Wed, Aug 29th
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We woke up too early at 2am and made it to Albany Airport in plenty of time to catch our 6am United flight to Cleveland then Las Vegas. We'd booked window and aisle seat and, even with a full plane we had no one between us – good deal!
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On the leg between Cleveland and Las Vegas, had a wonderful view of the attractions of Southern Utah as we flew over Comb Ridge with view of Canyonlands to north and tip of Lake Powell. We even saw Hole in the Rock Road parallel to its striped mountain in Escalante. Next was Bryce and finally Zion fully displayed out our north facing window. Quite a preview of our upcoming trip
Las Vegas airport made things quick and easy as usual and soon we were at Dollar Rental picking out our SUV. Unfortunately, all of the Jeeps were gone and we settled on a Chevy Captiva. On the way out of Las Vegas, we discovered the Captiva had no AWD. Didn’t think an SUV was an SUV without 4WD, but oh well…
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After a “scenic” drive up Dean Martin Hwy, finally got onto I-15N after picking up bottles of water and Subway sandwiches. We blasted through the desert making good time and stopped at the Walmart in Hurricane. We purchased propane cylinders for the stove and lantern we had packed, more water of course, and two $10 fold up chairs for camping – missed them on our last trip out here in 2007. As we loaded our coolers (we brought 2 along...one as Peter's loaded carry-on and the other actually fit in our large suitcase)in the asphalt parking lot, it was 104 incredible degrees – unbelievably hot to us. We gratefully hopped back into our air conditioned Captiva and headed for Springdale.
Since our first night was in Kanab, we drove out the east entrance of Zion, always amazed at the incredible scenery, snapping pictures like crazy. The red roads fit perfectly with the colors of the canyon walls. Zion's subtle signature. We had dramatic skies and rain falling nearby.
We came upon a group of Desert Bighorn sheep near the east entrance and stopped for some photos. We left the park through Mt. Carmel Junction then south on rte 89 toward Kanab. We saw the sheriff’s speed trap as we left Mt Carmel Junction, but couldn’t tell if the officer was real or fake.
The Rocking V is a fun café run by a guy from Brooklyn, NY. There's great artwork on the walls and plenty more upstairs in the gallery.
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Our lovely hostess, Ema, was a tall brunette with bright blue eyes from Serbia. She’s only here for the summer… hard to imagine what her perspective might be on this strange landscape.
We ordered two cold margaritas and a house smoked trout with fresh rosemary bread and two tapenades for an appetizer. Fresh and delicious. Our entrees came with soup – homemade spicy vegetable, which was excellent.
Sharon ordered catfish tacos with black bean and corn salad with avocado crème fraiche and fresh salsa. Incredible.
Peter had buffalo tenderloin meatloaf wrapped in bacon with tortilla corn puree and mashed potatoes. Insanely good.
We waddled back to our room, stuffed and tired. Wanted to go for a swim, but it was too chilly and we were too tired so we showered and slept instead.
30-AUG-2012
Thurs, Aug 30th
Up at 6AM...slept about 10 hours...out the door by 7am. Stopped at Linda Lea’s Coffee shop a block south of Aiken’s lodge for capuccino’s and a couple fresh baked muffins to go. Great local café. As we drove back north out of Kanab on rte 89, we passed the sheriff’s car again.
This time we got a look at the officer and it was a mannequin! The fake speed traps are very funny but they work! There are real ones as well so its best not to speed.
We walked around among the thousands of memorials to pet dogs and cats, birds and horses, pigs and others. Wind chimes tinkled in the light wind; there were small statues and sculpture, fountains and flowers about.
Small tags with the names of so many loved animals…trinkets left by their owners.
One of the resting places for birds - such a peaceful beautiful place but very emotional.
Continuing north on 89 with our eventual destination the Fruita campground at Capitol Reef NP. We stopped for tons of photos along the way and at a rock shop in Orderville. We bought a few small items…don’t want to weigh down our already big luggage. Eventually headed east on scenic hwy 12 towards Torrey.
Escalante Outfitters
In Escalante we stopped at the
Escalante BLM Visitor's Center to ask about hiking along the Escalante River. We got distracted on the way in by the
dozens of hummingbirds buzzing around in the courtyard between the center and the restrooms. They have a couple of large feeders set up and the show was amazing!!
A nice Australian couple were curious about what we were looking at and were amazed by the hummers since they don’t have them in Australia - who knew! The guy had a large camera with huge telephoto lens and we left them having a great time photographing the hummingbird show!
Made a quick stop at the little Hills and Hollows convenience store/gas station on the way into town for a few beverages.
There were a lot of deer strike remnants and we saw several deer so we didn't hurry.
Coming down Boulder Mtn., we stopped at one of our favorite pull offs in
Teasdale overlooking the
horse pastures on the left.
A lovely scene with a thunderstorm moving off in the distance.
The steep switchbacks go right up the side of the cliffs across the road from the campground, so it wasn’t long before we were huffing and puffing.
It was a reminder that we were at 6800’ or so…not the 750’ we’re used to at home. The view just gets better as you climb up the cliff.
You’re just beginning to wonder how the trail reaches the top when it cuts sharply to the left and you are in the canyon.
As we reached the turn, the wind was gusting hard against the top of the switchbacks, but as soon as we entered the canyon, the wind was gone. We enjoyed walking along the slickrock and sand as we followed the wash. There were stretches of odd red cliffs with deep pockmarks.
Farther on, Sharon noticed a hummingbird feeding on Indian Paintbrush flowers. We stopped to enjoy the scene and take pictures. Sharon got some nice ones with her Sony superzoom.
