Had free breakfast at the Bryce Canyon Inn - some kind of cinnamon wafer thingy. Probably marginally better than Chocolate Frosted Sugar Bombs.
This morning started off with an early-morning hike in Bryce, from Sunset Point to Inspiration Point, which is maybe just a mile-long rim walk. We met up with a ranger and chatted for a bit about the canyons, the weather here and where we're from.
Then we had to return to Bryce Canyon City for our trail ride in Bryce. I was insistent about riding horses somewhere on this trip - since we didn't do so in Monument Valley, we booked a ride here in Bryce. The cowboys picked out horses for us - I was given "Kino" and Stephen was riding "Copenhagen".
A few of the horses seemed to be running on cruise control, always going where they were supposed to and doing what they were supposed to. And then there were our horses. Kino liked to go as fast as Kino liked to go. This might be moderate, or it might be slow. Kino also liked to try to stop and eat grass. Kino also liked to walk beside the trail, instead of on the trail. This made Stephen's horse, Copenhagen, go crazy, because Copenhagen didn't want to be at the end of the line. However, one of the rules is that we ride single file, no passing. Copenhagen keeps head-butting Kino to try to get him to go faster. Kino goes as fast as Kino wants to go.
We rode through the forest up to the rim of Bryce Canyon and alongside it for a short distance. Fortunately, Kino didn't see any especially tasty-looking blades of grass just over the edge of the canyon. :-)
The ride was an hour and a half - any longer, and Stephen may never have walked again. But, anyway, I am happy. Because, yay! Horsies!
In the afternoon, we left Bryce, heading up towards Zion National Park. Huh? How come we're driving through Dixie National Forest again?! I swear, the forest is following us. Just when you think you've left it behind for good, there it is again, just around the bend. Dixie. It exists in the Twilight Zone, outside our reality, everywhere and anywhere all at once... (Cue Twilight Zone music, look in rearview mirror, and start whistling Dixie... --yeah, yeah, lame joke. Sorry.)
Hey, you know what else is weird? When you're driving to Zion National Park, and you pass an ostrich farm. That's also a bit weird.
And, speaking of Zion, I am angry with the GPS. Or perhaps I should rephrase. Don't put the destination in until you're ready to go there. Because otherwise, you'll just find out that you've followed it blindly, and now you're heading out of the park.
The GPS keeps giving us directions, and I tell it to shut up, because no one cares what it thinks. Stephen asks if I'm mad at the GPS? Well, what do you think? We drive to Zion National Park, stop in at the washrooms and the visitor centre, and as soon as we hop back into the car, this Garmin beyotch has taken us straight out of the park. Thank god I got a magnet - I can't wait to tell everyone about my trip to the toilets, and the spiffy hand dryers they have there (which actually are really neat, but that's not the point, and won't be part of my commemorative slide show).
Stephen eventually placates me by saying that we'll detour and return. I am only temporarily mollified. But I tell you, one more slip up by that GPS, and she's out the window. And then we never find our way home... :-/ Eh. At this point, it's anyone's guess as to whether or not she's going to steer us into some desolate hillbilly-mutant infested stretch of road anyway.
Anyhoo: from my very brief visit to Zion. It's a fricking zoo. Unbelieveably crowded. The first tip-off should have been the 8-mile stretch of gift shops, motels, resorts, B&Bs, etc. The few communities before the park are all awash with tourist stuff.
Of course, I imagine that everyone is just going to Zion to use the washroom facilities, and then leave at the first available exit. >:-( Oh well, let it go, right? From our brief stop in the visitor centre, we saw that the flash flood risk was pegged at moderate today, and several trails had been closed as a result. And there was no way I was going to do that Angel's Landing hike.
And, to be honest, the road out of Zion is quite scenic in its own right. That's why we didn't immediately realize we were leaving so soon. Switchbacks up the mountain, and a mile long tunnel through the mountain! Dark. :-)
We planned to stop in Kanab for the night. It's the largest town before the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
On the way to Kanab, we stopped at the Moqui Rock Cave. It's a quirky little family-run museum - yes, inside a cave - which houses an eclectic collection of historic memorabilia, rocks, glow-in-the-dark rocks, arrowheads, clay pots, and even a small collection of Elvis items. ?! It was a fun little stop. And I think that the family lives inside the cave.
Oh, and really surprising? The guy running the museum asked us where we were from. When Stephen tells him "Saskatoon," the man says, "Oh, a city that's named for a berry that grows on the riverbank." WOW. We were impressed. (Because I've never heard of the Moqui Rock Cave.) Obviously someone from Saskatoon had passed through here before and the guy must have a great memory.
When we got to Kanab, we discovered it was hosting some Western Legends film festival thing, so we drove through to Fredonia, which is pretty much the last stop before nowhere, and so we're staying in the downscale Grand Canyon Inn. And, I don't much care for the look of the neighbours. But what do I know?
