I was looking for another short hike in the area and I came across the Anasazi Trail in The Red Cliffs Recreation Area. Some reviews said there were Plebloan ruins, but no petroglyphs, some said petroglyphs and ruins, some mentioned dinosaur tracks.
It was another beautiful area. When we got to the trailhead area there were several trails. Adler and Bud had spied some signs up on a ridge with a narrow path leading up, so that’s the way we headed.
Turns out the signs were next to some dinosaur tracks. These are thought to be from bipedal meat eaters from the Jurassic period. You can just make out the three front toes in the photo. They were much more striking in person.
From there the path went steeply up the side of a canyon.
It gave us a nice view of the entrance road.
We followed the path around the shoulder of the hill.
The path got quite narrow and eventually led to a skiddy slope down to a wash. The wash was well traveled so we continued up it.
We were in another canyon with red rocks and blue sky all around.
The sides got steeper and the bottom narrower.
Eventually we came to a place where it would be a scramble up rocks with no sign of a well worn path, ruins or petroglyphs.
We turned around there and walked back down the wash and when we were nearly back came to the trail that was probably the one to the ruins and (maybe) petroglyphs. But by then we were hot and tired and decided to be satisfied with dinosaur tracks and another beautiful canyon. We choose the short walk back to the truck and air conditioning.
Adler is with us now and we moved to Sand Hollow State Park in Hurricane, Utah. We’re at just over 3,000 feet here, instead of the 1,700 feet of Mesquite, and it’s about 8 degrees cooler, topping off today at 102 instead of 110 degrees.
Last evening Adler and I walked Matey to a bluff overlooking the reservoir here. No trees, but the blue sky and the very blue water make a striking contrast to the red rock and sand, which is everywhere.
This state park is not far from Zion National Park. Since dogs aren’t allowed on the trails in National Parks, we’ve been driving through the parks on our first day of visiting to get the lay of the land with Matey along. In Zion, the main canyon drive is closed to private vehicles, too. The only way to go there is by shuttle. I found a trail (using All Trails again) that ended in a slot canyon and was on the other side of Zion, so we could see some of Zion and do the hike.
The road had a lot of switchbacks on the map and two tunnels so I thought it would be an interesting drive. Turns out the road is famously interesting. It’s the Zion-Mt. Carmel Highway and Tunnel and was built from 1928 to 1930 to allow travel from Bryce Canyon and the Grand Canyon to Zion. On the west end it starts going up along Pine Creek Canyon from the canyon of the Virgin River that forms the main part of Zion.
There are some beautiful views of that canyon.
It’s hard to capture the grandeur of the area, but realize that you are not seeing scrub brush in this photo, but full-sized trees. This landscape is BIG.
After seven switchbacks you arrive beneath these cliffs and near the mouth of the first (and by far the longest) tunnel.
From below, you can see this opening in the cliff above you.
There are about five of them and they provide the only light and ventilation in the 1.1 mile long tunnel.
They also provide a spectacular glimpse of the canyons as you drive past.
At the east side of Zion you drive past the giant Checkerboard Mesa.
You might think our hike would be a disappointment after that spectacular scenery, but it wasn’t. It started out up a sandy wash.
Adler got to play a bit on the red rock slopes.
It was getting hot now so a narrow side slot was a cool place to rest.
A second side slot ended in what looked like stairs, but were too slick to climb.
The main slot had a sand bottom and smooth walls.
It wasn’t that long…
but it was very pretty.
It’s hard to beat blue sky, red rock and a pinch of green.
We were the only ones in the slot and all had fun climbing in the cool shade.
I flew to Buffalo and left Bud and Matey in the heat. They coped while I had a wonderful time visiting with friends and family. I took no pictures, so the only ones I have are for the last weekend, when our daughter, Jamie, her husband, Sean, and our grandson, Adler, were there. Jamie sent me these.
My friend Erin had us all over the Saturday Jamie got there. Her friend Vera obliged us with a four generation picture. Front row is my sister Joan, my mom and me. Back row is Sean, Jamie and Adler.
We informally celebrated three birthdays, my Mom turned 103 on May 13, Adler turned 13 on June 2 and Joan will be 80 on June 21. This is Adler, Joan and me with the cake I bought for Adler.
No visit to my mom’s is complete without playing games. This is Adler, me, my mom and Joan playing Lucky Seven, which we just call the dice game.
