It was another windy night in Zion. I got up around 7:30 with little enthusiasm to run. “I’ll just run at Dead Horse…” in the afternoon after driving 400 miles. So I started running down the Pa’ rus trail and began to feel fairly good. I ended up running to the Zion Lodge and then had a nice downhill run back to camp. Running through the canyon was indeed spectacular. I got back to camp and struck everything. I noticed now my back tire on my bike was flat. I pumped it up and wondered why it went flat. The tube held air, so the tube didn’t pop. I noticed the value stem leaked air if it wasn’t perfectly vertical. I do have two replacement tubes so the plan was to swap them out tonight at camp.
I decided to drive up highway 89 through the tunnel. It’s a road that was built to link Zion and Bryce together. About a mile up, there is a terrific tunnel which would kill a guy if you tried to hold your breath through it. They even cut out enormous holes so one can see out, although you are doing 40 mph, so look fast. Not sure why, but they only allow one direction through the tunnel at a time, although it is a two-lane road. On the other side there are hiking trails which I did not take — it’s a 5+ hour drive to my next. camp. The views, however, are incredible I’m sure. The road gave some interesting perspectives on the canyon. I flipped around after another half mile past the tunnel and headed back down and out of the park.
I had a long drive, so I listened to a lot of Gene Krantz’s book about NASA’s mission control. I stopped for lunch and saw the world’s worst intersection (Let’s drive on the left side.) Got bug repellant and headed out again on I-70. I suppose heading towards “Canyon Lands” should have prepared me, but there are some big-ass holes in the state of Utah. Serious canyons. Did they mislabel the Grand Canyon? Is this the “Not half bad” canyon. I did take some pics while driving — not the world’s safest of actions. Then carried on to Dead Horse State Park.
When you’re married to a horse trainer, staying at “Dead Horse State Park” sounds a little onimous. I wasn’t particularly sure where I was going; I was just following Suri, or Alexa or whoever the Android voice is telling me where to go. Whoever she is got me there. The country looks very Birney-esque. Safe, juniper trees, cactus, and red dirt. The campsite is very manicured, with an aluminum canopy with two walls. The fire pits were devoid of ash. It was around 90 when I got here at 6:00 PM. I had some dinner and set off to explore my surroundings. I rode the black top and then saw what looked like an impressive view just beyond an empty campsite. I walked along further and came across an incredible canyon. Whereas Zion was filled with people, there wasn’t a soul here. Super quiet and very peaceful, and the biggest hole in the ground. The sun was setting, so the light on the eastern walls was fabulous.
I walked back to my bike, and returned to camp. It was getting dark now, so I started a duraflame fire. I retired to bed without any wind. Very tranquil. Tomorrow, I plan on going to the visitor’s center here and riding some easy loops. Then I’ll head off to hike in Canyon Lands. There’s a program at 8:00 here, so either I’ll do that, or go to Arches.
Pushing hard today ... 