Welcome back
everybody! The whole time we were at Capitol Reef we had next-to-no
connection to the outside world (which is actually really, really
fantastic) and we have a lot of catching up to do. Tonight we are
back on the Great Plains, in Colorado, east of Denver. Sunday, July 27: Mom's Birthday & Capitol Reef. We arrived in Capitol Reef just in time for some rain. We got camp set up and then had to dash inside. Weather like that is somewhat surprising, considering that we are, you know, in the desert.
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| Cohab Canyon |
Monday, July 28: Cohab Canyon, the
Orchard, the Scenic Drive, & Capitol Gorge. Now
this is a day. This is how you pack stuff into a day. I'm tired just
from typing the title. But we'd been so excited about coming to
Capitol Reef that we just wanted to cram it all in. |
| Cohab Canyon |
After
Cohab, we picked apples from the orchard. Settlers in the early 1800s
planted fruit trees, which are still there. Tasted awful coming off
the tree, but made the best applesauce ever.
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| Driving Capitol Gorge |
Then
we took the aptly-named Scenic Drive and drove through Capitol Gorge.
Needless to say, this is the coolest place our truck has ever been.
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| Driving Capitol Gorge |
Finally,
we hiked as far as we could into Capitol Gorge, but thunderstorms
were threatening like
every other day, and
we were also into the heat of the day, which is double in the canyon.
Like always, there were stupid people who went out with no water,
etc. We saw one somewhat youngish woman escorting her somewhat oldish
mother down the canyon without water. We suggested that since it was
hot, and flash floods were imminent, they might want to get the
blazing hell out of there. And the younger one gave us this look that
said, “Can't you see I'm just trying to abandon this woman out
here?” So we've been checking news reports, but nothing yet.
Anyway, we turned back after a mile or so of our canyon gorge stroll,
checked out the canyon views and the scenic drive in reverse, and
came home for dinner. Inside. Because here in the desert, it rains.
Every. Single. Day.
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| Exploring a Side Slot |
Wednesday, July 30: The Sulphur
Creek Route. What is the difference, you may ask, between a
hiking trail and a route?
A route is a commonly followed
way to go, but it is not marked and not maintained. It hasn't been
built or carved or signed, as a trail has. It's just that once upon a
time, someone said, “Hey, let's go this way,” and then somebody
else followed. A route usually promises more solitude than a
maintained trail, but also has many more potential complications or
dangers. The Sulphur Creek route is just over five miles, and it
simply follows the creek... on the right, the left, and straight
through the middle.  |
| Stepping Stones to Cross the Creek |
But at mile 3.75, we arrived at
the entrance to the Narrows, and found that it was a ten-foot
waterfall; trying to climb around it, I realized that a wrong step on
the slickrock (that's slickrock)
was going to lead to a fall of fifteen to eighteen feet, onto the
rocks and into the cold rushing water. So, after several minutes of
trying to decode the trick of the thing, I finally did what had to be
done and aborted the hike. Which meant that instead of 1.25 miles
downhill through cool water, we had 3.75 miles back uphill, in the
heat, and into the dry. But the great thing about these canyon hikes
is that they look and feel entirely different on the return than they
did on the way out. It's almost a brand-new experience. And so
everybody was still happy, and the kids returned through the stream
with watershoes instead of avoiding the stream in boots, and there
was much rejoicing. Until that last mile.
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| Sulphur Creek |
On our 3.75 mile descent of the creek, we crossed
the water sixteen times. For those of us who had never done the
Narrows at Zion, this was a unique experience that was unlike any
other hike we have ever attempted. With so much time in the water,
finding routes, climbing rocks, descending dry cascades and
waterfalls, it was the perfect adventure. And the views were simply
amazing. If you've ever been in a slot canyon, you know what I'm
talking about. The entire hike was fantastic... the first mile was
dry, and the rest that was in “the wet.” And the entire time we
looked forward to what lay ahead: The Narrows. An opportunity to
trade our well-worn hiking boots for sandals or water shoes and wade
through the incredible slot canyon.
