Kanab, Utah: Zion & Bryce Here We Come

We left Lake Powell this morning and drove less than 100 miles to Kanab, Utah. Kanab bills itself as the home of the old Hollywood western movie. They also say the town is "Home of the Greatest Earth on Show".

On the way here we passed the old movie town/movie set of Paria, Utah, where dozens of spaghetti westerns were filmed. Pay close attention to the background scenery the next time you watch one of those old westerns. Chances are you are enjoying the wonderful scenery in the great state of Utah.

Our drive here today also included a visit to the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument which is almost 2 million acres of deep sandstone canyons, huge expanses of slick rock and a tremendous number of buttes and plateaus. This area was the last area mapped in the lower 48 and includes the last river to be named, the Escalante. 

Supposedly it includes many areas that have not been visited in the last 400 years -- we didn't visit those areas because -- well, because it would ruin this park's ability to say no one has been there 400 years.  I just wouldn't be able to sleep at night knowing MLA and I were responsible for eliminating one of this park's major attractions. 

The Grand Staircase is special because the land lies open with the many layers of the Colorado Plateau. Most visible are the cliffs or escarpments that show the transition from one layer to another. You can literally walk back in time if you can read the various layers: Tertiary, Cretacean, Jurassic, Triassic, & Permian are all on display.

MLA didn't get too excited over the various layers. She simply told me to take her to the area with the best colors (She was impressed by the dinosaur tracks we viewed yesterday during our tour of the Glen Canyon Dam).

From our central location we should be able to spend time in Zion and Bryce plus visit the many attractions in the Kanab area. 

Today I actually found a camera shop that specializes in film cameras. No digital camera's for this owner, no sirree. His shop was full of old Nikon's, Hassleblad's, Leica's, etc. I saw dozens of film cameras that previously I had only read about. His little shop was so stuffed with old cameras and lenses it was overwhelming. I may have to re-visit...

We should be here for  4 or 5 days before heading off to Moab, Utah to see The Arches National Park. Might even be able to squeeze in a visit to Capital Reef National Park.

There's just so many things to see in this part of the country.

See Ya!