Angels Landing

Up early ( 10:30) and ready to explore Zion Canyon. After the sampling the resort’s breakfast of Biscuits ‘n Gravy, we were ready to tackle another of the many trails in Zion Canyon. We weren’t sure which trail to take, so we turned to the Zion National Park Map and Guide. They have eighteen hikes listed in their Hiking Guide divided into Easy, Moderate, and Strenuous. What the heck, this will be our last day in the park, so we went for the Strenuous. The Guide had a picture of some hikers walking along a trail while hanging onto a support chain which had been installed along a section of the trail. This would be the hike.
The trail started off following along the Virgin River for about 1/3 mile. Then it doubled back and started heading up the mountain; 100 yards forward with a 15 foot elevation gain, then zigzag back and up for another hundred yards. The trail followed this pattern with the straight stretches reducing from 100 yards, to 50 yards, 100 feet, 25 feet, and near the top the trail went only 10 feet forward with a 10 foot elevation gain before switching back again. Now that’s climbing!

With Julianna leading the way I finally managed to make it to the first plateau, huffing and puffing like The Little Engine That Could. Every so often Juliana would look back and ask “Are you OK grandpa”; “Is your heart OK grandpa”; “Would you like to rest grandpa”? Give me a break! I won’t be seventy ‘till next month.

As we were hiking, we had encountered many groups of college students, fresh from graduation exercises from the nearby colleges of BYU, Snow and others. As we zigzagged up the trail, some of the other groups ahead of us had already reached the first plateau or landing. It was now their duty as the younger generation to let out all their cat calls; Hellooooo, Yodel-e-hi-hoo, Marco--Polo, all the standard calls, and of course the final clarion call of R-i-c-o-l-a!

Julianna and I continued right on up to the next level. After about fifty feet, the trail narrowed considerably, from about two feet wide, down to one foot and then down to eight inches. Suddenly the trail seemed to disappear altogether and was replaced by a chain attached to the side of the cliff. With widths of five inches, then only two inches, the trail continued on. As I proceeded on, my hand became frozen to the chain. I inched along the trail with of strides of 6 to 7 inches in length, counting each link as I went, rather than look down the other side of the two inch trail to a sheer cliff which I am sure went straight down to a depth of at least seven miles. I was going so slow that Julianna had long since left me in the dust, and she was not even hanging on to the chain. Occasionally I would run into a person on their way back down; faces drained of any sign of life, eyes glued into the side of the mountain, and their knuckles white from griping on to the chain. Was this to be my fate? What had I done to myself? After inching along the final section of chain, I was greeted by the calm and reassuring eyes of Juliana. “OK grandpa; let’s go on to the next section”. And to think that this is my own grandchild! There were fifteen people or so resting on the landing, some on the return trip, some contemplating whether they should continue on or just jump over the edge and end it all right now. Wimps!
I really can’t tell you much about the rest of the trail. My final traverse was done strictly on automatic pilot. I grabbed onto the chain so tight that I am sure I left indents in it from my fingers. My eyes were tightly closed and I no longer stepped, I just shuffled. Slide one foot forward two inches, bring up the other foot until they touched; step, slide, step, slide. After what seemed like an eternity I finally reached the final resting place, not mine, but that of the trail; or so I thought. After I pried my cramped hands from the length of chain and opened my eyes, I could see that there was still yet another section of trail to cover. This section was almost straight up. I could see others braver than myself fighting back tears as they slowly descended down the trail, hanging on to the section of chain as if it were the very umbilical cord which brought them into this totally unfair life.
And then Julianna showed her true colors. “You can wait here while I go up the rest of the way if you want grandpa”. What a lovely child. “You go ahead” I said, “I think I will rest here for a while”. Oh sure, as soon as you’re gone I will get my sorry … off of this mountain!
I rested for a while, talking with some others who had finished the climb; and others, older and wiser like myself, who were just waiting for the rest of their party to return from the top. After a slight rest, and mustering every last ounce of courage I had, I began to retrace my steps back along the chain linked sections of trail down to the previous level. I gained some comfort in the fact that there were two rangers following me down the chain traverse. Whether they just happened along or whether they thought that I looked like a leaper, I don't know; don't much care either.
Finally I reached the last of the lifeline chain section of the trail and could now sit back with the comfort of knowing that I was still alive and that I just had to wait for Julianna's return. I sat down and talked with some other hikers about the final ascent, but it wasn’t long before Julianna returned, full of exuberance and telling me of the great hike and the spectacular views.

