Wow!! Isn't Zion National Park great??? Just looking at those pictures made me want to head back out 
there soon. It is one of those places of which you never grow tired. As we were leaving we took some time to look at the material we had that showed parks and other recreation sites located in this area and we were astounded. Actually, if you think of Kanab - where we spent last night - as the center of a big clock and start at 12:00 you would be surrounded by (going clockwise) Dixie National Forest, Bryce Canyon National Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Fishlake National Forest, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Manti-Lasal National Forest, Monument Valley, Kaibab National Forest, Grand Canyon National 
Park - and many more!!! Shortly after leaving Zion we went through a section of Dixie National Forest. It is an awesome place and we didn't spend any time here at all!!!!! Arrrrggghhhhhh...... What we did 
see, though, was an amazing 'lava field' testifying to an ancient pyroclastic event of some kind. The name of the park has a kind of interesting history too. Seems like Brigham Young decided that Utah needed to be producing cotton. So - he got some 'experts' to come 
from the southern states and they settled in this area and in recognition of their heritage, it came to be known as "Dixie." (When we have more time we'll talk about the many theories of the origin of the term "Dixie" each of which bears a distinct regional bias.) In fact, if you get out this way and go through the town of St. George - look at the mountain that serves as a backdrop for the town. You'll see
a big "D" painted near the top. Guess what it stands for!!!! Anyway ... You folks probably think I'm making all this stuff up, huh?? Well, check it out!!! This little park (a 
mere 3,000 acres) has canyons, hoodoos, waterfalls, caves, forests and - oh yeah, lava!! Oh yeah, and just in case you get nostalgic for the "Wild West," this is one of the areas where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid hung out and there is even a trail named for Butch!!. We also noticed a pretty rapid rise in elevation as
we went through and began to see snow again. But, before long we were back into more sedate 
surroundings, cruising down I-15 along the western side of the Wasatch and Traverse Mountains toward Cedar City. We had to stop for gasoline so we figured that, while we were there, we would check out the town to see what we could find. Well, frankly, we found quite a bit. The city has a beautiful 'historic district,' complete with a really great visitor's center. In addition to all the 'welcome' services you could think of, the center has some 
outstanding exhibits, extensive book and magazine offerings and wonderful staff!! The center is modern, clean and exceptionally well maintained. Cedar City is the home to Southern Utah University and the cultural events going on all year 
long are amazing. I guess we aren't alone in our appreciation for the town, the population doubled from 1980 to 2010!! After visiting the town and getting a quick snack we were preparing to head out. Some kind of 'western spell' descended on Linda and Sherwood and they decided that they simply couldn't leave town without a proper cowboy hat!!!! So - that's right - they got one!!! Sherwood took over the pilot's seat and Linda added navigator to her co-pilot duties. With hats firmly in place they yelled ... "head 'em up, move 'em out!!!" Since we were a little ahead
of schedule we decided to take a detour through Park City, Utah, home of the 2002 Winter Olympics and annual host to the Sundance Film Festival. It is also where two of our friends who are avid skiiers have a winter residence. I have been to Park City several times but not since the Olympics and I found the changes that have taken place to be astounding. Although it is still not a huge population center, the city has grown tremendously. Several of the Olympic venues are still in 
place and used commercially. We roamed around town for a bit, visited
a ton of gift shops and decided to go ahead and have dinner while we were there. I can't remember the name of the restaurant (I think it was something like "Reef's") but it was on Main street - a little beyond the red truck in the picture on the left above. Anyway, it was a nice meal and pretty soon we were back on the road to our hotel in Salt Lake City. Well - you made it again - over three thousand miles of driving!!!!! We loved every inch of it and especially having you along with us. We'll probably be back for a wrap-up as we prepare for our flight back home but we have got some really cool stuff waiting in the wings!! We're going to do another one of those "total environment change" things and head as far south as you can go and stay in the continental U.S. We found some very interesting things to share with you there so come on back!!! See ya.
