Day 21: Relaxing at Goblin Valley

It was a chilly night with a full moon that lit up everything like daylight.  We awoke early and after breakfast we went out to hike the Curtis Bench Trail.  This trail was an easy one that followed the ridge line (bench) over the valley.  Within a short time we were looking down onto hundreds and hundreds of goblins!  

Coming up a small rise, Dan stopped me to “Look!”.  There, right ahead, was a buck antelope---beautiful.  He did not seem particular spooked by us, but as we approached, we moved off, and as we got closer to where we had first seen him, we realized that below, in a little depression, was a herd of females and young.  He must have given a signal because off, they all went. 

We lounged most of the afternoon.  With no cell phone service (to use as a hot spot) and no Wi-Fi, we just read books and looked at the scenery.  We had a repeat of last night’s dinner:  burgers grilled over our campfire.  With no electric hookup and dark coming earlier and earlier, we were soon in bed.

Hoping to reach a place soon with stronger Wi-fi so that I can put up some of my photos.  I have been taking plenty of them!

Day 20: Arrival at Goblin Valley

We left Torrey and continued along Hwy 24.  The first part of the road went through Capitol Reef, so we enjoyed the amazing red rock formations for awhile.  Then the road followed the Fremont River, lots of vegetation and quite pretty.  Once past Hanksville we were out in a very dry, barren stretch,  not much to look at.  We turned off the highway, still in rather ugly environment, past Temple Mountain, and arrived at Goblin Valley State Park.

The advantage of state parks is that they are dog-friendly: Ranger can hike with us.  The disadvantage, at least of this one, is no phone service, no internet. 

Our site is a pull-through in a small campground of about 25 sites, tucked into a hollow with huge red cliffs along the west side and a LONG view across the desert to the east.  It has a covered table, so we have some shade---Hurray!  This being a Saturday, the campground is full, with quite a few families with small children who seem to love climbing up the brown, dried-mud hills and sliding down.

We took a short hike to the actual valley to see the goblins.  The trail was in a gully between the dried-mud walls, not much of a view, but Ranger seemed to enjoy himself, climbing up onto the side walls and sliding down again.  The end of the trail was at the overlook of Goblin Valley, where we saw the weird, rounded, mushroom-like towers for which the park is named.

Day 19: Visit to Capitol Reef National Park

We awoke to a temperature of 38 degrees with high wind.  Brrrr!  Ranger was very happy on his morning walk but I certainly was not.

We have had intermittent problems with the refrigerator, and since there was an RV repair service next door to the campground, Dan got in touch with “Biggie” who came over in late morning and maybe….maybe…fixed the problem.  We’ll know for sure when we camp at the next place, which does not have electrical hookups.  (The problem was only evident when the fridge is supposed to be running on propane.)

So it was about noon when we headed out to Capitol Reef.  What amazing scenery!

We started with a short hike at Goosenecks Overlook and then Sunset Point, where the red rock formations were almost hard to believe.  We then proceeded along the ten-mile scenic road through the park, passing all sorts of weird shapes along the way.  The paved road ended at a 2 ½ mile dirt road that led to Capitol Gorge, where a mile-long trail went between the huge rock walls.  The walls had some very old petroglyphs on them, as well as names inscribed from the late 19^th/early 20^th century when this path was used by Mormon settlers who set up a community along the river.

At the end of this trail, we opted to continue onto the Tanks Trail, which led to large round indentations in the rock that collect rainwater and become home to tadpoles and other small critters.

Strangely enough, after such a cold start to the day, by late afternoon, we felt hot and a bit dehydrated from our hiking.  (It got into the low 70's, but that sun was HOT.)

Back at our campsite, we had dinner and planned on an early bedtime after a busy day.

Day 18: From Virgin to Torrey

After five days in Virgin, just outside Zion National Park, we traveled north in I-15, then east to Torrey, Utah.  We are currently at Thousand Lakes RV Park, near Capitol Reef National Park.  The RV park is not nearly as nice as the previous one:  Gravel parking lot, a few trees, neighbors close on either side.  But the people running it are very friendly and the basic facilities are fine.

