Middle of No-Where

We thought it might be fun to travel cross-country from Albuquerque to Norman, OK. but first we stopped  to get some minor repairs made on the RV while in Albuquerque.  Then on Monday night we stayed in the Sumner Lake State Park near Fort Sumner, NM.  This is where Billy The Kid called home and his real grave is here.

Tuesday we drove cross country into the panhandle of Texas and camped in Caprock Canyons State Park.  The drive was hard due to a southern cross wind and two lane roads plus the scenery was all prairie, fields of new wheat and more stock yards than I ever want to smell!

It dawned on me today that the theme of this winter trip has been canyons — Anza-Borego canyons in CA, Zion & Bryce Canyons in UT and now Texas.  This area is considered a transitional eco-zone as we are transitioning from high, flat plains to the rolling hills of Texas and this area is full of red-rock canyons, bison, prairie dogs and scrub brush.

We were pretty lazy today and didn’t go on our hike until late afternoon then we walked a little over 3 miles in the bottom of Prong Canyon. These are certainly not as magnificent as Bryce’s red rock walls, but they are impressive non the less.

SNOW in April !?!

Yes, this morning we awoke to find snow on the ground and still coming down!  It wasn’t that much but it did reinforce our decision to head back south and eastward as we start our last leg of this winter adventure.

Because of the snow and then rain it took us a little longer to get moving. The views as we traveled east under the Escalante Staircase and past the Vermillion Cliffs and Monument Valley was very pretty.  The bad part is that it threatened rain almost all day and the winds were terrible.  Most of the time they came at us from the north side but sometimes we were positioned so that they pushed us.  The roads were not always very smooth, sometimes they were narrow or under construction and combined with the wind it made for a long and exhausting drive. 

We found a closed weigh station north of Albuquerque to stop at for the night.

Many More Canyons

Bryce Canyon is not just one canyon but a series of canyons along a 40 mile stretch of the Paunsaugunt Plateau on the west side the park.  Then all along its eastern rim the Paria River has aided in the erosion and sculpting of the rock along with rain, wind, freezing and thawing waters.

Today’s exploration took us south along the park road for 18 miles where we stopped at numerous vista points to see more of the parks features.  Swamp Canyon, Farview Point, Natural Bridge, Agua Canyon, Ponderosa Canyon, and Rainbow Point are just some of the stops.   The further south we went, the more elevation we gained and so more snow was still on the ground at Rainbow Point where we walked a mile loop to take in different vantage points of the same hoodoos and canyon walls. If we had more energy and stamina we could have hiked some of the longer trails at the bottom of the canyons or on the under-the-rim trails.

The far-off views were fairly hazy but I could swear we could see the Grand Canyon (but John says I’m directionally challenged and there is no way I could see that far). 

London Bridges Falling Down?

I’m just being silly but our hike today did take us to the Tower Bridge which reminded me of the London Tower Bridge.

We chose this hike for the distance more than anything.  It is part of the Fairyland Loop trail which is 8 miles long but we didn’t think we could handle that so this 3.4 mile down and back was just perfect.  And it was down to the bottom and then back up to the top (about an 800 foot elevation change).  But at the bottom we found the Tower Bridge rock formation and a quiet area among some trees with a gurgling creek and a Stellar Jay happily serenading us.

It was fun walking around many hoodoos, looking up at them towering over us or finding whimsical shapes like simple mushrooms or a DQ ice cream cone and more elaborate ones that reminded me of castles in the air or fairy land abodes.

Later in the day we drove east from the park to check out some local communities and we drove through more hoodoos and red cliffs.  It is so pretty here!  Our evenings are spent around a roaring campfire listening to children playing and the birds giving us one last song before they go to bed. 

Bryce Canyon National Park

We got up and got going early this morning to drive the 2 1/2 hours from Zion to Bryce.  And boy what a difference experience this will be compared to Zion.

First, the weather is much cooler here as we are at almost 9,000 foot elevation.  According to the rangers it is still winter in Bryce until mid-May, it could still snow!  John checked the weather channel app and we will get really cold in a couple of nights!

Second, because it is still ‘winter’ not many services are open or available.  Only one of the two campgrounds is open and then they are using only 2 of the 5 loops.  We are certainly glad we got here early in the day because all the campsites were full by late afternoon!  The shuttle buses won’t start running until Memorial weekend, the lodge is still closed, several places in the nearby town are still closed and the dump station is closed.

Third, we are on top of the mesa and plateaus where we are camped in the pine trees while the drives and walks will look down on the eroded and sculpted canyon walls rather than up the sheer, steep walls as in Zion.

