2020-13 Last few Days in Kanab Utah, with a Grand Adventure ZION

2020-13

Kanab Utah (Part 3)

Campground: Crazy Horse Rv Park. Kanab Ut. $475 per month (30 amp site). $50 deposit for electric. 3 Blocks from the main street in town. Good Verizon signal, Good over-the-air TV. Owners of this park also own Rv parks in Show-Lo and Yuma and I’m told 300 other Rv parks! Some issues with weak electric and clogged sewers. I see them working on various sections of water/sewer lines throughout the park.

Caution:  Use a volt meter to determine if power being provided is within an acceptable range.  it was as low as 108 volts at two sites

I had checked out.

THE BIG ADVENTURE

it’s been a very enjoyable stay here in Kanab. My month’s stay is just about at the end and I’ll be heading out in the next day or two. This has been a safe place to stay, as they only had three Covid 19 cases in the past couple of months and is the only county in Utah to go Green. Meaning the stores are all permitted to open within the New Normal guidelines. Though I will tell you, some have already ignored those guidelines. Making it, to my way of thinking, once again unsafe to go in a number of shops and restaurants. One restaurant had no space between table/customers. A couple of shops had employees not wearing face masks, etc.

What I have been able to do, is head to the deli department in the two local grocery stores, pick up supplies for picnic type lunches, leave and go to the local park and enjoy a most enjoyable lunch at a picnic table outdoors and away from non social distance folks. It’s been a good compromise and one that I will continue to do throughout my travels.

my view as I get ready to post this blog
Kanab's public park

As I’ve mentioned before, Kanab is a surprisingly well maintained town. I have not seen any homes that are not well maintained and many of the newer homes are quite large, indicating that there is a migration of folks to this area for business or retirement. The towns businesses while many have been closed until just recently, all seem to be well maintained as well, and the infrastructure like a small convention center, senior center, library, large multipurpose park, with swimming pool, tennis courts and splash pads for kids are all new. The Jackson Flat reservoir with it’s 3 plus miles of newly paved walking and biking trails is just the beginning of a planned bike path.

An Adventure Worthy of Sharing:
Zion National Park

entering Zion National Park
North entrance, including two tunnels, one over 2 miles long

descending down thousands of feet into the canyon below

the checkerboard formation at the north entrance

I had not initially considered going to any of the wonderful national parks in Utah, since most were just opening. The north Rim of the Grand Canyon was a possibility, but just when I started to make plans, they ended up closing it, due to multiple forest fires around Jacobs Lake. I had initially decided against going to Zion, as in the recent past, it has been so busy that the entrances were closed by early morning. But with the new soft opening of many of the national parks, Zion included. I did a bit for research and decided it might actually make for an awesome day trip. Zion is only 35 miles from Kanab via the north entrance. The shuttle buses are not running and they are limiting the number of visitors daily. Which to my way of thinking is perfect. So by taking Zippy and little Zippy (my class C camper and E-bike) I arrived at the north entrance by 8am. Rv’s are only permitted to go through the tunnels from 8am to 8pm. I arrived just a few minutes early and had enough time to take a few awesome picture of the entrance before heading towards the two tunnels, one is over two miles in length and they close it to oncoming traffic for those of us with large campers so that we can drive down the middle of the tunnel without damaging our roofs.

The north entrance along with the tunnels is to me, the most exciting way to enter the park, as there are multiple switchbacks and winding roads leading down to the bottom of the steep canyon. Thousands of feel below. What spectacular views during that decent. Fortunately there are enough pull-outs to stop and take in the scenery for all those photo opportunities and a chance to ewe and ahh over the views. I arrived finally at the visitor center, just inside the south entrance to the park. It’s closed but has a large parking lot, where I was able to use the Rv parking lot, right next to the bike and pedestrian paved path leading into the park itself.

Don’t you know, that using the E-bike would make my visit for enjoyable but also helped me keep a safe distance for others. Only needing to wear a mask a couple of times. Riding a bike through the 6 to 8 miles scenic drive is definitely the way to go. Even though once arriving at the main scenic drive and having to ride on the actual road instead of a separate bike path, with the park having limits on the number of vehicles permitted in the park proper, the road was virtually empty of vehicles except for hikers and bikers for the first half of my visit.

the scenic road leading through Zion.
no shuttles and only 300 cars permitted at a time
since they had arrived before I did, the parking lots were
full and no more vehicles were permitted into this section 

virtually no traffic during the early morning ride

along the first two miles of paved bike trails

my neck got sore from constantly looking up, but so worth it.

Unlike having to take the shuttle bus in previous years, I was able to stop often on the bike for those all important photo ops. What an awesome advantage. Loved being able to stop just about anywhere along the road, enjoying the scenery, capture as many pictures as my little heart desired before going what seemed like only a few yards further, before having to stop and take a dozen more shots.

The road, even though at the bottom of the canyon, with it’s thousand plus feet shear cliff walls reaching ever higher to the sky, that road did have quite a few elevation changes. The E-bike really made for a most pleasant and effortless ride through the canyons. Talk about zipping along. I was having a blast. One would have to be comatose not to feel the majesty of this place and I certainly felt quite inspired and just a bit closer to God, looking around and up at those magnificent walls and mountain peaks of sandstone all reaching higher and higher as if trying to reach the heavenly sky above.

at the end of the scenic road,
super nice walk along the river,
but too crowded for me.... 

the Patriarchs 

the two mile bike path from the visitors center

Zippy, descending the switchbacks and winding road leading
down into Zion National Park

Perhaps a bit over the top on my description of the park, but it sure filled me with much joy and happiness. And being that it’s a one way in, one way out kind of road, I was able to view everything a second time around on my way back out. The traffic was a bit more on the way out with tour vans and private vehicles exiting as it was getting closer to the noon hour. More hikers, bikers and vehicles were on the scenic road as the temperatures quickly rose as the sun was finally able to reach deep into the canyon.

Arriving back at the visitors parking lot, I was really glad to have completed my tour as the heat was quickly building. Couldn’t imagine what the afternoon would be like in the park. Tons of families with many kids (Mormons perhaps) were just arriving and starting their hike into the park. Personally, I folded the bike back up, put it in the basement storage of the camper having already turned on the generator and a/c. Got inside to a now cool camper, made myself one of those picnic/deli lunches and enjoyed watching a hoard of visitors stream past my camper and into the park. Couldn’t imagine trying to enjoy a hike in the park with temperatures already at 90 degree and rising.

Wow, what an awesome tour. So glad I was able to see this wonderful park again. This time on an E-bike.

Hope your able to have an outdoor adventure as well. It’s good to be able to breath in some fresh air and sunshine.

More photos:

Last week in Kanab

Zion National Park, the Big Adventure