Gold Bar Canyon / Gemini Bridges, Moab
It took us into the afternoon to finish Elephant Hill, and it was getting late by the time we reached the turnoff for Gemini Bridges. Mike and I were planning to run Gold Bar (backwards) that afternoon, and then meet up with the others to camp at the base of Gemini Bridges. We got to the overlook of Gold Bar canyon just in time to see a parade of Jeeps coming the other way. Even though the "Wells" guide to Moab suggests going this direction for the first time on the trail, make sure you do it early as this is the main exit for several other trails. Oddly enough we saw two guys in dune buggies on the trail. There is a very large step obstacle that everyone was struggling with so we hung out to watch. With only 2-wheel drive and little articulation their attempt came down to throwing the buggy into the side of a hill and hoping it would land high enough to clear the uphill ledge. Well that didn't work, and the rear tire pointing inwards a good 30 degrees made it clear they were done for the day. By the time everyone made it through it was getting dark. We decided that we didn't want to be winching up this obstacle at night so we turned around to play on some steps and kick on the lights for the night run up the canyon to Gemini Bridges
We made our way up the canyon to the bottom of Gemini Bridges at night to meet the rest of the group. Most of the prime camping spots had been taken. One by a group of people underneath a cut out ledge that played Pink Floyd all night by their bonfire. We found another ledge to try and cut down the wind, but the temperatures dropped and we soon retreated to sleep in the trucks. The next morning was a beautiful sunrise that slowly lit up the canyon. We hiked up to the base of the bridges and placed a GeoCache for the club.
