Sunday, June 8 - Dad and I packed up the truck and left in the morning. We stopped by Fairview where I saw Grandma and Grandpa Pederson's graves. We loaded up on snacks at a convenience store and headed down to Capitol Reef. I had never been there before. Although the scenery was striking, Dad pointed out that after a rainstorm, colors burst from the sandstone. (Check out some of his photography of the area.) We arrived to Calf Creek early that afternoon and there was only one spot left - and no shade. Not to worry, we planned on poaching another spot in the morning. That afternoon we drove into Escalante to pick up a few supplies, and to get out of the direct sun of our campground. Most of the stores were closed. The Escalante Interagency Visitor Center was open and I made full use of the indoor plumbing. By the time we arrived back to camp, shadows were creeping along the western wall of the canyon. We decided to hike part of the trail to the water fall just to kill time. The trail is three miles in and we probably only walked one mile. The sun was still up when we returned to our site, but at least the temperature had dropped somewhat. I whipped up some steak fajitas for dinner. In fact, I did most of the cooking during the camp. I think Dad appreciated that. Food always tastes better when you don't have to cook it. Besides, we were using his gear and he was paying for nearly all of the trip. Making breakfast and dinner was my small way of contributing to the experience.
Monday, June 9 - Around 9:00 am we found a site that was available. It took about a half hour to move over all our gear and to get camp set up. I fixed a late breakfast of breakfast burritos, using some of the leftover peppers and onions from the night before. We were stuffed. For most of the morning we sat around and chatted. We also read a little. I started Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. Dad said this was probably the best site of the whole campground, mostly due to the shade provided throughout the day by a canopy of trees. The only annoying thing was that some people would walk right through our camp since it was close to the entrance of the whole grounds. We read a bit and played with Katie, Dad's black lab. That afternoon we went into town to get some sort of plastic basin. We found a bucket that served the purpose quite nicely.
Later, we headed over to Devil's Garden and spent about an hour climbing around the sandstone bluffs. There was a ledge that I wanted to get to that looked out over the whole park. Katie was with me at the time and she raced on ahead, dashing across this natural bridge that was about 12 feet out. I knew that the bluff ended just a few feet after the bridge, and as I called out for Katie to stop, it was too late. I saw her slip off and then I heard a yelp. "Crap! I've just killed Dad's dog." I carefully climbed down and was calling her name. A few seconds later she ran out from an outcropping, happily wagging tail and tongue. I found the point where she most likely took a tumble, and I'm guessing she fell a good twelve to fifteen feet. What a silly dog. I'm just glad she didn't get hurt.
That night we sat around and continued our on-going conversation about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It was extremely relaxing. I kept thinking I would hike to the falls, but that camp chair - and the accompanying conversation with Dad - was just too comfortable.
Tuesday, June 10 - Our labors this day were intense. Much reminiscing and cogitating was achieved. I believe we surpassed our goal of how much time we could sit in one spot. Granted, every half hour or so we had to reposition the camp chairs in order to follow the shade. After awhile, I suggested we go find a place for some burgers. Dad reckoned we would achieve our quest in Boulder, so we set out. The restaurant was quaint, the service was homey, and the burgers were tasty. The only downside was that it was a bit windy, but since Katie was with us we needed to sit out on the patio. I thought we would head back to camp after dinner, but Dad had other plans. We took a road that led into the north part of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park, which you can see in this map. We went in maybe half way, and then came back. It was some of the most beautiful country I have ever seen, especially when the paved road gave way to dirt. I'm glad that we went. That evening we continued our stiff regimen of keeping the chairs from flying away while rigorously exercising our jaws, tongues, and voice boxes. It made for exhausting work.
Wednesday, June 11 - The final day of camp. I made some super-natural oatmeal Dad had purchased (and by super-natural, I mean super-healthy...no, the oatmeal did not take on properties that defied natural laws as we know them). With enough apricot-pineapple preserves and soy milk, it wasn't half bad. It did not take too long before we broke camp and headed home. Around lunch time, we stopped off in a tiny town and loaded up at the local convenience store. Mmmm...beef jerky, peanut butter filled M&M's, a cherry Coke, and a chocolate-peanut butter Twix... Hey. We had to bring balance back to our diet after the oatmeal. Dad wanted to go off the beaten-path, so we took a state road that wound its way through breathtaking farm land. It spat us out somewhere near Manti. In all my years in Utah, I had never been to Manti. We drove right up to the front door of the temple. It really is a beautiful structure, especially when combined with the Logan and St. George temples.
