Utah 2019: Days 12-13

May 12th-13th, 2019
​Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah
​Page, Arizona

Day 12

On Day 12, Ian got back in his truck and pointed it toward San Diego. He had a 7-8 hour drive ahead of him and he was anxious to get back before Game of Thrones came on at 6pm local time. He's a devotee, apparently.

After Ian left, Laura, Mick, Alison and myself returned to Bryce Canyon for the day. The weather was postcard-perfect this time (unlike our previous, snowstorm-bound attempt) and so we took the opportunity to photograph all of the vistas that were shrouded in clouds the first time. As for hiking, Mick and Alison descended the Queens Garden Trail, which I had done last time with Ian, while Laura and I had a much more leisurely stroll along the rim.

All in all, it was a wonderful, relaxing day.

Day 13

For our penultimate day here in the southwest, we decided to visit Lake Powell, a large reservoir that backs up behind the Glen Canyon Dam on the Colorado River. It is the second-largest man-made reservoir in the United States, behind Lake Mead that is formed by the Hoover Dam on the same Colorado River. However, because of lower water levels in Lake Mead in the 21st century, Lake Powell has been the larger reservoir during the last couple of decades.

We stopped to visit the dam and then took a ride on a tour boat on the lake. After both of those, we stopped at Horseshoe Bend, an iconic view of the Colorado River and also the Navajo Bridge, where US 89A crosses the Colorado. The bridge opened to great fanfare in 1929.

Best of all, we saw two California condors, an adult and a juvenile! There are pictures of them below, although they are difficult to identify in the photos unless you know what to look for. Pay attention to the pictures of the steel suspension bridge and look for the black smudges.

We then made our way back to our bed and breakfast for the night in Kanab, Utah. It was quite dark in the desert, as is usual, and so it was somewhat of a harrowing 75-mile drive back at the late hour. We passed many a deer grazing by the road side, but managed to avoid them all.

Photos, Day 12

Photos, Day 13