Desert Archives - Zachary Kenney

6 Hours in Frog Hollow // First Endurance Mountain Bike Race

April 5th, 2025Zachary Kenney0 Comments

When your buddy, Nate, asks you to sign up for a spring-time 6 Hour endurance mountain bike race in the Southwestern Utah Desert, you recall the minimal amount of miles you’ve ridden this winter and say, “No.” But then, you rethink about it, and misunderstand the request because obviously he inferred we’d be racing as a team, so only required to race for half the time. This gets you more interested, starting to put more miles in on the bike in winter, and even a little excited. Only for him to slam that door and let me know that we’re …

Winter Vanlife Adventures in Sedona, Vegas, and the Grand Canyon

November 17th, 2024Zachary Kenney0 Comments

After spending January and February on the road, traveling through the Southeast, we were back home in a excessively snowy Utah. It just so happened that as soon as we returned, the winter machine turned on and up full blast, which turned into a foot of snow every few days. Needless to say, after two weeks of it, we were anxious to get back on the road to chase some desert sun. That meant we were loading up the van again, and pointing it south, down I-15, with our eyes set on the red rocks of Sedona, Arizona. With almost …

Exploring the Desert of the San Rafael Swell by Bike | Video

November 3rd, 2024Zachary Kenney0 Comments

Normally, I would not recommend the San Rafael Swell in Utah for a biking getaway weekend in the desert. Instead, I’d point you to the surrounding areas like Moab, Fruita, Hurricane, or even Saint George. But with our dog, Gregor, recovering from a successful “ACL” surgery, we were forced to take things a bit slower, and that meant parking the van in one spot for the weekend. Since, we’d be doing a lot more hanging out than wandering the desert, we settled on one of the best campsites in Utah for the long Memorial Day Weekend. The south side of …

Desert Rats Trail Festival Half Marathon (21K) in Fruita, Colorado

April 25th, 2024Zachary Kenney0 Comments

A half marathon, in the desert of Colorado, right along the mighty Colorado River, what else could we ask for? Although we were reluctant to sign up for a spring race, because that meant we would most likely have to be training in the snow, Courtney and I both signed up for the Desert Rats Half Marathon in Fruita, Colorado. Better yet, this race would coincide with our third wedding anniversary right next to the town of Palisade, where we go every year to celebrate in Colorado’s wine country! Talk about a win-win! Well, it would be a lot of …

Rafting & Camping the Moab Daily at 20,000CFS with our Dog

July 19th, 2023Zachary Kenney0 Comments

The Moab Daily is the iconic section of whitewater, just outside the town of Moab, on the Colorado River. It’s popularity doesn’t come from having massive rapids, but as the name suggests, it’s a very easy section of river to do in a day, or just an afternoon. The river section is only about 13 miles long if you put in at Hittle Bottom Campground, and snakes its way through the desert landscape, down 6 sets of rapids that range from Class I to Class III. The rapids are fun, the ease of shuttling to and from the takeout is …

First Overnight Rafting Trip Through Ruby Horsethief Canyon on the Colorado River

June 19th, 2023Zachary Kenney0 Comments

The Ruby Horsethief section of the Colorado river runs from the desert town of Fruita, Colorado, putting in at the Loma Boat Ramp, travels 25 miles down river through the stunning desert canyons, into Utah, and eventually to the take out at the Westwater boat ramp. This was our first overnight trip on a river, requiring more planning, more gear, more beer, and honestly a bit more stress. Yet, it only a few miles on the river to realize this trip was going to be one of the most incredible experiences I’ve ever had in the desert. Logistics to Run …

Mountain Biking Gooseberry Mesa | Bucket List Riding

October 3rd, 2022Zachary Kenney0 Comments

The mountain biking at Gooseberry Mesa (Trailforks Link) is unlike anything else in the world. The landscape is completely unique, even among the already diverse Utah riding styles we have in the mountains and the deserts. But how could a mesa, with only 100 feet of elevation gain from trailhead to point, have nearly 700 feet of climbing on the average ride? Well the answer to that is short, steep, and out-of-the-saddle punchy climbs that highlight the entire trail system, that’s how. And though that might sound like most riders’ nightmare, I’m here to explain why the slickrock trails at …

Backpacking the Escalante River Trail with Dogs

July 23rd, 2022Zachary Kenney0 Comments

First off, I had no idea a backpacking route like this could ever exist here in the Utah desert! A trail that snakes below the steep walls of the desert plateau along a winding river. And over the Memorial Day weekend, a group of us decided to do an overnight backpacking trip down the Escalante River trail, and it couldn’t have been a more adventurous trip! We experienced everything from high energy to exhaustion, and dried river beds to wading through waist deep water! The Escalante river originates in the town of Escalante, UT, flows nearly a 100 miles through …

Guide to Floating the San Rafael River | Low Flow 100 CFS

June 11th, 2020Zachary Kenney0 Comments

Rafting or floating the San Rafael River in Utah seems like it’s a right of passage for all Utahns. Courtney and I heard about it from her coworker in 2019 and it had been on our bucket list ever since, but we had no idea what it really was. Then, over Memorial Day Weekend, a group of us were camping down in the San Rafael Swell, or The Swell for short, and saw a group of friends floating down the slow moving San Rafael River, all in inflatable kayaks, with dogs in tow. Right away, Court and I looked at …

Trip Photos | Kanab, Utah

May 27th, 2020Zachary Kenney0 Comments

During the Covid-19 shutdown & quarantine, few places in Utah were still open for out-of-county visitors. In late April, we got lucky, and the county Kanab is located in opened up its doors for visitors to come camp and hike arounds its incredible landscape. We loved it so much, that we brought our friends back down the following weekend. But it’s mostly due to the fact that we found the ultimate campsite right on the East Fork of the Virgin River. First Trip to Kanab Courtney and I explored Huntress Wash Slot Canyon, spent the rest of the afternoon hanging …

Tag: Desert

6 Hours in Frog Hollow // First Endurance Mountain Bike Race

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Winter Vanlife Adventures in Sedona, Vegas, and the Grand Canyon

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Exploring the Desert of the San Rafael Swell by Bike | Video

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Desert Rats Trail Festival Half Marathon (21K) in Fruita, Colorado

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Rafting & Camping the Moab Daily at 20,000CFS with our Dog

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First Overnight Rafting Trip Through Ruby Horsethief Canyon on the Colorado River

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Mountain Biking Gooseberry Mesa | Bucket List Riding

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Backpacking the Escalante River Trail with Dogs

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Guide to Floating the San Rafael River | Low Flow 100 CFS

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Trip Photos | Kanab, Utah

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