gonyun (工人)

The Mighty 5 (and then some) part 2

Bryce Canyon National Park

A short drive north from Zion Bryce Canyon National Park. An 18 mile drive goes along a large canyon where numerous hoodoos stretch upwards. Like most parks millions of years of erosion and upheaval shaped the unique landscapes. The sunrise to sunset trail goes from the rim, down into and through the hoodoos.

Sharleen descends down wallstreet. This trail is closed frequently when there is inclement weather as its too slippery; however in the light snow the open trail provided a magical experience.
This view of wall street shows both how steep the trail is and how the national park shores up the trail. On parts of the trail the mud-brick supports are washed and quite precarious.
As the steepness of this trail ends, it funnels into a narrow funnel wide enough for a few people.
At times the path was narrow.
The path through the hoodoos provided views for days of theses amazing formations.
Many of these formations had names…..
The castle

Capitol Reef National Park

The pacific plate subducting under the continental plate caused a great upheaval. This area of upheaval is the Colorado plateau. The edge of the plateau folded creating a “waterpocket fold” or in geologic terms a monocline that is over 100 miles long. Pioneers coming from the east hit this formation as the first major obstacle as they moved westward. Quite a few pioneers just settled in the narrow ribbons of green along the rivers. Early settlers planted orchards proving much needed foodstuffs as people moved westward. Various groups of settlers inhabited the valley and provided a much needed stopover stations as people moved west. In more recent history, as people tripping westward in early automobiles continued to use this valley as a rest and replenishment stop. To this day, visitors are allowed to pick fruit from some of the orchards.

Out good fortune brought us to the area on a snowy rainy day so our explorations of the area were limited. A highlight of this visit was sharing peach and berry pies.

Elijah Cutler Behunin Cabin – built in 1893. I don’t know what was more amazing. That he built this out of mudbrick near Fruita, that his family of 19 lived there, or that they only made it 1 year in this house.

Leave a comment