Stops:
Capitol Reef National Park
Escalante, UT
When we pulled into Wal-Mart, we came across a lady in a RV that gave us the evil eye, as if she owned that part of the parking lot, so we decided to find a different section of the lot to park in. When we woke up we knew we were in Utah based on the tall rocks off in the distance.
We had a cell signal here so we decided to make some reservations for Lake Powell boat tours and Antelope slot canyons in Page, AZ. The first tour company, which I went with the last time I was in Page, was full, but I tried another one ran by the Navajo Nation and they were able to take me. The Lake Powell tour included a hike to Rainbow Arch in the Glen Canyon Recreational Park area. It's something I've always wanted to do, but never had the time for before as it is an all day event.
Utah holds a special place in my heart. I find Southern Utah to be one of the most amazing places in the US with its unique concentration of naturally formed rock structures. One could spend a lifetime here and still not explore it all. That's one of the reasons I keep wanting to come back, because there is always something new to explore.
Anyway, today's destination would be Capitol Reef NP. Over the years, I never had time for it, but this trip, I have made an effort to see it. Let me tell you that it does not disappoint, from its dramatic sweeping panoramic landscapes to getting up close and personal with canyon walls.
We made a stop in the visitors center to watch the park movie and learn about the settlers in the region. Basically the settlers planted fruit orchards and sold the fruit. The settlement became known as Fruita. No more than 10 families at a time can ever stay there. Fruita was selling pies using the fruit from their orchard and let me tell you it was one of the best pies I've ever had.
As we drove along the scenic drive, our first pull off was into the Grand Wash. It was a dirty and clay road so we truly felt like we were exploring deep into the canyons with Moby. There were old mines full of radiation that we found but we decided not to get near it.
Coming out of Grand Wash, we went back on the scenic drive all the way to Capitol Gorge which was another off-road adventure with Moby. At the end we hiked the Gorge passing the Pioneer Register and heading to the Tanks. However, the ominous sky showed signs of rain and B warned me that if it started to rain, we were getting out of there. She's a nervous Nellie, which is actually a good thing, because it will keep us safe. Sure enough, when we reached the Tanks trailhead, it started pouring. I wanted to keep going but I knew better as its not worth risking your life over. We hightailed it out of there as the downpour started.
Well, our day was up at Capitol Reef, so we headed towards Escalante, UT to see our next stop, Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. The drive from Capitol Reef to Escalante ( hwy 50 and hwy 12) is just beautiful with the scenery changing into the Dixie National Forest with its many aspens at higher elevations and many scenic overlooks and then back to the giant rocks and canyons. I highly recommend this drive in the evening sunlight so that you can see the rocks glow and come to life. Oh, and if you get to Escalante before 4:30 pm, stop by at the Kiva Coffeehouse on Hwy 50. You can sit back and enjoy the scenery while having a cup of joe. We got there too late, but that's exactly how I would have imagined it.
Escalante is cute little town, however, the hospitality there, is a mixed bag. More on this later. One of B's friends recommended the pizza place at Escalante Outfitters store, so we stopped by for microbrews and pizza. I'm happy to say that the recommendation was correct. The pizza was delicious and some of the best we've had. Definitely worth a stop if you are staying in town or passing through. And finish off with a homemade pecan torte from Mimi. She's a really friendly hostess and server.
Oddly enough, in this tiny town, we ran into an old friend mine from Portland named Tina. Tina and her family had flown into Las Vegas from Portland and were taking in Utah like we were. Talk about a small world. We use to hang out in my early days of Portland, going to parties and even to The Roseland to see Mary J. Blidge.
The Outfitters had a tent site with showers available, so after 5 long days, we finally got to take a shower. It felt great, even if it was 40 degrees outside.
I hadn't planned out this part of the trip well, because we needed a 4WD vehicle, GPS coordinates, and a hand held GPS with a topo map, so we decided to use a recommended tour company called Escape Goats (www.escapegoats.us) to do a slot canyon tour.
The only way to contact them was by email or phone. Well we had no cell service and the only pay phone in town hadn't worked for 4 years. I told the gentleman (Steve) at the front desk of Escalante Outfitters that I had no cell phone signal and the pay phone was broken, hoping that he would let me use their landline. He didn't offer it and told me there were no other pay phones in town. I didn't feel liking begging him to use his landline. He didn't seem to be in the most giving mood, so I didn't want to push my luck. I ended up emailing Escape Goats in the hopes they would have two spots open and they check their email in the mornings. I went to sleep disappointed that I didn't plan this part of the trip better. Lets hope that tomorrow everything works out.
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