2018-15 Bryce Canyon NP and Kodachrome Basin St Pk UTAH

2018-15

along hwy 12, Dixie National Forest

Mount Carmel Junction
Dixie National Forest
Bryce Canyon National Park
Kodachrome State Park

Campground: Mount Carmel Junction. An open construction site often used for Horse rally events, they permit Rv’s to park overnight or a few nights for free. Boondocking site. Free. Weak to no Verizon signal.

Mount Carmel Junction, at construction site

Campground: Dixie National Forest, off of Tom Best Road/ hwy 12. Close to Bryce Canyon. Forest campsites, Free, limit two weeks. Good Verizon signal. Awesome location expansive views and forested settings. Elevation 7777 ft, could be cold at night.

Dixie National Forest, free camping

Campground: Kodachrome State Park. $30. Full hookups. No cell phone signals, no TV signals or radio, with spectacular views all around who needs any of that. Awesome modern campground. Mostly paved pull-thru sites, many with full hookups. Good paved road leading to state park which is at the end of the road. New Laundry room with excellent machines. FIVE STAR RATING.

Kodachrome Basin State Park, 5 star rating

Distance traveled: 100 miles

Heading out from Lake Powell, my original plan was to stop over in the nice town of Kanab, which has grown up nicely since I was last here. it’s also close to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Although I was recommended a few BLM free campsites outside of town near the Angel Canyon Loop, I discovered that all of the dispersed sites were located on red sandstone sand. Very fine and loose. Obviously I could have gotten stuck. So the decision was to continue heading north. Stopping off in Mount Carmel Junction for lunch, I had noticed an open field south of the junction where a couple of motor-homes were parked in a sand/gravel and asphalt staging area. Turned out that the company that owns the land permits Rv-ers to camp overnight. They also recently had a horse rally of some sort where ranchers and horsemen would go on 25, 50 and even 100 mile trail rides. That’s a lot of riding over a couple of days.

construction area behind my "free" campsite

some Junctions corners are more interesting than others

yes, I always take photos with my Store Indians

The junction is super busy as was the Lake Powell area with lots of tour buses and vacationers traveling through the area especially to Zion National Park. I decided to forgo it this time of year as the crowds are unbelievable. My plans are to head a bit further to some parks I haven’t experienced. Many rental Class C campers and a new rental Van-camper with colorful graphics all over the van. Great way for 1^st time campers and many foreign visitors to experience travel in the U.S. without the excessive expense of hotels.

Distance Traveled: 50 miles
Dixie National Forest

There are some excellent National Forest and BLM offices in this part of the country and the Red Canyon Visitor Center provided some great information about forest camping. I was able to get an awesome site right off of the main road, hwy 12. What a great site with views to die for. The only issue boondocking at this site and this time of year, is that the temperatures could and did get down to freezing at night. Daytime temps were in the mid 70’s. The solar panels and 4 deep cycle batteries were barely adequate to handle the needs to run the furnace fan which ran quite often throughout the night, set on 65 degrees. And I even turned the furnace off completely one night as the batteries were getting dangerously low.

I think I'm going to like this boondocking in National Forests

Bryce Canyon National Park

But it was really close to Bryce Canyon National Park, which I went to the next day. Crowds. Can we all say crowds together. Geez, Shuttle buses everywhere, cars, campers and tourists. Once again many foreign visitors enjoying our wonderful parks. This time, more Asian tourists. I did my best to enjoy the park and even descended down onto one of the trails leading to the bottom of the canyon. I only made it about half way, talk about a steep trail with many switchbacks along the way. Of course I also had to climb back up. Need I say, the trail was super crowded as well. No pushing or shoving or one would go right over the very steep cliff edges. Well, that was enough of that.

yes, I went about half way down this very steep path
before turning around and getting out of the crowds

the early morning light was
awesome today

Distance Traveled:
28 miles (three times)
Kodachrome State Park

Even before getting into Kodachrome State Park
the scenery is breathtaking

Deciding as much as I really liked the forested setting, the nighttime freezing was just a bit much. I think I had every blanket on top of my bed the last couple of nights. After driving over to Kodachrome State Park and discovering that they had a “first come first served” site available, I drove back, packed up the camper and came back to Kodachrome for a couple of nights stay. This is a park I’ve not been to in the past and will get to enjoy the area a bit. Can we talk 50 amp electric service, paved campsite, water and sewer hookups. Unfortunately no cell phone service. Life is almost perfect.

