Wonderland RV Resort, Torrey, Utah
May 10 - 18, 2014
Arrived in Torrey in time to settle in before the snow started. As predicted, we didn't get as much as Bryce, but it was comforting knowing we didn't have to travel anywhere for the next couple of days.
What has become a routine: we take our first day at each park to hop in the car and explore. Again, a completely different landscape. Oh, there are mountains; there is still red rock; but, each park has a unique character, all its own!
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| Hickman Natural Bridge |
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| Fremont River |
Utah's Byway 12 has been designated a National Scenic Byway. It has also been named an All-American Road by the Federal Highway Administration. All-American Roads have one-of-a-kind features so exceptional that they qualify as a destination "unto themselves". Only a few National Scenic Byways achieve the status of All-American Roads, making Byway 12 one of the most unique roads in the United States.
Byway 12 is 124 miles beginning at Route 89 south of Panguitch and travels eastward through Dixie National Forest, by Bryce Canyon, through Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, over Boulder Mountain, and ends at Scenic Byway 24, west of Capitol Reef National Park in Torrey. Our first thought was to take the first half to Escalante from Bryce and the second half from Torrey. However, the Mother's Day snow storm changed that plan.
What an adventure...we started out in a snow-covered alpine forest rising to 9,600 feet, to open farmlands to ancient riverbeds...Scenic Byway 12 is a journey like no other that we have seen so far. And, I think they should offer stickers that say "I Drove The Hogback"...described "as the asphalt clings to this thin razorback ridge of slickrock, the terrain spills steeply off to each side toward winding creeks and canyons below..." I have no idea what the scenery looked like. I spent this entire part of the drive staring at the line in the road to know what direction to go. It took a good ten minutes to get my fingers loosened up after holding on to that steering wheel for dear life!!
Again, some hiking...I've done more hiking these past three weeks than I have in my life. Rich and Karen, you would be proud of me! This day it was a 5+ mile hike along the Grand Wash Trail, followed by a 4-wheel drive along Capitol Gorge Road.
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| Capitol Gorge Roadway |
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You see so many different colors in the rocks.
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Finally, some wildflowers....
A lot of the people we have met in the rv parks are doing the same trip visiting all of the national parks here in Utah. It's exciting to recommend spots and to hear what they have to say about where we are going! Really looking forward to our upcoming stop in Moab to visit Arches and Canyonlands. See you then.
P.S. We love you Beulah!!!
I've been under the weather a bit lately...I'm sure it has something to do with the altitude that we're just not used to. So, Ken took a solo hike to the Hickman Natural Bridge. First off, let's just say it's a good thing that I'm the navigator of this trip...Ken even had trouble following a trail all by himself! But, he did get back on track and enjoyed a day taking more pictures!!
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