 Email: ted@phelpscorner.com
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Email: ted@phelpscorner.com
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June 16: It never did rain more than a few widely spaced drops, so we enjoyed the comforts and scenery of the park for the day. But, as refreshing as our day in the park was, Friday promised 97 miles thru vast Utah desert, with a 45 mile stretch without water. The morning followed the winding river thru a tremendous canyon before dumping us into the wide-open desert and triple-digit heat. Our goal was Green River State Park, which, in contrast to our present surroundings, sounded so inviting. I really felt good and strong today, in spite of the desert heat. Meanwhile, the treeless, scortching desert was taking its toll on some of our group, and at least two had reached their physical limits. I was about a quarter of a mile ahead of the others when I stopped at the top of a hill and noticed that my compadres had pulled off. I waited for 5-10 minutes, roasting in the sun, when John started up the hill alone. I didn't want to go back down, but I did, to meet John and to hear his report. It seems that they had found about 2-feet of shade under a small cliff and wanted to stop. It was about 5:00 pm. It was above 100 degrees. We were still more than 25 miles from Green River park. Wanting to be a team player, I conceded to stop as well. And besides, it would have been dangerous to proceed on alone. They couldn't have chosen an ughlier, more barren piece of desert in all of Utah to stop and spend the night. We sat in the "shade" until the sun began to retire. Then we set up our tents, made dinner, and utterly drained, climbed into our sleeping bags. (Apologies for all the poor-quality pictures.)
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