there soon. It is one of those places of which you never grow tired. As we were leaving we took some time to look at the material we had that showed parks and other recreation sites located in this area and we were astounded. Actually, if you think of Kanab - where we spent last night - as the center of a big clock and start at 12:00 you would be surrounded by (going clockwise) Dixie National Forest, Bryce Canyon National Park, Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, Fishlake National Forest, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, Manti-Lasal National Forest, Monument Valley, Kaibab National Forest, Grand Canyon National 
Park - and many more!!! Shortly after leaving Zion we went through a section of Dixie National Forest. It is an awesome place and we didn't spend any time here at all!!!!! Arrrrggghhhhhh...... What we did 
see, though, was an amazing 'lava field' testifying to an ancient pyroclastic event of some kind. The name of the park has a kind of interesting history too. Seems like Brigham Young decided that Utah needed to be producing cotton. So - he got some 'experts' to come 
from the southern states and they settled in this area and in recognition of their heritage, it came to be known as "Dixie." (When we have more time we'll talk about the many theories of the origin of the term "Dixie" each of which bears a distinct regional bias.) In fact, if you get out this way and go through the town of St. George - look at the mountain that serves as a backdrop for the town. You'll see
a big "D" painted near the top. Guess what it stands for!!!! Anyway ... You folks probably think I'm making all this stuff up, huh?? Well, check it out!!! This little park (a 
mere 3,000 acres) has canyons, hoodoos, waterfalls, caves, forests and - oh yeah, lava!! Oh yeah, and just in case you get nostalgic for the "Wild West," this is one of the areas where Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid hung out and there is even a trail named for Butch!!. We also noticed a pretty rapid rise in elevation as
we went through and began to see snow again. But, before long we were back into more sedate 
surroundings, cruising down I-15 along the western side of the Wasatch and Traverse Mountains toward Cedar City. We had to stop for gasoline so we figured that, while we were there, we would check out the town to see what we could find. Well, frankly, we found quite a bit. The city has a beautiful 'historic district,' complete with a really great visitor's center. In addition to all the 'welcome' services you could think of, the center has some 
outstanding exhibits, extensive book and magazine offerings and wonderful staff!! The center is modern, clean and exceptionally well maintained. Cedar City is the home to Southern Utah University and the cultural events going on all year 
long are amazing. I guess we aren't alone in our appreciation for the town, the population doubled from 1980 to 2010!! After visiting the town and getting a quick snack we were preparing to head out. Some kind of 'western spell' descended on Linda and Sherwood and they decided that they simply couldn't leave town without a proper cowboy hat!!!! So - that's right - they got one!!! Sherwood took over the pilot's seat and Linda added navigator to her co-pilot duties. With hats firmly in place they yelled ... "head 'em up, move 'em out!!!" Since we were a little ahead
of schedule we decided to take a detour through Park City, Utah, home of the 2002 Winter Olympics and annual host to the Sundance Film Festival. It is also where two of our friends who are avid skiiers have a winter residence. I have been to Park City several times but not since the Olympics and I found the changes that have taken place to be astounding. Although it is still not a huge population center, the city has grown tremendously. Several of the Olympic venues are still in 
place and used commercially. We roamed around town for a bit, visited
a ton of gift shops and decided to go ahead and have dinner while we were there. I can't remember the name of the restaurant (I think it was something like "Reef's") but it was on Main street - a little beyond the red truck in the picture on the left above. Anyway, it was a nice meal and pretty soon we were back on the road to our hotel in Salt Lake City. Well - you made it again - over three thousand miles of driving!!!!! We loved every inch of it and especially having you along with us. We'll probably be back for a wrap-up as we prepare for our flight back home but we have got some really cool stuff waiting in the wings!! We're going to do another one of those "total environment change" things and head as far south as you can go and stay in the continental U.S. We found some very interesting things to share with you there so come on back!!! See ya.
No comments:
Post a Comment
We would enjoy hearing from you if you would like to send us a note!!