Grab your tackle box and tent! Head to the Uintas and visit "Lago
de la Luna", which is Spanish for "Moon Lake". Moon Lake lies about
35 miles north of Duchesne in a beautiful mountain setting among
the quakies and pines. It is the largest lake in the Uintas.
Techically, it is a reservoir, as the lake was dammed at it's south
end and thus enlarged in the 1930's. There are over 50 nice
campsites, a rustic lodge, rental cabins, a sandy beach and great
fishing. Plan on spending a long weekend relaxing and breathing
some fresh mountain air.
Now, some history...
Over 300 years ago, Spanish soldiers came for gold in the Uinta
Mountains. Stories of Spaniards exploiting Ute Indians as slave
laborers in search of "oro" are well known throughout the Uinta
Basin. Several locally-written books tell the tale of historic
Spanish glory holes, and of modern treasure hunters' quest for the
"Lost Rhoades Mine", the storied mother lode of the High Uintas.
The peaks and canyons around Moon Lake lie in the very heart of the
land where the saga of the lost gold was born. According to legend,
the Utes rose up in revolt to the decades of atrocities the
Spaniards imposed on their people as they were forced against their
will to endure brutal labor under less than ideal conditions. After
years of suffering abuse, torture, and violent death at the hands
of the ruthless conquistadores, the Utes unceremoniously expelled
the Spaniards from the Uintas. Legend has it the abundant remainder
of gold was reclaimed by the Ute tribe and held as sacred property
in a clandestine cavern called "Carre-Shin-Ob". Years later,
Brigham Young befriended Ute Chief Wakara, and it was he who
offered the LDS church "all the gold it needed", leading Mormon
converts Thomas and Caleb Rhoades to the mine or mines which held
the sacred bullion. Many believe the Ute people still carefully
guard the secret of exactly where the precious ore is located deep
in the Uintas.
Meanwhile, back to the cache--which should be considerably
easier to find than the Lost Rhoades Mine! The Lake Fork trailhead
is located near the Moon Lake campground and fairly close to the
Ashley National Forest Ranger Station. This is a hiking/pack trail
only. Motorized vehicles are allowed only on the campground roads.
Coords for the beginning of the trail: N-40, 34.228; W-110, 30.753.
The path forks just past this point: Brown Duck Basin up and to the
left, Lake Fork trail to the right. Stay to the right. The trail
leads you to a bridge, then bears right uphill as it generally
parallels the shoreline, although it is several hundred feet from
the lake most of the way. Follow your GPS to where you will leave
the trail and hike uphill in a westerly direction. Look for an
outcrop of boulders. Cache elevation: 8,050'.
Don't forget to bring your fishing pole! There are some great
hot spots just east of the cache site, down the rocky slope at the
water's edge. Worms, flies, powerbait and spinners all seem to do
the trick. Rainbows, Lake Trout, Brookies, and even an occasional
Brown are just waiting for your hook! The Moon Lake
campground/cabin rental season runs from May through September.
Campground reservations are available at www.reserveusa.com. The
area is snowed in during the winter months. Bill and Julie Reardon
are the Moon Lake Lodge proprietors and are friendly and
accomodating to all visitors. Be sure to bring bug spray or
Skin-So-Soft to keep the buffalo gnats at bay. Have a great time
and we'll cache-u-later...
--Oly
