Away to a waypoint

It felt like time to move on from Bryce Canyon. No particular reason other than my impulse to keep moving. But first a shower at the park’s general store. Three bucks for a token that’s good for five minutes. The token might have no cash value, but a nice hot shower makes me feel like a million bucks.

Although I had stocked up rather well in Kanab there were a couple of items I could only get at Walmart. The closest ones were in Cedar City to the west, Hurricane to the southwest, and Richfield to the north. Going to Cedar City would mean going over an 11,000 foot pass. Going to Hurricane would mean crawling through Zion National Park. Richfield — the farthest away — would be a leisurely drive, except for a few miles of I-15. And it would put me in better position for Cedar Breaks, Capitol Reef, Bears Ears, and Moab.

Having chosen Richfield, I had a few route options. I could go west on Highway 12 then take US89 all the way to Richfield. But I have driven that way many many times. Or I could take Highway 22/Johns Valley Road north through Black Canyon to Highway 62, then north to Highway 24 and west on Highway 119. I have been that way once before, only in the other direction. Or I could do a combination of the two, cutting through Kingston Canyon between 89 and 22. I had never driven Kingston Canyon, so that’s what I chose.

So I got my stuff at Walmart, and I filled the tank, but now what? It was late afternoon and I needed to decide where to spend the night. About nine or ten years ago I had overnighted at Walmart and the Flying J. Eh, I’d rather not. So I headed up into the mountains and found a spot with a view of the valley. It was a little trashy with a few beer containers scattered about, and a couple of deer carcasses, but it would do for a night. 

The Rolling Steel Tent hiding behind some trees

Now I’m off into the land of spotty cell service and spotty population. Oh, and weather that might be warmer than I’d like. But new experiences, man.