Day10 Scipio to Torrey via Capitol Reef

Utah is Mormon country and everything tends to be tidy, roads are wide, houses are more finished and since we neared Scipio irrigation seems to be no problem even to the point of neat manicured lawns around some buildings. An total contrast to Nevada and the deserts.

Leaving the town, the whole area is softer on the eye with a gentle green even through the golden late summer pasture. Agriculture now includes tall fields of sweetcorn and cows graze in the wide valleys. An addition decoration is would sunflowers growing in the verges.

Progressing south east through pleasant lands and finished small towns we curve gently around and over the country with very few long straight roads.

Passing our hotel for tonight at Torrey, we carry on toward Capitol Reef and bending around an escarpment
we are suddenly faced with the extraordinary red country of Southern Utah which we will be exploring over the next few days.

Exploring the Capitol Reef National Park is largely driving scenic roads and tracks. We extended the 12 mile scenic drive along a metalled road by a further 2 miles of un-metalled road into a gorge with massive vertical red walls and then parking at the end we hike the trail along the Capitol Gorge Road which one carried traffic through to the next valleys. On the walls of the gorge are pictograph's (drawings) from early native American inhabitants and then names and messages from pioneers from the late 1800's through to the 1930's.

On the way back down the scenic road we diverted again into Grand Wash Road, again un-mettaled, and wound leaving a trail of dust through the gorge. The term 'wash' means that this dry sandy channel is actually a flood in storms and warnings are displayed not to enter if storms are due. An enjoyable ride and interesting for being part of the actual area that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid hid out in.

More roads with some local history of families and schooling where shacks and building still stand then back to the hotel for a sensible time. Made use of the indoor pool and the hot tub then drove to a bar the other side of town for a meal.

The Saddlery was a cowboy themed bar restaurant with music most nights but not this so was quiet. Poo, table down one entire side of the room and a dance floor at one end. We decided this was definitely the place for steak but, though everything else was great, my medium-rare was well done. I did the un-British thing of pointing this out when ashed how is everything. I declined a replacement as it would disrupt our meal but was please to be given a discount and apology when the bill arrived.