After about ten days on the road it was time to swing into a town to refuel and refill the fridge. Barstow lies on the edge of the Mojave National Preserve and also happened to be on our way to our next destination, so we made a few quick stops and then we headed out beyond Barstow for a few more days of adventure.
After our tour of several southern Utah National Parks it was time to settle in to Canyonlands for a few days. We left our camp along the Colorado River outside of Moab fairly early and stuck out for the White Rim Trail.
November brings some colder and wetter days to central Oregon. It was time to head south, for a week, southern Utah was the destination. It’s a bit of a drive to get there so the first day was all windshield time. We ended the day just as dark settled in at Cathedral Gorge State Park in Nevada. It seemed like a nice spot but it wasn’t until morning that we were able to get oriented. The sun was just up as we headed out but we stopped to take a look around before hitting the road. It looked like an interesting place surrounded by highly eroded hills.
A sign indicated that this picnic ramada was built by the CCC’s in 1934. 1934! They have apparently done a bit of maintenance on the willow thatch roof every so often, but what a testament to the value of the work done in those days.
After that it was on to our first destination, Zion National Park. Arriving on a Saturday we found the typical crowds encountered in most national parks these days. We were still able to find a place to camp that allowed a place to base a days worth of exploration out of.
The view from camp was entirely acceptable.