On Monday Sean, Jamie, Adler and I went on the Whirlpool Jet Boat out of Lewiston. The boat takes you upstream in the Niagara River (downstream of Niagara Falls) from the smooth water at Lewiston to the whirlpool and the class five rapids just downstream from it. I am the dorky one with only my face showing. However, they said we would get soaked, and although the air temperature was close to 80 degrees, the river water was just 60 degrees, so I wasn’t fooling around.
Here we are, ready to start our trip. The first four rows get the wettest, They all wanted to be there but by the time we got in the boat there was only room for two more. Adler took one and persuaded me to take the other. We’re on the left in the third row. Sean and Jamie are also on the left, but in the second row from the back.
The folks in front got doused more often and more thoroughly,
but we all got very, very wet! You can see my blue hood and Adler’s brown hair in this picture. The top of my head was the only dry spot on me at the end of the trip.
We could use that dousing now. Adler and I flew back to Las Vega and are with Bud and Matey just over the state line in Arizona on the north side of Mesquite, Nevada. We bought a small room air conditioner to add to our trailer air conditioner. It was 107 degrees here, with both air conditioners going we were able to keep it below 85 inside.
It was 38 degrees early this morning at Kaibab Camper Village. It warmed up quickly and was up to about 60 degrees at 9 AM when we left for our next campsite.
We drove only 143 miles. We are here in Desert Skies RV Resort just over the Arizona line from Mesquite, NV. We are perhaps a tiny bit north of where we were on the Kaibab Plateau. However, there we were at just about 8,000 feet above sea level, here we are at just under 1,700 feet above sea level. It is dusk in this picture because it was 104 degrees when we arrived and Matey and I waited until near sunset, when it was a mere 98 degrees, to go outside.
We are back in the desert, back where the only trees are the ones that are planted and watered.
It does have its own beauty.
There’s a golf course just behind the RV Resort.
But we aren’t here for the beauty. We’re here because it’s about an hour and a half drive to the Las Vegas airport and I am flying to Buffalo to see my mom while Bud and Matey spend two weeks out in the desert heat. The forecast calls for it to cool off to the 80’s and then heat back to 101. But at least there’s nothing in the forecast quite as hot as today!
Bud and I always try to find places off the beaten path. I was looking for a trail that wasn’t too far and wasn’t too long and sounded interesting. I found Brow Monument Trail #108 on AllTrails, but it wasn’t reviewed and the directions on Apple Maps got close to the trailhead but not quite to it.
I looked it up and found the US Forest Service entry which said:
“The Brow Monument trail offers a short, two-mile hike through ponderosa pine, pinyon, and juniper to one of the few remaining survey markers left in place from the John Wesley Powell surveying expedition of 1872.
The trail offers a number of Forest Service interpretive signs about the history of Brow Monument and its use in the first geological surveys of the Arizona Strip. Hikers will enjoy an easy walk that offers views from the “brow” of the Kaibab Plateau north across the Arizona Strip and toward the Grand Staircase of southern Utah.”
That sounded good to me. Bud was a bit concerned because it was 19 miles on Forest Service roads but said he was willing to do it if the roads weren’t too bad.
Our campground is on the top of the Kaibab Plateau, it wasn’t long before the road came to a place looking down. About two miles later we got down to the road you see below. I couldn’t get a good picture, but coming back up there was a sign that said “CAUTION ROAD NARROW AND STEEP” and it was.
A good part of the trip was on FR 22, which was a decent gravel road with only occasional sections that were washboards.
There were beautiful wildflowers.
And there was this spring running down the hill with a Forest Station and rental cabins around the pond it fed.
After a mile and a half on a very narrow forest road we came to the trail.
It was an easy walk as advertised, and happily very lightly used. There were enough markers and just enough of a path to find your way.
And there were views. This is looking north towards Utah. These were steep hills, not cliffs, so Matey was off leash for the whole walk.
This is looking southwest towards the Grand Canyon and the mountains beyond.
This is all that is left of the monument. The wooden structure that was built on this cairn burned in a 1986 wildfire. The monument was constructed so it could be sighted from far away by the survey crew.
This marker was placed in 1938 using newer methods and is only about 300 feet from the original. I was disappointed that the elevation wasn’t marked.