Eventually the trail from the campground joined the Cohab Canyon Trail, and we resumed our upward walk. We enjoyed the display of colorful rocks and dramatic sky in total solitude…something still nice about Capitol Reef.
When the trail started going downward, we decided to turn around and head back. It was already 6PM. The way back seemed a little longer and the steep sections of switchback got tiresome before we reached the bottom. We’d gone about 4.5 miles on our “break in hike”. ..warming up for the 11 miler we had planned for later in the trip.
Sharon ordered a veggie mole tortilla. It was a tortilla covered with potatoes, sautéed onions and other veggies covered with another tortilla and then covered with their homemade mole with avocado slices on top. It came with a salad with homemade blue cheese dressing. A pretty good meal.
Peter ordered trout with pines nuts in a wine sauce and rice, and he chose soup instead of salad…potato jalapeno. The soup was good but the fish was overdone and the rice underdone. Meh.
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It got dark as we ate our meal, and several bats had replaced the hummingbirds outside the windows. The lights attract moths and other bugs, and the little bats were taking full advantage. Very fun to watch.
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We were tired as we finally hit the tent. It was much warmer than we’re used to so sleeping was restless, especially after Peter got a cramp in his thigh. The campground was just settling down when a late arrival in an RV proceeded to spend the next hour and a half trying to back their camper in and set up camp. Glad we were a bit away from them…so rude…didn’t even try to be quiet...loud in fact. We may be from New York but live in the middle of 50 acres and canoe camp in
our own 6 million acre park, The Adirondacks. Neighbors aren’t something we’re used to…especially when camping.
Friday, 8/31
Friday, 8/31
Woke up at 7, made a strong pot of coffee while we broke camp. We left our lightweight double sleeping bag available to cover the two coolers to help preserve the ice in the hot car. We used the sleeping bag this way for the whole trip and it really helped…especially when we’d leave the car locked up in the sun while we hiked.
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We went east on Rt. 24 through the high red cliffs of the east side of Capitol Reef with the river gurgling beside the road in places. The lushness dissipated as the river turns away from the road and we entered the strange bentonite hills. Not much grows on the purple and brown mounds that make up this otherworldly landscape. Grey and brown cliffs line the way to Hanksville with a ranch every once in a while where the river was in the distance.
We went as far as the old uranium mining area and read the placards in the parking lot.
As we were driving back to the main road, Peter spotted a pictograph on the left side of the canyon. We pulled in for some photos. Pictographs are ancient rock art painted in multi colors on rock.
We found some German or Ukranian campers at the base of the cliff…they seemed aloof. We took our pictures and left
Back to the highway and on north to I-70 with the Waterpocket Fold rising up to the west of us.
The cliffs rise to great heights as the river cuts through the landscape. This is the Colorado River and it still has a long way to go and many canyons to carve on its journey to the Gulf of Mexico.
We were impressed with all the campgrounds and campsites along the river. There seemed to be a lot of vacancies considering it was Labor Day Friday.
We drove on out to the entrance of
Arches. When we presented our pass with Sharon’s license the lady ranger asked us more about where Scotia is. Turns out she’s from Saratogs Springs. Small world!
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Drove through the park to Delicate’s parking lot. Lots of cars there but we found a spot and began our hike up at 6:40. It is a gradual uphill and it was still 85°. Our legs were glad when we arrived.
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There were lots of people there so it was impossible to get a shot without someone in it. Still it was nice to see the usual international turnout for one of our natural wonders. The western horizon was cloudy so it didn’t look real hopeful for a “sunset on the arch” shot.
Suddenly the sun broke underneath the low clouds just before it set. There was the arch lit, if dimly, by the setting sun. The clatter of shutters let even the least aware know that THE moment was upon us.
It only lasted a few minutes but it was nice to know that our new friend from Niagra could check that off his bucket list.
Now the show became the setting sun and everyone turned to take pictures of that. Most folks were leaving and we said so long to the Niagarans. We knew the moon would be rising shortly so there might be more photo ops as well as more light on the trail down. As twilight arrived, the moon was being obscured by a low band of clouds so we decided to head down.
There was still enough light to see without flashlights as we started. By the time we reached the open slickrock where you have to look for cairns that mark the trail, it was dark. We did fine and soon came upon the couple from western NY. They were going down slowly with the man using his tripod as a cane. We slowed our pace to add our flashlights to the group for easier going. We stuck with them down off the rocks.
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As the four of us rested for a moment, the moon broke from behind the clouds and you could see the trail as plain as day. We returned to the car and got back to the Rustic Inn at about 9PM. Had a gin & tonic and slept well on some very comfy pillows
It is only a mile round trip but it is stunning in either direction.
This is a view of the Courthouse Towers.
01-SEP-2012
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The Three Gossips and a tiny little arch.
After that we drove on into the park with no real plan. We stopped and walked in to Sand Arch.
Sand Arch is a very small, low arch in a sand filled wide slot. Very neat and the children there were having a blast.
01-SEP-2012
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It was getting very hot by now so shade was popular.
We went to the end of the road to the Landscape Arch trail but we’ve been there, done that. We stopped at the Fiery Furnace overlook for that view.
Then we returned to the Wolfe Ranch to see the petroglyphs there.
Here’s the water that made living at Wolfe Ranch possible.
Water is everything here.
On the way back to town we decided to take a look at the pictographs near Courthouse Wash as you enter the town of Moab from Arches. We parked where the “Driving Rock Art Tour" pamphlet said. Threw some water in a backpack and started off down the bike trail. Our directions were vague enough that we turned up the wash rather that continue on the bike path.
