Sat, Oct 1, 2011

Today we left early for our drive to Bryce Canyon. The GPS showed a 7 hour drive connecting to highway 70. We checked out another route south/west through the canyons, and it said 4 hours. So we called ahead to the Cannonville KOA and asked about the roads suitability for an RV towing a car. She said that highway 12 was a beautiful drive and if we were up to the challenge, she would suggest that we take that route. It was a lot shorter than highway 70, but we would definitely be going slower. Well, she was right, and I’m SO glad we took on the scenic challenge!

WOW, WOW, WOW!!!!! This area is beyond beautiful! I can’t say enough times how breathtaking the vistas are. We meandered up and down the mountains, reaching an elevation of 9600 feet on Boulder Mountain. There were a few hamlets along the way where they farmed hay and grazed cattle and sheep. These little green areas with their irrigation sprinklers on were picture post card worthy against the rugged and towering canyon walls. There were cows actually hanging out right on the road in several spots J At times we found ourselves driving on the spine of the mountain which was literally just wide enough for the two opposing lanes of traffic. You looked over the edge on BOTH sides of you to a vast canyon that seemed bottomless and stretched out as far as you could see! There were many pull outs along the way allowing us to take advantage of every treat that came around the bend. At one of these pull outs, there was a long wooden walkway that you could walk out on, letting you get up close to several petroglyphs. The longer you looked at the side of the wall, the more of them you saw! Most of the way on this route we could only go from 25 – 40 miles per hour, but it was more than worth it! We still managed to save about a half an hour getting to Bryce.

After checking in at the KOA we drove a few miles to the “Mossy Cave” and water fall. The water flows through here from the river, via a canal that was dug by the early settlers in the 1800’s to bring water to their town. This was not a small task with primitive tools such as picks and shovels. There are a few small orchards left in the area that still take advantage of this engineering marvel. It was a mile hike into the falls and cave. There were two bridges that crossed the river along the way that offered great views. From down at the river, you could look up and see the beautiful rock formations of Bryce Canyon.

We drove into the little town of Tropic for dinner. Hahaha, it was easy to decide where to go – there were only two restaurants in town. The one we chose also served as a gift shop, gas station and grocery store! Tomorrow, it is off to explore Bryce Canyon.