Dave and Jan have gone cross country skiing at Deer Hollow, a hilly area which volunteers keep groomed for skiers during the winter months. So they decided to try dry camping at a large meadow area just west of Deer Hollow, thinking that it would be nice to see the trails in fall colors. They were not disappointed!

“Dry camping,” in case the term is not familiar, is camping (free of charge) in U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management territories, within 150 feet of an existing road (paved or unpaved), where there are no amenities (e.g. water or electricity or rest room facilities). The view from the campsite Dave and Jan chose was already a beautiful view looking across the meadow.

On Friday morning, following a refreshing rain storm the previous evening, Dave and Jan decided to explore a side road near their campsite. The fact that it was a numbered road suggested that it would probably go for some distance through a forest filled with fall colors – and it did!

One of the many numbered side roads from the one Dave and Jan were hiking provided a nice view of Navajo Lake in the valley below, and it served well as a picnic spot at lunch time.

Utah’s fall Aspen forests provide a nice variety of colors from stop to stop along the path.

Dave enjoyed an evening walk on one of the roads which connect with the Deer Hollow ski area.

The time has come to winterize the camping trailer for another season, but Dave and Jan hope to continue to explore the beauty of Southwest Utah when winter snows have melted – though there are some great hikes to be enjoyed even during the late fall and winter months ahead. As the Lord promised Noah, following the great Flood of his time, “While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, And cold and heat, And summer and winter, And day and night Shall not cease.” Genesis 8:22 (NASB).