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It wasn’t a bad hike, but it seemed that the rock art was taking longer than it should have to find. We have a “just around the next bend” attitude so we hiked in about a mile or so before giving up. The trail was getting pretty gnarly by then…pushing through tall sagebrush in a snaky looking area. It was in the upper 90s as we made our way back. We were startled by a mule deer and her twins at one point. We scared each other half to death!
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It was a lovely canyon in spite of not finding the rock art. Still it was hot, and Peter still wanted some time to peddle his rock art reproductions around Moab a bit. When we made it back to the parking lot, we read the placard and it seemed we’d been looking way too hard. As we dove back down the road into Moab, we saw the cliff on the left side of the road by the bike path and there was the pictograph. At this point we’d lost interest. Just too hot!
We went back to the room to freshen up before our much anticipated visit to the
Desert Bistro. Once again, it was a short walk, just a block beyond Red Rock Café. We arrived and were seated promptly. To Peter’s delight, the place was decorated featuring rock art paintings. They were on board built up with thick trowel strokes then the pictographs painted on that. Very Cool!
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We were attended to by Adeline who had a lovely French accent. It turns out that she is Quebecois and quite familiar with our area having attended school in Plattsburgh, NY.
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We both ordered a couple of margaritas…probably craving the salt after our hot hike. A lovely warm loaf of wheat bread with an olive oil dipping sauce with lavender seeds in it. Neat to bite into.
We ordered an appetizer of seasoned ground pork baked in a puff pastry and an awesome sauce
Adeline arrived when we’d finished and asked if we’d like to order “something else” to drink with dinner. Poor girl, I think she was afraid we were going to have margaritas with our entrees. We opted for a lovely Cab. Sauvignon from Paso Robles…a town we also love to visit.
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Peter ordered a medium rare gorgonzola encrusted beef tenderloin filet on top of a dollop of garlic mashed potatoes. It rested in a pool of rich roasted tomato demi-glace with crispy sautéed snap peas alongside. It was a beautiful large morsel done to a perfect med-rare. It has been on their menu forever and it is easy to taste why. Peter loved it and declared it one of the top ten filets he’s ever had.
Sharon opted for the seafood…pompano with a tomato-leek sauce . To top that off, there was a giant sautéed prawn, savory potato pancakes and asparagus . Sharon thought the best part was the pompano. The prawn seemed a little over-cooked but the flavor was excellent. Sharon gave it a big thumbs up.
After all that there were no thoughts of dessert. We were glad to stretch our legs a bit on the walk back to the motel. We made sure we were ready for a quick exit and had all but the coolers and morning necessities already in the car. Watched the tube briefly and fell asleep.
Sun. 9/2
We were up early. The biggest chore of the morning was trying to fit all the frozen jugs and tubes of water into the two coolers. We’d tried to limit how much food needed to be in the cooler by choosing a box of mac & cheese and pasta and jar sauce for two of our meals. The only food items in the “food cooler” were half & half, cold cuts and sliced cheese (our first night’s meal), a small brick of cheddar, some yogurt, limes and a couple frozen jugs of water to keep it cold.
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The beverage cooler was all frozen jugs except for a quart of tonic water. We also had bread, crackers, snack bars, granola, a six pack of spicy V8, unsweetened iced tea, some trail mix and three 2.5 gallon containers of water. You can’t ever have too much water.
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We dropped by The Red Rock Café and bought some scones for the road and had our travel mugs filled. There was an annoying Italian couple there who didn’t seem to grasp the concept of waiting your turn or respecting personal space. I guess they weren’t morning people.
In spite of that, we were on the road heading south toward The Needles District of Canyonlands where we would be camping for the next two nights.
Peter suggested that Sharon call anyone she wanted to now since we’d be losing cell coverage down the road a way. She called her mom and was chatting with her sister for awhile until she lost the signal. We made good time on the straight road south past the Hole-in-the-Rock tourist attraction to the right turn toward The Needles. We powered down our phones to save the charge since they’d be useless until who knew when.
Over the 35 miles to the park, sprawling grasslands gave way to ever larger red cliffs. We went past Newspaper Rock and it became a land of gigantic proportions. Huge mesas near and far. We eventually reached the park and could see in the distance the odd spires that give The Needles its name.
The lady ranger in the booth let us know that the
Squaw Flats Campground hadn’t reached occupancy the night before, and we were so early that we should have no trouble finding a site.
We cruised through the first area and the sites were nicely spaced all along the low, muffin-topped rock wall behind them. They were more private than Cap Reef but we decided to see what the second area further on had to offer.
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As we rounded the bend we saw it…probably the neatest campsite in the whole place. It had its own little toadstool and was well away from any of the other sites. On the east side where you pull into your driveway, there was a table, and fire ring. Behind that was a cave-like alcove that was deep enough that you could drag the table under it for cover if need be. Best of all the site was empty and available.
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We wasted no time filling out the permit and claiming Site #18 for two nights. Within a few minutes the tent was up and the chairs were plopped in the grotto with the folding side table between. There was even a convenient flat rock protruding from the wall to make dry storage for the percolator, paper towels and assorted other camp items.
The site was oriented so that it got sun in the morning but would be in complete shade all afternoon. The site was so ideal that it could have been designed by Disney.
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Peter hung his rock art recreations in the tree and inside our rock shelter thinking they'd add a festive touch. One can only wonder what the campers driving by thought of that. Our car had California tags so I’m sure there were a lot of “that figures”.....
Now that camp was all set, we headed out to explore the park. We stopped by the Visitor’s Center and asked about little hikes to occupy the day with. She suggested the Cave Spring Trail. It is an easy loop of a bit over a half mile.
