You know what stresses me out most in life? No, not being injured at work, which has a very high probability. Money. Money stresses me out so much to the point that I refuse to look at my bank account amount and as a result, tend to over draft. My stress skyrockets every time I think about money and bills and not having enough to pay for the bills. Today I now owe almost $150 in overdraft fees. Wonderful. And you know what sucks about that? There was enough money in my savings account. I do not understand why banks do not simply transfer the money (free of charge) from one account to the other. I have two accounts for safety reasons (in case my debit card is lost or stolen). But lately I am thinking that I should just have one account to avoid all these stupid overdraft fees. I also wish my bank had alerts like the big banks I used to be a member of, to let me know when my account reached a certain level. *sigh* I really do hate money.
We live our lives working our asses off. With little to no appreciation for what we do. Only to earn barely enough money to survive on. Yeah, I know I could go find a better paying job. But after working this job for over six years, I still love what I do. I know that I am making a difference. Each day is different. I am out, being active. Educating and doling consequences as warranted. I just wish jobs in the public sector paid accordingly. I know that will not happen. I know jobs like IT where you sit on your bum and have little job hazards yet have high demand will pay boatloads more than my job. It is a capitalist society. Demand and profit. That’s what our society is based off of. Blargh. I can still bitch about it though, even though I know it will do no good. I just get sad thinking I am never getting another promotion or raise ever again after working my bum off *cough aside from my 10yr anniversary cough*
But enough about that dreck and rant. Now on to more exciting things. Like planning my adventure to Moab next month.
My planned itinerary:
Saturday 05/21: leave for SLC after work (dep ~1800h-ish)
Sunday 05/22: mountain bike in SLC with Xterra friend. Drive the rest of the way to Moab. Check in to room in condo price-shared with friends (from all over U.S., Nissan-owning associates). Check in to goneMOAB event (http://gonemoab.com/). ; Mingle.
Monday 05/23: Hells Revenge --> may skip this one and bike or kayak Colorado River instead (
Tues 05/24: Elephant Hill --> long day, go bike/run in the morning (bum fuck early, ugh)
Weds 05/25: Strike Ravine (trail leader)
Thurs 05/26: Sevenmile Rim --> already done this trail 2x. Skip and do mountain bike day.
Fri 05/27: Steelbender
Sat 05/28: Take shuttle to put-in on Green River (either at Green River, UT or Mineral Bottom).
Sun 05/29: kayak Green River (15-20mi)
Mon 05/30: kayak Green River (15-20mi)
Tues 05/31: take out (either at Mineral Bottom or confluence with Colorado River- jet boat needed for this). Drive to SLC, or….
Weds 06/01: take out this day and drive all the way home (10h drive)
[Labyrinth Canyon Mileage]
Note on River Use Stipulations as written by BLM for Labyrinth Canyon part of the Green River (http://www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/fo/moab/recreation/River_Recreation/LabyrinthCanyon/river_use.html):
1. The permittee must allow rangers to inspect the permit and required equipment, and to orient the participants about river safety and etiquette. Upon request, the permittee must present the non-transferable permit along with a photo ID.
2. The permit must list any sponsor, affiliated organization (e.g., scout troop, school, etc.) associated with the trip.
3. The trip must be non-commercial. No person or organization may make money or increase their net worth as a result of this trip. No fees may be collected in excess of actual trip expenses.
4. The permittee must have:
A. a group size of 25 or less,
B. a washable, leak-proof, reusable toilet system that allows for the carry-out and disposal of human feces via an authorized sewer system. The toilet(s) must be of adequate size for the group size and trip length, and
C. a durable metal fire pan at least 12-inches wide, with at least a 1.5 inch lip around the outer edge and sufficient to contain fire and remains. Fire pans must be carried on all overnight trips.
5. There shall be a proper-size, serviceable Type I, II, III or V PFD readily available for each person. Persons 12 years and under must wear their PFD at all times on the water.
6. Each vessel shall have a spare means of propulsion. Low capacity vessels under 16-feet in length (kayaks, canoes, inflatable kayaks) carry spare paddles as follows: 1-3 vessels require 1 spare paddle, 4-6 vessels require 2 spare paddles, 7 to 9 vessels require 3 spare paddles, etc.
7. A bailing bucket or bilge pump (does not apply to self-bailing boats, kayaks with spray skirts and inflatable kayaks).
8. Each boat 16-feet long or longer must have immediately available a Type IV throwable PFD or a commercially made river throw bag with a minimum 40 feet of line.
9. Adhere to the Utah Boating Act (Title 73, Chapter 18) including registration of motorized boats, required equipment, and operational requirements.
10. The permittee must ensure that all trip participants:
A. carry all charcoal, fire ash, garbage, trash, human and pet feces out of the canyon. Leaving human or pet feces in the canyon, or dumping it into restrooms or trash receptacles at public facilities is prohibited. Gray water, strained free of solids, and urine should be discharged into the main stream of the river.
B. do not remove, damage or destroy archaeological, historical or ecological resources or mark or deface any rock surface, trees or other vegetation.
C. launch, travel (stay in visual contact), and camp together as a group. Groups launching separately may not camp together if such action would result in more than 25 persons occupying a camp.
D. limit firewood gathering to river driftwood only and keep fully contained fires in the fire pan.
**Note to self: need to borrow the following items for this trip:
• Dry bags for gear (esp sleeping bag and food)
• Poop bucket
• Ash pan
• Extra paddle
• GPS
• Water filter
Need to activate my Spot Finder.
Need to buy solar mobile charger for phone.
Need to buy gloves to avoid blisters on hands from paddle.
Get permits from BLM (http://www.blm.gov/ut/st/en/fo/moab/recreation/River_Recreation/LabyrinthCanyon.html) and NPS (https://www.nps.gov/cany/planyourvisit/riverpermits.htm) $50????
I contacted the Tag-a-long Guides: http://tagalong.com/region/green-river/ to see about setting up a shuttle service and what their prices are. I also asked them a boatload (*snicker*) of questions about the trip. I also bought: Belknap's Waterproof Canyonlands River Guide All New Edition
by Buzz Belknap/Loie Belknap Evans
• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Westwater Books (April 15, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0916370178
• ISBN-13: 978-0916370176
Which is a pretty cool book. I quite like it. I also found a trip report on a paddling forum on the Green River in Labyrinth Canyon area: http://www.paddling.net/places/showReport.html?119
Map of the area: http://www.blm.gov/style/medialib/blm/ut/moab_fo/campgrounds/river_recreation.Par.74694.File.dat/LabyrinthCanyonRiverMap6.pdf
Mountain biking links to trails:
http://www.mtbproject.com/directory/8010576/moab
http://www.discovermoab.com/biking.htm
http://www.utahmountainbiking.com/trails/idx-moab.htm
My adventure buddy had to cancel on me. So I am doing this event solo. I am honestly not very comfortable mountain biking or kayaking so remotely by myself. But I am not having any luck in finding a replacement. I also cannot afford the room in the condo for the week by myself ($500). I am REALLY hoping to find someone to bring along and help with the costs and share in my adventures. I already posted on Facebook, the goneMOAB forum and Couchsurfing looking for a buddy. Alas. I feel that this monumental event of badassery shall be solo. :( I will still do it no matter what. Solo will not stop me. It just means that less photos will be taken, and I shall have to be more conservative in my adventuring choices. BOOOOOO!
Any takers? Bueller? Bueller?
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