This fall, our traditional Moab trip didn’t happen until nearly winter. Due to scheduling constraints that will be the topic of another post, we didn’t have an opportunity to head down there until the latter half of November. Consequently, Moab wasn’t quite its usual pleasant self during our visit but at least it was 20 degrees warmer than back home. Plus, the frosty weather added another layer of ruggedness to our already radical adventures. (Insert those deserved snickers here.)
Our first day in Moab, we decided to bike Klonzo South, a section of the Klonzo Area that wasn’t finished until after we hit that trail system last year.
The temperatures were chilly on Klonzo’s unprotected outcroppings. I’m not talking about “wear a jacket” chilly; I’m talking about “wear three jackets because the wind is going to carve an ice canyon out of your belly” chilly. Still, who’s complaining? (Besides me, of course.)
We biked about 7 miles over Klonzo South’s short interconnecting loops. My favorites of these trails were Magician, Wizard, Carousel, and Gypsy. They twisted over a lot of rolling slickrock and vibrant desert dirt. Awesome!
I was not so crazy about Hotdog, a curvy strip placed on a steep hillside. Hotdog was no more difficult than the other paths but I didn’t care for it. Why? After some introspection, I realized that I carry my claustrophobic tendencies with me when I bike. If I feel trapped on a tiny hint of a trail that’s sandwiched in unescapably-abrupt terrain, claustrophobic discomfort sets in. This may seem completely illogical considering the wide-open settings where mountain biking takes place but no one ever said phobias make perfect sense.
The day was soon over after some turns on Magician, The Edge, Wizard, Carousel, Gypsy, Hotdog, and Zoltar. Curse you sun for your winter laziness!
Following Klonzo, it was back to the hotel to write papers until midnight. The reasons why I had to spend my evenings on homework during my beloved Moab trip will have to wait until another post and the urgent details of our treks through Arches National Park will have to wait until next week.