(written on Apr 14th)
That water is so cold, I’m not sure how it is flowing. It should be in cubes. No way is it going on my face. It would wake me up, but the shock may knock me into the middle of next week and I don’t want to miss any of this! Its chill makes my fingers ache. Back in my camper I light the lantern and place it between my feet on the floor of the camper. I checked my thermometer and it’s 34 degrees outside in the campground of this geologist’s paradise at Capitol Reef National Park (
www.nps.gov/care).
This is another one of my less visited places that you need to be going to, because you won’t pass it going somewhere else! I get asked which place is the best that I visit. I can probably narrow it down to the best five or six, but not just one. They are all outstandingly unique. A couple days ago I was sitting on the north rim of the Grand Canyon at Toroweap and I was sure it was the most spectacular view I see in my winter adventures meandering through the warm places in our country. (As you know it’s been colder everywhere in the last several months than any years in memory.) Yesterday I had a near perfect photo day with the scenic multiplicity of pink stalactite-like rock formations (who dos), snow, rugged rocky terrain, storm clouds dumping snow in the distance interspersed with patches of beautiful blue sky at Bryce Canyon. Clouds covered the sun softening the light and eliminating the shadows. I’m not sure I’ve been in a more scenic place.
Usually, as I view my photos, I mark the best, copy and move them to a “best of” file. All could’ve gotten a star denoting- best. I’m watching them again this morning as I write this and also watching the shadow move down the mountain (bluff, butte or mesa?) to the west out my picture window as the sun climbs up the other side of the one to the east. The mountains surround the campsites, where the original settler’s orchards still remain. Yesterday morning I drove here on Rt. 12, which may be the most unknown scenic paved road in the country. I drove through the northern edge of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and the southern edge of Dixie National Forest, both enormous natural areas almost defying description or photography because of their vast stretches from horizon to horizon. You just can’t fit enough into the camera view finder to show enough or say or write enough words to do it either. The expansive panoramic views are incredibly impressive. The valleys and canyons are so deep and there’s 9,000 foot mountains, 1,000s of acres of trees and flanked by barren colorful rocky terrain.
I had planned on spending a week or more on the primitive dirt roads (no maintenance, service or facilities) in my nowherelands ending up in Bulfrog, Ut., but the cold and snow of Bryce Canyon punctured that idea. Then as I climbed Boulder Mountain towards Dixie N.F. and into the snow that limited my visibility, I knew I had made the right decision. May be the most scenic places are here? I’ll give them their chance next year. Utah’s geography is mind boggling. Names are given to its features in the southern part, but north of US 70 the map doesn’t even contain names for many of them. That makes them more alluring to me, because there will be fewer people and tourists. Those places won’t have web sites and a GPS won’t get you there!
Now, I can see out the window the sun shining brightly, the cherry blossoms are vibrant against the blue sky, and my thermometer has climbed to 50 degrees. Time for my morning walk. I hope to not move my vehicle while I’m here and just enjoy the nearby trails that lead up into the treeless mountains in all directions with the flowering orchards below and along the Freemont River. That’s the way I like it. I drive 1,000s of miles, but the best days are when I don’t start the engine. The high red- and sand-colored steep rock cliffs to the east have a trail, that at a leisurely pace can be climbed. There’s also a scenic road that can be biked. The visitor center even serves strawberry shortcake, from berries grown right here, on Saturdays. (Oh, I should’ve kept that a secret. I don’t want to see a crowd here!)