At last we were on our way down, and it wasn’t long before we reached the secure switchback portion of the trail. I looked back over my shoulder at that old serpent of a trail; good riddance I thought. As I looked back I could see an older lady half way down the chain trail from the top. She had made it to the top, but by the way she was shaking and just inching along, I knew that she wasn’t enjoying it. Just look at her tremble. Such tiny baby steps she was taking, and she still has two chain lengths of trail to go. Well, she isn’t going to make it. She will probably fall past us on the way down, screaming and kicking for every bit of the 1500 foot drop to the bottom.

Well, that’s all behind us now. I know I could have made it up that last section of trail, but I didn’t want to slow everyone else down. Now Julianna, she is something else; that girl is truly amazing.

Since I managed to leave my camera behind in the RV, I have borrowed pictures from others about the trail; then there is one awesome youtube video shot by two adventurous young men which you do not want to miss.

  

Youtube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8ygjEUFI1E&feature=related

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Zion National Park


After the wonderful experience of dinning at Parry Lodge, we continued on our journey to Zion National Park. The approach to the park is nothing out of the ordinary; green rolling hills, fields of buffalo, and verdant hills of cottonwood and oak. Once you enter the park all that changes; colorful sandstone mountains shaped by eons of erosion caused by the Virgin River which flows through the canyon present awesome vistas at every turn.

A short distance from the entrance is the historic Zion-Mt Carmel Tunnel carved into the side of the mountain. Having been built in the 1920’s the tunnel dimensions do not allow the larger RV’s used by today’s traveler to travel in one lane through the tunnel. Traffic on one end of the tunnel must be stopped while the larger vehicles, namely us, pass through while driving down the middle of the tunnel road. This is nice, as it gives us more time to enjoy the tunnel. The feelings of grandeur while driving down the middle of the road and holding up all that travel behind me often makes me break out in song of “Hail to the Chief”.

Periodically in the sides of the tunnel length, windows have been cut in the rock providing a quick view of the canyon below.

We drove through the canyon for a quick survey of what we would like to do after we set up camp for the night. We pulled into the Zion River Resort for the night’s stay. It was a beautiful facility, and we managed to get a spot right by the river.

After we set up camp, Julianna and I wanted to go on a short introductory hike. Watchman Trail was the hike of choice; a moderate hike of three miles which took us up a trail with a view of the Towers, the Virgin River, lower Zion Canyon, and the nearby town of Springdale. Nothing to write home about, but it was a good introduction to the canyon.

After we returned from the hike, we ate dinner, investigated the campground and retired for the evening.

2010 – AZ -WA – Julianna




May has come and with it comes the warmer weather. Right now the weather here at our home in MountainBrook, Gold Canyon, AZ is just about perfect; the nights are cool and the days are sunny and warm. None the less, we must be heading back to our summer retreat in Gig Harbor, WA. It seems as though our son will be getting married over the Memorial Day weekend, and of course we want to be there for the wedding.

Our granddaughter Julianna, who just graduated from Washington State University, has flown down to AZ and will now be accompanying us back to WA with us in our 5th wheel RV. We have taken our grandkids on many of our RV trips, but for the most part it has been Juliana who has been our traveling companion. Now that she is graduated and starting out her own life and career, I think that this trip may be our last chance we will have to travel with her. She will be moving on. Julianna is a free spirit, and the maker of her own destiny.

