The morning began with indecision. Every option - San Rafael Swell, Escalante, Burr Trail Road, Shafer Trail, promised a full-day commitment of driving alone (not accounting for adventure itself), and the list felt overwhelming. In the end, we pointed north on US-191.

In Bluff, UT, we stopped for breakfast at Twin Rocks Café. Good food, though overpriced enough to remind you that sometimes it pays to save your money. A quick stop at Church Rock followed, then we turned onto Needles Overlook Road. The views were jaw-dropping. From above you could trace dirt roads like Lockhart Basin winding below, each one daring you to come back for more adventure.

After some quiet time taking it all in, we steered toward the La Sal range, bare, rocky tops towering over Canyonlands’ Needles District. The rock told stories - layers of upheaval, erosion, and renewal, like chapters written in stone. Joining UT-46, one of my favorite connector roads, we turned onto La Sal Pass Road. Almost immediately the CF Moto came alive, clawing its way from valley floor to more than 10,000 feet at the Mount Peale trailhead.

Mount Peale, at 12,700 feet and above timberline, towers over the valley like a sentinel of the earth’s violent past. On US-141, remnants of the Turner Gulch Fire scarred the slopes - blackened earth and a “dust-nado” twisting hundreds of feet in the air near the Colorado border. It was the same fire that had once forced us to re-route our Western Wilds Tour in 2025.

We lingered in the high country for hours before finally descending to the valley floor. With restaurants closed in Monticello, dinner ended up being gas-station fare at Mavericks - a fittingly simple close to a day that had been less about the ride and more about letting the adventure unfold on its own terms. That’s the beauty of moto travel: the freedom to shift plans, slow down, and still feel like the day was exactly what it needed to be.