Our
motel room had a great view of part of the 100 mile long cliff of the
Waterpocket Fold, seen through the rear double glass door that let out onto
the balcony. At night, we left the door next to the bed open and pulled the
curtains aside and enjoyed the view in the evening and again in the morning.
We drove along this cliff for many miles, stopping at some features along
the way, including an overlook for Sulfur Creek in a deep gorge (photos 3,
4, and 5). We drove into the deep and narrow Capitol Gorge through the
Waterpocket Fold and continued past the end of the paving to the parking
area at the end, then walked further until heat discouraged us from
continuing. It was interesting to find here a rock wall with many dated
signatures of pioneers who had passed through this narrow passageway on
their way west. We also saw the remains of settlements and farms, now museum
pieces.
We
stopped at a gas station and store that had been cut into the rock in
Hanksville, with
only
the door showing outside the rock, then we drove on to Arches National Park
and Moab, Utah. It may have been near here that we were stopped on the main
highway by a cattle drive up the road, with cowboys and all. It seemed
(almost) straight out of old cowboy movies...