But the scenery is wide-open and amazing!  The canyon is made up mostly of hoodoos.  These are pillars of rock, usually of fantastic shapes, left by erosion.  Hoodoo also means ‘to cast a spell’.  Our first view over the canyon rim had us mesmerized.  We took one of the most popular hikes which starts at the top edge, goes to the bottom, and then back up a zig-zag trail all the while meandering among the many hoodoos.  Our pictures will show it much better than I can describe this wonder of nature.

Kolob Plateau

We didn’t do much today.  John paid taxes, I did the laundry and then we took a drive to explore another part of Zion Park.

Just 15 miles west of the Zion Canyon we drove towards the Kolob Reservoir on top of the Lower Kolob Plateau.  Most of the land was pastoral, cows grazing along the road, fields of green near the river and more homes, cabins and lodges than we expected to see.  But one area was startling because we were driving on a narrow lane with steep canyons dropping off on both sides.  The reservoir was drying up but a couple of fishermen were still trying to catch some trout.  We also stopped at a view point where we could see the Zion canyon and possibly the edge of the Grand Canyon or maybe it was Bryce Canyon.

We had an early night as were are moving in the morning.

Angels Landing

With backpacks full of water and lunch we took off to tackle Angels Landing Trail.  At 5.4 miles roundtrip and a 1488 foot elevation change we were prepared for a long day.  A Methodist Preacher thought it would be a good place to watch angels land when he was sitting on The White Throne across the valley, hence the name.

Angels Landing from the valley. The trail is up the back side.

This is the trail we started on the other day and had to turn around as we were on the wrong one.  It starts out flat with a gradual incline and then we were on the side of one canyon wall with switchbacks taking us upward.  The next thing we knew we were climbing up a very narrow slot canyon on a steep paved trail to reach the backside of Angels Landing.  Then we  walked up 21 flights of switchbacks called the Wiggles to the top of the mesa.  We thought we had arrived but the signs said differently.  We still had another half mile to the end of the trail.  This is where it really gets scary!  The last part rises 500 foot traversing slick rock, narrow rock bridges and climbs one cannot make without holding on to the chains implanted in the rock. Sand made some places slick and deep steps cut into the side of the rock were taller than my stride.  We got about 1/2 way out and turned around to come back.  The trail was just too narrow for us (4-5 feet) on a rock bridge to Angels Landing with sheer drop offs on both sides of almost 1,500 feet!  This is one of the scariest things we have ever attempted.  I have to put it right up there with scuba diving and John compares it to flying aerobatics!

The wiggles.

The slick rock to get to the rock bridge. There is no way this could be climbed without the chains to hold onto! What you don’t see off to the right is the sheer cliff. Lose your footing here & you are toast. People get killed on this trail on a somewhat regular basis.

The rock bridge up to Angels Landing. You can’t see the really narrow section.

Angels Landing.

It's An Off Day

Our bodies needed rest!  We slept late, lounged around the campsite then cruised the campgrounds and main park area while riding our bikes.  After a late lunch we took in the Park History Museum and then rode the bikes into town and “shopped”.

Its hard to imagine how these towering canyon walls were formed as it has takes over 400 million years of wind and rain and a few earth moving events to create what we see today.  This all started with monster sand dunes in an area that covers Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico from the Zion and Bryce Canyons north and east to Grand Canyon, Canyonlands and Arches national parks, Colorado National Monuments and down to Mesa Verde and the Canyons of the Ancients.  The sand piled higher and higher and the pressure pushed down and compressed.  Then the whole area was pushed up into mesas.  Then 148 million years ago rain, rivers and streams started carving out the softer sandstone and depositing other minerals to cement the sands together.  But the raging rivers like the Virgin and the Colorado are what did most of the shaping during the past 50 million years into what we see today.

This area was first populated by the Ancestral Puebloans about 1500 years ago and later by the Southern Paiute peoples. Westward expansion brought the early Mormons until President Taft declared this a national monument. 

View to the east from our campsite at dusk.

The evenings here are beautiful!

Grotto or Groan-o?

We may have overdone the hiking today!  This morning, since it was pretty chilly, we drove the Jeep up about 2000 feet on the Zion-Mount Carmel Highway through the 1.1 mile tunnel.  This tunnel is a marvel of engineering since it was built from 1927-1930 by the CCC through sold rock, blasting and digging without todays modern machines.  We really wanted to see if we would be able to drive the RV through this tunnel since it is only 13’1” tall and we would have to buy a special permit so that we can drive down the middle of the road.  The RV is about 12’6” tall which does not give us a whole lot of wiggle room.  John was reassured that we would be able to do this after following a tour bus through the passage way.

