Day 6 of Lupe’s 1st 2019 Dingo Vacation to the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming!
Predawn – Uh-oh. Raindrops! USFS Road No. 10 had been plenty soft on the way up here yesterday evening. As the rain started in harder, SPHP had visions of a repeat of Lupe’s muddy misadventure at Big Pryor Mountain last year. This road and situation weren’t anywhere near as bad at that had been, but still no sense in simply sitting here while No. 10 turned into a quagmire, was there?
The G6 sprang to life, and a slow slippery descent began. The night was utterly black, the headlights barely revealing only a short stretch of a rutted sea of mud ahead as the rain poured down. The mud clung to the tires, causing a serious loss of traction. Not quite as bad as driving on ice, but not that far from it, either.
Slowly, slowly! What time was it anyway? A glance at the dash revealed only darkness where the radio, clock, and information panel ought to have been all lit up. Huh. They’d been working yesterday. The G6 crept along, finally succeeding in covering the 2 miles back to the pavement at Hwy 14. By then the rain was over and done with. Just a shower. The sky was already clearing, the faint first light of dawn now perceptible.
After parking at a snowmobile unloading area, SPHP turned on a light to take a look at the dash. Lupe’s water bowl was perched directly above the radio. The bowl was practically empty now, the dash clearly wet. Gah! Should have remembered to remove the bowl before taking off down the rutty road. Dousing electronics with water is seldom a great idea. Too late now.
Oh, well. Still mighty early. After letting the Carolina Dog out briefly to sniff the air, back to sleep!
An hour or two later, SPHP woke to find Lupe awake panting on her pink blanket. The sun was up, and a lovely clear blue sky promised a great day. At the end of a short side road near Shell Canyon, the American Dingo got out to bark at a squirrel while SPHP replaced the fuse for the radio, clock and information panel. No luck. The spare fuse made no difference. Not too surprising, since the original fuse looked fine. Some circuit board must have shorted out.
Simply fabulous! Zig when you should zag. Should have stayed put, and let it rain. The road out would have been better now, anyway. That was that, though! A minor setback. So what? The G6 still ran.
Onward! Puppy, ho! Antelope Butte (9,935 ft.) was calling! It was only a few miles away.
The Antelope Butte Mountain Recreation Area was only 0.33 mile off Hwy 14 on USFS Road No. 244. Next to a large parking lot, a huge green and gray plastic yurt sat near a ski lodge undergoing renovation. Only one person was around, a man driving a small bulldozer. SPHP caught his attention and asked if it would be OK to park the G6 here?
Sure, no problem, provided SPHP parked off to one side. The parking lot was going to get smoothed out today. While SPHP got ready, Lupe leapt out to briefly inspect the premises, before continuing SE on USFS Road No. 244. (9:08 AM)
No. 244 went up a valley past a dozen private cabins strung out over 0.5 mile. At one point Lupe forded a small tributary of Granite Creek. At the last cabin two men were busy re-shingling the roof. USFS Road No. 244 ended here, but ATV trail No. 421 continued on.
A nice reddish dog came over to greet Lupe, and seemed inclined to come along to explore Antelope Butte, too. That would have been fine, but SPHP drew the attention of the roofers, who called the friendly dog back.
Lupe had gained only minor elevation along USFS Road No. 244, but ATV trail No. 421 climbed more steeply. The trail wound through a mostly forested region, but Loop came to a few clearings, too. The brilliant sun was starting to feel hot. SPHP paused briefly to put on sunscreen.
Naturally, applying sunscreen changed everything. The sky soon began to cloud up rapidly. After following No. 421 for 0.5 mile, Lupe arrived at an open gate at the edge of the forest. By now the sky was completely overcast. The air felt cool and damp. Beyond a big meadow, low clouds clung to a line of peaks several miles away.
Beyond the gate, a two track road (USFS Road No. 279 on the topo map) headed S in a big meadow. The road stayed fairly close to the forest as it climbed toward a pass. Although prospects for a successful ascent of Antelope Butte were suddenly looking questionable, Lupe followed the road higher.
Lupe hadn’t gotten too far beyond the gate, when the roar of engines was heard coming up ATV trail No. 421. A family of 5 appeared on 2 ATV’s. They waved as they raced on by, before disappearing over the pass Lupe was heading for.
Pass 9260 was only 200 yards away. The American Dingo was soon there. What to do now was the question? A grassy open slope led fairly steeply up to the N end of Antelope Butte’s long N/S summit ridge, but the ridgeline was hidden well up in the clouds. The true summit was still nearly a mile SSW, nearly 700 feet higher than this pass.
Staring at the grassy slope, Lupe and SPHP watched as a featureless gray swept down enveloping even Pass 9260 in fog. All it took was a single minute.
Hmm. No point in trying to summit now. Felt like rain. Stay or go? The forest wasn’t too far away, maybe Lupe could hide out there hoping for improvement? Nah, not a speck of blue sky anywhere. Hadn’t been for a while. Might as well call it before getting drenched for no reason.