In a shallow alcove past the cowboy camp, we found the grain bin for the horses. It had a rustic wide-plank lid with some pretty fancy scrap metal work over the cracks to keep the rodents out.
In a large, deep grotto, we found what makes the cowboy camp possible. The cave spring. Water seeps out of the sandstone and forms a pool of filtered water.
Above the pool in a seeping stratus grow maidenhair ferns. Pretty extravagant for such a dry area.
On the stone face of the alcove were pictographs and painted hands created by people who used this space thousands of years ago.
Any source of water is sacred here.
Just beyond that there’s a short ladder that takes you on top of the hoodoo-like mesa.
From there the trail meanders over the rocky surface.
There are fine vistas and we were still enjoying some dramatic skies.
From there we headed off down the official scenic drive where we pulled in to the Pothole Point Trail. This is another easy .6 mile loop. The draw is the view of course but also the pools of water that fill the “potholes” that dimple the surface of the rock here and there.
It seems that there is ephemeral life when the potholes fill with water during the monsoon season…like now! They’d had an inch of rain here the week before our visit so we were optimistic that we’d see mosquito larvae, small snails, pollywogs of desert frogs and maybe even a
Tadpole Shrimp.
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We started out but the first few potholes were dead. Maybe there’d be deeper ones further on. After checking several more without luck we were resigning ourselves to enjoying the view. Finally, at one larger pool movement was spotted. A closer look revealed that we’d hit the jackpot!
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We found every critter in this pothole that is mentioned in the trail guide. We had a blast watching them and trying to get a picture. Shrimp, living in a puddle in the middle of the desert. They mate and lay eggs that can withstand the 175° temperature at the bottom of the dry puddle this becomes in summer. All this in a lifespan of only a month or so. Crazy!
While we were enjoying the show, a German couple stopped to look. Then a Japanese family…dad, mom, a 6 or 7 year old boy and grandpa. Mom and the boy approached, and we pointed out the movement of the shrimp in the puddle. We had a moment of concern about what they might do (after witnessing a Japanese mom setting her toddler 2’ from the head of a grazing buffalo in Yellowstone).
The pamphlet warns not to even touch the water since cosmetics and lotions can kill a pool that has lived happily for thousands of years. We were just waiting for the kid to go splashing through the pool, but our fears were unfounded. Mom kept close hold of the boy, and he seemed quite fascinated with no interest in doing more than look. Mom must’ve read the pamphlet. It is amazing how long a .6 mile hike can take us. Sharon got some nice shots with her little Sony H9.
We drove to the end of the scenic drive then out the park entrance to the Needles Outpost, a private campground and store just a mile and a half away. We took a short walk out to the puebloean granery on the way.
In preparation for our attempt at the 11 mile Chesler Park Loop the next day, we decided to retire and enjoy the rest of the afternoon at our most excellent campsite.
We made some gin & tonics and broke out some cheese and crackers.
Sharon caught up on her trip notes and we waved at all the new arrivals as they cruised the campground trying to pick out a site.
I’ll admit to feeling a little smug.
After a while we got our cameras out and had fun exploring around our toadstool campsite. There were lots of lizards sunning themselves and you could get quite close if you moved slowly
Later we made our smoked turkey and swiss cheese sandwiches for our dinner. A lady ranger named Dorita stopped by the site to remind us about the evening talk she was giving about the earlier visitors to the area…the ancestral puebloans. We let her know we’d be there and were looking forward to it.
It was twilight as we gathered for Dorita’s presentation. Peter couldn’t help taking a couple of shots of the dramatic scene.
It was a diverse group and some of the folks in the audience had worked on digs and had studied rock art in the area. It was all quite interesting and increased our anticipation of our upcoming visit to the Edge of the Cedars Museum in Blanding.
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We retired as soon as we returned to the campsite. We wanted to be up early so we could begin our
Chesler Park Loop hike as early in the cool morning as we could.
9/3/2012
9/3
We were up at 6 AM and made a pot of coffee. We ate a breakfast of yogurt and granola and had a can of the spicy V8 juice then drove 3 miles down to the Elephant Hill parking lot. We loaded our packs…Peter had about 5 quarts of water, most of it still frozen, four energy bars a bag of trail mix and the camera bag. Sharon had a gallon of water in frozen tubes as well as her camera bag. Sharon’s not a hat-wearer but Peter had convinced her to bring and wear one of his large billed UV blocking hats.
The packs were heavier than we usually carry but there is no getting around the water requirement…a gallon a day per person. This was going to be a long hike at about 5300'. We’re in pretty good shape but hadn’t done a long hike since the 8 mile Fairyland Loop at Bryce 5 years ago. We decided to see how things went…we could always turn around if it seemed too much.
It is 2.9 miles to the Chesler Park Overlook where the loop begins and it is almost all uphill (at least that's how it seemed) and quite steep in sections. The legs got an early wake-up call on this hike. This wasn’t anything like the wide gravel Fairyland Loop in Bryce. This hike requires climbing and scrambling.
We finally reached the overlook, rested a bit and took in the view. We knew that the next stretch out to the Joint Trail would be easier. Since our legs seemed to be doing fine, we happily continued on.
The next couple of miles were easy packed sand. You could take in the view while you walked. It is a spectacular place. We knew that there were a couple of hikers ahead of us somewhere but we hadn’t seen them since they passed us at the start of the hike.
It was getting pretty warm by the time we got to the top of the Joint Trail,so we stopped for a water break. We kept filling the tubes that had ice with water and enjoyed ice cold water through the entire hike.
