the 7 wonders of Utah

our mini-tour of Utah has left us appreciative of the little things that make this state more than just "pretty great". while we didn't make it to all of the wonders - weather put a damper on the Sun Tunnels - we still had the chance to see both the serene and the surreal... from the quaint town of Huntsville nestled in the hills of Weber County, to the looming peaks of Fish Springs mountain range out in the west desert, to Paria Canyon's narrows on the Utah/Arizona border just southeast of Kanab. we drove through 15 of the 29 counties, put just under 2000 miles on our car and ate one giant scone. needless to say it was the most rockin'est spring break since 2001. here are some of the highlights:

in Huntsville we visited the Trappist monastery on several beautiful acres in the hills where we saw just how normal all the old monks were. it was business as usual so we rested in the chapel and bought some of the honey the monks harvest and all natural peanut butter.

shortly after we found ourselves in the company of a great blue heron, sandhill cranes and harriers at a waterfowl refuge near the Great Salt Lake and the town of Hooper. the snowy Wasatch made an incredible backdrop.






the next evening, at the One Man Band Diner we realized that we weren't the only ones out for a joy ride. but we didn't let it get us down. in fact, once we'd eaten, we felt the need to press on.


Notch Peak was covered in snow but Topaz Mountain, just an hour and a half north (on a dirt road) was covered with... not topaz, but obsidian. we actually got lost on the way back to the car because there were so many different trails, but eventually, we found it.

about a mile into Paria Canyon English's Chaco strap broke and the sandal was useless. hmmmm. yes, it's true... English is tough but how was he going to do the rest of our three-day hike in this fashion? i didn't know. i just had to have faith.

no less than a half hour later, we came upon a pair of old canvas boots someone had left on the shore. the boots had been there for a while (little mouse poos served as a dating method) so we felt better about borrowing them... that is, if they fit. to our surprise and much rejoicing, they were a perfect fit - size 12! and only minutes after that i found a check in my pocket for $300.00 - just enough for groceries and utilities. (just kidding. we honestly did see the hand of God in this situation and thanked Him on the spot).

the narrows were incredible! the water was a bit chilly but we got used to it. we crossed the state line into Arizona where we filled up our water bottles at a spring then headed up Buckskin Gultch - the longest stretch of narrows in the world! after that it was back to camp for some slightly gritty cous cous for dinner. grit is good.



the next day it was off to St. George where we stayed at a B&B that was built by English's great, great grandpa back in the pioneer days. i don't know if these folks are them but we thought, hey... why not? St. George had spring break written all over it.


on the way to Pine Valley (just outside of St. George) we drove through some camping areas and noticed this sign. English pointed out that it looked like a trailer taking a poo. at least it dug a hole.







one of our last stops on the trip was this pyramid on a polygamist compound out by Modena (a city near the Utah/Nevada border). we admitted it was somewhat of a disappointment. we were hoping for, well... something else i guess.


so, as you can see spring break 2006 rocked the house and our self-guided tour was totally sweet. it's nuts to think that while we were out doing all of this, a bunch of dopes probably went to Negril to stand calf-deep in the ocean and drink beer from neon green mugs they bought at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. whatever.