The National Geographic Society in 1949, named the park Kodachrome with the consent from the Kodak Film Corp. after their recent development of Kodachrome as a superior film for capturing the true colors of nature. The name fits the area well, as the colors in the rock formations and the blues of the sky are quite stunning and every changing depending on the time of day and changing light and shadow from puffy white clouds passing by overhead.

all picture up to this point
were taken outside of the park

now for some pictures inside the park
by the way, this is a corner of the new Laundry facilities

Shakespeare's Arch, super nice 2 mile
hike around the mountain range 

Inside Kodachrome State Park

and all the campsites are nestled around these awesome
structures

cedar trees, hundreds of years old

rock on top of a slick rock

much debate as to how these pillars were formed

Campers Note: Commercial campgrounds run around $40-$55 average in this area. There are a lot of BLM and especially National Forest campgrounds (most are Free) Red Canyon campground (National Forest) even has hookups at their campground. 3 State parks in the area run $30 a night.

Bike Note: from hwy 89/ hwy 12 junction there is a superb paved bike path running 55 miles parallel to the highway to Bryce Canyon.

a wash inside of Kodachrome State Park

It’s nice to be able to see and explore an area that I’ve been close too, but have never ventured into. Obviously a rugged area with all the unusual rock formations and stark looking mountain ranges, yet nestled between them are green valleys irrigated by rivers coursing through them. The elevation at the Forest campsite was 7777 feet and Bryce Canyon is 8,0000 feet. High enough that there are pine forests and the ever present cedar trees with their twisted trunks and branches from the strong winds that blow through the area. And also high enough as I’ve mentioned that it can easily get down to freezing temperatures as well.

Here at Kodachrome State Park, the elevation is around 5,000 feet and the temperature is easily 15 degrees warmer both daytime and at night.

Campers Note: I personally rate Kodachrome State Park my highest marks for visitors and campers alike. Campsites are excellent, laundry room is the best I’ve ever used at any campground. Scenery and scenic view stop offs are top notch and today I took a couple mile hike loop along Shakespeare’s arch which not only was a great hike, but the views along the way were pretty awesome. Best of all, the trail was a sand/clay mixture with no rocks, making for a very pleasant hike, up, down and around the entire mountain loop trail.

More Photos:

Mt Carmel Junction

Dixie National Forest

Bryce Canyon National Park

Kodachrome Basin State Park

Blanding Utah to Page Arizona, Rainbow Bridge

2018-14

Blanding Utah
Page Arizona
Lone Rock lake Powell Utah
Glen Canyon

Rainbow Bridge, the grand adventure!

Campground: Recapture Lake Recreation Area., Blanding. Boondocking. Free, not hookups. Camping is free on either side of the lake, off of Radio Road.

Campground: Lone Rock Lake Powell, Utah. Almost Boondocking site. Cost: $7 senior rate. They do have a dump station and water available. Paved road leading to lake. All sites are dispersed campsites. I took one on top, though many campers line up along the edge of the lake. During my time here, it has been very windy and sand was blowing especially down along the sandy beach lake front.

Distance traveled: 175 miles

After leaving the Navajo Dam site in New Mexico, I drove into Colorado 30 minutes later and an hour and a half later, I was in Utah. After all, I truly am in the 4 corners region where Az/Ut/Co/ and Nm meet up.

I passed so many places I’ve had the pleasure of visiting in the past, but this year I’d like to explore a bit more of Utah, and we can only tarry so long before one realizes the summer is over with. My first stop in Utah is Blanding, where I’ll dry camp (boondocking) for a couple of days. I had planned on going to a national forest site I’d been to in the past, but when I got there, even though it is listed online as first come/first served camping, all the campsites (even the empty ones) of which there were plenty. Had signs posted on them that the site was reserved, most indicating only a couple of days, but still, I couldn’t take a spot and the camp-host was no where to be found.

boondocking available on both sides of the lake

Fortunately this area has a lot of other BLM and national forest campsites to be had and I drove a couple miles down the road to the Recapture Lake site. One tenter was in the dispersed camping area, and after an unsuccessful attempt to drive the truck and camper through a grove of cedar trees and rutted sandy roads, I settled on a location overlooking the lake. Wide open spaces are the best.

One of my day trips was to the Natural Bridges National Monument. Hwy 95 itself was an awesome route to take as it dipped deep down into large canyons, back up over huge mesas some that appeared to be 10 times larger than any I’d seen in New Mexico. Awesome rock formations along the way kept me busy oewhing and awhhing all the way to natural bridges.

hwy 95, Utah what a scenic drive

hwy 95 what a wonder western drive

This is a small park, with a newly paved single lane, one way loop road to the three main natural bridges in the park. Lots of view points and hiking trails leading deep down onto the canyon floor for viewing the natural bridges up close. Lots of European, Austrian and Canadian visitors. French motorcycle riders were everywhere as these roads with all their dips, turns, and surprising views along the way are a motorcyclist’s dream.

Great views and enjoyed talking to all the travelers enjoying the scenery.

