Lake. In conversation he mentioned that the prettiest hike was the Ruth Lake trail. Wow yes. Very pretty.



















Woodstock loves a good camp fire. He stood like a statue for 10 minutes at a time before turning to heat his other side.

Well, thats about it. A two night car-camping, easy going trip to the Uintas of North-Eastern Utah right under the notch in the state's shape. We had a great camping site and were 5 minutes from all the good stuff in the tourist zone (The HIGH Uintas have no roads and barely a trail. But thats for when I have goats old enough to pack stuff). Like usual we amazed a lot of people. This time the goats did very very well at night except the first night when Bacchus was sleeping on my feet and then Sarah dumped Woodstock on me at 4:00am-- He slept next to my legs on my cot. I had 2 goats on me that night, but it was ok since I couldnt really seem to sleep anyhow. Overall though a fun and memorable trip with family.


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

So much fun! I LOVE the names of the mountains!!! "Alopecia", "Male Pattern", and "Rogaine". HAHAHAHA!! 

I love how goats gaze over cliffs. Looks like a great trip.


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## Catahoula (Feb 12, 2013)

Nanno said:


> I wish we lived closer. We'd love to join one of your hikes! Very pretty!


Nanno, how often do you go hiking/packing with you goats?


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## Nanno (Aug 30, 2009)

We used to take our goats walking with us all the time, and Cuzco always went about five miles/day up a local mountain trail with Phil. He never carried a pack, though, since it was such a short hike. We'd take him out for a proper all day hike a couple times a summer and he'd pack our gear. 

But with the babies arriving and Cuzco getting older, we haven't done much hiking or even walking with the goats this summer. We're hoping to take another "goat vacation" in Utah in October and hopefully Cuzco will still be up for it. He did great last year. We're thinking of taking him and both babies and leaving mamas at home for a well-earned break. 

Cuzco's arthritis has been acting up a bit lately with all the rainy weather, and he has a hard time jumping in the truck nowadays. But that may just be because he's grossly fat right now. I'm thrilled to say we have way too much green grass this summer, which is something I couldn't say for the last two years with the horrible drought. Cuzco is taking advantage of the situation. Maybe that's the real reason his arthritis is flaring up, not the weather.


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## Charlie Horse (Dec 16, 2012)

So yesterday Sarah and I and all 5 goats and Sasha climbed to the summit of Timpanogos. We'd always stopped at Emerald Lake, considering the summit to be a bit much for us... Till now.

I didnt take pictures of the majority of the trip since the summit was our focus and there are lots of pictures of the lower areas of the Timpanooke trail already from previous trip reports.










Here we are about to the top ridge where we can look over into Utah County to see if any thunder storms are coming. I have to say I got a bit of a vertigo feeling being up there at first.










At least the wind was cool up here.










It was shocking how far the little metal building on the summit was. You figure once you get to the top ridge, its going to be a simple hike from there on-- but turns otu it sucks.










Finally, the summit and the weird little Faraday Cage building.










Looking west you can see the trail.










Looking east there is a trail that leads to a shortcut down: You slide down on the glacier and end up at Emerald Lake.










We didnt take that path though. The drought has nearly destroyed the glacier and Emerald Lake is drying up. This is the view off the edge of the cliff down to the lake. The glacier is not impressive-- It normally covers that entire scree slope.










As a kid I had dreams of being on the top of Timp. They tended to be scary dreams with a lot of vertigo feelings. It turns out its not that bad... so long as you stay away from the cliff right behind me here.










Can you believe little Bacchus and even Woodstock made the trip! They did great and frankly surprised me. These lucky rocks are the highest point on the mountain.










Heading back down.



















Bacchus loved the cliffs. Cant say I loved him loving the cliffs.

In the end I felt good and am only somewhat sore. Sasha is pretty creaky and I cant blame her. There was a lot of scree hiking this time and paws arent the best for that. The goats all seem fine, if a bit more interested in laying around than normal. It was good conditioning for all of us, and nobody fell off of any cliffs. Big success!


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