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The Joint Trail quickly leads you down into the earth.
Between the narrowness and scrambling down, it was slow going at times.
Finally it opened up into a grotto. The sun was lighting up a spot on the floor and the area glowed. People had stacked up small cairns all around the grotto. We made a couple of our own to add to the magical display.
We decided to stop for a snack break since it was cool underground. We each ate two snack bars and drank plenty of water…at least the packs were getting lighter.
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When we’d asked the ranger the day before about this hike she said she usually tells people to go as far as the Joint Trail and then decide if they want to continue or go back. It seemed that we were almost halfway anyway so why go back?
We decided to finish the loop so we headed out of the slots toward the jeep trail that the loop follows briefly. It was HOT when we came back out into the open. We had plenty of ice water left so we weren’t concerned.
We passed a couple of guys with their truck at the end of the jeep trail. It was easy walking except for a couple of stretches that we were amazed that a truck could go. It was quite scenic but we kept up a good pace.
The trail eventually leaves the jeep road and starts to make its way back up. We know that it is only 1.6 miles to the Overlook then 2.9 miles back to the parking lot. We were holding up well but the heat was on and there were no clouds and little shade.
Now the trail became a little more interesting. To get back up to the overlook it winds its way up through a confusing section of hoodoos and small arroyos.
In many places it was not obvious where the next cairn was that marked the trail. We found ourselves on our hands and knees at times scrambling up or across slickrock
We stopped more and more frequently to rest and drink plenty of water. Finally we reached the Overlook… the last 1.6 miles had taken us over an hour and a half.
We weren’t looking forward to the last 2.9 miles to the parking lot. We knew it wasn’t an easy trail but it was downhill, at least.
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We chugged a bunch of water and set out. Knowing we were on the final leg headed to an air conditioned car put a little wind in our sails.
We made pretty good time and, in an hour or so we were glad to see the car at the bottom of the last downhill stretch. Our legs were tired and our feet sore but we were proud of completing those difficult 11 miles.
It only took us 8 hours but we did it!
We drank lots of water and enjoyed watching a storm roll in as we drove back to camp. Glad we weren’t out there in the open with the lightning coming down. Got back to camp and realized we were famished. We made a couple of sandwiches with the rest of the cold cuts.
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The idea of a shower appealed to Sharon so we headed out to the Needles Outpost to buy her one. Gary gave her their campers discount since we seemed to becoming regular customers. Peter watched the stormy sky and dozed in the car while Sharon showered. She declared the showers very hot and awesome. We were glad to know of Needles Outpost. We went back to the campsite and decided we were still hungry so we made the mac & cheese on the little single burner stove.
As we were finishing up a storm blew into the campsite with gusty winds, rain and lightning. We stashed our gear in the alcove and beat a hasty retreat to the car. The wind was gusting so hard around our hoodoo that the tent looked like it was going to become a kite!
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At the end of the storm we were treated to a double rainbow over the campground.
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We had a small fire but the thought of lying down in the tent and stretching out the back was too much to resist. We ended up going to bed at 7:30 PM and slept until nearly 7 AM the next morning. I guess we were tired!
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We weren’t in a big hurry so we had a fire as we broke camp. We had our usual pot of strong coffee and ate the last two scones from Moab plus a couple of V8s.
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We said goodbye to our most excellent campsite and left the park. Along the way out, we pulled over to watch a couple of
American Kestrels hunting among the sagebrush.
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We stopped one more time at Needles Outpost so Peter could grab a shower…very refreshing.
For anyone interested in the history of the southwest, The Edge of the Cedars is a “must see”. The collection there rivals any that we’ve seen so far. We were here in 2003 but it seemed different.
We spent a couple of hours or so looking at the exhibits. Through the objects on display, you gain a deep appreciation for the civilization that evolved here a thousand years ago.
The quality of the pottery and the painted designs are of the highest order. If they were recreated, they would have a great contemporary appeal.
The wooden plates made from cottonwood look like they could be from a Danish-modern catalog. The stone knives displayed with them also have a very modern look.
In back of the museum are the ruins of a puebloan greathouse that you can view and even climb down the ladder into the kiva. It is an interesting setting with the ruins and the museum among the backyards of a neighborhood in Blanding.
We weren’t visiting on a solstice but still enjoyed the play of sunlight and shadow. It would be amazing to meet this rock artist someday.
As we were leaving, we stopped to buy a book about the museum’s rock art murals and began chatting with the nice woman at the front desk. It turns out that the museum’s new look is the result of a rebuilding after the sprinkler system flooded the interior. No artifacts were lost and the rebuild is wonderful and includes a neat children’s exploration/education area.
We left and headed south toward Bluff and the petroglyphs at Sand Island. We stopped at
Comb Ridge Coffee and both had delicious avocado veggie sandwiches and iced tea. It's a nice place that sells local art and other cool items. Very rustic building with many interesting details. It was pretty quiet, and the lady who made the sandwiches came out and talked with us about gardening and the trials and tribulations of warding off varmints. It is always fun talking to locals, and the locals in Utah are usually willing to slow down and chat. And they are some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.
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It was early afternoon and the glare on the rock art made viewing and photographing difficult. We clicked away knowing that photoshop can do amazing things. Especially amusing was the more recent “Custer died for your sins”…indeed!
Now we needed to decide what to do. We chose to stay in Blanding to see Butler Wash Ruins and Lower Mule Canyon the next day. We decided to devote the afternoon to Hovenweep. It has been on Peter’s list but it is far enough off the beaten path that we’ve never made it. Today was to be the day.
