Vegas to Escalante Utah

This is the part of the trip where having all of the parks closed was going to be the most painful. The original plan was to ride through Zion and Bryce Canyon and load up on some nice pic's. Closing the parks meant that we could ride "through" Zion but stopping and taking pictures was specifically forbidden. Bryce was flat out closed and there was no way to even pass through.

We managed to nab a few posed shots just outside the gate to Zion...

What is wrong with this picture?

I get the whole 'the parks are closed because we don't have any money' thing, I really do. But how exactly does letting someone pull over at a wide spot in the road to take a picture cost anything to provide? It's not like they normally have a ranger posted at every place where someone might take a picture to lend you a hand. Yet here they went out of their way to PREVENT you from stopping. It makes no sense - which sadly, since we're talking about government thinking, actually does make sense.

How much does it cost them to leave this "parking area" open I wonder?

An even sadder part - the park rangers were out trolling for speeders. I guess when they were deciding what was "important" the gathering of revenue from visitors took precedent over actually, you know, taking care of visitors.

Still an amazing place to "visit"

Since I had to shoot while on the move most of my pic's are pretty similar but better than nothing. The roads in Zion are chip-seal and the rock is native to the area giving them a signature red color.

Natural sculpting...

A blind shot over my shoulder of John taking in the scenery...

Even while moving the whole time Zion is still a spectacular place to see. The massiveness of the rock formations doesn't really come through in pictures but in person it's quite humbling.

The rest of the ride wasn't a photo-friendly but Utah has some of the best motorcycle roads anywhere - smooth, scenic, twisty and just plain fun. Since we skipped the parks we had extra time to kill on the way to Escalante so we added a loop though the Dixie National Forest. That loop took us west on 14, north on 148 towards Brain Head then back east on 143 to Panguitch. The views were awesome and the weather up there was pretty brisk with some good winds to make it a tad cool. The fall leaves were in full force at elevation which is not something I expected.

From Panguitch we just hopped down to UT12 and east to Escalante, again arriving just before dark. The original plan was to stay cabins at the Escalante Outfitters but they were booked so we opted for The Cowboy Country Inn just down the street. For the price it was very decent place to stay and if you're in Escalante I would recommend it. The amenities are pretty slim but the room was warm and the bed was one of the most comfortable I've ever found in a hotel. The rooms are each named and mine was called "The Antler Room" being decorated in a deer/elk theme...

Once situated we headed over to Escalante Outfitters for a bite to eat. I've eaten there on previous trips and it's one of those tiny places where the food is actually very good.

A calzone and salad...