A "Hard-to-Find-the-Right-Adjective-Kind-of-Day"

Published on 22 September 2023 at 09:18

Thursday, 9/14/2023

We got up early and left before dawn, buying coffee and a wretched scone en route. We drove through Zion National Park with its tunnels and incredible sights as the sky lightened. Then we headed north towards Bryce Canyon National Park… about 1 1/2 hours away. It was very chilly there! We stopped at the park store and bought a magnet and postcards. I would have bought a lot more, but I resisted temptation.

We drove all the way to the end of the Park Road, only making stops on the way back down. Those stops included:
1) Rainbow Point. 9:30 AM, 50 degrees, 9,089 feet.
2) Black Birch Canyon. 9:50 AM, 8,750 feet.
3) Unnamed pullover. Early lunch.
4) Natural Bridge. 10:33 AM. Fantastic view!!!
5) Farview. Truly could see FAR! 10:42 AM, 8,819 feet.
6) Paria Point. 11:30 AM.
7) Peek-a-boo Loop. Here we left Porsche in the car. We absolutely loved that hike! We met a sweet couple from British Columbia. We hiked for over a mile and would have gone farther if time had allowed. It was a very steep, but easy trail.
8) Sunset-Sunrise. A short trail that was dog friendly. Beautiful final stop in Bryce Canyon.

From there we took several scenic, minor highways and ended up at Cedar Breaks National Monument. This was a complete surprise for us. There were very few people there, and it was breathtakingly beautiful! In many ways, it surpassed what we had seen in the rest of the day.

We took a long route back to Highway 89 via scenic Highway 14 east and then drove back through Zion National Park on Highway 9. I drove all day and didn’t get carsick! We decided to splurge and eat at Bit and Spur... a restaurant which allowed Porsche to sit under our table in their back patio area.