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We decided to take the scenic route east out of Bluff on 163 to turn north on 262 in Montezuma Creek. This takes you through some barren country but there is oil there and therefore plenty of activity. It reminded Peter of Avondale, Arizona where he used to live as a kid…rough around the edges and as much a part of the American southwest as the dust itself.
Peter writes, “At Hovenweep, Sharon went to the ladies room, and I went to change into my hiking boots. As I was tying them on, a sudden gust of wind blew a strip of newspaper against the back of my heels. It happened so quickly that it startled me. When I picked it up, I could feel a small stick inside the folded strip of paper. I peeled open the tape at one end and discovered a hand painted arrow with a flaked stone point. It was a tourist item but very nicely done. I looked over my shoulder but I already knew that the small parking lot was empty. In Dine' lore, an arrow is a symbol of protection. Sharon was amused when I showed it to her. It isn’t the first time I’ve been presented an unexpected gift during a visit to the Four Corners area. All I can say is ‘thanks!’”
Hovenweep has some outstanding ruins. There is a rare square tower down inside the canyon. Many of the towers have no doors, just slots or holes in the walls. Perhaps they were entered through the roof. Were they observatories, or maybe signal towers? It is fun to speculate.
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There are other ruins in other parts of Hovenweep but we took so long on the loop trail that we didn’t have time to check them all out…a good excuse to come back sometime.
We headed back out the long drive to the main road and Blanding. There were lots of Dine' headed in the opposite direction…probably on the way home from work and school.
By the time Peter had registered at the inn, the girls had determined that the place to eat in Blanding was
FattboyZ. The lady at the inn also suggested it (and their “traditional chicken fried steak") and we’d get a 10% discount since we were staying at the Sunset Inn/Stone Lizard. Since the only other option was a burger stand, we decided to check out FattboyZ.
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We were served promptly and when Sharon’s tea and Peter’s lemonade were delivered in a quart Mason Jar, we had some idea that the portions would be large.
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Sharon ordered the $8.99 Navajo Taco which was chili served on top of a large round piece of fry bread. It turned out to be good but way too much for Sharon.
Having never had one before and throwing caution to the wind, Peter ordered the chicken fried steak…his first ever. He opted for the traditional ‘white sauce’. It was $12.99 and came with a trip to the salad bar.
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The chicken fried steak arrived and appeared to be some sort of steak that had been pounded flat, breaded and then fried in oil. It was covered with the white sauce which seemed like sausage gravy. It was accompanied by onion rings, mashed potatoes with more sauce and, in case you’re still hungry, a couple of thick slices of thick toast.
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They don’t fool around at FattboyZ. Peter enjoyed his artery-clogging treat but wondered aloud if he’d make it out the door without a gout attack. Neither of us came close to finishing our meal. And Sharon made Peter scrape most of the white “gravy” off anyways…
05-SEP-2012
We went back to the room and watched a little of the Dems national convention. Peter had a few tense moments when he though he’d lost the memory card that he’d taken out of the camera earlier in the day…the one with all the picture he’d taken so far. He located it under the seat of the car, so all was well.
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9/5
Up early, and while Peter was perking a pot of coffee outside, Sharon had her own freakout when she couldn’t find her purse. She thought she must’ve left it at the restaurant. It was quickly located behind one of the suitcases where it had slipped out of sight. Though we were wide awake at that point, we still enjoyed a cup of coffee.
Peter went to top off the gas and saw an older gentleman with his 1951 Jeep he’d driven from Wyoming. He was getting ready to “head out on some trails”. You have to admire his pluck!
We could see the water dripping onto the front ledge of the alcove of the main ruin. Once again, water was the draw for the puebloans. We enjoyed the view as the sun rose higher in the sky.
About a half hour in, we came upon the first ruin. It was the famous House on Fire Ruin…one of the most photographed in the area. We explored for an hour or so.
We continued up the canyon for another 45 minutes or so and stopped a few times to scramble up into alcoves looking for ruins or rock art but found none.
We decided to head back to the car. It was getting hot, and we still thought we’d be stopping at Natural Bridges. It was 12:30pm by the time we made it to the car. We had skipped breakfast, and after the hot hike we were feeling a little spacey. Out came the crackers for a small snack as we set out.
05-SEP-2012
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Once again we entered a massive landscape with red cliffs above us and the deep White Canyon below. To our eastern eyes it is spectacular but a bit intimidating. Such a beautiful but unforgiving place.
We enjoyed the scenery until we stopped to look off a high bridge into the canyon where the Colorado River heads into Lake Powell.
A few miles from Hanksville, we saw a poor Winnebago that had seen its last mile abandoned along the highway. It had been stripped and vandalized beyond redemption…what a sorry sight.
In Hanksville we headed west back toward Capitol Reef and Torrey, the way we’d come nearly a week before. We were diligent and made good time until we got to Capitol Reef. We slowed down behind some newbies who were driving slowly as they took in the scenic drive into the park. Who can blame them?
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We were quite hungry by the time we reached Torrey so we stopped at Austin’s again. Sharon had a pair of tacos and Peter a burrito to hold us over until dinner at the Hells Backbone Grill. 75¢ gets you a great side of guacamole.
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We headed over Boulder Mountain and were glad for the daylight. Several deer and lots of cattle were spotted near the road along the way so we kept the speed down. This isn’t someplace to be driving at night.
At 7:30 we walked over to
Hell's Backbone Grill for dinner. The place was packed, and we were glad we had a reservation. We were seated and learned that our lovely young waitress was adopted as a baby, grew up in Boulder and was now attending college in Cedar City. As small as Cedar City is, it “at least has a real grocery store”. It sounds as though she loves Boulder but is ready to move on. She was a little self-conscious about the braces on her teeth that had only been installed earlier that day.