(Then again, have you ever seen those horror movies, where the people check into the cheap motel, and then the locals kill them??? Our GPS has been trying to set us up for a while now...) =:-O
This morning started off with an early-morning hike in Bryce, from Sunset Point to Inspiration Point, which is maybe just a mile-long rim walk. We met up with a ranger and chatted for a bit about the canyons, the weather here and where we're from.
Then we had to return to Bryce Canyon City for our trail ride in Bryce. I was insistent about riding horses somewhere on this trip - since we didn't do so in Monument Valley, we booked a ride here in Bryce. The cowboys picked out horses for us - I was given "Kino" and Stephen was riding "Copenhagen".
A few of the horses seemed to be running on cruise control, always going where they were supposed to and doing what they were supposed to. And then there were our horses. Kino liked to go as fast as Kino liked to go. This might be moderate, or it might be slow. Kino also liked to try to stop and eat grass. Kino also liked to walk beside the trail, instead of on the trail. This made Stephen's horse, Copenhagen, go crazy, because Copenhagen didn't want to be at the end of the line. However, one of the rules is that we ride single file, no passing. Copenhagen keeps head-butting Kino to try to get him to go faster. Kino goes as fast as Kino wants to go.
We rode through the forest up to the rim of Bryce Canyon and alongside it for a short distance. Fortunately, Kino didn't see any especially tasty-looking blades of grass just over the edge of the canyon. :-)
The ride was an hour and a half - any longer, and Stephen may never have walked again. But, anyway, I am happy. Because, yay! Horsies!
In the afternoon, we left Bryce, heading up towards Zion National Park. Huh? How come we're driving through Dixie National Forest again?! I swear, the forest is following us. Just when you think you've left it behind for good, there it is again, just around the bend. Dixie. It exists in the Twilight Zone, outside our reality, everywhere and anywhere all at once... (Cue Twilight Zone music, look in rearview mirror, and start whistling Dixie... --yeah, yeah, lame joke. Sorry.)
Hey, you know what else is weird? When you're driving to Zion National Park, and you pass an ostrich farm. That's also a bit weird.
And, speaking of Zion, I am angry with the GPS. Or perhaps I should rephrase. Don't put the destination in until you're ready to go there. Because otherwise, you'll just find out that you've followed it blindly, and now you're heading out of the park.
The GPS keeps giving us directions, and I tell it to shut up, because no one cares what it thinks. Stephen asks if I'm mad at the GPS? Well, what do you think? We drive to Zion National Park, stop in at the washrooms and the visitor centre, and as soon as we hop back into the car, this Garmin beyotch has taken us straight out of the park. Thank god I got a magnet - I can't wait to tell everyone about my trip to the toilets, and the spiffy hand dryers they have there (which actually are really neat, but that's not the point, and won't be part of my commemorative slide show).
Stephen eventually placates me by saying that we'll detour and return. I am only temporarily mollified. But I tell you, one more slip up by that GPS, and she's out the window. And then we never find our way home... :-/ Eh. At this point, it's anyone's guess as to whether or not she's going to steer us into some desolate hillbilly-mutant infested stretch of road anyway.
Anyhoo: from my very brief visit to Zion. It's a fricking zoo. Unbelieveably crowded. The first tip-off should have been the 8-mile stretch of gift shops, motels, resorts, B&Bs, etc. The few communities before the park are all awash with tourist stuff.
Of course, I imagine that everyone is just going to Zion to use the washroom facilities, and then leave at the first available exit. >:-( Oh well, let it go, right? From our brief stop in the visitor centre, we saw that the flash flood risk was pegged at moderate today, and several trails had been closed as a result. And there was no way I was going to do that Angel's Landing hike.
And, to be honest, the road out of Zion is quite scenic in its own right. That's why we didn't immediately realize we were leaving so soon. Switchbacks up the mountain, and a mile long tunnel through the mountain! Dark. :-)
We planned to stop in Kanab for the night. It's the largest town before the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
On the way to Kanab, we stopped at the Moqui Rock Cave. It's a quirky little family-run museum - yes, inside a cave - which houses an eclectic collection of historic memorabilia, rocks, glow-in-the-dark rocks, arrowheads, clay pots, and even a small collection of Elvis items. ?! It was a fun little stop. And I think that the family lives inside the cave.
Oh, and really surprising? The guy running the museum asked us where we were from. When Stephen tells him "Saskatoon," the man says, "Oh, a city that's named for a berry that grows on the riverbank." WOW. We were impressed. (Because I've never heard of the Moqui Rock Cave.) Obviously someone from Saskatoon had passed through here before and the guy must have a great memory.
When we got to Kanab, we discovered it was hosting some Western Legends film festival thing, so we drove through to Fredonia, which is pretty much the last stop before nowhere, and so we're staying in the downscale Grand Canyon Inn. And, I don't much care for the look of the neighbours. But what do I know?
(Then again, have you ever seen those horror movies, where the people check into the cheap motel, and then the locals kill them??? Our GPS has been trying to set us up for a while now...) =:-O
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