At the east end of the tunnel is a 1 mile round trip hike to the Canyon Overlook where we could see the road we just traveled up the Zion Canyon and also the fresh air windows into the tunnel.  We also had a great view of the Pine Creek Canyon.

Then this afternoon we decided to hike to the Emerald Pools and along the Kayenta Trail from the Grotto to the Zion Lodge.  Unfortunately we missed the turn off for the Kayenta Trail and walked an estimated 1.5 miles up the trail to Angels Landing so had to turn around and go back and start over.  So a 2.6 mile hike turned into a 5.6 mile hike with lots of ups and downs. And our legs were complaining and our feet were groaning.

The Emerald Pools (there are three of them) are created by water falling from the tops of the canyon walls and collecting in shallow indentations in the sandstone. There were so many people enjoying this area that it made it really hard to appreciate the beauty and quiet of the area and to get a good picture.

By the time we got back to the RV it was too late to cook so we had dinner in Springdale, bought some wood and groceries before enjoying a nice fire and an early evening.

The Narrows, Weeping Rock, Hidden Canyon

We were at the Southern Campground at 8 AM as advised, found a really nice site and were ready to explore Zion National Park by 9:30 am.  About 14 years ago this park began using buses to move people through the park instead of letting them drive their own cars. Not only does this cut down on crowded road ways and no parking spots but it is good for the environment and makes for hassle free exploring.  

We took the bus all the way to the end of the road at Temple of Sinawava and walked along the Virgin River up into the canyon.  At the end of the walk we found people putting on dry suits and wadding boots preparing to walk in the river up the canyon into The Narrows. If we were to do this (which John is considering) we would have to rent the gear.  It could be a 10 mile hike round trip with 60% of the hike in water.  

We then rode the bus to Weeping Rock where water has worked its way through the sandstone and falls down the sides of the canyon wall.  Many variety of flowers and ferns grow on the rock walls forming hanging gardens.  It was very pretty.  

Near this walk is the hike to Hidden Canyon.  The sign says it is only 1 mile with 870 feet of elevation but our legs beg to differ!  Like many national parks, the CCC was used to construct many trails and buildings in the park.  This steep trail was mostly paved until we got to the upper reaches.  Then it was rock and sand and slick rock and sandstone.  

There’s Pam in the upper right on one of the ledges with the chains to grab on to.

In places the ledge was so narrow that grab-chains were attached to the wall so we could hold on to them and not fall!  When we reached the top I was breathing pretty hard and not sure if it was from the hike or from fear of falling!  We could have gone further up the Hidden Canyon but I’d had enough climbing and was worried about getting down so we turned around.  It was actually not as bad going down as I imagined.

 

Zion National Park

We left Lake Havasu early on Friday morning and got to Zion around 4 PM. We drove through the Virgin River Gorge on I-15 before entering Utah from Arizona.  What a fabulous drive for me, the passenger.  John got glimpses of the canyon walls and river as he navigated the RV down one lane on the highway with construction barriers on one side and a bridge rails on the other. Then it was a beautiful drive up to the park with towering canyon walls on both sides of the highway leading up to the entrance. 

Thinking it would be off-season until Easter,  we didn’t think we would have any problems finding a place to camp.  Boy were we wrong! According to the park ranger the park season starts the first of March and the campgrounds are filled to capacity every night.  We were fortunate that they were able to put us in a handicapped, electric site for one night and advised us to be at the other non-reservable campground between 8 and 9 the next morning.

Lake Havasu

After a three hour drive across the desert and into Arizona on Monday, we settled into a site at Lake Havasu State Park with the provision that after two nights we had to change sites.  Luckily it is only seven sites down and we won’t have to do much to move.  Our GPS had us going almost 60 miles out of our way to get here so we ignored it.  Sometimes we wonder about this thing’s programming! 

The area hasn’t changed much since we were here two years ago.  The only thing different is that spring break is mostly over so there are fewer people here than before. We had lunch at our favorite burger joint on the London Bridge Canal.  Last time they had a goober burger but we had to settle for burgers with pineapple or blue cheese this year.  They are still really good though.

John got the kayak out and has fished some each day.  Yesterday was cloudy and threatened rain so he didn’t do much fishing.  So far he hasn’t had much luck.  We have ridden our bikes around town and I have gone on two run/jog jaunts trying to get back into some kind of shape. The park has a 1.5 mile nature trail along the shoreline so that has kept the walks interesting.