NEW ADVENTURES ON THE NORTH RIM

We had spent the night in a Walmart parking lot. That is NOT "boondocking."

Also at Devil's Tower, WY. A step closer - no water, sewer or electric - but in a campground with other people. Still not boondocking.

My definition of "Boondocking" is parking for free in the wilderness with no one within 5 miles or more.

I've been wanting to introduce Carol to it and the best opportunity so far was the North Rim. National Parks generally do not allow it because they have campground space to rent. But many National Parks, including Grand Canyon, are surrounded by Bureau of Land Management land or National Forests.

At Arches a lady from Texas RAVED about parking in Kaibab National Forest. She said they found  a spot on Forest Road 611 that was right on the rim. Sit in your lawn chair with your coffee and watch the sunrise. Later sit in your lawn chair with your glass of wine and watch the sunset. I told her that "Forest Road" sounded a lot like what we back east called "Fire Road". And that I wasn't excited about taking our 34' Airstream on one.

She assured me that the road was excellent for a dirt road. That they had a 30' rig and had lots of room so she was sure we'd be fine. I didn't ask her if her "30' rig" was a truck with a 30' trailer or was it a 30' motorhome. An oversight I will not make again.

We missed FR611 and went to the entrance of the Park. The kind lady told us it was about 4 miles back north at the intersection that said SR22.  We found it easily and went on paved SR22 for about 200 yards. Then it turned to FR610 and the worst washboard road I had ever been on. At 10mph I could just imagine the rivets popping out of the Airstream's skin. About 3 miles in we started seeing big spaces between the trees and Carol started saying, "That one looks really good." But we were in deep forest with no canyon anywhere is sight. Further along we found a pull off along the road that was on the rim but somebody was parked there so we kept going.

At a fork in the road we went to the right and after another half mile or so found what appeared to be the perfect spot. It was a loop that we could pull through and out and it was level. It was not ON the rim but the rim was 20' away across the road. I pulled in and started to unhitch. Carol looked around at the trees and asked, "Can you get out of here?" "Of course, dear. and if I can't pull out, I can always back out the way we came in."  "If you do that, you'll be facing the way we drove in and it doesn't look like there is any place else to turn around."  "OK then, I'll pull on through."

I knew we would not enjoy our time there if all we did was worry so I decided to leave then and go back to one of the big spots.

EXCEPT a minor problem was a small tree that the driver side rear section was going to scrub against when the trailer pivoted. Carol helped with that by pulling the tree out of the way.

A not so minor problem was a very big tree on the street side that the trailer was to going to hit big time. The solution was to back up a foot (remember Carol's "little" tree) and edge left slightly so I could swing wider. Several times. Now all I had to do was swing as wide as possible and I was sure the trailer would clear. Piece of cake.

What I did not see, Carol told me later was that she had stopped holding the small tree and was jumping up and down waving her arms screaming "You're going to drive into the canyon."  I didn't. Got straight on the road out and Carol joined me in the truck still showing signs of pure panic. Trying to pick between passing out and throwing up. She didn't do either, but she did tell me that we were never going to do THAT again. Women just worry too much. We went back later with just the truck and I looked at the tire tracks. The left front wheel never got within a foot of the rim.

Uneventful ride back to a big beautiful clearing among the Ponderosa pines. Bright blue sky, birds singing, NO other sound. Except Carol saying, "What if...... or what if....."  And my only answer was, "You'd walk 10 miles to the highway and flag down a car to come help." That was not a solution that pleased her.

It was a great experience. The quiet and solitude were wonderful. The stars were unbelievable. And the little Honda generator worked great so we had all the comforts of home. Except contact with other people.


The lesson learned is that Carol is a City Girl. Or at least a Townie. I suggested that we would not go into the woods again until we got a satellite phone so we could get in touch with someone if one of us got hurt or critically ill. Or I drove off a cliff. That also was not a solution that pleased her.

THIS was the view from the road at our original spot.

And this.

These are the views from where we did park.

The next morning we drove into the Park to catch the early sun. As it turns out it really doesn't matter, geography wins out over photography. Any time of the day, from the NORTH rim, you are looking SOUTH. DUH.

Even so, Carol was able to get some great shots.

This is not the Grand Canyon. It is a "small" canyon the goes into the Grand Canyon.

The "Window".

Checking out another camping spot.

This is the South Rim of the Grand Canyon - WAAAAY over there.

Evening clouds again stop us from the real burst of color that sunset brings to the red sandstone.

We'll try again on the South Rim.

But a beautiful sunset anyway.

