Warm sun on red cliffs, and not another soul in sight, means we are certainly not in California any more.
We broke camp quickly so that we could explore a bit before heading further East.
Dispersed camping is a favorite with us. When your family rejects the “civilized kids” paradigm and all the rules that go along with it, these kinds of places welcome your bunch with open arms. “ Give me your wild, your barefoot, your climbers…”
They scrambled off into the wilderness to find all the special spaces they could. Sand dunes, rock piles made solid with clay, water slots and washes, crevices and crannies – so much to explore!
Second-best to flying is flying for a second and landing knee-deep in soft, clay-sand. Their legs became red and ashy, their hair full of grit, and their faces were full of joy!
Always one last jump before it’s time to get into the car!
On the way back to the car, I peeked through a tunnel and was happy to find a portal to more color and beautiful creation! I also saw my son’s bare foot print, his signature, and a sign of freedom for future visitors.
We left this glorious place and headed into Hurricane for breakfast. On the way, we saw beautiful hills and valleys.
Well, the Main Street Cafe in Hurricane is amazing. We highly recommend it!
Yesterday we looked like fugitives trying to cross as many state lines as possible.
Today we looked like respectable road trippers nicely going from one place to the next. We drove and drove and drove on the way to Bryce Canyon. The way was winding and colorful, and the highlight was this sand dune.
More sand jumping. This is extreme sand jumping…
On our drive, we stopped at a roadside rock shop, and the kids wanted to stop. Two small boys were manning a small table of gem cast-offs from the family business, and Atticus went to network and make a deal. He talked them down in price for a piece or quartz and talked them into letting him look into the “mystery bags” they had put together. I’m a sucker for kids selling things, especially when they are still in their pajamas, barefooted, and withstanding 102 temperatures on the off chance someone will stop and see their tattered gems. Atticus actually got quite the haul: 7 beautiful gem stones and a river rock for $5, and a quartz crystal for $5 that one finds in boogie California shops for $15. When he got into the car, he was so sad to leave his friends that he hopped back out, enormous lava rock in hand, to make a gift of it. He came back with a beautiful gift from them: a black rock with some blue, sparkling crystals springing from it! I’ll have to get a picture in the morning.
Bryce Canyon welcomed us with classic Big Thunder Mountain spires. This is the first time any of us have been here, with the exception of Brandon.
Brandon has been in charge of finding camping for us, and he didn’t disappoint tonight. We are at a place with plenty of kids for those who want to make campsite friends, a very nice older teen to impress, dogs to snuggle and play with, and close proximity to the bathroom. This is all very important!
We struggled to put up the enormous tent we initially purchased, so I found an instant tent today, and it went up like a charm! We have blown up the air beds, and we have every reason to believe that we will sleep well tonight!
We like Utah so far. Nobody seems particularly worried about whether one wears masks or is vaccinated, nobody tells the kids to put shoes on, people smile, and kindness seems to be standard.
We could easily live here!
Recent Comments