When we arrive at one of our mid-day stops or find an RV site for the night, I never have to ask “Want to go explore”? It is more often something like “Hey, wait for me”. We’ve been rafting down rivers together; climbing mountains; flying down the roller coaster ride on Magic Mountain in Disney Land, as well taking a ride in the Dumbo Tea Cup. We have been on a cruise to China and a train ride up the Oregon coast. We’ve spent the night watching meteor showers, then searching out the moons of Jupiter and the Orion Nebula through the mighty Hyde Observatory telescope. And of course there were the things where I had to take the initiative and say “Let’s go”! Ah yes, those were the operas and the symphonies; enjoyed, but really something that does not need to be repeated.

And so our next adventure begins. The plan was to leave our summer home in MountainBrook and travel north through Arizona to Lake Powell and the Glen Canyon Dam. We arrived at about 4:30 pm at the Wahweap Campground at Lake Powell and set up the 5th wheel trailer. When we finished we headed down to the office to register our campsite for the night and get tickets for a tour boat ride on the lake to the Rainbow Bridge the following day. We were successful with the evening reservations, but the tour boat ride was all sold out for the following day. Bummer! As a consolation prize, I suggested we take a drive down to the Horseshoe Bend overlook on the Colorado River. Located on Hwy 89 about five miles south of Page, Horseshoe Bend is a magnificent overlook which gives breathtaking view of a horseshoe shaped bend in the Colorado River. It only took us about twenty minutes to get there. There is a well maintained trail of about ¾ miles to the canyon overlook which gives you a 1000 foot view, straight down, to the Colorado River. The river makes a wide sweep around a sandstone escarpment forming a horseshoe shaped bend, hence the name. The park brochure suggests instead of walking out to the edge (which has no guardrail) that you crawl out to the edge on hands and knees, lay down prone on your stomach and peer over the edge, down, down, down, 1000 feet straight down to a beautiful horseshoe shaped bend in the Colorado River.

After that exciting little jaunt it was time to get back to the RV and have dinner. When we arrived back at the campsite we turned on the lights and started the stove. I noticed that some of the lights did not work, and when I tried to start the gas hot water heater it did not work either. Bummer! I had had the trailer in just the week before to get a short in the tail lights fixed and I now suspect that he screwed up some of the other lights. There were only two or three lights that worked, no hot water, and we all smelled like some of the road kill we had passed along the way. Oh this was going to be a great vacation alright; A VACATION FROM HELL that is!

I spent the rest of the night testing the lights and trying to find the master fuse, which I suspect is buried deep in the bowels of the RV. Well, that would have to wait until tomorrow. I was tired from all the driving and disappointed that we would not be seeing the Rainbow Bridge, so we fumbled around in the dark and finally slipped off into the safe imaginations of our dreams.

The next morning I was up at dawn, took the dogs out for their walk, and was now ready to tackle the electrical problem by a thorough inspection of the innards of the beast. I started taking out tool boxes, boots, packs, and whatever else I had to remove from the undercarriage of the RV to get at the master fuse. I removed a box with a 24 foot sewer hose support in it; next was a 24 can box of Coke, when all of the sudden Julianna yells out “We have lights”! “We have lights”, how so I asked? I peered at the wall next to the cargo door in the underside of the rig noticed that the two push-pull power-off switches had been pushed to the off position; probably when the box of Coke had been thrown up against the switches during one of my smooth accelerated starts. I had pulled out one of the switches during my inspection, which allowed the lights to go on, and now, pulling out both switches I proudly announced that once again, Master Mechanic Hyde had solved the problem.

After being made whole again, we traveled on to our nest destination, Zion National Park. On the way we passed through the small town of Kanab, Utah. Our good friends the Sterling’s live in Kanab, but we knew they would not be at home.

