The Gates of Lodore

Got out of Flaming Gorge at 6:45 A.M., which I figured would be plenty of time to beat the late-morning clouds.

Even from the parking area where the river rafters were gathering, the Gates are impressive.

Note the beautiful sky and ouffy clouds. Lovely. What I hadn't quite counted on was that the place is easy for rafters, butnot kind to ageing morons who want to walk the nearly two miles to get closer. Sigh. The 'trail' is unmarked or nonexistent, and I basically fought my way through the forest to finally reach a good  perch for photography.

My guardian angels were already there, sitting on the next rock.  "Boss! You're late! We've been trying to hold the !#!$!%!^! clouds back, but they are gaining on us. Oh, and we put some nice rafts on the river to help scale the scene."

Good girls. By now, the wind was coming up, the clouds were closing, and I still had to fight my way back to the parking lot. Ah, but first, a video!!

Note the rapidly-approaching clouds and their speed? A few minutes later, the whole place was entirely socked in. I didn't see the Sun again until I was back in Flaming Gorge at 3:30 P.M.

I won't dwell on the adventure getting through the woods. I did take a self-portrait with the little blood rivulets on both arms and both legs. Think of them as souvenirs...

The Gates are a one-trick pony, but it is a wonderful trick.

I should mention that I passed a magnificent overlook above the Flaming Gorge. The wind was howling at 40 miles per hour or so, but I managed to hold the camera still enough to get these:

You can see the back of the dam on the left.

Off today back to Jensen, near the entrance to Dinosaur National Monument.I have three more nights to do the fifty-mile dirt road atop the Yampa Bench and try somehow to get Harper's Corner without the clouds.