April 8
Today the weather is changing with wind and clouds coming in. We might had thunder and lightning by tonight with snow maybe tomorrow night. Spring is a slow process here. We drove down to Kodachrome Basin State Park on Hwy 12 east of the park. On the way we stopped at the Fairyland Lookout for another beautiful view of Bryce. We drove through the farming and ranching country that was settled in the 1870’s by the Mormons. Taking over the areas water supplies, the Paiutes were pushed out of the valleys. Ebenezer Bryce settled in the town of Tropi with his family in 1875 to harvest timber. His neighbors called the canyon behind his house Bryce Canyon.
Kodachrome Basin was named by a team from National Geographic who came to the area in 1948. Because of the beautiful colors and the ever changing light, they used the name Kodachrome after the new Kodak color film. It was pretty but small compared to what we have been seeing. We took a short nature trail. Utah and Arizona have really nice state parks with lovely camping facilities. They are usually small but have all the services in beautiful settings. Tonight we are going out for Mother’s Day dinner at the 1920’s Bryce Lodge. The dining room looks lovely with white table cloths and waiters wearing white shirts with black bow ties.



Kodachrome State Park





Pronghorn

 April 9
From shorts to fleece! We woke up to a beautiful sight with the trees covered with snow. There was at least 2 inches of snow on top of the Manor! We decided to take an unexpected drive through Red Canyon and then north along Hwy 89 to Richfield. That way we could see some new territory plus charge up the battery and not have to worry about running the heater later. We had seen the gorgeous Red Canyon with bright blue sky a couple of days ago and today had the chance to see it with snow. We stopped at the Visitor Center. They had great displays for children plus told the story of the Quilt Walk. The Quilt Walk revolves around the initial attempt to settle Panquitch, Utah in 1864. The first winter was brutal, food was scarce and the settlers were starving to death. A group of seven men, with a wagon pulled by oxen, set out to get food from Parowen, 40 miles to the west. In their weakened condition, the men struggled with every footstep, sinking up to their hips in snow. Eventually they abandoned the wagon and oxen and tried to continue. Finally deciding they could go no further, the held a prayer circle kneeling on a quilt. They realized they were not sinking into the snow. The men completed their journey by laying down quilts over the deep snow and walking across them, retrieving them and repeating the process over and over again. They made it to Parowin and back carrying the needed supplies on their backs. The trek became known as the Quilt Walk and is celebrated with an annual festival each year.
The long valleys along Hwy 89 going north were dotted with ranches spreading toward the mountains. Fields were already planted and green. Cattle and sheep were grazing along the swelling Sevier River. We drove through small, very small, towns stopping in Richfield for lunch. We looped around to the east and drove down the valley on the other side of the mountains back to Bryce. It was a beautiful ride with snow coming down now and then.
We are enjoying the comforts of home with the heater keeping us nice and toasty. Norm is a genius and has an extra battery set up in the Manor so we can charge our cell phones and run our computers without being hooked up to electricity. We are totally in the modern world. I’m not sure that is always a good or necessary thing but I do love having my computer and phone!

Snow!



Red Canyon




Red Canyon




The Genius




Christy with Her Bird Book and Me Sending a Blog - What a team!