Alive and well, in spite of my best efforts. A day of travel and then we'll go to the South Rim.

PS: When we went back to the rim campsite we did determine that there was no place else to turn around. So if I had not pulled in there to begin with, I would have had about 5 miles to back up the truck and trailer on a narrow dirt road lined with trees on one side and the rim on the other. I could have done it with Carol's help. But we might not have ever spoken to each other again.

With the information I had available when I pulled into that spot it looked like a good idea.

It wasn't. I almost didn't get out.

I did have a plan B which was to unhitch the trailer and go find a tow vehicle with a much shorter wheelbase.

But it looked like I had really made a bad decision.

ONE MORE TIME. Are you getting this folks?  Turns out it was the best decision. Which we made for totally wrong reasons. Again.

ZION NATIONAL PARK

"Carol and Tom do ZION."

EXCEPT for "The Narrows."

And "Angel's Trail."

And the top of the "Hidden Canyon Trail."

And "North Guardian Angel."

Quoting from a NPS webpage, "The Narrows is the most popular hike in Zion National Park, and one of the world's best slot canyon hikes. It is pure fun and can be tailored to suite any ability level. The trail is basically the Virgin River. The canyon is so narrow, the river covers the bottom in many spots, which means you have to wade or swim to proceed. Plan on being wet. In fact, the cool water makes this hike particularly pleasant during the hot months of summer."

What the website does NOT say includes:  In October plan to rent wet suits. Always walk at an angle across the stream because the current makes it impossible to walk or swim straight upstream.  You will be walking on some sand but many places you will be walking - more likely stumbling and falling down into the river for me - on river rock. You will be soaked to the skin and the air temperature is around 55 degrees.

There are so many people in Zion that the "Scenic Road" does not allow private vehicles. We got there early and took the free shuttle to the end of the line as the sun was rising.

First light on  Temple of Sinawava.

We are constantly amazed at the tenacity of life.

At the start of The Narrows there is some river bank along which you can walk.

Carol took this picture for those few of you who still thought I had some pride left. Within 10 minutes of being in the canyon my neck was very sore from straining to look up when Carol kept saying, "Look at THAT." Turning the hat brim up was the best solution.

The carving of the canyon is still occurring. Something that had never occurred to me - the erosion of the stone is not from water. It is from the sediment, stones, and in some cases boulders that the water carries.

Carol says there must be more people like me than she realized. Click on this picture to see it full size in another window. You should be able to see that the arrow has a padlock on it. I had suggested that moving it to "expected" might solve some of the crowd problem.

Some other iconic views.

The sign board.

The real thing.

 The Great White Throne.

Carol saw a sign that said "Hidden Canyon Trail" was a "moderate" trail. We'd already completed two "easy" trails so it seemed reasonable to stretch ourselves a little.

Here's part of the description that she did not see.

"This very steep, 2.2-mile round-trip hike begins at the same trail head as Weeping Rock, Observation Point and the East Rim Trail. The winding Hidden Canyon Trail hugs the side of the cliff and although much of it is wide, there are long drop-offs throughout the hike. Be prepared for a steep uphill climb (850 foot ascent) and a steep downhill return. Before reaching the canyon entrance you must shimmy around a large rock buttress as the trail switchbacks around man-made rock retaining walls. Be cautious near the slippery sandstone areas with steep drop-offs.  The switchbacks leading to the canyon are narrow and water smoothed sandstone which can be treacherous."

We made it that far.

Further description is " This is a switch backing, narrow cliff-side trail with chains to use for support."  We got to where we could see the more courageous people doing this part.  The trail is more of that "slippery sandstone." Returning hikers said, "It's really not that bad. It is steep with some loose stones. But you have the chains to hang on to and the trail is never less that 20" or so."

This is a picture of the chained part of the trail zoomed big time. We are across a small canyon from it.

We also learned that about 30 people have died from falling in the Park (although other sources say the number is much higher.

But only two of them were on Hidden Canyon Trail.

We turned around and headed back down.

It's not even the "scariest" trail in the Park. That distinction goes to "Angel's Landing". Besides the narrow cliff side clinging parts, it includes  a section of narrow ridge with 1000' drop off on both sides. I found this picture on line.

We didn't do that one either.

We enjoyed a picnic in one of the many picnic areas. Found that we were sharing it with another family.

Mom, Dad and youngsters all had ribs showing. I don't know how they'll make it through the winter.

There were signs everywhere saying, "Don't feed the animals. they will become dependent and unable to find food on their own."  Also, if you keep giving them free food, soon they'll all want free cell phones.


