10/30/2021. Zion National Park

For the last week Sandy has planned out 3 completely different routes into Zion National Park.  We have visited “Kolob Canyon - Zion National Park”, Jenny’s Canyon State Park, Zion Wilderness, Zion National Park Main Entrance, and Kolob Terrace Road - Zion National Park.  We have hiked a number of trails in Zion and other State Parks 

We also checked out the towns of St George, Toquerville, and Hurricane Utah. 

Attached are some pictures:

10/30/2021. Are you a Redneck if the town McDonalds Drive Thru is lined up with a bunch of ATVs waiting to pickup their orders :-)

We arrived in Hurricane Utah a weeks ago.  It sits 40 minutes outside of the main entrance to Zion National Park.  It has been approximately a month since we have been in a town big enough to contain its own McDonald’s and Walmart.  After arriving and setting up Sandy and I went for a walk in the town.  As we passed the local McDonald’s I took the attached picture.  ATV’s and Super ATV’s are legal to drive around town.  The area is a 4WD Mecca with ATV’s, Jeeps, and other off-road vehicles challenging the desert and mountainous landscape.

10/22/2021 Colorado City Utah

Today while traveling from Kanab Utah to Hurricane Utah we came across Colorado City Utah.  As we drove into the town we noticed that there is a bunch of homes that were started but never finished.  We noticed that some of the houses had old weathered plywood but no siding.  It was strange enough that we did some research on the town on we set up camp later in the day in Hurricane.  It turns out that Colorado City is known for Polygamy (multiple wives).  The state of Utah cracked down in the 2000s on what was going on throughout the town.  That led to the leader Warren Jeffs going to jail.  It also explains why many of the homes are not completed.  The interesting thing is that many of Warren Jeffs still live in the town and believe he is innocent and consider him a Martyr.  After reading the stories of the town it is a good town to drive through and keep driving.

10/22/2021 Summary of a Month in Utah above 3000+ feet

Roads:  

• All the roads are single lane roads (one lane going in each direction).
• For the most part the roads are good with the exception of Rt 24.  Rt 24 even though marked as a truckers road is a tough drive.  The lanes are skinny, windy, with very little berm and steep drop-offs.
•   Many of the roads are marked at 65 MPH.  In many cases this speed limit is great for locals but way to fast for us out of towners
• I learned that riding the COW using 5th gear, instead of 6th gear allowed me to have more control for the windy roads and mountain landscape
• 6%, 8%, 10%, 12% grades in the Rocky Mountains while driving the COW are nerve racking.  Both going up the grade and especially going down.  Down Shift, Down Shift, Down Shift.

Elevation:

• We discovered that I can handle 5000+ feet, but when I spend time a day or more at 5900’ I experience the on-set of elevation sickness.
• Once a Flat-Lander, always a Flat-Lander.  I guess growing up in Ohio for 64 years at just above sea level has become the norm for my body.

Campgrounds:

• No such thing as a resort with cement pads.
• Most are dirt, dusty pads
• Most have ATV’s of all types licensed to ride the road, in the campground
• Most water comes from local wells.  Many seem to have a high level of natural salt in the water supply (or chlorine) as the water foams up at the drains.
• Most are located is small 4 blocks or smaller towns.

Fuel:

• For something as big as the COW that needs diesel, you’d better fill up when you come across a location where you can enter and exit safely.  These type of fuel stations are few and far between

Scenery:

• Everywhere you look it is amazing.  Mountains, Mountains, and more Mountains.  The colors in the mountains are picturesque.

10/19/2021. Kanab Utah, North Rim of Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, Page Arizona, Horse shoe bend, Marble Canyon/Lee’s Ferry

We are now based out of Kanab, Utah. 

 On Sunday we drove up to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.  The lodge closed a couple days before we arrived, but the road was still open all the way to the rim.  There was snow/ice on the trails, but the road was clear and the temps were in the 60’s.  Sandy and I attempted to hike down the Bright Angel/Kabab trail but ran into ice and snow at 3/4 miles.  We decided best to turn around as the trail can be treacherous.  The trail is maybe 5’ wide at the good spots then there is a drop off into the canyon.  There are no railings, ropes, or other protection to keep from falling into the canyon.  This is the 1st time I have been back since backpacking to Phantom Ranch at the bottom from the South Rim in 2010.  I am overwhelmed at how massive of a feat it was for the 5 of us friends to take on such a adventure never having backpacked previously.  We were told by experienced hikers that it was not to be done as a first time experience, but we prepared the best we could before doing it.  I am pretty sure that I would not be able to do it now at 64 years old.

On Monday we drove to:

• Lake Powell.  We were looking forward to seeing the picturesque lake below massive cliffs.  Instead of seeing water winding through the cliffs, we found the lake to be 50’ down and more like a few large ponds.  Many of the large house boats have been removed.  The only boats on the lake were smaller fishing, ski, and small houseboats.  The boat ramp which was 1/4 mile long was completely out of water.  At the end of the ramp was 50’ of mud until you reached the water line.  The western part of the U.S. is having a drought and the results certainly showed in the water level of Lake Powell.  There is hope for next year as recently rain and snow have come in early coating the mountains which the melt will eventually end up in the lake.
• Page Arizona.  Sandy had read good things about Page so we wanted to check it out to see what it offers.  Our impression was that it is a nice small town, but not somewhere that we would go out of our way to return.
• Horse Shoe Bend.  Pretty but a tourist trap.  They charge $10 per car so that you can hike back a 1/2 mile trail to see the horse shoe.  It is horse shoe cliff cut by the Colorado River at the bottom.  As I said it is pretty and picturesque but touristy.  It’s a one and done for us.
• Marble Canyon/Lee’ Ferry.  If you haven’t had the luxury of hiking to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, this is worth the appx 45 mile drive outside of Page Arizona to experience.  It allows you to drive directly into the Canyon.  Marble Canyon is at the beginning of the Grand Canyon.  At the bottom of the road is Lee’s Ferry where the Rafting companies put in to run the river.  You can actually walk down to the Colorado River and put your hands/feet in the water.  It also gives you a view of how majestic the Canyon walls are from the bottom looking up.