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We started with a beet salad with local goat cheese and a yummy spicy bean posole with fresh warm bread.
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For wine, we settled on an ’08 Wild Thing old vine Zinfandel.
Sharon ordered pasta with a red pepper sauce, local goat cheese and smoked trout. Grilled zucchini and green beans, and fresh cucumber from their garden were on the side. Sharon thought it was great…the local smoked trout really made it special.
Peter had the braised local beef. It was served in a bowl on top of Swiss chard on top of polenta with the same veggies on the side. The beef was falling apart tender and wonderfully seasoned but Peter would have preferred it not stacked in a bowl but on a plate.
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Blake stopped by to welcome us back…not sure if she really remembers us after 5 years but she made us feel like part of the family.
Blake’s sister Lavinia has moved on, now living in San Francisco and having great success as a writer, publishing a travel guide for women.
Our amusement for the evening was the foursome seated at the next table. They were enjoying plenty of wine and having a loud conversation. It was pretty easy to hear that it was two brothers. The younger (mid-30s) was with his wife or SO and the older was recently divorced and accompanied by his recent, much younger girlfriend.
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There were a few awkward moments when the girl smacked her full glass of red wine into the wall. The glass shattered loudly, and wine ran down the wall. Once Blake and her crew cleaned up the mess, the unfazed foursome ordered more wine and partied loudly on. We headed back to the hottub.
06-SEP-2012
9/6
Peter was up early to take some pictures and get some coffee to go from Hells Backbone Grill.
He said good morning to Miss Kitty too.
We’re in no rush to depart so we wandered over to breakfast after an hour or so. We both ordered eggs with sage potato pancakes. Sharon had hers with buffalo sausage and toast with cinnamon butter. Peter went with elk sausage and tortillas. As good as the dinners at HBG are, their breakfasts are equally satisfying. Our waitress at breakfast was also a Boulder native and her mother was back in the kitchen making our breakfast. HBG sure seems to be a really good thing for the tiny town of Boulder.
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While waiting for breakfast, Peter was checking out
the interesting artwork and struck a conversation with a lady doing the same. It turns out she and her husband are from Pittsburgh and were in SLC for a wedding. They’d come a couple of days early to check out a little of southern Utah. They’d come down through Torrey, checked out Capitol Reef and spent the night at Boulder Mountain Lodge. We convinced them to continue down Hwy 12 and check out Bryce Canyon before returning to SLC. They we pretty impressed with what they’d seen so far and were eager for more.
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We made a last visit to the hot tub before showering and making our exit at about 10:45am. Before we left, Peter wrote a nice note to Jen and Blake to accompany one of his pictograph paintings. Jen was there and really loved the piece and had “just the place for it” on her office wall. It is nice to think of your art occupying places where you have enjoyed such happy times.
We stopped once again at Escalante Outfitters so Peter could update his blog…a whole week gone so soon! On the way out of Escalante, we stopped to take a picture of the vintage
Shooting Star Diive-in. Pulling back onto the road, we were just getting up to about 50 mph and a large buck leapt from the scrubby ditch right into the path of the car.
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Peter writes, “It happened so fast I just stood on the brakes. The coolers, suitcases and everything else behind us came slamming forward and pressed us hard against the seatbelts. The car was slowing as fast as it could but a collision seemed unavoidable. At the last moment the buck heard all the commotion and, in a single leap, disappeared back into the brush…we’d missed it by inches...good thing we weren’t going any faster than we were.”
We stopped at another pullout and were able to view a small ruin and some pictographs high above the road.
We’d decided to spend the night camping in Red Canyon. It would be cooler at the higher elevation, and we sleep a lot better in the cold. We drove past Bryce and found the campground at Red Canyon. There were lots of nice sites available…we settled on site 16.
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The campground has running water and there are even coin operated showers. All the facilities are extremely clean and well kept by the campground host. He even sweeps the concrete areas in each campsite after each group leaves. We were very impressed! There was a poster warning of recent rattlesnake and scorpion activity so that was food for thought as we set up our tent and gathered some firewood for later. This is a
Forest Service site, so its ok to collect wood.
We decided to spend the afternoon re-visiting Bryce since we had our park pass. On the way back to the park we stopped at
Bryce Canyon Pines for a late lunch.
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We both ordered the patty melt which we’d had here before. They are made from local beef and are served with Swiss cheese, sautéed onions on rye toast and home made French fries. Simple fare but simply delicious.
As we were enjoying the views strolling along the rim and listening to all the different languages from the usual international crowd, we ran into the couple from Pittsburgh.
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They raved about their drive down Hwy 12 and were overwhelmed by the beauty of Bryce. They were disappointed that they had to return to SLC by the next day and were already planning their return to continue exploring Utah.
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“This has to be the best kept secret ever!” exclaimed the husband. We thought that was pretty amusing considering we were surrounded by people from all over the globe. We wished them well and spent the rest of the afternoon walking the rim and driving out to some of the viewpoints for photos.
We left Bryce at about 6 PM and returned to our campsite. We gathered some more firewood and worked on polishing off the gin & tonic. After our large, late lunch, we decided to skip making dinner at the campsite.
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Another camper came walking by and let us know where we could pick up the campground’s wireless internet signal…we didn’t even know it was available. We struck up a conversation with Steve, nicknamed Hutch, a retired commercial real estate agent from Oklahoma who's spent the last six months travelling in his Honda Civic. He’s camped his way down the coast of California, thru New Mexico and Arizona and had just arrived in Utah. He was also impressed with the cleanliness of Red Canyon’s campground. We told him that every place we stayed in Utah seemed very clean. Hutch was headed to Torrey and Capitol Reef in the morning, and we filled him in on
the scenic drive and all the attractions ahead.
