Pioneer Day

Happy Pioneer Day!  So, just how did you celebrate today?  Off of work, spending time with friends and family?  Did you light fireworks and have a big BBQ?  Did you go to the town parade and wave your flag?  Did you go to the town dance hall or go to a rodeo?

No?  You didn’t even know it existed?  Don’t worry, until today, I didn’t either!  On Monday morning, I thought I heard the weather man say something about nice weather for the holiday, but I sort of shrugged it off thinking he just meant the weekend.  Oh, I was wrong.  Today, for Utah is almost as big as the fourth of July.  One local in fact told me the 24^th of July is sometimes larger than the 4^th of July.  But when I asked at lunch what it celebrated, no one could really tell me.  So, like any good researcher, I turned to Wikipedia.  According to Wikipedia, this day commemorates “the first group of Mormon pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847, where the Latter-day Saints settled after being forced from Nauvoo, Illinois and other locations in the eastern United States.”

Wow!  Who knew?  The holiday did not really affect me too much, but there did seem to be more locals out and about enjoying themselves, and there were fireworks after dark tonight.  Unfortunately, the dance here in Escalante is tomorrow night, so I will miss that.

After a glorious night sleep, with little sprinkles of rain drops to enhance my sleep, I again headed east in search of more spectacular scenery.  I stopped at a Visitor’s Center and enquired about what I should see.  Southern Utah is almost entirely covered with state and national parks, the largest of which, Grand Staircase-Escalante is actually a monument, not a park.  I found this odd because the only other National Monuments I had visited on this trip were Pipestone and Rushmore: places where there was really one “mound” to see, so a “monument” made sense to me.  I asked the ranger why it was a national monument rather than a national park.  She explained that this national monument was one of the last things Clinton did during his time in office, so in all honesty, it is not that old.  The land was very rural and he wanted it to stay that way (apparently setting up a national park requires certain changes).  The land here is so remote in fact that it was the last place in the continental US to be mapped.  As a national monument, local ranchers are still allowed to let their cattle roam on the land as well.  It is over 1.8 million acres, larger than several New England states.  The land remains a frontier today, a wonderful gift to us all, but this also makes the area less accessible.

There are several roads into the park, but they are all gravel and the ranger advised me not to travel them in my car with recent thunderstorms, and the chance for more this afternoon.  He pointed me instead to a local state park, the scenic highway 12 which goes along the edge of the monument, and sometimes dips into it, and then one moderate hike that was right along the highway.  Perfect plan!

I visited Kodachrome Basin State Park where I did two short walks that gave me great views of the surrounding scenery: tall peaks with layers of colored sandstone.  The perfect setting for rattlesnakes, but thankfully, I was able to enjoy the scenery without encountering any no-shoulders.  I saw a sign for Chimney Rock, and delighted, I drove out to the point where one tall rock stood on its own.  I was curious if the rock would resemble the famous Chimney Rock at Lake Martin… not so much!  But both lovely in their own setting.

 

Like the trail sign?

Chimney Rock

I traveled down Highway 12, and it was really scenic.  Similar landscape to what I had been seeing, but it just went on forever.  But after passing through the small town of Escalante, like coming up to the Grand Canyon, I was suddenly in a whole new setting.  I’m not sure how to describe the view.  It would sound odd if I said rolling hills of rock because of course we don’t think of rocky hills as being “rolling,” but that’s really what they looked like.  And it was as far as the eye could see: miles and miles of rocky curves in the landscape dotted with trees.  Incredible!

I found the trailhead for Lower Calf Creek Falls and after loading up with water and sunscreen I set off.  The beginning of the trail was quite brutal: direct sunlight with very little shade while walking on sand through desert plants.  I really don’t know how those who once lived off the land here did it.  The three-mile journey became more pleasant with some shade and varying scenery along the canyon walls.  Most of the journey followed alongside a creek bed.  The amount of life springing from the creek bed was astounding: so much greenery!  In the desert, water truly is life.

Then, I began to hear it, the 120-foot waterfall that I had come to see.  Although I was worn out and sore from walking that far in sand, I was almost at a run to get to the water.  The waterfall pours into a shaded cavern, open, and yet covered by an overhang in the canyon walls, creating a pool at the bottom.  The air in this cavern was cool, misty and a welcome relief from the surrounding desert.  I watched a couple children play in the pool, I walked barefoot on the cool sand and dipped my feet into the refreshing water.  I stayed here for a while, reviving myself before making the long journey back along the same path I had traveled.

Three hours after beginning my journey, I returned to my car hot, sandy and exhausted, but totally exhilarated at the site I had just seen and the accomplishment of the six-mile journey in the desert.

Look carefully - do you see the petroglyphs?

I came back to Escalante where I had booked a small cabin.  I had debated between just pitching a tent here, as both the tent and the cabin would be sharing the same bathroom, but the cabin had a fan, and well, that seemed worth the extra money!

I hope you and your family also had a wonderful Pioneer Day!

Miles traveled: 115

Hours in the car: 3.5

Gallons of gas purchased: 0
States: Utah