But we all survived.
Mostly. Mom, Dad, Liz, Gabe, and I all ran dry, and my two liters of
reserve water got used up too. Right when we were at our hottest and
most ornery, however, we proved that laughter was the best medicine.
We reached the dry waterfall, and had to go up.
The Gowfolk, who were mightily embarrassed hiking at elevation at
Great Basin National Park, proved themselves young and spry. But Mom
got herself into a most unfortunate position, sprawled flat on her
belly safely at the edge of this spot, but unable to will herself out
of that position. For several minutes. Yes, we have video.
That
evening, we rewarded ourselves with dinner at Cafe Diablo. This is a
legit restaurant, serving not just food but cuisine.
You would be impressed with this place anywhere. The fact that it is
in Torrey, Utah, a town of four people (okay, it's officially 180,
but there's just no way unless they are all hiding) is astounding. I
love the rattlesnake cakes. They are like crab cakes, but, you know,
snake.
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| After surviving the terrifying climb |
Thursday, July 31. We set out,
again with the threat of thunderstorms, to make our way to Pleasant
Creek. We expected it to be the same sort of creekbed route we
followed at Sulphur Creek, and all of us were excited. While not as
remarkable as Capitol Gorge, the way to Pleasant Creek was our most
adventurous drive so far this summer. The road went from pavement to
gravel to dirt to doubletrack to the grass and weeds being taller
than the truck and right up against it.
Along the way we passed
through what we assume to be several 19th-century homesteads, with
the road/track passing right between the buildings, so close that you
can see inside. And so we finally made it to Pleasant Creek. Took
twelve minutes being sure we had all of our gear, getting on
sunscreen, etc. Headed down the path 100 feet to the creek, and
discovered that the creek was still completely swollen, and raging.
For the second time in two days, we had to abort. But the 100 feet
back to the truck was not nearly so taxing as our adventure at
Sulphur Creek.
Speaking of Sulphur Creek, we decided
to go to the visitor center and begin at the bottom of the Sulphur
Creek route to see how far we could get in the other direction. After
1¼ miles, we came to an eight-foot waterfall that, despite our best
efforts, just wouldn't let us travel in the upward direction. It was
all slickrock, without any handholds. I almost made it around on a
ledge but my sense of mortality/impending injury won out in the end.
So instead Kieran and Izzie played in the waterfall and its small
pool for 20 minutes, we had a lovely lunch, and finally retreated
back to the visitor center and then our campground to prepare for our
*snif* departure. Once again, we were treated to the view of a
fantastic desert thunderstorm, but it again kept us indoors when we
would rather be out. Capitol Reef averages about 7½ inches of rain
each year, and I'm pretty sure we've seen all of it this week.
We were climbing Loveland Pass with our five-ton camper
at 20 MPH, when, finally, after all of these weeks, the skies opened.
We were beset upon by wind, hail, and rain. So much of it that as
steep as the road is at that point, the road was actually flooding. I
only make a big deal of this because this whole summer, climbing that
pass has been on my mind. I have had nightmares about the road and
weather conditions, and every horror came true. But, unlike a number
of other drivers, our vehicle survived the climb and lived to fight
another day.
End of the line. We have another
overnight tomorrow (my Mama's birthday!) in Salina, Kansas, and then
will be spending two nights at Clinton State Park near Lawrence.
Never would have thought we would willingly spend three nights in
Kansas, but here we go. Clinton is a lovely park with hiking,
mountain bike trails, and a nice lake for the kayaks. After that we
make our way to Bowling Green, KY, which actually counts as work: Liz
and Kathy are doing a two-day professional development workshop
Thursday and Friday for Bowling Green teachers. While they are
slaving away, the rest of us will be hiking, visiting Mammoth Cave,
and touring the bourbon trail.
At that point, we will finally go our
seperate ways: Mom and Dad will make their way home, while the
Gowfolk go to visit Grandpa Gowman and my sister and Gow-Kern cousins
in Huntsville, Alabama. After that, finally, we return home. We hope
to see you soon.
Wagons..... East!
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