The Carolina Dog headed back. Disappointing, but that’s the way the cookie crumbles. Thunder confirmed the decision within 2 minutes of leaving the pass. Better hurry!
Lupe enjoyed the lively downhill pace! She raced through the forest along No. 421 sniffing and exploring. Scattered raindrops fell intermittently. Now and then more thunder. The family of 5 joined the retreat, racing by again on their ATV’s. Fortunately, any serious rain held off. Occasionally the sky even brightened. SPHP relaxed and slowed down.
Wrong! Back on No. 244, a mere 5 minutes from the G6, suddenly it was on again. The sky darkened ominously. Incoming!
Run, Loop, run! Tremendously excited, Lupe ran alongside SPHP leaping and barking. What a fun game! SPHP was seldom so lively!
No, Lupe. Keep going! Run to the G6! We’re almost there! Lupe raced ahead, but kept coming back to urge SPHP along. She wasn’t about to abandon SPHP, and after all, her speed wasn’t the issue.
The storm broke 2 minutes from the G6. An absolute cloudburst, with hail. Pea-sized, but it might get bigger. Thunder! Lightning! Streaking through the fearsome onslaught, Lupe finally made a beeline for the G6. Totally drenched, she leapt in as soon as SPHP arrived to open the door. (11:09 AM)
10 minutes later, the first patch of blue sky reappeared. 40 minutes later, the sky was 80% clear. The situation didn’t change for the next half hour.
So, are we gluttons for punishment, Looper?
I thought you always said we were fair weather friends when it came to the outdoors, SPHP?
Yeah. Looks like fair weather to me! No guarantees, though, especially on a day like today when it just keeps taunting us.
Well, if you’re game, what are we waiting for? Onward! Slow-Plodding Human Porter, ho! (12:28 PM)
2.25 hours after leaving Pass 9260 NE of Antelope Butte, the Carolina Dog was back! Looking SE along USFS Road No. 279, puffy white clouds were visible off in the distance toward Cloud Peak (13,167). The only significant cloud anywhere nearby was a lone gray one only partially visible looming to the SW. Long tentacles from this enormous cloud were stretching NE ever farther over Antelope Butte.
The situation was questionable. Another storm seemed likely. However, this time the grassy slope formerly hidden by fog was still completely visible. Lupe could see the ridgeline. Not knowing what to expect, the American Dingo turned SW and headed for the N end of the ridge.
The trudge up the long slope was steepish, but otherwise trivial. Lupe came across an abandoned road and followed it part of the way up. As she drew near the top of the ridge, lone boulders of dolomite decorated with orange lichens were scattered at intervals along the slope. Many more were clustered at the top, but even there, they were separated by open lanes of vegetation.
During the entire ascent, it had seemed quite likely a storm was about to come sailing right over Antelope Butte at any moment. However, upon reaching the N end of the summit ridge, it appeared the American Dingo was in luck! Showers were visible to the SW, but apparently the storm was actually going to miss, passing S of the mountain instead.
The true summit of Antelope Butte (9,935 ft.) was a little more than 100 feet higher than where Lupe was now, still 0.5 mile farther S. The many dolomite boulders strewn along the way made the easy stroll along the broad N/S summit ridge an interesting trek. Lupe had lots of fun places to explore!
A rocky escarpment of minor cliffs extended along the W edge of the ridge. Up on top were the dolomite boulders and formations, which grew more numerous and complex as Lupe proceeded S. She started coming to dense stands of stunted pines, which were best skirted. Any troublesome spots were easily avoided by straying toward the grassy slopes to the E.
As Lupe approached the S end of the ridge, the weather was improving. Two big boulders perched up on a larger dolomite formation came into view. One of them had to be the true summit!
When Loopster arrived at the base of the maze-like summit formation, exactly how she might scramble up the last 20 feet to the top wasn’t at all clear. Exploring the NW side revealed only an insurmountable wall of rock. Circling back around to the E got her halfway up, on the verge of success, but a deep narrow passage separated her from the highest rocks.
This passage was too wide to leap over, and a large boulder wedged over it was too steep-sided to provide an easy bridge. SPHP didn’t like the looks of it. Maybe the wedged boulder could serve as a last resort, but if Lupe could find access to the passage, she would be better off climbing up from down there.
Circling back to the N, a gap beneath another overhanging boulder was plenty large enough for Lupe to get through. She was now down at the N end of the short, narrow passage. SPHP had to crawl to squeeze under the boulder, but it really wasn’t difficult at all. Seconds later, Lupe was at the S end of the passage scrambling higher. Slowly, and less agilely, SPHP followed her up.
This was it alright! At the end of the short scramble, SPHP arrived up top to find the plucky American Dingo already sitting perched on a big boulder – the obviously true summit of Antelope Butte (9,935 ft.)!
The summit region was tiny, little more than just that one airy boulder. Hardly any room at all to maneuver up here. Lupe sat patiently atop the boulder for 5 minutes, basking in her peakbagging success, while SPHP took a few photos.
