Day 12 - God's Country.
(Parowan, Utah, to Gallup, New Mexico, 567 miles )
Our Route, Sunday August 4th , 2002
I knew this would be a day of spectacular scenery but what awaited us this day would redefine my concept of eye candy. We would witness mile after mile of twisty canyon roads and mountain passes through brilliantly colored geological formations. This day would be simply stunning.
After loading up our bikes and chowing down at the Day's Inn free breakfast, we got on I-15 and headed just 15 miles north where we took Highway 20 and 89 to head back to Panguitch. Just past this town we got on scenic route 12 for the final run into Bryce Canyon National Park. The drive to the park was beautiful but the park itself would prove to be even more attractive.
Our first stop at Bryce Canyon National Park was the visitor's center. We weren't there more than five or ten minutes when the fire alarm went off! Guess the place didn't like us. We took the hint and continued on into the park where the drive took us past many thousands of spire shaped geological structures called "hoodoos" that were colored many shades of red and yellow. The pictures below give a much better accounting of what these features looked like than what I can convey in writing:
Just a small part of Bryce Canyon. The bizarre shaped structures are known as "hoodoos".
More of the Canyons and Hoodoos of Bryce Canyon National Park.
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Ken readies his camera for a picture taking session of one of the many canyons.
Though we were enjoying Bryce Canyon, it was time to get on the road and crank out some serious miles. Our goal for the rest of the day was to wind our way through southern Utah to tour the national parks of Capitol Reef and Canyonlands and eventually make it to Gallup New Mexico by the end of the day, so off we went back onto Highway 24 heading east. Eventually we came to the town of Torrey where we turned right and cut through Capitol Reef National Park. At the Town of Hanksville we headed south on 95 and eventually crossed into Canyonlands National Park.
Of all the places that I have been to on this planet, nothing is as beautiful and awe inspiring as the scenery that one encounters on the drive through Capitol Reef and Canyonlands National Parks. Each twisting path through the brilliantly colored canyons seems to be more spectacular than the last. The pictures below only hint at the beauty.
Somewhere in Capitol Reef National Park
My ST in Capitol Reef National Park
L to R: Mick and Ken standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking Glen Canyon in Canyonlands National Park. Due to the lack of depth perception, this picture can't portray the scale of the terrain. Though extremely hard to see, there is actually a town in the background. At the base of the opposing red colored cliff and halfway between Ken and the right edge of the picture is the town of Hite.
After witnessing the stunning scenery of southern Utah's national parks, it was time to boogey on down the road. It was getting late and we had a long way to go before retiring for the night. At the intersection of Highway 95 and 191 we turned south then got on Highway 262 and headed east. At it's intersection with Highway 160 in Colorado we turned right and headed for the Four Corners Monument. When we discovered that the monument was a commercial entity that charged money to visit it, we turned around and got back on the main highway without seeing it. Looking back on it I wish I hadn't been so cheap. I guess the fact that they charged for it just struck me the wrong way at a time when I was getting tired and cranky. We put the Four Corners in our rear view mirrors and continued in a westerly direction on Highway 160 to the Navajo Indian Reservation town of Teec-Nos-Pos, Arizona. From there we took Highway 64 east to the town of Shiprock, New Mexico.
The drive to Shiprock was interesting because it reminded me of a ride through this area during my trip to WeSTOC 2000. Just like the ride in 2000, the weather in this very, very dry part of the U.S. decided to turn wet. Storm clouds were ahead of us to the east and the setting sun was at our back. The sun lit up the yellow desert floor but overhead and in front it was almost black from the rain clouds which provided a very interesting contrast in colors.
At Shiprock we stopped for a bite to eat and a well deserved rest at the local McDonalds. While there we met a guy who wheeled up to the establishment on a Harley Sportster. He told of travelling around the country on that little bike. My hat was off to anyone who would attempt long distance travel on such a small cruiser.
After finishing our meal, it was time to start the final 112 mile leg of the day's journey so out the door of the McDonalds we went to suit up. As we hopped on our bikes and entered Highway 666 headed south, all we could see were very dark, very menacing rain clouds up ahead. To make matters even more interesting, the sun was almost down and it was starting to get dark. It rained lightly on us at first but after the sun went completely down, it really started to pour. In addition, there was a lot of traffic headed south with us which made it a bit hairy. At Sheep Springs we pulled over to gas up and let the ball of traffic we were entangled in get away from us. Luckily, when we got back on the road the traffic was very light so we pushed on through the rainy night and arrived in Gallup, N.M. around 10:00 or 10:30 PM. Since it was so late and we were so tired, we didn't fool around with trying to find a cheap place to stay. We headed to the nearest "name brand" motel which turned out to be the Best Western Red Rock Inn.
As my head hit the pillow for the night, my mind was filled with the incredible scenery and great riding we had witnessed that day. I was somewhat sad because I knew it would be the last day of spectacular natural beauty. The next two days would be spent making miles down mostly interstate roads back to Houston. Whatever scenery remained would have to be viewed from the super slab.