Dave and Jan enjoyed two camping outings at Little Cottonwood Forest Service Campground this year – one in June and one in early October. The road up Beaver Canyon from the campground leads into the Tushar Mountains, the highest mountains in southwest Utah. Their hope to hike to Delano Peak was blocked in June because the dirt road beyond Big John Flat was closed due to snowy conditions.

By their October visit to the area the snow was gone and fall colors were at their peak in the Tushars.

Driving the dirt road to Mud Lake, where they parked their car, Dave and Jan started toward Delano Peak.

Some of the surrounding peaks in the Tushars are surprisingly barren in their appearance.

The steady climb and, more discouraging, a very strong wind made Jan decide that she had gone as far as she wanted to go, so she decided to head back to the car. But Dave, who was prevented on a previous hike up to Delano Peak from getting to the top by a fog cloud which settled down on the mountain – obscuring the path ahead – decided to continue the hike, so Jan assured him she would be fine heading down the mountain on her own and she posed for a picture where they parted ways on the hike.

The route to the peak sometimes included a trail, and sometimes crossed unmarked grassy slopes.

The view at the top of the peak provided a 360 degree panorama of views across southwest Utah.

And any hike in the heights of the Tushars offers the prospect of a view of the Mountain Goats which the Utah Division of Wildlife introduced from Washington State. Dave’s last hike up the Delano Peak trail took him much closer to the goats than this hike did, but it was satisfying to see them from a distance, so Dave got a picture of the flock – though the strong wind made it difficult to hold the camera still.

Dave found it very satisfying to get to the top of the highest peak in southwest Utah. The hike back to the car where Jan was busy reading took about two hours. In spite of high winds, it was an enjoyable hike.

Psalm 104:18 says that “the high mountains are for the wild goats,” and Dave found it an enjoyable adventure to join them on another high mountain adventure in the Tushars of southwest Utah.