The drive into the park from Mt. Carmel Junction is as pretty as the park.  The pink seems to "flow more. Creating swirls of color instead of just the strata in the park canyons.

And keeping with our new tradition, we found more wildlife outside the park than in it.

The next day we were back - early again. We found parking both days in the visitor center parking and easily got onto a shuttle. We were a little sore after our Hidden Canyon experience so we decided to hike to the Emerald Pools. Our plan was to hike the "easy" trail to the Lower Pool and then decide if we wanted to continue up the "moderate" trail to the Middle and Upper Pools.

The hike to the Lower Pool was paved and considered "wheelchair accessible." We decided before we had completed it that we were not going to the other pools.

We got off the shuttle at the Lodge and saw these turkeys enjoying the shade.

 The pools are fed from "weeping cliffs" above them.

The water you see is not flowing over the top of the cliff. It is flowing out of the cliff.  It has seeped into the ground on top of the mesa and trickled down through the softer rock until it reaches a layer too hard for it to penetrate. It flows along that layer until it reaches a cliff. The water coming out of the cliff today is estimated to have been in the rock for about 1200 years.

On the trail. Just an odd boulder with little bumps all over it. The are pebbles that are embedded into the rock.

Also on the trail. A stone bench made years ago by a true stone craftsman.

That's about 12" thick. I didn't take a picture from underneath but I crawled  under and looked. It's as perfect a fit on the bottom as it is on top. Amazing work.

Because we were all "hiked out" we decided to take a drive instead.  The Kolob Terrace Road starts from Virgin, UT and goes along the "backside" of Zion with unparalleled views. Like other canyons in the area, it gives you a top-down look. Without up hiking from the bottom.

It was near lunch time so we asked a couple of Rangers about places to eat. They both said that Springdale had many excellent choices but they didn't name any. Since it was right outside the park entrance and we suspected, "mediocre food at tourist prices" we pushed them a little. Both again said there were many great places. A little pricey but excellent food. I asked about Virgin, where we would be turning off highway to our drive. Both said that there were only two places and both were bad.

We drove through Springdale.  All we saw were Yuppie fancy places. So we decided to take our chances in Virgin.  At first we thought the Rangers had given us good advice. "Fort Zion" was such a tourist trap looking location. Picture "South of the Border" 50 years ago when it was still small.



Outside.

 Inside.

They called themselves a "family place."

I guess that's why this was their booster seat.

OK. We're there. We're both very hungry and there is NOTHING else within 30 miles. Might as well try it.

I decided to get the "Rib Special"

That's 6 ribs on top of a PILE of fries. Salad. Fresh baked huge sesame seed roll. And we know they were fresh baked because when the hostess/waitress/cashier/bus person wasn't busy she was forming them from a big bowl of dough and sprinkling with sesame seeds. I ate the ribs, the salad and maybe three steak fries. The rest went into a doggie bag for later. The ribs weren't quite "Memphis Dry" but close. They had put a light coating of their "Special Prickly Pear Cactus Sauce" on them before smoking. They were the best ribs I've had since I was in Memphis.

Carol decided on the "Pulled Pork Sandwich Special."

Delicious pork piled HIGH on another of those fresh baked sesame rolls. Carol added most of her fries to the doggie bag for me to make hash browns for breakfast. There were so many that I had enough for two mornings.

$9.99 each including drinks.

One of my Dad's favorite sayings was, "God looks after drunks, little children and - IF we let Him, all the rest of us who don't have enough sense to take care of ourselves."

The Kolob Terrace Road climbs pretty much up for all of its 20 + miles.

The white peak in the background is "North Guardian Angel". It is on the Sierra Club's list of "The Top One Hundred Desert Peaks To Do."  Add this to the long list that we didn't do. I'm not 65 anymore.

 The road took us through high meadows, woodlands, and desert.

 

Along the road.

Then the road turned to gravel and we saw this sign.

My Big Red Truck is 23' but no one was looking.

Lava Point. One of the highest point in Zion at  7890'.

 Kolob Reservoir.

The drive back down gave us more views of the back of Zion Canyon.

 
This is an anthill. It's about 2 ft across. But I asked Carol to take a picture because it is sand.  But the ants have covered it with tiny pebbles to reduce erosion.

We didn't do anything this day that had been considered up to the day before. The crowds at Zion were massive so we decided to go someplace else just to get away from them. AND had a wonderful drive, meal and found beautiful views of Zion that 95% of visitors never see.

Another great in between day.