Day 6 – to Bryce Canyon National Park

Knowing that we had just part of a day to spend at Capitol Reef National Park, Dad and I got up, got dressed, ate breakfast, packed the Teardrop, left the campsite and were parked at a trailhead by 8 a.m. for a quick 4.5-mile hike.

 We followed the Grand Wash trail – a dry creek bed that winds through a narrow canyon, with 1,000-foot cliffs looming above. With myriad slot canyons and rocky outcroppings, the area was once a hideout for the outlaw Butch Cassidy. Because the sun was still low and the cliffs are so high, we stayed in the shade for most of the hike. We wrapped up the jaunt just as the sun was getting high enough to burn off most of the shade -- and just as the trailhead parking lot was starting to fill up. Who has four thumbs, no sunburn and that sweet parking spot at the start of the trail? We do!

Ancestors of the modern-day Hopi, Zuni and Paiute tribes drew maps, clan symbols, deities, animals and calendars on the cliff walls … and documented their interactions with a race of alien robots.

Before lunch, we stopped in one of the orchards to gather some apricots. The park supplies pickers and even ladders for U-pickers who want to reach the top branches.

After a picnic lunch, we got back on the road. Another day, another scenic route. This time we drove the Highway 12 Scenic Byway between Torrey and Bryce Canyon National Park. The route – designated an “All-American Road” – climbs Boulder Mountain, its slopes covered in aspen and pine; crests a narrow ridge called Hogback, with khaki sandstone bluffs far below; and winds through Grand Staircase/Escalante National Monument. Seriously, Utah?! This is getting ridiculous. I am running out of words to describe the magnificent landscape.

As we drove through the town of Escalante, we came upon this charming hamburger stand – and treated ourselves to milkshakes.

Because it can be difficult to snag summertime reservations at national park campgrounds, I thought I was being clever by booking a campsite at Ruby’s Inn RV Park and Campground, just down the road from the entrance to Bryce Canyon National Park. I figured we can camp at Ruby’s, take the shuttle bus to the park and feel good about not contributing to the traffic congestion.

I had read that Ruby’s is an institution in Bryce Canyon City. In the early 1900s, Reuben “Ruby” Syrett and his wife, Minnie, built a lodge called “Tourist Rest” at the rim of Bryce Canyon. They soon added tent cabins and an open-air dance pavilion as well as a beauty salon, barber shop and a post office. When the National Park was established in 1928, the Syretts moved their business up the road. And there it remains. Today, the "town" of Bryce Canyon City is really just Ruby's sprawl: a grocery store, a souvenir emporium, a diner, a live country music dinner show, a horseback outfitter and a winter adventure center. And the actual inn – now a Best Western. 

 

So, when I couldn’t get a reservation inside the park, I thought camping at Ruby’s RV park would be fun. I think I figured that it would be like a KOA, only more homespun and less korporate. As a bonus, we would have hook-ups for the trailer, so we wouldn’t have to worry about filling the tank with water, or conserving battery power. We would be able to run the fan with abandon! Not to mention, access to hot showers – only the second campground on our itinerary to offer them.

 

When pulled into our campsite at Ruby’s this afternoon, we realized what a grave mistake I had made. What was I thinking? We are wedged into a driveway between two giant rigs. There is no grass, just gravel, and there is no way to tell where one “campsite” ends and the next one begins. It’s all just one big dirt parking lot.

 

The folks at one of the next campsites were not around when we arrived. But do you know what was? The full dog poop bags they just left at the side of their campsite -- which is technically the middle of our campsite. 

 

I immediately got on my phone and made a one-night reservation at the national park campround for tomorrow. (Thank goodness for somebody else’s last-minute cancelations, which free up national park campsites and make hard-to-come-by reservations a little easier to come by.) 

 

So, as I wiped away tears of disappointment and shame (I should have known better), Dad cheered me up and encouraged me to fully embrace the schlock that is Ruby’s. So rather than cook dinner at the depressing campsite tonight, we made reservations for the Live Country Music Dinner Show at Ebenezer’s Barn and Grill (part of the Ruby’s complex). 

 

So, at 7 p.m. we made our way across the road for the dinner show. We enjoyed a “cowboy” dinner – I had salmon, Dad had chicken – that included mashed potatoes and baked beans. The show was about to start when two late-comers were seated at our table. We chatted with them and found out that they are originally from China, that they both currently live and work in tech in the Bay Area – and that they both went to Purdue.

 

Dad and I actually really enjoyed the show, featuring Drew & Lacey, husband-wife bluegrass duo (plus a banjo player) performing three-part harmonies, fast-flying fiddle solos and plenty of mandolin and upright bass. We discovered that the banjo player, Ryan Tilby, is from Indiana and teaches music recording and technology at Purdue-Fort Wayne.

While we were away from our campsite, we fantasized about our next-door neighbors – the ones who left the dog poop bags. Maybe they have two labs! Maybe they used to be in the Armenian navy, and they are currently working as archeologists. Maybe we’re going to love them! Maybe we’re going to be best friends!

 

We returned to the campsite to find our next-door neighbor sitting out at his picnic table – so close to our Teardrop that he could reach out and rest his elbow on it. We greeted him enthusiastically. Without even looking in our direction, he grunted a “hello,” stood up and went straight into his RV. We are spending the night next-door to a serial killer. 

 

We showered and locked ourselves in the trailer. Can’t wait to get to that national park campground tomorrow!