Tuesday - September 4th

Kathy and I are currently in the town of Torrey and we've been hobnobbin' around Capitol Reef National Park.  We arrived late yesterday afternoon after a stop at Natural Bridges National Monument.  We viewed three bridges but decided not to hike down one of the trails as it was pretty darn hot out with a pretty steep descent which meant a pretty steep ascent.  We had hiked to see an ancient Indian cave previously and with the hot sun and little breeze, we decided we were sweaty enough. 

We crossed over the Colorado River at Lake Powell.  While at the viewpoint we watched another beautiful thunderstorm off in the distance.  Little did I know that we would be up close and personal to it!  Eventually we drove out of it and back into the sunshine.  Other than the spectacular views, we were passed by a speedy car going way over the speed limit (ask me I know because I was over the speed limit) who when she passed the SUV in front of me, hit her brakes eventually passed the SUV and you guessed it - she passed the sheriff.  I'm sure she received a pretty hefty fine. 
 
NERD ALERT:  Along with the don't drink and drive campaign, another high profile educational type message being shared is "Don't Bust the Crust".  One footprint can destroy what took 100 years to form Cryptobiotic.  It's part of the desert ecosystem and it is alive.  I've attached a photo of Cryptobiotic. 

Today we faced a bit of disappoint.  Due to all the rainfall that has occurred over the last two days, the road that would lead us to Cathedral Valley and the waterpocket fold was not in ideal condition.  So Plan B occurred which was a 2 mile hike to Hickman Bridge.  Now that I'm reviewing the stats of the hike, I don't feel bad as it was marked "strenuous" changing to "moderate".  We also stopped to look at petroglyphs or rock art. 

 Kathy at the Arches

 Self Portraits-Arches

 Petroglyphs

Cryptobiotics

Over the past few days, we've seen quite a sampling of what is the latest in fashion attire.  Or as I'd like to ask; "Did you not know you were going hiking today"?  We have seen hiking attire consisting of dress and heels, clunky jewelry, proper protective hiking attire with beaded chandelier earrings and a couple wearing a dress shirt/tie by the gentleman and a dress on the lady.  OK - so I think he just proposed to her based on her holding out her left hand and admiring a ring.  OK - I'll let that one go.  It was a lovely setting to propose.

We'll be out later this afternoon for a scenic loop around the park.