On the way home we took a detour on a small road towards Kanab Creek Wilderness Area.
It was very interesting terrain.
There was a small gravel parking area in front of a rock cliff and when you took the short path to the base of the cliff you found petroglyphs and pictographs together!
Bud’s foot is getting better, but isn’t completely healed. And I have hurt my right leg. I don’t know how but I suspect it might have been rushing down the slope to check on Matey after he ran off the ledge. Matey seems fine, but we are trying to minimize walking for a few days.
Wednesday we took a drive back off the Kaibab Plateau and along the Vermillion Cliffs. We drove 35 miles and descended 4,000 feet. The temperature rose from 72 to 92 degrees. This is the overlook about 2/3 of the way down the plateau.
The cliffs are beautiful but there is no driving access so this is as close as we got.
We drove down to the Navajo Bridge across the Colorado. The first bridge here was finished in 1929. It was replaced in 1995, and is now a pedestrian bridge. I was standing on the old bridge to take this picture. This is looking south, downstream.
This is looking north, upstream. I learned today that Colorado means ruddy, and the river used to be full of silt. The silt colored the water red and carved the canyons. Today the silt is captured by Glen Canyon Dam and the river is blue (except after heavy rains) and colder.
Yesterday I did laundry and we hung around the campground. Someone still has to walk Matey so we’ve been taking turns. Today we decided to drive back down to the North Rim and walk the short trails to the vistas that we didn’t see Tuesday because dogs aren’t allowed on them. Matey had to stay in the camper.
First we revisited Cape Royal and walked out to Angel’s Window and the point beyond that. Angel’s Window is the hole in the rock you see in this photo. A side trail takes you right out over the opening.
As you get closer you come to a place where you can see the Colorado through the opening in the rock.
This is from the top of Angel’s Window looking almost straight down, dizzying.
This wall, that formed one side of the opening, was so vertical it almost looked constructed.
This is the view further down the trail at Cape Royal. If you look closely to the left of the near peak you can just see the river. A sign explained that the North Rim is 1200 feet higher than the South Rim and on average gets twice as much snow. Water flows south in this whole region so the greater snowmelt flowing into the river cut canyons back along the North Rim, leaving the river further away. The snowmelt on the South Rim flows away from the river, so there has been less erosion and the cliffs are steeper.
Next we drove back to the main visitor area and walked through the Grand Canyon Lodge and out a trail that took us to the main trail to Bright Angel Point. This is looking back at the lodge from the trail. It certainly fits into the landscape. The large windows are on a lobby area and there is outdoor seating to the right.
The trail goes a quarter mile out along a peninsula of rock. There are no railings.
Here they have a bit of a wall as the ground drops off immediately on either side of the path.
Thank goodness there was a railing at the point!
This picture shows the fault line where Bright Angel Creek descends. The North Kaibab Trail follows the creek to the bottom of the canyon. It is the only trail down into the canyon on the North Rim.
I took this photo holding my phone out from the edge of the trail on the way back.
I took this photo of a sign showing a picture of the canyon on a clear day.
Unfortunately, this was the view today. I don’t think this is air pollution, I think it’s dust! It has been windy almost every day for the past week. The dust doesn’t blow too much up in the trees, but out across the lower land the dust is terrible.
I still got some nice pictures but I would love to get some across the canyon on a clear day. That may not be possible, the weather forecast for the next week has days that are windy and days that are very windy!
Well, to clarify, we aren’t camping at the North Rim. We’re staying at Kaibab Camper Village, which is the closest campground with hookups. It’s 44 miles from the visitor center.
It’s at an elevation of about 8,000 feet on the Kaibab Plateau in the Kaibab National Forest and it has trees; big beautiful Ponderosa Pines! The trees did make situating the trailer and truck a bit challenging but I am so happy to be in trees again. And we have full hookups, cell service and satellite TV.
There are trails here, through the trees.
I found a couple of short loops, one of which passes this old ranger station.
Better yet, there are mule deer and Matey and I have seen them on two of our walks. So, trees for me, TV for Bud, and deer for Matey; all good.
The Canyon:
As I said, it’s a long drive. At least it’s a pretty drive.
And today we saw bison, with calves. That made us all happy.
And then there is the canyon. It is grand. We drove around to several viewpoints.
From here you could look across to the South Rim. We saw a glint which was the sun on some metal or glass at the Desert Tower.
