is to be enjoyed on the famous Slickrock Trail. Don’t let the seemingly flat expanse in the image below deceive you but I cranked slightly more than 2,000 feet (610 m) of vertical ascent on the 10 mile (~16 km) trail. I first rode this line in the early 1980s on the upswing of mountain biking and it hasn’t gotten any easier at three score and nine years in age.
Castle Valley Drive has finally reopened...
above the newly constructed monstrous arch culvert near the entrance to the community. It is astonishing that the natural streambed was not carried through the oversized rip-rap that is placed directly in the channel, choking it, rather than simply protecting the side slopes.
The natural cobble bed channel of Castle Creek versus the newly engineered channel choked with rip-rap.
Let's get small...
inside the blossom of a prickly pear cactus as the bees do their thing this time of year.
The cherry on top...
of my typical daily 18 mile (29 km) ride is the long and flowy descent on the singletrack from this high point on the trail, about 900 feet (274 m) above my residence in the lower valley. It’s all about the downhill flow!
An unremarkable spring bloom...
is well underway in the high desert, hindered by the exceptionally dry conditions through winter and early spring.
Narrow leaf yucca (Yucca angustissima).
Breeding males brighten the brush...
and are hands down my favorites at the feeding stations this time of year. They’re arriving in greater numbers now.
Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
Peak cliffrose pungency...
is occurring right now with pockets of the sickly sweet aroma encountered on the trail.
Cliffrose (Purshia mexicana).
Sleeping bees in flower blossoms...
emerge as the petals open later in the morning when warmed by the Sun. Shelter, warmth and pollen, what more could a bee desire?
Globe mallow bee (Diadasia diminuta).
Not all launches are successful...
when one fails to pay attention to the details of prepping a model rocket for flight! Despite this initial failure, it was another busy and fun day at the state line hurling projectiles into the sky.
Failure to properly retain the rocket engine in the motor mount allowed it to launch out the top of the rocket while sitting on the pad at ignition, displacing the nose cone and parachute and recovery wadding as it moved through the body tube. Oops.
No fires were started as the rocket engine departed the airframe leaving the rocket undamaged after the mishap on the pad. Exciting!
Second attempt: Nike Smoke Pro successfully lifting off the rail and piercing the La Sal Mountains in the distance.
Cherokee Pro heading up on a F engine.
Cherokee Mini seconds from touchdown after flying to 1,856 feet (566 meters) on a G engine.
Flashes of blue with splashes of orange...
makes the return of this colorful bird a welcome sight around the feeding stations every spring.
Adult male Lazuli Bunting (Passerina amoena).
April showers make a rainbow...
in the light mist late in the day. Nearly a half an inch of rain fell today.
Hummingbird season arrives...
with steadily increasing visits to the feeders.
Black-chinned Hummingbird (Archilochus alexandri).
Finally nearing completion...
with the road grade reestablished atop the new arch culvert on Castle Creek. Road paving and placement of rip-rap still remain as tasks to be completed before the main entrance to our community reopens to traffic.
It will be interesting to observe the backwater effects of the new structure and the rough, bouldery channel created by use of oversized rip-rap during future flood events. Upstream pooling of water, slower, less efficient passage of flood flow, increased deposition of fine sediments in the channel and increased bank erosion upstream are likely going to occur.
The sharp shadow of Castleton Tower...
commences its seasonal rightward march across the face of Adobe Mesa at sunset, achieving its furthest rightmost position on the summer solstice in June.
Sunning serpents...
stretched out across the singletrack today, miles apart from one another. Admittedly it was a pretty lovely day to catch some rays.
Bullsnake (Pituophis catenifer sayi).
Bright cactus blossoms...
are beginning to appear in the high desert.
Whipple’s fishhook cactus (Sclerocactus whipplei).
Claret cup cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus).
The stuff of nightmares...
found crawling on the trunk of a cottonwood tree at Lions Park.
Western tent caterpillar (Malacosoma californicum).
It didn't take long...
for this greedy varmint to enter the trap, having set it only 15 minutes earlier. The lure of the peanut butter was too great for the first deportee of 2026.
Rock squirrel (Otospermophilus variegatus).
UPDATE the following day! Two more volunteers for deportation.
A muted spring bloom is underway...
in the high desert, the result of a very dry winter and spring (so far).
Claret cup cactus (Echinocereus triglochidiatus) below Adobe Mesa.
Well behind schedule...
and over-engineered as well, the community is still patiently waiting for the new arch culvert over Castle Creek to be completed. The size of the rip-rap being used here is absolutely absurd for the size and energy and sediment load the stream possesses in this reach, even in flood.