The views were glorious, but part of their magnificence was soon sacrificed in the interest of comfort. Time for a break! A grassy dolomite shelf about 20 feet lower a little NW of the true summit looked like a good spot to relax. Abandoning the summit boulder, Lupe beat SPHP back down to the narrow passage on the way there.
At the dolomite shelf, Lupe relaxed for half an hour curled up on SPHP’s lap. Partly surrounded by walls of rock, Shell Canyon and other features to the S or W were the only views from here. That was OK. The sky was still cloudy to the SW, and the breeze was from that direction, so this was a good place to keep an eye on the unsettled weather.
Persistence had paid off! SPHP was glad the Carolina Dog had made it to the top of Antelope Butte. Kind of a wacky summit with the little maze of interesting rock formations, but it had all been fun and pretty easy.
On the way back, Lupe got to explore the length of the main N/S ridge all over again. She ran hither and yon while SPHP strode along enjoying the sights. Marmots whistled now and then signaling Lupe’s approach.
Nearing the N end of the main ridge, SPHP suddenly realized Lupe wasn’t around. Pausing for a couple of minutes to look and listen, the Carolina Dog still didn’t appear. SPHP tapped a rock loudly several times with one of the trekking poles. Nothing. No Lupe. Other than the light SW breeze, silence. Not even a marmot whistle.
Odd. Not like Loopster at all to simply disappear for more than a minute or two. SPHP began yelling for her.
Lupe! Lupe! Looooooooop!
Several more minutes went by, still nothing. No telling where she might have run off to! Still yelling and starting to worry, SPHP scanned S back along the ridge, and E along the grassy slopes. She’d been somewhere back that way last time SPHP had seen her, hadn’t she?
Suddenly Lupe came racing back from the N. She had a huge grin on her face, but was panting hard like she’d been running for a long time. How far had she gone, and why?
You made me nervous, Loop! Don’t roam so far off. This is big country! It would be terrible if you got lost!
Her chest still heaving, Lupe said nothing. She greedily lapped up a bowl of water, then stood looking happily at SPHP. Maybe she’d gotten so busy exploring that she’d completely lost track of SPHP, and mistakenly run off in the wrong direction? Possible. Didn’t matter now. Loop was back, and that was such a relief! Good thing SPHP had yelled for her, and that those big soft Dingo ears were so keen.
From the N end of the ridge, Lupe did not return to the USFS Roads or the ATV trail she had been on before. Instead she turned NW following an easy open ridgeline lower. This ought to be a shortcut back to the Antelope Butte ski runs, which would get her back down to the yurt and ski lodge.
And that’s what happened. Upon reaching the end of the open ground, Lupe plunged into the forest. Should have stayed higher and gone NW longer before turning N. The ski lodge was farther than SPHP realized. The American Dingo enjoyed a longer romp in the forest looking for squirrels than expected. In the end, though, she did come across one of the big ski runs.
Soon Lupe was down at the base of the mountain. Fortunately, there was a bridge over Granite Creek, so SPHP didn’t have to ford it. Lupe preferred fording the stream just for fun.
Upon reaching the G6 (5:06 PM), SPHP drove to N Burgess Junction. To celebrate Lupe’s success at Antelope Butte, SPHP ordered a big juicy hamburger. The Carolina Dog inhaled her share with evident relish.
After eating, SPHP drove N on USFS Road No. 15. Lupe went past the Elysian Fields of Puppy Happiness which she had visited years ago. Loop had returned again last year when she had gone all the way to the Garden of the Gods. SPHP didn’t stop, though, until reaching the start of USFS Road No. 165.
Such a beautiful evening! The end of a fun and ultimately successful day! Nearby, two tiny birds landed on a couple of big white rocks. Sunlight streamed over them as they twittered happily together. Beyond them a line of white clouds billowed in the blue sky. Without warning they zoomed away, a couple of specks soon lost in the heavens.
The sun was low. For a few minutes Lupe stood atop those same white rocks. She couldn’t fly away, though. Instead she got down and sat in the meadow, amid the tender green grasses and purple flowers swaying in the soft breeze.
Turning toward the sun, Lupe closed her eyes, sitting motionless. What was she thinking? Was she enjoying the lavender scented breeze? Or, in her mind’s eye, was she still perched atop that glorious airy boulder at the summit of Antelope Butte?
Links:
Next Adventure Prior Adventure
The Elysian Fields of Puppy Happiness & A Night on Bald Mountain (7-10-13)
Beyond the Elysian Fields of Puppy Happiness to the Garden of the Gods & the Crack of Doom (6-11-18)
Want more Lupe adventures? Choose from Lupe’s 2019 Dingo Vacations to the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming Adventure Index, Dingo Vacations Adventure Index or Master Adventure Index. Or subscribe free to new Lupe adventures.
One display entitled “Climb Into Bighorn Country” was exactly what Lupe intended to do next. Another showed the main roads of the N Bighorns, already mostly familiar territory to the American Dingo!
At the Shell Falls Interpretive Site no access was available down to Shell Creek, but there was access only a little farther up Shell Canyon. Lupe’s next stop was a large gravel parking area on the R (S) just past MP 27.
