Tuesday, September 14, 2010
This morning we did manage to get up by 8:00, have breakfast and leave to find out our fate in the lottery. (Didn't quite have time for a leisurely cup of coffee at camp.) On the way to the Ranger Station Steve said he had a better plan for us for the next two days even if we did win the lottery. (If our name was called we'd need to figure out a hike today, then do the Wave tomorrow.) We decided to go ahead and find out if we were lucky and possibly give our spot away if we did win. As it turned out there were 59 people vying for the 10 spots. Needless to say, we didn't win.


We decided to head up Cottonwood Canyon Road
a 47-mile dirt road that cuts through the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.
We had traveled on this road once before, probably 12 or 13 years ago. Steve and I and the kids were driving from Phoenix back to Salt Lake and thought it might be fun to drive up this road for a change of pace. It had rained the night before and the sky was very overcast. Tony, who was 11 or 12 read the sign that said "Impassable when wet" and stated that we shouldn't be driving on this road; we might get stuck. Well, we ignored him and went on. When the dirt on this road gets wet, which it was, it turns into "moon mud,"but Steve was driving the Suburban and did do a great job on the traction-less soil. (We did come across a car that was stuck that we helped get out.) We managed to make it all the way, but I was sure Tony would never venture out into the great outdoors; that he would find himself a nice little cubicle to work in. Little did I know that he would eventually become a State Ranger! (You never know about your kids!)


On this Tuesday, however, it was sunny and warm - not a cloud in the sky. If anything, it had been so long since any rain fell that it was tricky driving because of the fine, talcum-like powder the road had turned into. It was an interesting drive, through all different kinds of geological formations.









Midway down this road, in the middle of nowhere and not seeing anyone for miles, we get buzzed by two Air Force jets. It was a bit of a surreal moment.


Eventually we made it to Grosvenor Arch. After we circumnavigated the area we discovered that there are really three arches.




Here's Steve standing in front of the third arch.










After lunch we left the arches and headed to Kodachrome Basin State Park, someplace neither of us had been to before. It is a very nice, small park with free hot showers in the campgrounds! We found a place to camp, popped the top and rested for a couple of hours until it was late afternoon. Then we headed to Shakespeare Arch and saw some interesting pictographs along the way.