Being overcome by a minor case of the hungries we stopped in the town for lunch at Parry Lodge. Parry Lodge was the center point for moviemaking during the golden age of Hollywood. Many a fine actor has holed up at Parry Lodge to sleep, eat and to socialize during the shooting of a movie. Such notables as John Wayne, Frank Sinatra, Olivia De Havilland, Gregory Peck, Maureen O'Hara, Tyrone Power, Linda Darnell, Robert Taylor, Anne Bancroft, Dean Martin, Lana Turner, Clint Eastwood and Barbara Stanwyck are just a few of the hundreds of stars and character players that stayed at Parry's while filming in the many scenic locales in and around Kanab, Utah.

I was not only in shock and awe at the possibility of sitting in the same chair that John Wayne may have sat in, but the grilled shrimp lunch was great also.

Soda Pops

When you go out searching the world for exotic places and unusual finds, don’t forget to look in your own backyard. While you are out searching the globe for hidden treasures there is someone else from a far off land coming to a town near you just to see your local sights.

I found such a place in Miami, AZ. Miami was one of the copper mining boom towns; that of course was when copper was king. But as of late, according to the 2008 statistics, 23.6% of Miami residents had an income below the poverty level. Walking through the town on a weekday it appeared as if everybody had boarded up their place of business and gone home. The weekend brings a slightly more favorable outlook, but it still looks as if 50% of the businesses are boarded up; with the exception of Guyao’s Elrey Café, which was packed with customers on the Saturday that we were there.

The one gem in the town that I did find was Soda Pops Antique Store. Their business card says “Best Antique Store…Anywhere”! and I believe them. Our introduction to the store was by chance encounter; it looked interesting, it was open, and so we entered in and checked it out. As soon as I entered the store I fell in love with it. Hanging on the wall just up behind the cashier’s counter was a five foot replica of Mickey Mouse and Goofy with a six foot Coca-Cola bottle. The main theme of the store seemed to be Coca-Cola memorabilia, but there was no shortage of other grand articles of nostalgia. We spent more than an hour just looking and talking; we spent more time talking with owner Marcia Hughes than we did looking around the store.

They got their start in the business while on a vacation and owner Ron Hughes spotted an old Coco-Cola chest rusting away in a field. It had been used as target practice, but Ron could see that it had potential. They took it home and with a little TLC, OK a lot of TLC, some body putty and a few coats of paint, it looked brand new. After that they were always on the lookout for some unusual antique that they could restore and put in their shop. Ron’s wife Marcia told us of the time they were out treasure hunting when they found an old Merry-Go-Round airplane. They only had their car with them, and it was already full of new found treasures, so they tied the airplane to the roof of the car. Imagine the looks they got as they motored down the road with this miniature airplane tied to the roof and the propeller spinning as if it were ready for takeoff.

Once again, all it takes is a little restoration; some paint and the junkyard airplane will be ready to transport some young Red Baron off to fight in an imaginary WW1 dog-fight with the number one enemy Fighter Ace.

One of my favorite antiques in the store was a child’s barber chair. It was in the window display and I could only get a shot of it from outside the store looking in. It was a small barber’s chair that the child could sit in while his legs straddled the front quarter of a horse. It transformed an ordinary haircut into the fantasy world of Tom Mix or The Lone Ranger. How cool is that; instead of Just getting a haircut, you could be getting scalped! The horses head was even covered with real horse hair. “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him…”.

Gas pumps? They have gas pumps galore. They even had one that dated back to the early 1900’s. It would dispense gasoline by the quart. Today that would not even get you back home.

Right in the middle of the store was Laurel and Hardy, tucked into their roadster and ready to motor off to another one of their crazy destinations. In my childhood there was many a day I would go to the movies and follow right along with them on their wacky adventures.

My favorite picture didn’t turn out. It was the first picture I took in the place. There I was, the picture framed in my mind, while with trembling hands I raised the camera to my eye and snapped the picture which would launch my career right up there with the likes of Ansell Adams. Alas, I neglected the first rule of good photography, always use a tripod, or at least keep a steady hand. Oh well I can always go back and take another picture; which for sure I am going to do.