This is the Wedding Venue (permit required). There are log benches arranged to face this little clearing. Those would be some wedding photos.
The guests best not get drunk, though.
We ended our drive with a picnic at Point Imperial, the highest vista in Grand Canyon National Park.
There were stunning views;
including this vista all across the canyon to the Mesa in the east, south of Page, the place we left yesterday.
We couldn’t visit this area and not see Horseshoe Bend, a 1000 foot deep, 270 degree bend in the Colorado River just a couple of miles below the Glen Canyon Dam. The city of Page owns the land between US 89 and the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area along the river. They have a nice new parking lot and a wide flat trail to the overlook. The city charges $10 per car to park. It’s an easy 3/4 mile walk to the overlook. To avoid the heat and the crowds we decided to do this first thing in the morning.
This is a straight shot with my iPhone, no panorama, no zoom. It’s pretty impressive. The jagged line on the far shore is the shadow from the cliff we are on, the morning sun is behind us,
Here I did zoom in to show the people on the beach on the opposite shore. They must have been camped there on float trips as it was 7:30 in the morning!
Bud had me climb up on some low rocks so he could take my picture. He said I never got in the photos because I’m usually the one taking them. You’ll notice I have a firm grip on Matey’s leash. No way was he chasing rabbits there!
I took Matey for a short walk around the campground this morning and he seemed okay. He wanted to walk further but I brought him back because we had decided if he was okay we’d take him with us on a hike.
I had found an interesting hike on All Trails. It was only supposed to be 1.6 miles out and back, so we figured it was a good one to try. It went up a small wash and Matey was back in form, but most definitely on the leash!
There were some uphill parts as it climbed up to the base of some cliffs along the wash. It wasn’t hard for any of us.
The trail was called Toadstool Trail because there are a number of small hoodoos at the base of these cliffs and some of them look like giant rock toadstools.
This one seems to defy gravity.
We stopped in the shade of this big one for a rest, a drink and a snack.
On the way back we took a detour to the Wahweap Marina at Lake Powell. This is looking down to the water just to the right of the State Line Boat Ramp. The boat ramp goes all the way down this hill. There has been a 20 year drought out here and the lake is at 30% capacity and is fifty feet below its normal level. That makes the boat ramps longer, the main boat ramp is now unusable as it ends well above the water.
We got there just as they were pulling this houseboat up the long ramp. I jumped out and got this video of the two trucks as they and the boat crested this hill.
This is from an overlook of the marina in Wahweap Bay. The lake is so low that the marina almost fills the bay, there’s just a narrow channel to get by. Bud and I think the peninsula coming into the water from the right would be submerged if the lake were full, perhaps the highest point would stick up as an island.
I have read that some people think it is time to drain the lake, but I don’t think that will happen. The town of Page wouldn’t exist without the dam and the lake, it was founded in 1957 as a housing community for workers and their families during the construction of the Glen Canyon Dam. There are hundreds of huge houseboats like the one in the video. Folks here won’t let go of their livelihoods voluntarily.
This is the campground from the Page Rim Trail that runs behind it. As you can see, unless trees are planted (and watered) everything is red rock and sand with a few scrubby bushes.
There are canyons, mesas and drop offs everywhere.
Whenever I walk Matey near cliffs I am vigilant; ready to grab the leash to keep him from chasing some little animal over the edge. Turns out I was right to be worried.
Today we played disc golf nearby. It was rough, rocky land, but no real cliffs and no roads so we let Matey off the leash. He was following close as he usually does; until we were playing down the side of a wash and he saw a rabbit on the other side. I yelled “Matey, no!” as he took off running…
right over this ledge. He landed right where Bud is standing in this picture. He had disappeared from our sight and I expected him to be a crumpled mass when I got to him. But he was standing upright, looking a bit dazed. I carried him up a bit and Bud suggested I set him down on a level spot to see if he could or would walk. He walked back to the truck!
We took him back to the trailer and he was obviously sore and somewhat stiff. I called he nearest vet’s office and they took the information and called me back after they talked to the doctor. He said we should just monitor Matey and unless he got worse or had trouble breathing he didn’t need to come in.
Besides being sore Matey’s worst injury is the red spot under his nose where he scraped his fur off. Poor dog, and he lost the rabbit!
On the Roam Again 