Every year my company holds a retreat for the senior leaders and board members for the organization and being a part of the communication department it falls and me and my colleagues to support it. I’ve been helping for 5 years; from when I was heavily involved and there were a dozen team members to be more casually involved now that there are nearly 70.
Whats great about this retreat is that its in Midway in the fall. Midway is my dream town, and especially in the fall...why?
Well, the oaks and aspens are exploding for one. The other reason that I love Midway is because of its access.
Its on the backside of the wasatch, around the corner from Park City and because of this there are 2 over mountain passes to get to it. One is fully paved and takes you up Big Cottonwood and down into the valley directly and it alone is nothing to sneeze at, it would make for an epic 911 or STI run
Then there is the LONG way around the point of the mountain, down into American Fork Canyon and up and over on forest road 85. I’ve taken this route once before (last year) and had a great time.
The alternative (and by FAR the most popular route) is boring old I80 and I40. Boo. Taking the freeway its about 50 minutes, over big is about an hour, and through AF is between 90 minutes and 2 hours. Originally I was planning on doing big this year because of setup for my filming required me to be there earlier but a change in plans meant I had more time to take the route I really wanted. So I was off, headed up American Fork canyon. Past tibble fork, past forest lake up and forward on 85. about half way up I ran into a blue 80 series, decked out and making funny noises/smells.
They were airing down and I thought it might be a good idea to do the same. When I got out the noise, smell and “turbo” sticker told me I was in the presence of something a little unique to North America so I did what all Land Cruiser owners do [apparently] when meeting another on the trail...recite some string of letters and numbers
“HDJ?”
“Yup”
After the pleasantries has commenced we could freely converse (until his tires were aired down anyway, they seemed to be in about the same kind of rush I was) and I found out that this Japan spec HDJ81 belonged to Steve, owner of Land Cruiser Direct...otherwise known as...”how to kill and afternoon dreaming.com”. He was pleasant enough, and we talked about his move to utah and the business but it was clear he wanted to get underway, so we parted company and I continued on up. It was a little comforting to know he was doing what I was so if things got bad, he wouldn’t be far behind me. This Cruiser is for sale, BTW, but at a price that you may not be able to stomach if you are reading this site (ExPo is thataway ->).
As I drove over the great western trail and head down into midway valley I came to a fork in the road, and the words of a wise man rang into my ears: When you get to a fork in the road - take it. So, I changed course from the path I took last year (cummings parkway to snake creek) and onto a new path that google said would take me to the same place along a different road. Here i got a little nervous, it was that mild pit in my stomach at being alone with minimal recovery gear and supplies and taking a new path that should work out just fine...but might result in me being late to an appointment I really couldn’t be late for. I went for it. It wasn’t a big deal, rockier but easy with great views.
not long after taking this picture I met an older couple in a ram 2500 who flagged me down.
“Hey, can you get to midway on this trail”
“yeah, its easy, just head up until you have to turn right or left and go right.”
We chatted for a little bit and he asked me again and again
“So there is a way to safely get to Midway on this trail?”
“uh...yeah”
Not sure what he was so worried about, the trail I had just done was cake...Subaru country....why the concern? I ask him about the left turn on my map coming up and he shrugs, hmmm.
The “turn” was actual a 4 way stop and the left that Goochland wanted me to take was an ATV only trail. Right was the same story so with straight or back being my only choices, i went straight.
Immediately the road narrowed, and went from a shale and stone packed road to a soft, dark dirt with many water holes filled with a recent rain...some quite deep. There is one spot I even put on my rear locker for (still in high range) just to make sure if it was slippery on the bottom of a hole I could still climb out the angled exit...it wasn’t necessary but it was starting to feel serious; had I bitten off more than I could chew? No. However, I did understand why the man in the Ram was so concerned now.
The trail eventually opened up onto a shelf road on the mountain and I knew by the maps as well as being able to actually see the road below that I was likely to be fine and with a few more pinstripes, and I was. You may be wondering about pictures for this section...well...I didn’t take my own advice and take a few snaps when the going got rough, but there is a hint or two in the video at the bottom.
Speaking of bottom, I was now down in the valley and thanks to $3 paid to a local ATV rental shop operating out of a shipping container in a parking lot I was able to pressure wash my truck so that when I was filming the CEO of the company off the tailgate in a few hours I wouldn’t have to explain myself, or why big chunks of dirt were pelting him as we rode. It was like playing in the mud all day, then peeling off a layer and revealing a tux. Swanky.
Back at the hotel, park the freshly washed truck and walk over to the front desk to find this
As you might gather from the graphic and from the plate, this young Swiss couple was here driving across the Americas and, presumably, they heard about the “Swiss alps of Utah” and decided to come have a look-see. I suspect they looked upon it a lot like the cafe 80's from Back To The Future II. You know, one of those nostalgia places not done very well?
Anyway, they were very polite, spoke excellent English and were generally pleasant people. They liked my cruiser and wanted to know where to buy maxtrax. After talking for a while I found out there are headed to Ushuaia, making stops along the way and they wanted to know how to get to Moab from here. I directed them over the pass I just went (but the easy way) which takes you to American fork and onto highway 6 and down. I asked what their plan was in Moab;
“Oh, the white rim road? We’re going to drive that.”
“Oh I love the white rim, I just took my 5 year old on that, which sites are you camping at?”
“oh we just camp overland, you know on the free sites.”
“oh course, but on the white rim, you’re planning on spending the night right?”
“yes, one or two.”
“oh...”
They probably didn’t know you need a permit and a reservation to camp...which might be hard to come by this time of year...I hope all is well as they are down there now. Speaking of the white rim, I was talking to one of the execs in the company and he says next week he and his buddies are biking the white rim...twice. As In, TWO complete loops of the white rim in a day. FYI - That’s over 220 miles. DAYUM! Count me out, it took me 3 days to do it once...and I didn’t even do the final climb.
So I filmed my film, didn’t die doing it and when to bed. The next morning I did my thing, then was free from now 8:00 until noon...hmm what to do?
Yup, I drove up into the mountains, found a quite mountain road and parked there for an hour or so. So quiet, so peaceful...so paid. What a win.
Of course, before I got there I had to do a little trail maintenance.
A dead tree had fallen on the main forest road and because it left a gap large enough for a car to sneak past no one had bothered clearing it. Hooked up my tow strap, moved it off the road and cleaned it up. 5 minutes.
Got my peace in, drove down for a lovely lunch, did my thing again, and was free until 3 where work consisted of hiking around in the mountains for an hour and getting a few shots of mountain bikers. Then prime rib, hot tub and bed. I really like these retreats, especially when all the time I had scheduled to be working becomes suddenly free time. I mean, I still had to be up at 5 am every morning, and I still had to do SOME work, but yeah.
Driving home, I take the paved road, stopping at a few little spots like this trail, I didn’t go all the way, because I knew I needed to get home and I already knew what was up there
(Taken last year for the same retreat)
and my favorite twisting ground to take a few more pictures...I don’t want the peace to end.
But It must, and I have to get home for a birthday party for my 3 year old. Its loud...and exhausting...but she’s pretty great so I don’t mind.
Oh, right, the video. Hopefully the narration makes a lot more sense now
Saturday was daddy build day, and I FINALLY finished a project I’ve spent way too long on.
Its a 4X7 climbing wall for the kids. They like it, they were even down there climbing it today in their Sunday dresses.
And now...back to real work. I can’t complain though, and I wont.