(c) 2010 Lydia Hinshaw
Mama pronghorn herds her twins
View within a viewBRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK, UT -- The driving time from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, where we live, to Bryce Canyon is a bit over three hours, but it seems like four due to the "lost hour."
Arizona does not spring forward and fall back (although the Navajo Nation in the northeastern part of the state does.) This time of year, folks from most of Arizona remain on Mountain Standard Time, and so we lose an hour whenever we cross the border into Utah, which observes Daylight Saving Time.
Since the giant ditch just to our south effectively cuts us off from the rest of Arizona, trips to Utah are quite common, to shop, or to visit Zion or Bryce or Cedar Breaks.
The lost hour makes it tough to get into Utah in time to get a decent campsite on our "Friday" which is actually Saturday since our days off are Sunday and Monday.
Saturday we got away a bit before five MST, found our first choice of campsites full, and followed signs seven miles down a washboard, dusty road to arrive at King's Creek campground in the Dixie National Forest around 9:15 p.m. MDT, as the last of the light faded away.
It was a fine campground, except for the bone-shaking drive down a road through open range. We had to stop twice to suggest to cows that they should move out of the road and let us pass.
The campsite cost $6 with Prince Charming's geezer pass. For that price, you get cold running water and flush toilets, but no electricity in the rest rooms, so good flashlights were essential.
We were the only campers at King's Creek without a single four-wheel ATV or dirt bike. We were glad to have arrived late enough that all our neighbors had shut down these noisemakers for the night.
We enjoyed the trip out Sunday more than the trip in, since we knew where we were going, we could see the crossing bovine obstacles better.
It was about 20 miles into Bryce, where we arrived at 8:21 a.m. and snared a great campsite inside the park and just a short walk from the canyon rim. This site cost $7.50, and there were lights in the bathrooms.
We hiked along the rim Sunday, enjoying Bryce's endlessly amazing rock formations, including the hole-in-the-wall above.
Monday morning we set out in search of wildlife, which we've seen precious little of since we left home nearly two months ago. Soon we ran across this pronghorn doe and her twins, grazing and frolicking among some trees. A Bryce shuttle bus driver had told us earlier that pronghorns should not be referred to as antelopes, because they aren't closely related to true antelopes in Africa.
Before we left Bryce we drove all the roads we hadn't driven before, and took dozens more pictures of scenery that really can't be captured with a camera.
Then we drove into Panguitch, UT, where we found good barbecue for lunch before heading south to the North Rim.
Collecting our lost hour at the border got us home in time for dinner.
Arizona does not spring forward and fall back (although the Navajo Nation in the northeastern part of the state does.) This time of year, folks from most of Arizona remain on Mountain Standard Time, and so we lose an hour whenever we cross the border into Utah, which observes Daylight Saving Time.
Since the giant ditch just to our south effectively cuts us off from the rest of Arizona, trips to Utah are quite common, to shop, or to visit Zion or Bryce or Cedar Breaks.
The lost hour makes it tough to get into Utah in time to get a decent campsite on our "Friday" which is actually Saturday since our days off are Sunday and Monday.
Saturday we got away a bit before five MST, found our first choice of campsites full, and followed signs seven miles down a washboard, dusty road to arrive at King's Creek campground in the Dixie National Forest around 9:15 p.m. MDT, as the last of the light faded away.
It was a fine campground, except for the bone-shaking drive down a road through open range. We had to stop twice to suggest to cows that they should move out of the road and let us pass.
The campsite cost $6 with Prince Charming's geezer pass. For that price, you get cold running water and flush toilets, but no electricity in the rest rooms, so good flashlights were essential.
We were the only campers at King's Creek without a single four-wheel ATV or dirt bike. We were glad to have arrived late enough that all our neighbors had shut down these noisemakers for the night.
We enjoyed the trip out Sunday more than the trip in, since we knew where we were going, we could see the crossing bovine obstacles better.
It was about 20 miles into Bryce, where we arrived at 8:21 a.m. and snared a great campsite inside the park and just a short walk from the canyon rim. This site cost $7.50, and there were lights in the bathrooms.
We hiked along the rim Sunday, enjoying Bryce's endlessly amazing rock formations, including the hole-in-the-wall above.
Monday morning we set out in search of wildlife, which we've seen precious little of since we left home nearly two months ago. Soon we ran across this pronghorn doe and her twins, grazing and frolicking among some trees. A Bryce shuttle bus driver had told us earlier that pronghorns should not be referred to as antelopes, because they aren't closely related to true antelopes in Africa.
Before we left Bryce we drove all the roads we hadn't driven before, and took dozens more pictures of scenery that really can't be captured with a camera.
Then we drove into Panguitch, UT, where we found good barbecue for lunch before heading south to the North Rim.
Collecting our lost hour at the border got us home in time for dinner.
1 comment:
THIS SOUNDS BEAUTIFUL AND AMAZING. I WISH I COULD EXPERIENCE THIS
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