Trail 245 Colorado Columbine, Engelmann's Aster, Horse-Nettle, Leafy Jacobsladder, Monkshood

One of my favorite flowers -
Colorado Columbines (Aquilegia coerulea)

You can see some Small-flowered or Showy Stickweed growing among the leaves of the columbines.

Engelmann's Aster (Aster engelmannii)

Horse-Nettle (Agastache urticifolia)

Leafy Jacobsladder (Polemonium foliosissimum)

Monkshood (Aconitum columbianum)

July 29 Visit to Strawberry Reservoir - Chicken Creek

North View of Strawberry Reservoir from Trail 245

July 29 Visit to Strawberry Reservoir - Chicken Creek

This time on our visit to Strawberry, we took our ATVs and parked at the trail head to Chicken Creek, about a mile east of the Strawberry Reservoir Visitor Center on Highway 40. (See "Strawberry Trail Map" posted below.) We followed Trail 245 approximately 7.5 miles through thick groves of quaking aspens and lush high altitude meadows until it ended at Road 082. It was a very beautiful ride.

Trail 245 North of Strawberry Reservoir

July 14 Yellow Salsify, Yellow Sweetclover, Scorpionweed, Tolmie's Owl Clover

Yellow Salsify (Tragopogon dubius)

Yellow Sweetclover (Melilotus officinalis)

Scorpionweed (Phacelia hastata)

Tolmie's Owl Clover (Orthocarpus tolmeie)

This was a small 1/2 inch flower growing on a dry hillside by Strawberry Reservoir. It was about 6 inches tall and had sparse leaves.

July 14 Silvery Lupine, Sticky Geranium, Sulfur Buckwheat, Wasatch Penstemon, Whorled Buckwheat

Silvery Lupine (Lupinus argenteus)

Sticky Geranium (Geranium viscosissimum)

Sulfur Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum)

Wasatch  Penstemon (Penstemon cyananthus)

Whorled Buckwheat (Eriogonum heracleoides)

July 14 Common Stonecrop, Pale Stickseed, Saw Groundsel, Scarlet Gilia, Showy Daisy

Common Stonecrop (Sedum lanceolatum)

Pale Stickseed (Hackelia patens)

Saw Groundsel (Senecio serra)

Scarlet Gilia (Ipomopsis aggregata)

Showy Daisy (Erigeron speciosus)

July 14 Houndstongue, Clematis, Mallow-Leafed Ninebark, Mountain Snowberry, Nootka Rose

Houndstongue (Cynoglossum officinale)

Lions-Beard (Clematis hirsutissima)

Mallow-Leafed Ninebark (Physocarpus malvaceus)

Mountain Snowberry (Symphoricarpos oreophilus)

Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana)

July 14 Columbine,Globemallow, Hellebore, Yarrow, Penstemon

Colorado Columbine (Aquilegia coerulea)

Common Globemallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea)

False Hellebore (Veratrum californicum)

Filfoil Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)

Glabrous Penstemon (Penstemon subglaber)

Strawberry Trail 245 and Road 082

     The trail to the left is the dirt road for vehicles, the trail to the right is for ATVs.

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July 14 Visit to Strawberry Reservoir Area

     We stopped by the Strawberry Visitor Center just to the north of Strawberry Reservoir and bought a large map called "Summer Travel Map, Uinta National Forest." This map shows ATV trails throughout Uinta National Forest. Unfortunately, it is dated 2007, and there are undoubtedly some road closures, etc. not shown. You can find updated information by visiting http://fs.fed.us/r4.uwc
     Just a little over a mile to the east of the visitor center on Highway 40 is a trail head named Co-op Creek/Chicken Creek. A staging area for ATV trail 245 is next to the road. A well-kept gravel road (082) continues north. No ATVs are allowed on this gravel road until it intersects with Trail 245 about 6 miles north. Since we didn't have our ATVs, we traveled on this gravel road north.

View from north of Strawberry Reservoir on Road 082

     Since Road 082 roughly parallels Trail 245, we stopped and took photographs of wildflowers along the way.

Blue Flax (Linum perenne)

Sandhill Cranes at Gooseberry Reservoir

Sandhill Cranes

     While we were at Gooseberry Reservoir, we saw a pair of Sandhill Cranes on the east shore. This picture was downloaded from www.public-domain-image.com. Thank you for letting us use it.

Lower Gooseberry Reservoir North Skyline Drive

We rode along Skyline Drive for a short distance and turned right onto a smaller ATV trail. We took a north loop and ended up on the road that led to Lower Gooseberry Reservoir. On the way back, we took the southern loop back to our trailer. This was an easy ride. There were a few rocks in the road to navigate around, but no steep hills.  

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June 29 Visit to North Skyline Drive

Forest Floor with Larkspur

      North Skyline Drive starts at Highway 6 in Spanish Fork Canyon. If driving from I-15, take exit 258, go east on Highway 6 for about 31 miles. Turn right at Skyline Dr./Starvation Rd. This turnoff is approximately 16 miles east of the Thistle Cutoff (Hwy 89). North Skyline Drive continues south approximately 28 miles until reaching Highway 31/Utah 264 junction east of Fairview, Utah.

     We traveled to North Skyline Drive from the south through Fairview and parked our trailer just north of the staging area at the junction of Utah 31/Utah 264 on the south side of North Skyline Drive. Dispersed camping is allowed on both sides of Skyline Drive. This is in the boundaries of the Manti-La Sal National Forest.

     We picked up 2 free maps at the Forest Service office in Ephraim at 540 North Main Street. One map is available at http://www.fs.fed.us/r4/mantilasal/maps/mvum/mvum_ferron_price_sanpete.pdf .It shows the motorized trail system in the national forest.
   

Larkspur (Delphinium)

Elderberry (Sambucus)

Alpine Shooting Star (Dodecatheon alpinum)

Brandegee's Onion (Allium brandegei)

Cow Parsnip (heracleum lanatum)

James' Chickweed (Stellaria jamesiana)

Mountain Bluebell (Mertensia ciliata)

Manyface Groundsel (Senecio streptanthifolius)