Back in Blanding I stopped off at the excellent visitors center and got some great tips about things to see and do in the area. The Navajo fry bread/taco is a must. Topped with chili/beans lettuce/tomato/ black olives and cheese along with salsa and cream cheese.

Many of the canyons feature Indian ruins, I even saw some cliff dwellings while touring the Natural Bridges site. The visitor center in Blanding gave me a lowdown of where many are located close by as well as additional options for camping in the area. There wasn’t a corner or canyon of this region as arid as it is that wasn’t inhabited by Anasazi (ancient Native Indian stone adobe builders) They told me this is a very safe area to boon-dock as well.

Note:  no photos available, lost photos, having major issues with Google Photos, unable to upload photos!!!!

Speaking of my campsite, with it’s water views, mountains and a mesa near by, on my second day here, except for the occasional boater, sunbather or brave swimmer as the water is still very cold, it is mostly very quiet. To the point that I have not experienced a location like this in quite some time. Along with having no camping neighbors, at least for the present, I have no Tv, cellphone, or internet connectivity at the campsite. The stillness and serenity at first is almost overwhelming. As I rarely ever experience places such as this. And I doubt you have either. Often, from what I’ve observed with boondocking, even though your not connected to utilities, one often has fellow campers near by. The lack of internet and cell phone service at the campsite means I am truly disconnected. Not being able to research my next route and camping options, linking up with all my friends and relatives on Facebook and e-mail hasn’t happened in quite some time. Fortunately a short drive into town and I’m re-connected with the world.

There’s a stillness about the camper as well. Except for when I have the ceiling fan running, it too is quiet. No A/C running or the hum of electronic devices. Only the sound of a wall clock ticking away. Fortunately, even though it has gotten up to around 85 degrees today, the camper has remained relatively cool, with a gentle breeze blowing all day off of the lake. Windows and ceiling vents all open to enjoy the refreshing air flow. I’ve even turned off the radio as I’m enjoying the peacefulness of it all. Sitting outside in the shade of the camper, reading a book or reviewing and editing my photos for future blog or Facebook use. An afternoon siesta can always be fit in as well.

Edge of the Cedars State Park

extremely rare The highlight being a Macaw feather sash

Also on display was a rare Turkey feather blanket
including one with it’s feathers intact
and one showing just the skeletal frame 

Almost forgot to tell you about a neat exhibit at the Edge of the Cedars SP. As I’m heading to Lake Powell which was created by the making of the Glen Canyon Dam, it was interesting to see a display of photos of some wonderful Indian petroglyphs that have been flooded once the dam was built. Along with many Indian pueblo’s and settlements along the original water way. Sad to think they will remain buried under hundreds of feet of water, but that is progress. The State Park also has quite a collection of local ancient artifacts, many clay pots from era’s going as far back as a couple thousand years. The highlight being a Macaw feather sash. The Pueblo Indians traded often with the Mexican Aztec tribes and Live Macaws were a cherished item. Their feathers were only worn by the most elite in the Indian tribe. Also on display was a rare Turkey feather blanket including one with it’s feathers intact and one showing just the skeletal frame they would have been woven onto. Such rare finds that rarely if ever would have survived more than a thousand years.

Distance Traveled: 198 miles

Monument Valley, this is the classic shot
often used in TV adds, magazines etc.

Well all good intentions to stop along the way for a couple of days in the Mexican Hat area to revisit places such as Valley of the Gods, Monument Valley, Gooseneck State Park and all those awesome places throughout the area before heading to Lake Powell and Page Arizona. But my efforts were thwarted once I got to Mexican Hat, as they didn’t have any campgrounds in the almost non-exsistant town. Come to find out it was the previous town I’d passed through, Bluff Utah, that has all the Rv parks. Go figure. I could have stayed at Gooseneck SP ( no utilities)or even a campsite in Valley of the Gods (again no utilities) , but since my final destination, Lake Powell was beckoning, I continued on. Of course stopping when ever I could to take pictures along the way. Monument Valley fortunately had a number of pull offs to take those all important photos.

I did note that Monument Valley now has a KOA campground, but as my fellow Rv-ers may know, they are often overpriced and this one only had picnic table at each site, with hookups of course, but basically desert setup like a large dirt parking lot.

Lake Powell

Glen Canyon Dam

So, it was onto Page Arizona and my campsite for a couple of day at Lone Rock Lake Powell Utah. It being right on the Arizona/Utah boarder. After a few false starts, as I was attempting to get to a visitor center or BLM office for more information of local camping options (no luck there), I ended up heading directly to a the campground I’d selected. I was a bit concerned about heading onto dirt roads to get to the boon-docking site, but as it turned out, the road leading to the camping area is newly paved, with park office as well. There was a $7 charge per night for camping (half off senior rate) as this is a part of the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. The other campground next to the marina on the lake charges around $45 a night for hookups.

