Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Grand Junction, Colorado
A lovely small city in western Colorado, Grand Junction proved to be a great place for an overnight stop to check emails, update the blog, eat some good food, and get out of the 90-plus degree weather.
Hoodoos and Highways
We departed from Red Canyon Lodge in Parawon on Monday and headed east to Bryce Canyon to see the hoodoos. One of America’s most spectacular National Parks, Bryce Canyon is famous for its 2,000-foot tall red rock spires called hoodoos, which are formed when ice and rainwater erode the soft limestone rock. When you see the hoodoos up close, the rock does appear to break easily, making us realize that although these majestic structures seem permanent, what we saw will be changed by next season.
After a picnic at Bryce, we drove northeast on Utah SR12, known as one of the most scenic (yet rather treacherous) drives in America. The red rock vistas did not disappoint along the three-hour journey, along which we listened to a lecture on CD about classical mythology. It was not difficult to believe the Greek creation myth about the formation of the earth, water and sky while driving through so much vast open space.
By mid-afternoon, we were ready for a break, so we found a campsite at Cedar Creek Campground, a tiny campground at an elevation of about 8,500 feet in Dixie National Forest. It was cool up there (the temperature dropped into the 40s at night) and a near-full moon lighted up the sky while we slept among the shivering aspens.
Back on the road again in the morning, we continued on SR12 to Capitol Reef National Park to see more rock formations. We stopped in the Visitor’s Center to see panoramic posters by Leo Larson and Earthwalk Press maps made by Leo and Helen for sale in the gift shop.
Chimney Rock
Although Capitol Reef is as impressive as Bryce and Cedar Breaks, we decided we’d had enough rocks for a while, so we headed for Colorado. Here’s a photo of the long drive along the isolated and barren SR24.
Time for a shower and a day off. More from Grand Junction, Colorado, next time.
After a picnic at Bryce, we drove northeast on Utah SR12, known as one of the most scenic (yet rather treacherous) drives in America. The red rock vistas did not disappoint along the three-hour journey, along which we listened to a lecture on CD about classical mythology. It was not difficult to believe the Greek creation myth about the formation of the earth, water and sky while driving through so much vast open space.By mid-afternoon, we were ready for a break, so we found a campsite at Cedar Creek Campground, a tiny campground at an elevation of about 8,500 feet in Dixie National Forest. It was cool up there (the temperature dropped into the 40s at night) and a near-full moon lighted up the sky while we slept among the shivering aspens.
Back on the road again in the morning, we continued on SR12 to Capitol Reef National Park to see more rock formations. We stopped in the Visitor’s Center to see panoramic posters by Leo Larson and Earthwalk Press maps made by Leo and Helen for sale in the gift shop.
Chimney Rock
Although Capitol Reef is as impressive as Bryce and Cedar Breaks, we decided we’d had enough rocks for a while, so we headed for Colorado. Here’s a photo of the long drive along the isolated and barren SR24.
Time for a shower and a day off. More from Grand Junction, Colorado, next time.
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