"Get Your Zen On" at Bug Point.

Bug Point (CR 347) is a mere 2/10ths of a mile past Montezuma Canyon Road (CR146); that's if you go along Perkins Road (CR 206) from Main/500 South in Blanding (20.4 miles in total).  Already lost?  Here's a map to help you get into perspective; the road is the thick black line in the lower right hand corner.

The total length of Bug Point Road is 19.2 miles where it ends (or begins) at State Line (CR 348); the roads to Dove Creek, Colorado (Route 491) are outlined on this map (the same route once you get out of Monument Canyon (CR 372).

So, you're now armed with two maps, but you're now wondering why you should go to Bug Point at all.  When I entitled this "Get Your Zen On", there were two meanings behind it; the first is the complete serenity of the area.  Quiet, total quiet, so quiet that the only thing we could hear was the occasional sound of an airplane as it flew overhead.  This road is graded (flattened) dirt/gravel for the entire 19.2 miles; the scenery is breathtaking; ATV trails are all over for those interested (we saw a few parked vehicles with trailers, but didn't hear the ATVs at all); a couple of ruin sites off the road itself.  This is the perfect place for getting away from it all, giving your brain and body a rest, and just relaxing!

The second reason is Open Sky Wilderness Therapy; a holistic wilderness retreat and program for troubled teens, young adults, and families in crisis.

Oh, a little history on how Bug Point got its name.  Cattle Rancher, Bill Graham; previous employee of the Carlisle Cattle Company stayed on in the area in 1890.  He is credited for naming Bug Point, Bug Canyon and Bug Springs after the son (Charles "Bug" Johnson) of a fellow rancher (Charles "Racehorse" Johnson).  He is also credited for naming Secret Springs, Cedar Point and Dove Creek (officially established as a town on January 16, 1915).




Time to show you around Bug Point; after taking the left hand split from CR 206, go 2/10ths of mile to another split; again, go left to stay on CR 347.  There is the occasional ranch along this road, so a local might pass you by now and then; just smile and wave.   At 3.4 miles, the road curves upward and to the right; time to take a break to let Jenna romp around; yeppers, we had Jenna with us.

We drove for another few miles before deciding it was time for lunch; we always bring picnics with us when we decide to do canyon drives.



Abajo Mountains in the distance.

The Moon overlooks the landscape.

Back on the road again, it was 9.6 miles that we found ruins up on the cliff wall; it's a steep walk (45 degree angle) for 200 feet to reach the ruins.  Along the way, use your imagination to notice the "Mummy Head" formation.  While doing the hike up, I came upon an area that smelled distinctly of cat urine; I'm not talking the kitty cat that sits on your lap either....I'm talking mountain lions.  Keep aware in areas like this, and being armed could be a help; do NOT travel alone.



"Mummy Head" Formation
 

At 9.9 miles, Little Nancy Road (CR 368) is the same graded dirt/gravel road as CR 347, but only for about a mile.  It then turns to "unmaintained/undeveloped" road which leads to Bug Canyon, Lower Monument Canyon or Bull Canyon; we didn't travel to any of these, so can't tell you the true conditions of the roads in that area.  That's just going to have be another adventure, for another time.









At 10.2 miles, almost level with the roof of our SUV, we found a granary sort of sitting within a huge boulder.

The canyons we passed by were filled with evergreen trees; unusual really as typically they're dry and rocky.  We saw Sleeping Ute Mountain in the distance and couldn't help but photograph it.



Sleeping Ute Mountain

We began to see "teepees" in the distance and wondered if they were simply on a homestead, or had we reached the location of Open Sky Wilderness. At 13.8 miles we found the entrance to Open Sky, and there were quite a few vehicles parked; the landscape was beautiful, so no wonder they chose to have the camp there.





At 16 miles we began to see farmland and knew we were getting close to Colorado; it's very similar to leaving Upper Monument Canyon.  At 19.2 miles we ended our journey at the State Line (CR 348); we immediately recognized the buildings in the area and followed the same route back to Dove Creek, as we would have from Upper Monument Canyon. (see second map up above).







Whether you're a local needing to get away from it all for awhile; or a visitor looking for a peaceful, scenic drive; Bug Point (CR 347) is your journey to Zen.  In keeping with the theme of this post...Namaste.

Mary Cokenour

All Roads Lead to Montezuma Canyon - Coal Bed Canyon, Well Sort Of.

When we had last traveled through the lower section of Coal Bed Canyon (CR 341), we were stopped on two trails that required ATVs; we don't own one. So, we decided to go back to Montezuma Canyon Road and explore a trail going off into a hillside at 4.3 miles north of Perkins Road (CR 206). On the map I'm posting below, the bold, broken black lines are the two trails I'm writing about today; these were the same trails that were at the 9.3 mile mark when we traveled the lower section of Coal Bed Canyon.

