DISPATCHES FROM THE ROAD
A Quest for an Ancient Tree
Friday, June 16 2023
I co-led a hike in the North Unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Park recently. There were about a dozen of us. Our goal was a very old cottonwood tree in an obscure corner of the park down by the Little Missouri River. The tree is said to date to 1641.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
A Different View of Glen Canyon and the Colorado River
Monday, June 12 2023
I’ve read about Lee’s Ferry all my life. Among other things, it is the portal for float trips in the Grand Canyon. Countless stories feature Lee’s Ferry or originate there. I watched several groups tuck their gear into rafts as they embarked on the great adventure. I was filled with envy and a kind of apprehension.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
The Unnamed, Unheralded Falls of North Dakota
Saturday, June 10 2023
Geographers say North Dakota has only one waterfall. It’s a waterfall without a name, over in Ransom County, near the Minnesota border. For twenty years I have wanted to go see it.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
The Way of the Hopi — A Colorado River Journey
Monday, June 05 2023
Snow was on the ground when we awoke on the second Hopi mesa. We feared a snowstorm, possibly a blizzard. We slipped and lurched to a remote coffee house that Dennis and Frank had scoped out the previous evening and then drove back to the Hopi Cultural Center, where we met Donald Dawahongnewa.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Thunderstorms, Cottonwoods on the Great Plains
Thursday, June 01 2023
Typically we don’t get genuine punishing thunderstorms until after Memorial Day. I sat in a camp chair on the porch and studied the sky.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Navajo Nation and Canyon de Chelly — A Colorado River Journey
Tuesday, May 30 2023
Day Six, Wednesday: Canyon de Chelly; U.S. 191 to Burnside; Arizona 264 to Second Mesa.
Cattle traveling the Chinle Wash in Canyon de Chelly, part of the Navajo Nation.…
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
A Visit to Ute Mountain, a Detour to the Holy Grail: Four Corners!
Friday, May 26 2023
This is six in a series of dispatches from Clay Jenkinson chronicling his recent journey with two compatriots following the Colorado River and neighboring region.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Crow Canyon Archaeological Center — A Colorado River Journey
Monday, May 22 2023
This is the fifth in a series of dispatches from Clay Jenkinson chronicling his recent journey with two compatriots following the Colorado River and neighboring region. The day was spent at the Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Deep in Canyon Country — A Colorado River Journey
Sunday, May 21 2023
Today we get officially underway. Frank’s wife Georgie dropped him off around 9 a.m. As we began the great adventure, she handed us a Ziplock bag full of homemade chocolate chip cookies.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Boulder, Utah — A Colorado River Journey
Thursday, May 18 2023
This is the third in a series of dispatches from Clay Jenkinson chronicling his recent journey with two compatriots following the Colorado River and neighboring region. The day was spent in and around Boulder, Utah (population, 248; elevation 6700’).
- Published in Dispatches from the Road