Swasey Beach and Nefertiti Rapids

That view from our campsite, it's not The Maze like I read, but then questioned, and still wrote anyway...is actually Bookcliff, and the destination of our latest adventures.

Heading North into Bookcliffs is a trail known as Hastings Road to Nefertiti Rapids. It's a seventeen mile road through prehistoric land that follows the green river, passing several popular rapids.


At about mile seven the pavement ends, and the real adventure begins.


We're right up next to the Bookcliff rims now.


We saw an extinct Teridactyl!

Yes, it was a blue Teridactyl and we won't believe anything otherwise.

We didn't get out too much on the way in, but did take some time playing at the end of the road, climbing trees and checking out the river's edge.

I looked all over for the petroglyphs I read were out here, but I couldn't find them anywhere so we reluctantly made our back out.

Barely back in the car and heading south, Joey spotted the petroglyphs! They were on my side, and on a rock only the size of a small jet, so it's no wonder I missed them on the way up.


I took this picture from the petroglyphs.

So if you're reading this and plan on checking them out, they're this close to the road.

The way back we stopped alot, well...whenever there was enough room to park and get out, that is.

The kids had a blast running around this bend in the river and the hot sand felt fahh-bulous under our barefeet.




But you know kids, they just can't seem to stay away from the water.




Or the mud.



At least he tried to clean up.

This stretch of the green river is most popular for it's rapids, and this old stone house marks the point of one of these rapids, the Stone House Rapids. It must have been hard thinking up that name.


It's also where Jewel and I chased a lizard, but then were both too chicken to catch it.


He sensed our fear and posed for us instead.


We could have used a pit stop at this point, and while it did look inviting....


I'm just not that adventurous.


This tree is for you, Chris.


There's a point of the trail that killed any ideas we may have had about bringing the bus back in here.

So on the way out I decide to get out to see just how tight of a squeeze it is.

I determine it's not as tight as it appears from inside the vehicle and make my way back to the car.

And in typical Joey fashion....he keeps on going, but I don't really care because 'Hey, I'm taking pictures, and don't have a care in the world....

And come witin millimeters of completely losing it. I've suffered some minor injuries for my sport, but tumbling down this hill was one I'm glad I didn't have to suffer!

Swasey Beach is where the dirt meets back up with the pavement, and where we came back to the next day to play in the water.


Here you can see some rapids, and river guides just coming in watching the kayakers go through the rapids. They didn't look like much until we saw the little kayaks, and then saw one flip over.

Maybe we can't float our little blow up four person boat down it after all.

Playing in this spot of the river isn't as safe as we thought it was, either. After we got there the following day and just starting to play around a woman came up to us to talk to us. She said she was a river guide and told us about the dangerous under currents and that we were in a very unsafe spot and to not let the kids go past a foot out.

See the top of the sand? The water level is that high in the summer. And notice how quickly it drops off? That's what it does a couple feet past the current edge of the river.

It looks so tame, but without warning one could be swept away by the strong under currents, and get carried downstream. I'm so glad that woman happened to be there.

While Joey built cliff dwellings in the sand, and Jake directed the building of The Failed Inventions Museum to his people, a.k.a Jewel and Jonas, I layed out on the warm sand and absorbed me some sun rays.

Life is good.