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From there the conversation wandered over a wide variety of topics for another hour or so. When we finally said good night, Hutch seemed like an old friend. We finished the gin and enjoyed the fire until about 10:30 before diving into the tent.
9/7
In the morning we were brewing a pot of strong coffee and taking down the tent when Hutch pulled up. He was headed off up Hwy. 12. He showed us his radio set up in his car. Beside him on the passenger seat was a keypad. He uses Morse Code to communicate with distant friends and family as he travels. Hutch may be travelling solo but he is never alone. He is an interesting man, and it was our great pleasure to have had the chance to meet him.
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We sipped our coffee in the crisp cool air and drank in the scenery as we loaded the car after our last camping night.
It seemed like the Bryce Canyon Pines would be a good breakfast joint so we decided to stop there before driving to Springdale. Sure enough BCP offers a classic home made breakfast menu. Sharon ordered eggs, bacon, hash brown patty and toast. Peter had the same but tried the home made corned beef hash instead of bacon. It was all great and the coffee was even pretty good.
We drove slowly in the east entrance of Zion NP enjoying the scenery and snapping pictures. This is another stretch of road that never gets old.
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We wanted to find someone in the
Zion campground to donate our folding chairs to since we couldn’t fit them in our luggage. We cruised the campground slowly until we spotted a young couple with a tiny tent sitting at their picnic table. Peter hopped out and offered them the chairs with an explanation. They were a little confused since only the girl seemed to understand English but she sent the guy over to accept the chairs nodding their gratitude.
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We found someone else to take the last propane cylinder off our hands in the campground as well. It is nice to think that our chairs are still getting passed along from camper to camper, still having fun in Utah.
We checked into our room at
Canyon Ranch Motel right across the street from the
Desert Pearl. Very nice and spotlessly clean...pool and a hot tub as well.
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It was hot as we emptied the car to do the final pack up of all our camping gear and clothes for our flight home tomorrow night. It is not a joyful task but one that needs doing. We cranked up the AC in the room and folded and stuffed until the bags sat bulging on the bed.
As a reward for our effort we went for a cooling dip in the pool.
It is a lovely setting and very quiet even though you’re right in town.
Near that is the Museum of Photography…a wall of old photos of Springdale and the area. This is also the lobby of the Imax theater which displays interesting artifacts.
We ordered a couple of glasses of sauvignon blanc and some guacamole and chips for an appetizer
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Sharon ordered spaghetti squash enchilada with sautéed onions, goat cheese, fresh salsa, black beans and salad greens with chipotle vinaigrette.
Peter had spicy beef tenderloin tacos. The food was wonderful, and a shower rained down as we enjoyed our entrees. It actually rained pretty hard while the sun shone brightly…another amusing southwestern moment.
After dinner we went to find the
rock art panel out the east entrance past the second tunnel. The rangers won’t tell you where the rock art is but we’d already learned the way there from some locals.
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Heading east toward the east entrance you'll go through the big tunnel then the second smaller one. Not far beyond that you'll see the only pullout that is bordered by a wooden fence. It is the ONLY pullout with a wooden fence. Park there by the fence. Drop down into the wash and bear right through the beautiful masonry tunnel under the road. The rock art will be along the rock face that will be on your left after you go through the tunnel under the road. Look for short foot trails to the left to the rock art.
We startled some desert big horn sheep as we came out of the tunnel. This annoyed the male who grunted and growled at us.
Only a little further on, we followed footprints off to the left toward the base of the cliff and there we found the petroglyphs.
We took lots of pictures of the odd and breathtaking scenery. The light was fading as we strolled back to the car and made our way back through the tunnels, down the switchbacks and into Springdale.
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We were back at the motel and into the hot tub by 8:30 or so. There we met a couple from Massachusetts. They were visiting Zion from a Vegas vacation and wishing they’d spent more of their time exploring Utah than in Vegas, which they thought they’d enjoy more than they were. They’ll be back.
Our flight out of Vegas isn’t until 11:30pm so we have lots of time. As we made our way toward Hurricane, we passed many runners competing in an event. There seems to be some tradition involving shoes and this tree…odd!
We’ve always been intrigued by the
Kolob Reservoir Road so we headed back and up that road. It turned out to be a great move. The road goes up and up, in and out and in the back side of Zion NP.
There was wide open prairie edged by large cliffs.
Wildflowers were taking advantage of the rainy season.
We went even higher up to Lava Point for a look at the back side of Zion Canyon, looking small off in the distance. There’s a small campground with 6 sites and a bear population, as well.
We followed the road around the lake as far was we could until it disappeared into the lake.
We made our way back down to Rt 9 and stopped at the trading post tourist trap in Virgin at about 2pm.
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Headed south toward St. George, then stopped for a late lunch in Mesquite.
Los Lupes is a local Mexican restaurant where we enjoyed some traditional fare. Great home made guacamole, chips and salsa. Peter had chile relleno with beans and rice. Sharon opted for a chicken enchilada, beans and rice. All very nice.
It was HOT…hovering around 103 F when we hiked out the petroglyph trail. Hot going but the extent of the rock art was impressive and worth the effort. Still we were glad to be back in the air conditioned car.
We made it back in plenty of time to drag our baggage through the 106° heat from the car to the shuttle and into the terminal.
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We settled in for the hour’s wait to board and then the night flight home with our adventures in the canyons of Utah over for now.