Once on the dirt trail, off of Montezuma Canyon Road (CR 146), it immediately splits into two trails at 1/10th of a mile.  The trail to the left heads on up and around a hill before leveling off; it's rocky, sandy and 4-wheel drive is definitely a must!



Trail to the left goes up and around a hill.

We had traveled 1.7 miles, going upwards and around a corner to a perfect stopping place that overlooked the land below us.  We both noticed, at the same time, that this viewpoint looked familiar...too familiar; yep, there were the ponds below.  Around a huge boulder we saw the trail continue upwards, and I began hiking it...son of a...!!!  There is was, the section of the trail coming down from Coal Bed Canyon that stopped us the first time; broken up rocks and road that only an ATV would be able to manage.  We had found the connection between Coal Bed Canyon and Montezuma Canyon once again, and once again stopped from completing it.  On a side note, we did find a lovely campsite in the area we were parked.

Camping Area

Notice I did the hike up, while Roy relaxed by the SUV.

My handsome husband, Roy.

As disappointed as we were about not being able to complete the trail fully; we still had the trail to the right, so back to the original starting point.  This new trail had a few splits to it, and we explored what we could.  At the first split (3/10s of a mile), we went straight, but it ended 1.2 miles, for us at least, when it turned obviously ATV only.  Just before it though, at the 1 mile mark, a short trail to the left ended at a corral with a huge cow skull on the fence.  Yes, I'm doing this backwards and for a good reason; it was the trail that was at the 6/10s of a mile mark that ended up being the most exciting.

This trail wound up a hill and we couldn't help but wonder if this could be that second trail from the 9.3 mile split on Coal Bed Canyon.  We also wondered, if it was, would we be able to get over the roughest section of it, or have to turn back; or could we turn back and have to rough it out?  ...and upwards we went.

About 1.5 miles up we began a steady climb upwards on a section of trail that had us rocking and rolling; it was over quickly though and a half mile later; there is was, the rock formation that looked like a hand, and where we had found the bullsnake.  The entire trek was two miles, but we had done it, we had traveled another trail that connected one canyon (Coal Bed) to Montezuma Canyon Road.  We were pumped up with adrenaline and sheer excitement; so instead of taking the easy dirt trail directly to CR 341 and home, we followed an obvious trail, on the left, that traversed up and over a hill.  Oh yes, we were feeling quite good about ourselves!

We stopped just over the hill and the views from up there were stunning!

There you have it, another "All Roads Lead to Montezuma Canyon" adventure; backwards this time, but still just as awesome!

Mary Cokenour

A Mine Find in Monument Canyon.

I'd told Roy about my ride through Monument Canyon (CR372), and after seeing the road to it when we drove the upper half of Coal Bed Canyon (CR 341), he agreed to the drive. Now this is one of the big advantages of driving with a partner, one of you is bound to catch sight of something the other person might miss. The first time I'd gone through, I'd found that cave, or what I thought was a cave, opening. The second time through led us to a larger find, a mine close by to the opening I'd first found; I'd missed it, but Roy spotted it immediately.



There are two mine shafts in this one area.

We found out later on that mines in the various canyons are no surprise; I'm not talking about old abandoned mines here, but newly developed ones.  What we were told is that it's not unusual for people to start a mine to tap into one of the natural gas or petroleum lines in the area; fossil hunt; or dig for a mineral of some sort.  Number one, you have to be careful not to venture into these mines as you don't know how safe they are.  We could see lots of fallen rock everywhere and some of the timbers were obviously cracked.  As much as we both wanted to go deeper inside; fear of getting injured, killed and/or trapped kept us sensible.  We also didn't know for sure if anyone or thing was in the mine, whether hiding or using it as a home.  Number two, the people who opened these mines are protective of them when they're around; they won't think twice about shooting at you; whether to simply warn, or inflict harm, is their choice.  A huge reason why is they're not supposed to be there themselves!


Being monsoon season in San Juan County, we weren't surprised to see storm clouds coming in from the west.  Since I'd traveled this road before, I knew how many miles until we reached the upper roadway leading to Colorado, into Dove Creek, back onto Route 491 and home.  Roy, Roy, Roy, oh yea of little faith; he kept questioning me on, "Should you be taking so long on photographing the area?"  A few shots of the storm coming in, how could I resist those dramatic skies; and we made it to Dove Creek just as the thunderstorm hit.  A leisurely drive back to Monticello and the SUV got a good washing for free; it was all over by the time we reached our home.  That's the thing with monsoon season; storm clouds everyday, maybe thunder and lightning only, maybe rain from five seconds to five hours; maybe the whole she-bang!!!

Only out for a couple of hours, but the amount of pleasure...priceless!

Mary Cokenour