When we got to the Provo-Orem area, we headed over to Grandma Krause's place. I love my grandmother, but every single time I visit her or call her on the phone, she spends half the time complaining about how I never call or visit. To be frankly honest, it makes it very difficult to want to call or visit, even out of a sense of duty. At least the visit was short since I was meeting up with Doug that evening.
Monday, June 9 - Around 9:00 am we found a site that was available. It took about a half hour to move over all our gear and to get camp set up. I fixed a late breakfast of breakfast burritos, using some of the leftover peppers and onions from the night before. We were stuffed. For most of the morning we sat around and chatted. We also read a little. I started Slaughterhouse Five, by Kurt Vonnegut. Dad said this was probably the best site of the whole campground, mostly due to the shade provided throughout the day by a canopy of trees. The only annoying thing was that some people would walk right through our camp since it was close to the entrance of the whole grounds. We read a bit and played with Katie, Dad's black lab. That afternoon we went into town to get some sort of plastic basin. We found a bucket that served the purpose quite nicely.
Later, we headed over to Devil's Garden and spent about an hour climbing around the sandstone bluffs. There was a ledge that I wanted to get to that looked out over the whole park. Katie was with me at the time and she raced on ahead, dashing across this natural bridge that was about 12 feet out. I knew that the bluff ended just a few feet after the bridge, and as I called out for Katie to stop, it was too late. I saw her slip off and then I heard a yelp. "Crap! I've just killed Dad's dog." I carefully climbed down and was calling her name. A few seconds later she ran out from an outcropping, happily wagging tail and tongue. I found the point where she most likely took a tumble, and I'm guessing she fell a good twelve to fifteen feet. What a silly dog. I'm just glad she didn't get hurt.
That night we sat around and continued our on-going conversation about life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It was extremely relaxing. I kept thinking I would hike to the falls, but that camp chair - and the accompanying conversation with Dad - was just too comfortable.
Tuesday, June 10 - Our labors this day were intense. Much reminiscing and cogitating was achieved. I believe we surpassed our goal of how much time we could sit in one spot. Granted, every half hour or so we had to reposition the camp chairs in order to follow the shade. After awhile, I suggested we go find a place for some burgers. Dad reckoned we would achieve our quest in Boulder, so we set out. The restaurant was quaint, the service was homey, and the burgers were tasty. The only downside was that it was a bit windy, but since Katie was with us we needed to sit out on the patio. I thought we would head back to camp after dinner, but Dad had other plans. We took a road that led into the north part of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Park, which you can see in this map. We went in maybe half way, and then came back. It was some of the most beautiful country I have ever seen, especially when the paved road gave way to dirt. I'm glad that we went. That evening we continued our stiff regimen of keeping the chairs from flying away while rigorously exercising our jaws, tongues, and voice boxes. It made for exhausting work.
Wednesday, June 11 - The final day of camp. I made some super-natural oatmeal Dad had purchased (and by super-natural, I mean super-healthy...no, the oatmeal did not take on properties that defied natural laws as we know them). With enough apricot-pineapple preserves and soy milk, it wasn't half bad. It did not take too long before we broke camp and headed home. Around lunch time, we stopped off in a tiny town and loaded up at the local convenience store. Mmmm...beef jerky, peanut butter filled M&M's, a cherry Coke, and a chocolate-peanut butter Twix... Hey. We had to bring balance back to our diet after the oatmeal. Dad wanted to go off the beaten-path, so we took a state road that wound its way through breathtaking farm land. It spat us out somewhere near Manti. In all my years in Utah, I had never been to Manti. We drove right up to the front door of the temple. It really is a beautiful structure, especially when combined with the Logan and St. George temples.
When we got to the Provo-Orem area, we headed over to Grandma Krause's place. I love my grandmother, but every single time I visit her or call her on the phone, she spends half the time complaining about how I never call or visit. To be frankly honest, it makes it very difficult to want to call or visit, even out of a sense of duty. At least the visit was short since I was meeting up with Doug that evening.
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