Hoodoos, Harleys and Sounds of the Sixties

So, finally on the road with places to go and parks to see it soon became apparent that to do Utah justice we should have allowed at least a week for the south east of the state alone. Without wanting to appear too cliched the national park areas, as well as nearly all the space between them, took our breath away. A detour to Cedar Breaks National Monument outside Cedar City then onto Route 12 that took us past Bryce Canyon and Escalante NPs then a drive around the south western edge of Capitol Reef NP laid out one spectacular view after another. Even though the weather in the south was bright and sunny there was a chill wind blowing. A day or so before there had been a sudden fall of snow and temperatures had dropped below freezing. We were at about 10,000 feet and there was still snow on the ground but as we drove north and came down to 2,000 or 3,000 feet the thermometer started reaching back into the 80s and 90s. Through a very few small towns and clusters of houses and trailers in what seems to be the middle of not anywhere much Utah is the place for hiking, horse riding, mountain biking and camping. High mountains give way to a land of canyons and salt flats and expanses of sand. Sometimes as we drove up along twisting mountain roads we came out into meadow land surrounded by distant snow covered mountain peaks. Other times we were in thick forests which suddenly changed into scrub covered range with cattle grazing by rivers. Horses standing in wood fenced enclosures watched us drive past. Cowboys - yes, cowboys - watched over groups of grazing cattle close to the road. Eventually we left the Route 12 Scenic Route, onto 24 which was nearly deserted for mile after mile after mile as the road ran northwards to meet I-70 close to the Green River and then east and south on 191 into Moab.

Overnight in Moab, a mecca for followers of outdoor activities - biking, hiking, ATV, Jeep and Hummer driving, Colorado River rafters and wilderness camping - we spent a full day in Arches NP. Words cannot start to describe the grandeur of this place. Easily drivable with well placed stopping places, carefully graded hiking trails took us to vantage points for most of the wonders of the park. We followed the easiest trails but more adept and experienced hikers could go along trails involving rock scrambles or even what are referred to as primitive trails that are not clearly marked and which need special permission from the Park Service to use. There are a few special 4x4 tracks as well as mountain bike trails which can only be used with special permits because of the fragility of the crust on the surface of most of the park. We saw the main sights in the park, the Delicate Arch and the Balanced Rock, but most of the time we just drove, stopped, stood and were amazed by the beauty of the place. Strange rock formations and canyons, narrow valleys and expanses of scrubland all framed by mountain range after mountain range to the horizon. The whole park has a layer of salt beneath it that was left by the evaporation of a primordial ocean eons ago. Over millenia, layers of sand were deposited on top of the salt, became compressed and formed thick masses of sandstone. Movements in the earth's surface pushed the underlying salt upwards and the effects of water and wind carved out the canyons, standing stones and amazing arches of the park. The process goes on to today which is why, following a sudden rock fall in 1991, no one is permitted to stand under one of the most spectacular arches in the park.
About 80 tons of sandstone suddenly dropped away from the underside of the arch on that day. A sudden heavy rainfall is supposed to have been absorbed into the pourous sandstone and the combined weight of the water and the soaked layer of stone just broke the mass of sandstone away from the arch. Amazingly, a tourist there at the time was able to film the whole event on Super 8!

But why, hoodoos, Harleys and the 60s? Hoodoos is the name for the standing columns of sandstone in the canyonlands, Harleys are everywhere and are definitely the way to travel in the parks - leather chaps over denim jeans, bandanas instead of helmets and tattoos but nice people who have ridden to Utah from all over the US - Easy Rider eat your heart out. Oh, and the 60s is a radio station on Sirrus satellite radio that we have picked up on the car sound system.

SOME PICTURES WILL FOLLOW WHEN I HAVE TIME TO UPLOAD THEM!)