The drive was only about 200 miles, so we arrived in time to drive to the visitors’ center at the national park.  This is obviously a “minor” park, compared to Grand Canyon or Zion.  The center was small, just an information desk, a gift shop, and a small display.  However, the rock formations on the drive there were amazing.  Lots of red rock, with stripes of white and green, odd shapes, some rounded, some pointed.

It was a windy afternoon, too windy to grill the chicken as planned, so we went to a local café for dinner.  The hostess seated us at a table for six, with another couple who had entered at the same time.  We had a pleasant hour or so, chatting with them and eating a good meal. (I had salmon---nicely prepared.)  They were from Michigan, on vacation for three weeks, and visiting a number of national parks in the west, though traveling in the opposite direction from us (counter-clockwise). 

The wi-fi is very weak in this location, so the next few entries will be without photos , though I am sure that I will snap lots of those as we tour Capitol Reef tomorrow!

Day 17: More hiking in Zion

We again went to the park early.  The first stop was Weeping Rock Trail, a brief but steep walk to a moist area in the rocks where ferns and flowers grew from the water seeping through the rock.

From there, we took the shuttle bus to the end of the valley and we walked the length of the Riverside Walk, along the Virgin River.

Where the trail ends, the Narrows Trail begins.  This is a well-known hike in which you walk THROUGH the river, as the space between the rock walls becomes narrower and narrower.  Dan and I did that hike the last time we visited Zion, and we opted to skip it this time.

Along the way, we saw another mule deer, as well as many of these guys---rock squirrels. Think he has been getting some handouts from the tourists?  

After a nice lunch out, we returned to the campground for relaxation, one more good shower (and for me, a swim in the pool), and some packing up before we leave tomorrow for Torrey, Utah.  

Day 16: Hiking in Zion National Park

We left the campground early to avoid the heat and the crowds at the park, arriving a little after 9:00.  We took the bus to Zion Lodge, where we picked up the Emerald Pools Trail.  It started as a paved walkway but became a rocky and dusty trail as we neared the upper pool.

A few raindrops fell on the windshield of the bus as we returned to the visitors center, and when we looked back into the valley as we reached the car, a storm was rolling in.

I had time before the rain moved in at the campground in Virgin to do a grocery shopping trip to La Verkin.  Then the rest of the afternoon, it rained---then sun came out---more rain and thunder---more sunshine.  At times, pouring rain while the sun was shining!  Poor Ranger did not enjoy the storm, but we didn't mind a little "down time".  The temperature dropped as the rain moved through, so we had a nice cool (52) night for sleeping.  

Day 15: A trip to Bryce Canyon National Park

The weather forecast was for one more hot day in the Zion area, so we decided to go where it was cooler---Bryce Canyon.  And yes, it was sunny, windy, and about 70 there, a nice change from the heat of the past few days.  

We had planned to go to Bryce anyway; it is Dan's favorite park in Utah.  We got a fairly early start and enjoyed the drive through the famous tunnel through a mountain in Zion, to get to the east side of the park.

The east side of Zion is drier, more desert-like, with huge rock formations.  It's hard to believe the way that the rock layers have shifted at all different angles!

We stopped for a burger and fries at a funky diner in Hatch, UT, then headed into Bryce Canyon National Park.

It was very busy with tourists, but not nearly as crazy as Zion had been on Sunday.  We were able to get a parking spot near the Lodge and walk to the rim.  

Bryce is somewhat more dog-friendly than other national parks, so we were able to walk Ranger along the rim, on the paved sections. He was also welcome on the bike trail that winds through the park.  It was good to be able to not leave him in the car while we toured.

We had been here before (maybe 12 years ago?) but the view was just as impressive as when we first saw it.  I took way too many photos; how can you capture those hoodoos?

Best day of the trip, so far!