Day Six - Torrey UT to Mexican Hat UT - 282 miles
We began the day by having an unexpected eclectic breakfast. It was a decent meal of some sort of breakfast burrito with an unusual combination of organic vegetables. We had a bit of back tracking to do before we got on fresh roads, but this is the type of back tracking we like. A quick blast though Capitol Reef before all of the tourists hit. We only made one stop; it was at Chimney Rock, for a quick couple of pictures before motoring on towards Hanksville. It didn’t seem like there were many periods this trip where we rode longer than an hour without stopping as there was so much to see, but from Capitol Reef to Hanksville, and down UT95 well into the Bicentennial Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway we rode without stopping. It was roughly an hour and a half but we were having a ball running through the canyon area on UT95 generally considered White Canyon and Long Canyon. We stopped at Hog Springs for a brief stop before running down to the Colorado River. There were several stops as we rode down to the river, and we took advantage stopping several times for pictures. The road was in excellent shape, but for once we were pretty busy looking more than riding hard. We crossed over the river on two different bridges and continued on until we reached the Natural Bridges Park. We rode in and stopped at several points to take pictures. After riding around the loop we back tracked a couple of miles before heading south on UT261. We decided to ride down a trail to Muley Point for a view. It was only about 4 miles each way but the road was unpaved and not that great, and the going was slow. On most street bikes this would not be recommended, but the RTs did ok. Once there we stopped for a view over the edge, and we decided it was probably worth it. Back on UT261 we shortly hit Moki Dugway. This section of the road drops over 1,000 feet in only a mile or two with a series of switchbacks on a gravel road. The road is in good shape and not nearly as difficult as the road to Muley Point.
Once down on the canyon floor it was a short ride to Mexican Hat where we checked in at the Mexican Hat Lodge. We stayed long enough to umpack some things and then headed south to Monument Valley. I didn’t realize before going there that it was on an Indian Reservation. We went in snapped a few pictures and looked at the dirt road that went back into an area closer to the buttes but after so much dirt we decided to go on. As we were approaching the area something looked familiar, and I realized before leaving this was where Forest Gump was pictured during his running phase. We quickly found where we thought the spot was and took some pictures. When we returned and looked on the internet we realized we got the exact spot. We weren’t done riding so we went up past Mexican Hat and went to the Goosenecks Park. Some very good scenery there. Soon we were ready for some food. We went back to the hotel, took a quick dip in the pool, and a dinner made by the Swingin’ Steak chef. It was quite good.