Lone Rock site also beach camping available
it was really windy, lots of sand blowing so didn't stay on the beach below

How was my first day at Lone Rock. Hot and windy. Really hot, it got up to 98 degrees and the winds were around 35-40 mph. Range. Not the most pleasant of experiences, but I survived. I of course have had to leave the windows open, so everything is getting a good dusting of fine sand. There will be a couple of days of cleaning for sure once I leave the area. Fortunately the last two days in the area the weather cooled off and the winds settled down considerably.

Page Arizona

The town of Page Az (originally called Government Camp) got it’s start in 1957 as a land exchange with Navajo Nation. It was created to provide a housing settlement for the creation of the Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. Along with the dams largest hydo power plant in the U.S. there is also a coal fired electric plant as well, both producing an enormous amount of electric power for the region. It’s a modern town of 9,000 with an additional three million visitors each year.

I’m on the Utah side and there’s a one hour difference in time zones, so every time I go into Page, it’s an hour earlier and often many of the places I want to go are still closed early morning.

The Big Adventure
Rainbow Bridge Boat Tour ($117)

the beginning of the adventure,
a 6+ hour boat tour of over 100 miles round trip

Lake Powell

It was up and early for my on Sunday as the tour would begin at 7:30 and I needed to sign in by 7 am. After packing a lunch and some snacks I headed over to the Lake Powell Lodge. The tour boat had inside seating and enough room for 35 passengers above deck. I chose the lower section since the morning temps were to be a bit on the cool side and I’d be able to take pictures not only through the windows, open windows as well as the back deck of the boat. And it was less crowded than up top.

Out tour would take us on a 100 mile round trip journey over water and last 6+ hours. The ride through the Glen Canyons of Lake Powell in and of itself would have been an awesome boat ride, but ours includes the famous Rainbow Bridge. Of the 3 million visitors that come here each year, most go to see the famous Slot Canyons run by the Navajo Tribe. But 200,000 visitor each year take the 6 hour or longer journey to see one of the largest arches/natural bridges in the word, the Rainbow Bridge. The red and tan sandstone canyons leading us deeper and deeper up into Lake Powell were an every changing landscape of buttes, shear cliff walls, strange shapes and the beginning of crescent shaped rock formation as slices of the sandstone get worn away or come crashing down over millions of years.

The Rainbow Bridge began it’s formation over 30 million years ago when the earth’s crust uplifted Navajo Mountain. From there, mother nature took over with wind, rain fast moving rivers and streams carving away at Rainbow Bridge.

Up until the 1960’s one would have to hike up from the Colorado River for 6 miles, or hike 12-20 miles around Navajo Mt and through many canyons to get to the bridge. Today, a three hour ride one way on a fast moving boat and a one mile hike brings me to the Rainbow Bridge. Legend has it that a rainbow was turned to stone. The bridge was re-discovered in recent history in 1909 after hearing many Native Indian stories about Rainbow Bridge. Some of the famous people who first saw it were, John Wetherill, Theodore Roosevelt, and Zane Grey author of many western books. He is even noted for having slept overnight on top of the Rainbow Arch.

my first view of the Rainbow Bridge along the one mile hike to the site

The bridge is 290 feet above of the creek, 275 feet across the canyon. 33 feet wide and 42 feet thick. 

A 25 story building would sit comfortably under the arch. It’s definitely the largest natural bridge I’ve ever seen. The trip did not seem long at all considering the time it took to get there and back. Fortunately we had plenty of time to take our pictures and actually sit or walk around the viewing area and see it from as many angles as possible. With light fluffy clouds changing the scenery by the minutes, with shade and sunlight playing off the surrounding cliffs and Rainbow Bridge itself.

Gosh, I sure did enjoy today’s adventure. I think I’ll have many pleasant memories of this trip for some time to come along with looking back at the 260+ photos I took today. Hope you enjoy them as much as I did. Though I realize the enormous size of the canyons, sandstone cliffs and the Rainbow Bridge may not be able to be appreciated until you get a chance to see it in person. But in any case, enjoy seeing a few of these awesome places through my eyes and hoping you get to experience some of them one day yourself.

first views of Rainbow Bridge

the rainbow that was turned to stone

the mile hike to the site made it all that much more impressive

before the dam was built and Lake Powell was created
one would have to hike many miles to get to the site

walking the trail from the boat landing site

More Photos:

Blanding Utah  Natural Bridges National Monument, Utah

RAINBOW BRIDGE, LAKE POWELL

Heading to PageArizona

Rainbow Bridge and Glen Canyon/Lake Powell (Arizona/Utah)  (NOT AVAILABLE, UNABLE TO UPLOAD TO GOOGLE PHOTOS)  (may not be able to share photos anymore using Google photos)

Not sure what to do now that I'm no longer able to upload to Google photos..... Bummer.