By KURT G. TOPPEL
We have a two-week time share in Brianhead, way up in the southern Utah mountains’at 9,600 feet, to be precise. On a clear day the International Space Station is easily visible with the naked eye. Usually there is plenty of snow for the 10 ski lifts. I know from past experience that a 24-hour ‘mountain high’ is associated with the transport of our gear from the car, up the 40 stairs to our unit. After all, we usually include six weeks worth of food for 10, a mid-size library, ski, rain, hiking and Las Vegas formal wear and we stop just short of igloo construction equipment and spare chandeliers. There wasn’t much skiing this year. Either the slopes were too icy or a blizzard was in progress, not exactly ideal conditions for senior citizens. So my wife Haldis proposed a one-week excursion to Moab and two national parks: Canyonlands and Arches in northern Utah, near the Colorado border. Great idea! En route we stopped at Ruby’s Inn, the gateway to Bryce Canyon. We arrived just in time to see the canyon in all its red-and-white winter glory, oodles of digital photos worth. Unfortunately, Ruby’s great restaurant was being refurbished, so we drove to Foster’s, four miles away, known for their superb steaks. Just before we got there, a blizzard was beginning to dump a lot of white stuff. But I was traveling with my wife, and she has a way with the weather. The storm ended exactly when we were done eating. We even made it back to Ruby’s without chains! The next day was Sunday. We decided to drive to a place called Tropic that Haldis thought she had seen from up in Bryce. We were going to have breakfast there. Unfortunately in Utah they don’t serve breakfast to strangers on the day of the Lord. In fact, we were lucky to find a credit card- operated gas station. Since the weather seemed to be fine, we decided to take scenic Highway 12 to get to Moab. What a treat: The incredible vistas, the petrified forest park, the Anasazi ruins, the deer herds crossing the road, the Indian petroglyphs we found and studied in the last rays of the sinking sun. It was a trip we’ll never forget. We even got a belated breakfast in Escalante and bought some Indian jewelry and a gorgeous painting at depressed winter prices at the Anasazi museum. Finally we reached Moab and our destination, the Bighorn Lodge. Our hotel room had an unobstructed view of the snow-covered La Sal mountains. In our room we found a refrigerator and a microwave. A well-stocked market was right across the street. It was a perfect arrangement, and all for the incredible winter special weekly rate of $180! We spent an adventure-filled week exploring both Arches and Canyonlands. We visited the Moab museum. We took little side trips along the Colorado River and ate at a restaurant that used to be the residence of a uranium millionaire. You have to admire Mother Nature and her creativity. Here you find hundreds of sculptured rocks, single ones and entire formations. A 300-ft. Nofretete, a huge balanced rock that might tumble down from its perch sometime during the next millennia. There are the petrified giants, replicas of prehistoric monsters and even things that could be considered X-rated if you are inclined to so interpret the inkblots of a Rorschach test. There weren’t many visitors that time of the year. The air was incredibly clear. The unreal redness of the rock formations, the white of the snow and the ever-changing shadows created by the wandering sun turned the entire landscape into wondrous fairytale scenery. We discovered and used lovely little trails, and marveled at the wildlife that was everywhere, from Bighorn sheep to rabbits and amazingly well-fed rodents and birds from curious ravens looking for handouts to soaring eagles. We are still in the process of paring down our digital images to a manageable number. There is no viable target date yet, but when we get done you are more than welcome to download all of them. To top off our adventure trip, we decided to stop in Jean, Nevada, tired out by driving through blizzard conditions and torrential rains. The Goldstrike, where we got the last room available, lived up to its name. Five minutes before our scheduled departure I hit a $780 jackpot! One thing is certain: We shall go back to Moab to investigate and explore what we missed. (Kurt Toppel, a Palisades resident since 1958, has been Citizen of the Year and remains active in community affairs as a member of PRIDE and the Community Council.)
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