Bryce Canyon

Good morning all. Yesterday we spent all day driving the car around Bryce Canyon and The Grand Staircase at Escalante.  I took about 150 pictures the scenery is just spectacular, but pictures don't do it justice. We also stopped and took a hike back into a canyon to see a cave and a waterfall. When we left our campsite it was 6 am and 32 degrees. We stopped at McDonald's for breakfast to go and hit the road. On the way to Bryce we seen ice on the grass and fence where they were watering the fields. By the afternoon it was 85 and beautiful. It was a long drive and we took a shortcut home. We decided we would come in the back way over the mountain to our campsite, bad, bad decision. The paved road turned to dirt as we started up the mountain. The climb was so steep the car could barely make it. This was putting us in a very precarious position. If the car stopped moving up the mountain we would not get it moving again. The road was too narrow to turn around with loose rock and pot holes. Backing down would have been suicide, the switchbacks were way to sharp. I was very nervous and worried we would not make it. I thinjk the Prius has about 95 horsepower not enough. We needed a lifted four wheeled drive with a V-8 engine. When we finally reached the top at 13,000 feet we stopped and could smell the transmission belt burning, so we sat there and calmed down. The next 20 miles was a dirt logging road.

This Mule Deer better go hide, hunting season just started.

Bryce Canyon

Just spectacular scenery

This picture of the waterfall wes taken on our hike.

We finnaly mad it to the top of the mountain.

The good part was we did end up on the road we were camped on. As soon as we got back to the campsite it was time for a drink or maybe two? It was late and we were tired so we ran into down for dinner then came home and relaxed. So another exciting day in the mountains of Utah. Tight lines and safe travels.