Capitol Reef and Canyonlands

I parted with Dan and Laurel today after having sashimi, getting an oil change, and sampling mead. Visiting with them was so much fun, but now I must get back to the toil and drudgery of touring the U.S. National Parks while traveling cross country in a yellow Subaru.

Take this pop quiz. Post answers on their blog, or on mine if you're really shy.

There's a definite upside to visiting some of the lesser known National Parks. Often you see almost as much, with less crowds. Capitol Reef and Canyonlands, both in Utah, are good examples of this.

I got to Capitol Reef toward the end of the day, and quickly drove down to the end of the Scenic Drive. From there I hiked down the Capitol Gorge trail, which features petroglyphs etched in the canyon walls by Indians circa 1300 AD. After spending a rather hot night in the park, I hiked up to Cassidy Arch the next morning. The arch is named for Butch Cassidy, who is thought to have had a secret hideout in this area.

Another feature of this trail is an abandoned uranium mine. It had opened in 1904 so that uranium could be mined and sold as a medicine to cure rheumatism. No word on whether the cure worked, but in my professional opinion, it didn't.

After my morning hike, I drove back towards the visitor centor, where at a nearby orchard I saw a sign saying "U-PICK FRUIT." I said to myself "I PICK FRUIT" and drove in, paid a dollar, and picked a bunch of fresh apricots for breakfast. What an improvement over trail mix and granola!

It was later in the day, and of course hotter, when I got to Canyonlands. Again, great scenery, no crowds.

Still way behind on the blog... should be catching up over the next few days!